Mid-Century Entertaining: A Yule Log Centerpiece

Written by Lindsay Goranson for Mid-Century Everyday

It is often referenced, but do you know what a Yule Log is? The history of the Yule Log is one that goes back ages. And I do mean AGES. So, I won’t get into that here, but if you’re a mid-century oogler (and I know that you are), you’ve likely most often seen them as a centerpiece! So I thought with company literally on the way to your house at this very moment, we could make a festive centerpiece for your holiday table.

Photo by Lindsay Goranson for Mid-Century Everyday

Customarily you would gather nearly everything you need from your yard or from a family walk or hike. But I had company on the way, so I ended up posting on my neighborhood Facebook page asking if anyone had a holly bush I could get some clippings from and a good sized log. I had an astonishing number of neighbors reach out saying I could cut their whole holly bush down!

Living in Nashville, my access to evergreen trees is nearly zero, but luckily our neighborhood hardware store is selling trees, so I asked if I could have some boughs that had be trimmed from trees. Bam. Greenery! Just like for my holiday wreath, here.

Everything else came from Goodwill. You know what they say. Use it up. Wear it out. Make due. Or do without! {cont…}

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Dear Miss Monday: Perfect Pie Crust

Written by Lindsay Goranson aka Miss Monday for Mid-Century Everyday

Dear Miss Monday,

I’m having my extended family over for Christmas dinner this year. I’ve got a perfectly classic dinner planned, but I’m worried about my pie crust! All of my vintage cookbooks have great pie recipes in them, but I usually opt for the crust in the freezer section in fear of something that tastes and feels more like cardboard. Are there any tips that might take me to the next level of Betty Crocker bakery?

Thank you!
Always Crumbly in Cincinnati

Dear Ms. Cincinnati,

You are not alone! There are a lot of classic home bakers that fear homemade pie crust above everything except the ever towering soufflé. In fact, every book I have in my vintage cookbook hoard dedicates pages and pages to pie. After all is there anything any more mid-century than apple pie?

Photo taken by Lindsay Goranson for Mid-Century Everyday

OK, maybe Eames. Or starbursts. Or… OK, there are a lot of things more mid-century. But pie is pretty dang classic.

Well, I’ve got good news. Everyone can bake a perfect pie crust every time with just a couple of quick tips. And you can do it in advance, so not only will you be ready for the day of, you’ll have time to pop by the grocery if you end up with a pie crust that’s declared war on your perfectly mid-century holiday table. {cont…}

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Dear Miss Monday: The Case of the Dusty Drink

Written by Lindsay Goranson aka Miss Monday for Mid-Century Everyday

“Dear Miss Monday,

I just got married and all of our wedding gifts have been so beautiful and sweet. But one gift has been causing some dispute in our home. We were sent a beautiful decanter for our brand new bar cart. I keep telling my new husband to fill it with his favorite bourbon, but he disagrees that it’s supposed to hold liquor all the time. My research on the subject comes from watching Mad Men and their office bars and constant daytime cocktails. His opinion comes from a friend of ours who he says always has “dusty tasting drinks.” So can you settle this? Is it classiest to keep the decanter filled or wait until we’re drinking?”

—Bartending Bride

Photo by Lindsay Goranson for Mid-Century Everyday

Dear Mrs. Bride,

No one wants to raise a dusty drink in celebration to newly vowed nuptials! But decanting your booze may or may not be the culprit of off-tasting spirits

To decant or not to decant.
That is the real question.

Decanters were originally used to get your booze out of the barrel and back to your home (or get your wine sans sentiment). But because spirits are a finished product by the time they reach you in the bottle there is not necessarily an advantage or disadvantage to keeping that fine aged whiskey corked OR decanted. I’ve seen it said that a 15-year-old scotch will always be a 15-year-old scotch. No matter how long you wait to open it.

However, not all decanters are created equal. Which could crack The Case of the Dusty Drink. There are two factors that might contribute to a dismally decanted spirit. The stopper and the scrub. {cont…}

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Dear Miss Monday: For the Love of Vintage

Written by Lindsay Goranson aka “Miss Monday” for Mid-Century Everyday

“Every time my [family member] comes over on holidays they talk about how dated everything is and needs to be updated. How do I get them to understand about my love for vintage and keep quiet?”

Photo by Julia Steele for Apartment Therapy

A home without well-crafted furniture, streamlined design, and pre-loved decor? I can’t even imagine it. It’s too horrible.

Although in reality most people do live surrounded by relatively contemporary furniture that likely didn’t need to be darned, de-wobbled, or deeply sanitized before nestling into. Not everyone has a taste (or the constitution) for the stuff. And honestly, thank goodness! That means there’s more for just us! {cont…}

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To Create A Creative City

What does your ideal city look like? Affordable housing? Strong employment opportunities? Great schools? Public transportation? Green spaces? A vibrant arts community?

The 2015 Mayoral Candidates for Nashville, TN were invited by Beth Inglish McMillian and Nashville Creative Group to do just that, imagine their ideal city and discuss the value and experience of creativity.

Together, the candidates and the creatives, were given construction paper, pompons, soda can tops, and pipe cleaners from Scrap Made Art to envision what could be possible in cities built from scratch. As the dust settled on the new skylines of riverside cafes, green spaces, museums, schools, business centers, and bike paths there was an opportunity to sit and talk about plans for the future of a real creative city, Nashville, TN. {cont…}

To read the rest of the article, visit Medium.com.

© Heather LeRoy http://www.heatherleroyphotography.com