517902 Sat May 10 19:23:27 -0700 2008 131 29 Not About Food 0 3675707 I do. I collect: cutting/bread boards/chopping blocks rolling pins pepper mills heavy pots and pans butter dishes old kitchen gadgets such as egg beaters/flour sifters/dough cutters, etc. I was wondering if anyone collects things for their kitchen too. Is there a site where we can exchange or trade things with each other? Think it'd be a great idea. Sat May 10 19:23:29 -0700 2008 23096 iL Divo 1 3675823 I have an uncontrollable compulsion toward food storage containers and bowls. There are so many other items I really NEED, but these are the two things I keep buying. Bowls are like shoes, right? You can never have too many... Sat May 10 20:42:22 -0700 2008 3675707 82243 ArikaDawn 2 3681044 oh my gosh, another person who adores bowls, ME TOO Mon May 12 18:43:32 -0700 2008 3675823 23096 iL Divo 3 3721095 I once spent the good portion of a weekend, searching for the "just right" bowls for cereal. I noticed that all the bowls I had only held a small portion of cereal and I always had to add another serving. I wanted a bowl that would hold just the right amount. Well, I'm here to tell you, there are alot of bowls in this world. Searching the web was very enlightening. Mon May 26 09:15:10 -0700 2008 3681044 40385 othervoice 4 3721379 It's so true. And I have different bowls for all kinds of things. I have just the right size bowls for ice cream, another set for soups and chili, another set for small salads, another big set for saucy pasta, plus serving, mixing and mise en place bowls in all kinds of sizes and materials. Glass, ceramic, stainless steel. And I love and use them all. :) Mon May 26 11:26:15 -0700 2008 3721095 63569 flourgirl 2 3681966 I could join Stainless Steel Anonymous. Seriously, I do a lot of Chinese food. It is not unusual to use a dozen prep bowls for a meal. BB Tue May 13 06:13:03 -0700 2008 3675823 40761 Big Bunny 1 3675844 Oh, don't get me started! Well, since you asked ---- here's what I collect: - Egg cups - Chopstick rests - Food tins (like candy tins, cookie and cracker tins, tea tins, etc.) - Airline-size liquor bottles (empty, of course) - Honey jars (the decorative kind, usually shaped like beehives, but sometimes like pots, and even - oh still my beating heart - like a bee itself) My husband collects swizzle sticks with advertising on them, European glass change dishes with food logos (like chocolate), and keychains that advertise or are in the shape of chocolate. And this isn't counting things that accumulate even though I don't collect them on purpose, like sets of measuring spoons (I have 6 or 7), wooden spoons, and cutting boards. But I'm not trading any of this stuff. I love it and I'm going to keep it! Anne Sat May 10 20:54:15 -0700 2008 3675707 12541 AnneInMpls 2 3675861 You reminded me, my DH collects both chopsticks and beer steins. It's so funny the process he goes through trying to decide which set to take when we go out for dinner. Sat May 10 21:04:27 -0700 2008 3675844 82243 ArikaDawn 2 3679395 It's really not much compared to serious collector types, but I do have about 200 cookie cutters. Mon May 12 10:55:36 -0700 2008 3675844 12806 curiousbaker 3 3679422 That's a lot, even so! But for a baker, I suppose having lots of cookie cutters is a good thing. Are they all different? Antique, odd ones? Curious as to what you've found out there. (I'm not going to collect them; just curious.) Mon May 12 11:01:02 -0700 2008 3679395 10532 LindaWhit 4 3679544 I look for odd ones, though I haven't bothered with antiques. I really just like the idea of having a huge assortment of possible shapes at my disposal. Some of my favorites are an elaborate Chinese dragon, a big (8 inch or so) pig, a rook (chess piece), a ballerina, and several different moose (I vacation in Maine a lot). I like the miniature sets - leaves, insects, butterflies, flowers. These can be used for mini-cookies or for cutting marzipan for decorating cakes, so they're really functional. But sometimes it's just fun to have something people don't expect, like a nice turtle. Who doesn't like a nice turtle? The weirdest one I have is a Jesus fish, about 7 inches long or so. Someone gave it to me. I'm not particularly religious, so I haven't had a chance to use it, but if anyone asks me for oversized cookies for a retreat, I'm good to go. Mon May 12 11:28:02 -0700 2008 3679422 12806 curiousbaker 5 3679591 VERY cool, interesting cutters! Thanks for the explanation. Always interesting to hear how collectors get into their obsession and what types of things they have. Mon May 12 11:39:35 -0700 2008 3679544 10532 LindaWhit 3 3689486 I collect cookie cutters too. I have a lot of graduated sets of one shape (stars, hearts, fluted squares, circles, even feet!) I love miniature cutters too. Have a ton of those. I also collect vintage cookie cutters made by a PA tinsmith sometime in the 1980s. They are flat back cutters made to look antique and all of them are really designed well. I have a pig, cat, fish, raven, 3 different hearts, a snowman, a rabbit, a heart in hand and a huge noah's ark all made by the same artist. I use them and hang them in my kitchen as "art". Thu May 15 07:54:41 -0700 2008 3679395 63569 flourgirl 3 3705129 I don't think I quite have two hundred cookie cutters, but it's close. I have them stashed in several large tupperware containers and drawers according to season/events. My most coveted items are my Hammersong line of cookie cutters. They are so intricate and beautiful, perhaps a little pricey, but incredibly well made. You can see them here: http://lacuisineus.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=39 Also, I have enough tart/pie/cake pans to open a bakery. It's crazy! Tue May 20 10:24:08 -0700 2008 3679395 160726 luvarugula 4 3715346 OMGoodness!! It's a good thing I didn't know about Hammersong cookie cutters when the children were young and we were making cookies together. They're gorgeous. I must have about 100 cutters just sitting in a container on a back shelf in the pantry. Just not into cookies any longer. :-( Fri May 23 11:52:41 -0700 2008 3705129 75332 Gio 5 3715357 I'm thinking perhaps curiousbaker or luvarugula might be interested in those cutters. :-) Fri May 23 11:55:42 -0700 2008 3715346 10532 LindaWhit 6 3715401 Really? I'll have to track them down. Thanks Linda. They're really not anything special but some are quite nice. And, they're old.... I really need to start clearing out stuff I don't use and try not to buy things to replace them. I'm even considering all those green handled things too. Wish CH had a bulletin board so we could list things like this. Fri May 23 12:08:25 -0700 2008 3715357 75332 Gio 7 3715428 I am totally with you on this one. I started a thread on another foodie board for sharing or trading and it went no where. I was hoping it could be like a I have this, do you want it, want to buy it or give it away? type thing, but again, it didn't work. Fri May 23 12:15:09 -0700 2008 3715401 23096 iL Divo 5 3715422 oh oh oh oh, can I have 'em? *) Fri May 23 12:13:18 -0700 2008 3715346 23096 iL Divo 6 3716355 Have what? :-) E-mail me - the address is on my profile..... Fri May 23 18:01:51 -0700 2008 3715422 75332 Gio 7 3725246 those green handled things you have hanging around the house. I collect I them too. Okay, I'm done with this collecting thing, oh no I bet I'm not .... My husband says it's a sickness I tell ya, a sickness. Tue May 27 16:51:44 -0700 2008 3716355 23096 iL Divo 1 3675927 I collect fridge magnets. often food related, but not always. Unfortunately, I have limited space for my collection, so I have to be very choosy about what I buy. Sat May 10 21:48:46 -0700 2008 3675707 89969 moh 1 3676307 Absolutely. I collect wooden spoons. Not ones with writing on them or decorated with paint, but old hardwood, wooden spoons or stirrers - *usable* spoons. They have to be the right size - not too long, not too thick in the bowl, an interesting shaped bowl or carving on the handle. I have about 5 I use all the time, but I just counted them - I have 31 of them. And I've got family and friends who help me in my obsession when we go antiquing - if I haven't already spied the item, they'll pull it out and say "How's this one?". :-) While I don't collect cutting boards, I do have 7 of them. I also have some old wooden handled kitchen tools--a meat fork and a skimmer, cookie/dough cutters in graduated sizes in their original tins, and some old kitchen gadgets--a child's sifter, a few old whisks/beaters, tin scoops--all hung on a small antique hat rack that hangs on my wall. Oh! I almost forgot - Christmas-related molds or cake tins - Santa and Rudolph cake tins, and a few old Christmas candy molds take up another wall in my kitchen. And finally, I have a full set of 8 (I think) of old (1950's?) composition bobble head wine bottle stoppers similar to this one: http://cgi.ebay.com/Irish-Leprechaun-Bobble-Head-Bottle-Stopper-Cork_W0QQitemZ110250581703QQihZ001QQcategoryZ10903QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Obsession? Yes. Will I probably buy more at Brimfield next weekend? If I find the *right* thing - absolutely. :-) Sun May 11 07:02:14 -0700 2008 3675707 10532 LindaWhit 2 3676404 Shawnee salt & peppers, cookie jars, old wooden rolling pins, Franciscan Ware Autumn. There are many things on my "to collect" list but until the kitchen is remodeled...Bavarian tomatoes and more that I just can't think of so maybe I'll post again. Sun May 11 08:05:32 -0700 2008 3676307 98631 Fru 2 3696938 The count of wooden spoons/stirrers is now up to 33 after yesterday's trip to Brimfield. :-) Sat May 17 15:17:05 -0700 2008 3676307 10532 LindaWhit 1 3676583 We collect cheese-related objects- old cheese boxes, old cheese slicers and cutters, cheese labels, etc. Sun May 11 09:48:01 -0700 2008 3675707 161840 cheeseguysgirl 1 3677618 Antique and unusual cork screws. My favorite: a 5" long antique sperm whale's tooth carved into an eagle's head w/ a wrought iron screw coming out of the middle. Beer coasters, beer glasses, chop sticks & holders, menus, cast iron cookware, and my wife collects back scratchers. Sun May 11 18:20:17 -0700 2008 3675707 93538 Passadumkeg 1 3679239 I collect salt and pepper shakers. I've got hundreds of them from everywhere. Some are over 100 years old. I also have quite a few culinders. I am certqainly not lacking for bowls. Mon May 12 10:24:03 -0700 2008 3675707 116638 southernitalian 1 3679404 I collect pottery water pitchers from the 30's and 40's. I do use them... for serving drinks, but also for flowers. Mon May 12 10:57:29 -0700 2008 3675707 28006 Jennalynn 2 3680758 When my kitchen is done, I would love to collect Deruta. Mon May 12 16:49:33 -0700 2008 3679404 98631 Fru 3 3681068 what's Deruta Mon May 12 18:53:27 -0700 2008 3680758 23096 iL Divo 4 3681169 http://www.derutaitaly.com/ http://www.deruta.net/ It's an Italian hand-painted pottery....faience and Majolica are two of the "styles" I believe. Mon May 12 19:32:14 -0700 2008 3681068 10532 LindaWhit 5 3684533 I have antique Deruta plates that I adore.... I use them at holidays, but it scares me to.... I love just looking at them. Tue May 13 18:21:18 -0700 2008 3681169 75332 Gio 6 3685660 The vibrant colors just remind me of Tuscany or Spain - not that I've ever been to Tuscany or Spain. :-) Wed May 14 07:21:49 -0700 2008 3684533 10532 LindaWhit 3 3681177 Deruta is beautiful. This is the kind of thing I collect: http://hallchina.home.att.net/index2.htm Mon May 12 19:34:27 -0700 2008 3680758 28006 Jennalynn 4 3683656 I LOVE Majolica and have collected quite a bit. This looks interesting Jennalynn. It looks like Fiesta Ware. Tue May 13 13:43:25 -0700 2008 3681177 116638 southernitalian 1 3681071 I have well-over 200 wine glasses. My husband fears the day he can't park his car in the garage for my glasses will have taken over! Mon May 12 18:54:28 -0700 2008 3675707 180467 WineUnleashed 1 3681244 I don't collect, so much, as get given antique kitchen things. Whenever someone's Great Aunt Mollie dies, I seem to be offered the kooky contents of her kitchen. I have cast iron drop-scone pans from the 1890's, a marble slab, which was my great-great-great grandmother's, a milk billy from the 40's, lots of anodized teapots from the 50's, a cake rack from the 20's and random other things I have no actual idea what they are. Mon May 12 20:03:44 -0700 2008 3675707 86137 purple goddess 2 3681267 So, what makes you think that the , "random other things I have no actual idea what they are" have anything to do with the kitchen? They may well ... Mon May 12 20:11:47 -0700 2008 3681244 36661 Sam Fujisaka 3 3681373 Sam, someone gave me Great Aunt Gertie's "strainer". Apparently it hung on her kitchen wall for years... it looks like wire bowl thingy, with a twisted wire handle and a a wooden handle thingie... Oh hell.. I'll take a photo and post it tonight....Probabaly turn out to be a Victorian "Tipping the Velvet" aid.... ;) Mon May 12 21:00:23 -0700 2008 3681267 86137 purple goddess 3 3683790 Here is a pic of said "strainer".. anyone have any idea what it might be?? Tue May 13 14:15:47 -0700 2008 3681267 86137 purple goddess 4 3683903 looks more like a fryer basket than a strainer. i'd be very curious to know what it was used for, once upon a time. then again, you could probably fit it with cheesecloth and use it to scoop particles out of cooking liquid. Tue May 13 14:50:05 -0700 2008 3683790 102095 vvvindaloo 5 3684703 many people would call that a 'spider' Tue May 13 19:19:20 -0700 2008 3683903 13150 babette feasts 6 3687504 Ok.. this is going to sound really odd, But I am not going to google for "kitchen spider" as I am a card carrying arachnophobe! Can some one tell me what it is?? Wed May 14 15:12:52 -0700 2008 3684703 86137 purple goddess 7 3687558 I think this is it. http://www.recipetips.com/glossary-term/t--38514/spider-skimmer.asp Wed May 14 15:24:47 -0700 2008 3687504 82243 ArikaDawn 8 3688655 Thanks, love.. I had nightmares about googling that and coming up with a freaking big beastie!! **shudders** I think that's what it might be, but I'd have to be retrieving bloody great hunks of food for them not to fall thru the gaps. Wed May 14 21:47:36 -0700 2008 3687558 86137 purple goddess 4 3684177 What is the depth of the bowl? And is the handle deeply angled down to the basket, or just a slight angle? If it's deeply angled, I would call it a fryer basket like this one: http://www.soaresantiques.com/images/housewares/9294.jpg But if the handle is parallel to the basket like this one: http://www.shreveport.com/forums/groupphotogallery.php?p=865 I'd call it a strainer of some sorts - maybe for larger vegetables, because there's no real "mesh" to the basket. Perhaps to scoop out boiled potatoes and chunks of carrots from the cooking water. Tue May 13 16:13:13 -0700 2008 3683790 10532 LindaWhit 4 3684473 The handle is screw shaped! Tue May 13 18:01:03 -0700 2008 3683790 36661 Sam Fujisaka 4 3701352 I think it's some kind of a spider retrieving thingie. Like you'd use to take something out of a batch of very hot oil, fried foods etc. Mon May 19 10:29:12 -0700 2008 3683790 23096 iL Divo 1 3681330 Pepper mills Platters veggie peelers bowls salt and pepper shakers vases Mon May 12 20:43:12 -0700 2008 3675707 11408 melly 1 3681375 I do. I collect lemon-themed Sicilian pottery: antipasto platters, coffee canisters, salt servers, berry bowls, tiles with my initials on them, you name it. I also like Christmas cookie tins, and have about 20 of them. One thing I tend to buy with frequency are wooden cooking utensils. Not just spoons, but also tongs, spatulas, salt and pepper servers, knives and spreaders, and even whisks! Finally, I have a collection of cocktail shakers (in the shape of a fire extinguisher, a penguin, some antiques, many of them gifts) and martini glasses. I hardly even drink hard liquor anymore (not sure why. maybe it's time to pick it up again-ha!) but I've got enough glassware to open a (very swanky) bar. Ironically, I can't fit hardly any of this stuff in my current kitchen. It's taking up plenty of space in my (bemused) parents' basement. Mon May 12 21:01:36 -0700 2008 3675707 102095 vvvindaloo 2 3709664 Mom, is that you? Wed May 21 15:35:49 -0700 2008 3681375 11273 JonParker 1 3682004 i collect jadeite glass kitchenware from the 40s & 50s. Tue May 13 06:28:56 -0700 2008 3675707 12568 ericalloyd 1 3682773 I'm not a huge collector, but I do have a number of cat-themed cookie jars and teapots. I used to have a lovely collection of old serving bowls (carnival glass and gorgeous crystal mainly ) that was a victim of my husband's clumsiness. I did forgive him, eventually! Tue May 13 10:11:54 -0700 2008 3675707 143696 Catskillgirl 1 3683284 I love old linens--aprons, napkins, table cloths, dishtowels. (Also old bathroom and bed linens, won't go into those here.) I'm particularly partial to hand-embroidered ones--they were often kits; you can still see the faint gray lines. My fave is a flour sack towel that's has a line of conga-dancing tomatoes! Tue May 13 12:09:02 -0700 2008 3675707 164177 Erika L 1 3683962 This is a little wacky, maybe, but my husband and I are always on the lookout for items featuring pigs eating pigs... you know, a pig in a chef's hat, working at the BBQ grill, etc. Tue May 13 15:05:56 -0700 2008 3675707 189827 missoulagrace 1 3684561 I collect green painted wooden handled kitchen tools and have done for about 25 years. Among the collection is a rug beater, a perfect green glass measuring bowl with a green handled egg beater, numerous rolling pins, anything and everything one would need in the kitchen during the 1920's - 30's. They cover the walls in my circa 1900 farmhouse kitchen. Tue May 13 18:33:23 -0700 2008 3675707 75332 Gio 2 3685717 Gio, that sound very cool.... If you had a picture of your walls, I'd love to see them (But please don't feel pressured) Sadly, due to the lack of space in our downtown condo, I could never collect a display of wonderful pieces like that... Wed May 14 07:39:05 -0700 2008 3684561 89969 moh 3 3685746 Agree - would love to see a few pics if you have them Gio! Wed May 14 07:46:32 -0700 2008 3685717 10532 LindaWhit 2 3685734 That thing that purple goddess has has a green handle. Wed May 14 07:42:19 -0700 2008 3684561 36661 Sam Fujisaka 3 3685765 I know, Sam - I don't have one of those.... I'm calling it a Spider, as babette feasts did above. Moh: I'll try for the pic..but as we're beginning a mini-renovation, painting, etc. things are a bit topsy turvy right now. I have a really neat green-handled stove top corn popper I proud of. Some of the utensils I actually use like the pastry whisk and the rolling pins. I've been considering selling the collection, but I think most of the tools are ubiquitous. Wed May 14 07:51:06 -0700 2008 3685734 75332 Gio 4 3688934 Oh Dear Gio, sorry for the pressure!! I understand the stress of mini-renovation (which I hate to say, is likely an oxymoron). It just sounded so cool... Please don't feel compelled to get a pic, you have enough to deal with now. Good luck with the renos! You'll love it when it's done! Thu May 15 03:23:18 -0700 2008 3685765 89969 moh 5 3689314 I hope so moh! I just don't want to remuddle instead of remodel. It's a bit frustrating! Thu May 15 07:10:33 -0700 2008 3688934 75332 Gio 1 3684718 I sort of aspire to collect cake stands and pigs, because I'm a pastry chef and year of the boar, plus I was vegetarian for about 10 years, and my family was so happy when I finally couldn't resist the bacon anymore, my sister gave me a pig cutting board and my grandmother gave me a pig cake pan. Hey, we're Italian, we like prosciutto! Tue May 13 19:23:13 -0700 2008 3675707 13150 babette feasts 1 3685761 Pint Glasses from different restaurants and breweries around the country anything that has a crab on it. Wed May 14 07:50:32 -0700 2008 3675707 26725 swsidejim 1 3686724 I just love great martini glasses! Kills me when I break one. Wed May 14 12:00:06 -0700 2008 3675707 161922 jodymaryk 1 3687051 I can't believe nobody has yet said it: cookbooks. I buy a cookbook wherever I am travelling. It has lead to some fun ones, like The Kitchen Witches' Cookbook (Salem, Mass.) and River Road Cookbook (the original edition, from New Orleans, LA). Wed May 14 13:10:44 -0700 2008 3675707 11028 DanaB 2 3708738 Ditto Dana! I am a notorious cookbook collector, but have restrained myself in recent years. I especially love the funky little church and school fund-raiser cookbook because you just know that the recipes are favorites and have been made over and over. My sister-in-law collects Junior League cookbooks from everywhere, and I think she has about 75. I attended the Friends of The Houston Public Library book sale last weekend, and during the preview day I made a beeline for the cookbook table. I promised Mr. Wonderful I would not buy back any of the books I had donated, but I did find a few gems (an original Galloping Gourmet from the late 60s!) and a few others I decided I needed. I also have a pretty impressive collection of cookie cutters (I seem to get other people castoffs too). Wed May 21 11:27:13 -0700 2008 3687051 102895 Cheflambo 3 3709638 Cheflambo, I was in Seattle three weeks ago work related and was brousing through a few stores for things I collect. I found a few treasures that I put into my cart but then, last minute, found the book section. The section for only cookbooks was mind boggling. I was stymied but only had a few minutes left on my bus transfer and didn't have any more cash so I looked for a brief few minutes, hating to leave, but had to. I have a little under 1,000 cookbooks, yeh, I am addicted to them. Any and all....old new good bad famous infamous, you name it, I love them... Wed May 21 15:26:28 -0700 2008 3708738 23096 iL Divo 4 3709704 I collect Jewish cookbooks, and seem to be getting quite the collection of old synagogue or temple sisterhood spiral bound collections. Very kitschy, but I love them! Wed May 21 15:50:11 -0700 2008 3709638 161840 cheeseguysgirl 4 3710889 I'm addicted to cookbooks too - although I don't think I have anywhere near 1,000. I'm probably looking at somewhere between 350-400. I'm seriously running out of room and now have to start looking at editing my collection to make room for all the ones I absolutely must keep. But it really is an addiction. I keep telling myself I just bought the last two this past week for a long time. And I really mean it this time... Thu May 22 04:32:23 -0700 2008 3709638 63569 flourgirl 5 3710973 What helped me break the addicition before it got THAT far out of hand was an analysis of how many recipes from the entire collection I have ever made... Oh, and how often I actually cook from a recipe, or even an approximation of a recipe (almost never). So WHY am I crowding all of these linear feet with cookbooks when I could be crowding them with books about other stuff...! '-) Linear Feet of Cook Books: 9.75 Linear Feet of Other Books: 142 ..........Sanity reigns! Thu May 22 05:42:01 -0700 2008 3710889 112096 Caroline1 6 3711031 See, I'm in the same camp as Passadumkeg, below. My initial motivation for buying cookbooks isn't about cooking from them. (Although of course I do, and often.) I just enjoy sitting and reading them, looking at the fabulous pictures and daydreaming about what I'm going to make next. I use my books as a reference library for ideas, and sometimes I don't cook out of a book for literally years and then suddenly I go back to it again. I'm really not looking to break the addiction - I really, REALLY love my cookbooks. I just have to stop buying any new ones for a while. (I think I might actually have reached satiation levels for the time being. At the moment there are no more books I am dying to have. I have them all already.) Thu May 22 06:14:02 -0700 2008 3710973 63569 flourgirl 7 3711598 Well, I talk the talk, but I ain't walkin' it! I think I bought something like twenty (Yes! TWENTY) Japanese, Chinese, Greek, and Turkish cookbooks last month, plus three more for good measure that are about chefs and food history. So now I am restricted to ONLY buying non-food related books until gasoline comes back down to $1.49 a gallon! '-) Thu May 22 09:18:32 -0700 2008 3711031 112096 Caroline1 8 3711943 Now see, you just made me feel a whole lot better. :) And yep, it's the gas thing. It seems like every penny is going to fill up the tanks these days. Luxury spending is really having to be pared down around here. (Not that there was a whole lot of "luxury" in the first place - we're a pretty low maintenance family) but yeah, I really do have to lay off the book buying thing for a while. Which is fine, because I have stacks of books I haven't even cracked yet, never mind explored fully. I can stay busy for a loooong time with my current stash. Which makes me very happy. Thu May 22 10:40:48 -0700 2008 3711598 63569 flourgirl 2 3710989 You're right. I just inherited my deceased mother-in-laws collection of 19th cent New England cookbooks. I collect them in English, Spanish, Norwegian-Swedish, an Russain. I asked my wife for a Spanish lang. Bolivian cookbook, Mi Comida for Father's Day. I sit and read cookbooks. I feel that if I cook one meal from a cookbook, it has paid for itself. Thu May 22 05:49:57 -0700 2008 3687051 93538 Passadumkeg 3 3712131 "I feel that if I cook one meal from a cookbook, it has paid for itself." I don't even necessarily have to cook from a cookbook to feel like it was worth it. I really like cookbooks that give you a sense of place and time. I may never have the ingredients, or cooking utensils, or techniques to cook from a specific book, but if I feel transported by the recipes, that's enough! I love reading recipes from the turn of the century. I also have a Cuban cookbook, entirely in spanish, that links music and food. I don't speak spanish, I can't read the recipes, but I can look at the pictures, and lists of ingredients, and get an idea of what they are talking about, and it is very cool (Fortunately, my food vocabulary is surprisingly developed in multiple languages...) I just like to see how others prepare food and talk about food. Hence my CH addiction. Thu May 22 11:27:15 -0700 2008 3710989 89969 moh 3 3713650 I definitely have a smaller collection than some posting here (less than 100), but that is by design. I have some books I inherited (my grandmother's copy of Fanny Farmer's Boston Cooking School Cookbook from the early 1930s, and my mother's copy of Joy of Cooking from 1962, both of which they got when they were married, and both of which are tattered and food-spotted. I also have my mom's copy of "Epicure," put out by the Junior League of Newport Beach in the mid-1970s, which actually has some pretty inspired recipes for the era). The latter book got me on a kick of spiral bound cookbooks, most of which were collected as souvenirs when I was visiting the place they originate, such as the original "River Road Recipes," first put out by the Junior League of Baton Rouge in 1959; "Taste of Tradition," from Wisconsin; "50th Anniversary Best of Our Favorite Recipes from the Island of Maui." I also have essential classics (Julia Child, Marcella Hazan, Richard Olney, Patience Gray, Elizabeth David, Larousse Gastronomique, Deborah Madison, Mark Bittman, Rick Bayless, Irene Kuo) and some contemporary (Judy Rodgers, Alice Waters). I then have the eclectic books (a first edition of Pearl S. Buck's Oriental Cookbook, a first edition of Helen Gurley Brown's Single Girls Cookbook, and Fergus Henderson's The Whole Beast.) I have some others (Silver Palate Books, Christopher Kimball, Gest of Gourmet, etc.), but my bookshelves are full and so a couple of years ago I instituted a "no buy unless" policy for cookbooks. Basically, I only buy a new cookbook if I think I can't live without it. I've been getting books from the Library instead. The last book I bought under the "no buy" policy was Zuni Cafe Cookbook, so you can see I'm being very strict ;-) On my list of books I WILL buy when space and money affords, are Sunday Suppers at Lucques (Suzanne Goin), Arabesque (Claudia Rodin) and Fuscia Dunlop's books). Couldn't live without them, though! Thu May 22 19:55:11 -0700 2008 3710989 11028 DanaB 1 3694885 absinthe spoons! Fri May 16 15:35:31 -0700 2008 3675707 157039 KayceeK 1 3696889 I didn't mean to collect dishes, but I love them! Plates, salad plates, bowls. I happen to love cutting boards too, (love all the bamboo that is everywhere now) and I also collect cow creamers, I just can't help myself, they are so cute. Sat May 17 14:48:06 -0700 2008 3675707 18371 waitress 2 3701467 Yours really are cute! Mon May 19 10:53:16 -0700 2008 3696889 143696 Catskillgirl 2 3702089 Really cute waitress! I think you are in Charlotte. Have you been to Antique Kingdon on Central? I have found terrific things there. There is also a little house across the street that is chock fill with plates, glasses and lots of silver serving pieces. Great prices. Mon May 19 12:56:37 -0700 2008 3696889 116638 southernitalian 3 3706801 I am in Charcargo-- I will check it out... Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tue May 20 18:34:34 -0700 2008 3702089 18371 waitress 2 3715467 I simply adore your collection. Boy could you have used me and my help in an antique store in Kallispell Montana a couple of weeks ago. ;) Fri May 23 12:26:02 -0700 2008 3696889 23096 iL Divo 1 3697139 Egg cups. Over the years I have collected about 200 antique (well mostly antique) egg cups of all different shapes, colours and sizes from different parts of the world, but mostly the UK and Ontario, Canada. Sat May 17 16:51:44 -0700 2008 3675707 98493 JamieK 2 3697763 Copper anything. Plates, pans, bowls, cups, copper anything. Wooden bowls and platters, especially carved pieces. And fish shaped accessories like plates and bottles. Japanese stoneware, pottery decanters and yes, bowls. Someone said they're the equivalent of shoes. I believe that. I don't call myself a collector but wow, I sure have a lot of STUFF and I enjoy it. Sat May 17 23:20:55 -0700 2008 3697139 23178 P Macias 1 3699949 I guess you could call menus "food related non-food things." I have a huge collection of menus, some going back to the 50s and 60s. A bunch of huge fancy schmancy ones from all of the great hotels on the strip during the years I lived in Las Vegas. My original plan was to decoupage a folding screen for the dining or breakfast room, but now I'm not so sure I want to mess them up. Some of them are huge and multi-paged, then tied with a tasselled cord. One is signed by Marlene Deitrich. Lots of memories. I guess someday my kids will throw them out after I die... I keep telling them to be careful what they throw away when I'm gone. Some of it is probably worth money! '-) Sun May 18 22:27:34 -0700 2008 3675707 112096 Caroline1 1 3701363 I just got two more butter dishes this week. Not much to brag on but they're now added to my collection. I also got a rare cream and covered sugar bowl, Wedgewood. Can't wait to see what I can do with that on one of those buyer web sites. Mon May 19 10:31:26 -0700 2008 3675707 23096 iL Divo 1 3701896 I love vintage aprons and smallish tablecloths. Especially if there is a fruit pattern on it. I also have trouble resisting contemporary handmade pottery, particularly bowls of all size and mugs. Many mis-matched bits of silver utensils have found their way to my home - I find so many uses for the little forks an such. Odds & ends of china without a particular theme except they make my heart happy! Mon May 19 12:16:38 -0700 2008 3675707 111267 meatn3 2 3702050 Oh yes, fruit patterns! I love fake fruit and vegetables. I have a collection of fake produce, the prize of which is a porcelain peach and a wooden mangosteen. A good fruit representation makes my day. Mon May 19 12:48:33 -0700 2008 3701896 89969 moh 2 3702301 You reminded me about my collection of kitchen towels. Some are vintage but most of them are from the same line of towels that often appear at Home Goods, Marshalls etc. They are embroidered and are really well done. I mostly just use them as decoration - which is not something I'm usually really big on but I have them for all seasons/major holidays and they really add a touch of whimsy to my kitchen that just makes me smile. Mon May 19 13:44:01 -0700 2008 3701896 63569 flourgirl 2 3709646 I find it funny that so many people I have either met or meet, are into bowls. What the heck is it with all of us that adore bowls? Wed May 21 15:28:32 -0700 2008 3701896 23096 iL Divo 3 3710508 They are kind of an adult pacifier in a way. Most of my comfort foods fit very nicely in bowls - fill it up and get comfy and hug it close - you're good to go! Sounds a bit forlorn once it is spelled out, but feels very very cozy and good in reality! Also, a well made bowl or mug allows the hand to cradle it in a very satisfying manner. Wed May 21 20:41:30 -0700 2008 3709646 111267 meatn3 1 3706353 i collect one food related non food thing pounds Tue May 20 15:19:01 -0700 2008 3675707 135229 thew 2 3706369 Thew, I'd happily give you my collection. It is extensive. Tue May 20 15:24:28 -0700 2008 3706353 89969 moh 3 3706526 Do you think it would help if we converted our pounds to shillings, or would we just have more to lose? :-( Tue May 20 16:30:36 -0700 2008 3706369 112096 Caroline1 1 3706971 I collect antique food labels, especially ones related to cranberries. I also collect cookbooks and cooking pamphlets--the ones that were free and featured recipes using the sponsor's product. Tue May 20 19:41:40 -0700 2008 3675707 74556 manraysky 1 3709931 I collect Griswold cast iron and useless old kitchen utensils. I used to collect salt and pepper shakers but I finally convinced family and freinds that I had enough and last but not least cookbooks, especially older ones with those awesome technicolor pictures! Wed May 21 17:08:03 -0700 2008 3675707 26442 roux42 1 3713536 It all started with mixers...and then we went down the road of toasters and waffle irons, a blender or two...then we saw an elderly-but-fine Prosperity gas range for sale in the Old House Journal classifieds, and then after another year or two of searching scored our monitor-top GE refrigerator, and Voila! Our kitchen had become the Owen Museum of Culinary Power Tools! And of course the cookbook library had been coming along very nicely, up to 300-some by then, and the "Belmont Ivory" enameled-steel pots, pans, bowls and utensils, and the Fire-King Jade-ite pieces...and almost everything was in normal use, too, except for a few feeble examples or things with unsafe cords. A nice old no-name Hoosier cabinet, also in the Belmont Ivory color scheme, rounded out the ensemble. That was in Nashville. When we moved out to California, the only culling we did was of boring or seldom-used cookbooks; all the appliances and tools and utensils came with us. The new old house was bigger, but the kitchen has no place for anything but the little Sellers work table that stands in for an island. Luckily, there's a big room in the garage where the cabinet and range sit awaiting my refitting their space as the new OMCPT, though the refrigerator continues to earn its keep by catching such things as holiday overflow, or providing cold space when I'm brining something in my five-gallon tub. The toasters, mixers and waffle irons sit on the garage floor, patiently awaiting those new shelves I've promised them... Thu May 22 18:58:28 -0700 2008 3675707 11478 Will Owen 2 3713566 Good on you, Will. You've painted a great picture of the Owen Museum. I can picture it and really like it. Thu May 22 19:12:22 -0700 2008 3713536 36661 Sam Fujisaka 3 3714960 As it happens, we entered some pictures in Metropolitan Homes's annual home-makeover contest and won a batch of highly inappropriate prizes and got the pictures published. Anyone who wants a PDF copy of the page can email me at <nashwill912@earthlink.net> Fri May 23 10:05:14 -0700 2008 3713566 11478 Will Owen 2 3713579 Antique redware turk's head molds. Wonderful colors, fabulous shapes. And they're always the same price as they were when I bought my first one! BTW, I think that wire contraption/strainer way above here is for poached eggs. Thu May 22 19:19:33 -0700 2008 3713536 83338 birgator 2 3713935 You cannot imagine how many years I have lusted after one of those old fashioned gas stoves with the Queen Ann legs and the oven at the side, and a couple of small wooden pickle barrels to sit under it! <sigh> But what am I going to do with a gas stove in an all electric house? You kitchen sounds wonderful, Will, and I have this sneaking suspicion that an apple pie baked in your kitchen will taste so much better than one baked in a modern kitchen! Godspeed on clearing the garage floor! . Thu May 22 23:18:15 -0700 2008 3713536 112096 Caroline1 3 3713970 >>But what am I going to do with a gas stove in an all electric house?<< Cook easier! A gas stove is a prerequisite for me. It's not *that* expensive to convert, and you know you want to! ;-) Fri May 23 00:25:56 -0700 2008 3713935 11028 DanaB 4 3714269 Not that expensive? I guess it depends on what you call expensive. I checked with the city of Plano, and based on the nearest gas line, it will cost me something like $40,000.00 to bring natural gas into my house. If you don't think that's expensive, I want YOUR budget...!!! '-) And no, they won't allow me to have a propane tank either. But I CAN have a gas barbecue with one of those little tanks. I don't want to do all of my cooking outside. Fri May 23 06:29:27 -0700 2008 3713970 112096 Caroline1 5 3714805 I feel your pain! The last house I owned was close to a city gas line. The neighborhood voted against connecting - too expensive they thought - it was just going to be $600/house!!! It still kills me, and it has been 9 years. I am now in a house (but don't own it) which has gas for the hot water heater & clothes dryer. I am very tempted to just spring for the cost of the piping and new range... Fri May 23 09:22:32 -0700 2008 3714269 111267 meatn3 5 3715155 I didn't realize that you didn't have ANY gas in your house! Just assumed it was a situation like meatn3's, where you had gas for heat and it was a matter of routing a gas pipe to the kitchen, which can be pricey, but not 40K pricey. What a bummer and I feel you pain. I just went through the process of renting an apartment for the first time in 15 years (I'm going to graduate school), and I had to do it from afar -- my main criteria was that that the apartment have a decent sized kitchen with a gas stove rather than electric :-) Fri May 23 10:53:25 -0700 2008 3714269 11028 DanaB 6 3716746 I bought my house via the internet... from 600 miles away! But it has some nice trade-offs, like almost an acre of gorgeous big green trees! Three are pecans. And a creek. When it comes to gas vs electric, I like gas for things you stand over until they're done, but for long simmers, I don't trust gas not to go out and blow the place up. I'm sort of kicking myself for not going forward with the induction cooktop, but I didn't want to give up my copper pots and pans. Despite having put in a new electric cooktop, I;'m still thinking of the induction! That would make me a cooktop collector, right? <sigh> Fri May 23 22:03:17 -0700 2008 3715155 112096 Caroline1 2 3716949 What is OMCPT? Google is no help. Sat May 24 04:01:04 -0700 2008 3713536 13619 Sharuf 3 3716961 Owen Museum of Culinary Power Tools Sat May 24 04:18:14 -0700 2008 3716949 112096 Caroline1 4 3717883 Yeah, we haven't gotten serious enough to attract Google's attention...in fact, it exists at the moment only in our memory. To bring it back into reality will involve both a website and my cleaning out the garage...and a cold day in Hell? No, a reasonably cool week in Pasadena, maybe. Sat May 24 13:46:25 -0700 2008 3716961 11478 Will Owen 1 3714894 Flemington, New Jersey's Stengle Ware Fri May 23 09:45:29 -0700 2008 3675707 93538 Passadumkeg 2 3715617 I live in Flemington! :) (Isn't it Stangle, BTW?) Fri May 23 13:10:29 -0700 2008 3714894 63569 flourgirl 3 3716560 Yup! I was in class and some damn kid wanted my help. I can remember Flemington before outlets, stand in the old kilns while my mom hunted for good factory seconds in the '50's. Fri May 23 19:53:35 -0700 2008 3715617 93538 Passadumkeg 4 3716618 It's actually Stangl -- love the stuff, but everything chips immediately if not sooner. Drat! Fri May 23 20:24:56 -0700 2008 3716560 83338 birgator 5 3717029 I have not found my Stangl Fruit and Flowers pattern dinner set to chip at all in over 45 years. Sat May 24 05:35:00 -0700 2008 3716618 75332 Gio 4 3717021 I remember Flemington before the outlets too. I grew up in Bridgewater (in the 70s-early 80s) and we used to come out to Flemington all the time to walk around Turntable Junction and just drive around the countryside. I always loved it which is one of the reasons my husband and I ended up out here. Of course things have changed a lot and it's become the land of chain restaurants, etc. but there is still beautiful countryside here and we still love it. It must have been wonderful in the 50s. Sat May 24 05:25:13 -0700 2008 3716560 63569 flourgirl 5 3717976 My mom and some uncles still live in Sayreville-South River. I got out of NJ in the mid 60's, went to Muhlenberg, worked overseas for a long time, Moved to Maine when dad got sick(as close to NJ as I wanted to live.) Still return to NJ to visit 92 yr old mom and we enjoy playing tourist and loading up on all the foods we can't get here. I still have a cousin w/ a fam on Cranbury Rd in E Bruns. and we load up on corn & especially tomatoes when we visit. I grew up doing a tremendous amount of hunting & fishing, especially in the High Bridge area, In NJ and still do in Maine. When mom dies, I doubt we'll be back much. I work summers as a sea kayak guide on 3 day trips on the Maine Island Trail. Still cold here. I took the temp of the soil in the garden tosay and it is still only 58. Planting our garden this weekend ,but a frost is predicted for Mon. night. Sat May 24 14:36:06 -0700 2008 3717021 93538 Passadumkeg 1 3718840 Hi, Does anyone know how to find out the history and the value of certain utensils? I collect rolling pins and have searched the internet, but not had much luck identifying the age and market value. All suggestions are welcome! Sun May 25 04:00:49 -0700 2008 3675707 195073 buonappetitonj 2 3719203 Oftentimes, a good gauge of price is what similar items sell for on Ebay, which is pretty much the biggest marketplace for collectables on the net. For members, you can search completed auctions to see what price items actually sell for. There are also a lot of collector websites out there. For instance, the website linked below is a really good one for collectors of cast iron: http://www.gcica.org/ I know you said you have already searched the net, but I would try again -- maybe you can find a yahoo club or similar group devoted to collecting rolling pins. Good luck! Sun May 25 09:10:32 -0700 2008 3718840 11028 DanaB 2 3719246 You might try http://www.kovels.com They cover *everything*! But finding something as esoteric as rolling pins might take a lot of searching. Sun May 25 09:42:44 -0700 2008 3718840 112096 Caroline1 2 3719682 Most of the antique malls we go into have at least one area - sometimes a rented space, more often belonging to the mall owner - that displays and sells value guides for just about any item a person can collect, from kewpie dolls to salt shakers to Tonka Toys. As with any such publication, the information will be out of date the instant it's printed, but kitchenware items do not exactly occupy a volatile market, so if there is a book devoted to bakery collectibles you should probably find its advice to be reliable. Sun May 25 14:11:09 -0700 2008 3718840 11478 Will Owen 1 3875032 I have one question: where do you guys STORE all of this stuff? While I am kitchen obsessed, I thankfully haven't gotten into 'collecting' in a big way. I do like colourful tins (storing cookies, chocolate bars, etc on top of my kitchen dresser), I am slowly but surely building up my le Creuset collection as fast as I can afford it (although nothing matches!) and I definitely collect handthrown and handpainted/glazed pottery, for serving and eating off. That's probably my biggest pride and joy, art I can use and actively enjoy every day. Wed Jul 16 15:01:45 -0700 2008 3675707 10431 Gooseberry 2 3875085 with all I have collected over the years, I really do wonder why. our children won't want any of the stuff I have come the day, and yes, it's hard to store. but with things that are little like wooden spoons,they fit in the drawer,with rolling pins, they're harder and with le creuset, that's a real problem. I have a 6 burner stove and it's always got pots on it, not being used, also, I put things in my double ovens when not in use Wed Jul 16 15:17:41 -0700 2008 3875032 23096 iL Divo 2 3875560 I don't know that I've ever thought of it as "collecting", but like Gooseberry, I do have quite a collection of handmade pottery, mostly bowls of various sizes, purchased from potters and galleries all over the place. I love that they don't have to match to use them together, although I often pay close attention to how the food will look in the bowl. Wed Jul 16 18:14:37 -0700 2008 3875032 49600 CindyJ 1 3875211 I actually don't collect anything as I'm afraid it will bring out my OCD-esque tendencies where I have to find every single tea accessory or every single Hello Kitty product out there (I've once considered having a room devoted to Hello Kitty until my friend told me that was really scary). And I also live in a small 1 BR apartment. My sister also likes to say that when we leave this world (aka dying), what good would those possessions be. So I try to keep that in mind whenever I buy something. That said, I've got a bunch of food related things that I don't use very much -- okonomiyaki grill, Kitchen aid blender (when I have a hand blender and a Magic bullet type of blender), ring and pyramid molds for food -- the list goes on. Wed Jul 16 15:57:24 -0700 2008 3675707 10763 Miss Needle 2 3876176 I suppose the answer to your sister would be, well, when I'm alive I get a whole bunch of pleasure out of looking at my collection of seventeenth century trifle moulds/hello kitty pencil sharpeners/your collection here. That said, I'm kind of with your sister on this one. I don't like minimalism in a kitchen, but I do try to streamline the clutter. It's very rarely that I think of something I was tempted to buy for my kitchen, resisted, and now think "I should have gotten that!".On the other hand, I often look at some item I no longer like or never use and think, what a space-waster. Clearly time to spring clean and give away. Again. Thu Jul 17 01:04:11 -0700 2008 3875211 10431 Gooseberry 3 3876694 well, I think it'd just be great if we all in here set up a barter system where we could trade our no longer wanted items. I'd be all for that. Thu Jul 17 07:27:50 -0700 2008 3876176 23096 iL Divo 1 3875517 I guess the only thing that I collect that's food related is knives and the devices to keep them sharp. Wed Jul 16 17:53:25 -0700 2008 3675707 89493 scubadoo97 1 4229270 Over the weekend, I found a myriad of Tupperware at a flea market. I went there searching out undergarments for a family member. Found 2 things regarding that, but moreover, found Tupperware and bought all but 2 items there. They're large, the two I left behind were small and I don't need more clutter but this stuff, I'm so excited. Mon Dec 08 09:33:59 -0800 2008 3675707 23096 iL Divo 2 4229487 LOL! See? There's always something more to collect. ;-) As for the storage query from Gooseberry on 7/16/08, most of my collection(s) are out as wall decoration. My wooden spoons are kept in three different containers - a French blue enamel milk can (these I use every day), and smaller ones are kept in a blue enamel salt container with the lid flipped back (like this: http://www.vintageweave.com/store/media/selred.jpg ). The rest are displayed in a wooden spoon holder with a drawer underneath - similar to this one (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3289/2757484250_5fa3807731_o.jpg ). The blue enamel (and various old cobalt blue glass on a windowsill) are yet more collections I have. :-) It's a sickness. Mon Dec 08 10:26:11 -0800 2008 4229270 10532 LindaWhit 1 4230235 I collect lemons (not surprising), both on dinnerware and otherwise. And I collect food jewelry. One of the great fashion moments of my life came as I, the Midwesterner, came down the escalator onto the main floor of Bloomingdale's in Manhattan, and a store employee spied me. "Ooooh," he shrieked, "I LOVE your earrings! Look, Gerald! She's got sushi earrings!" Mon Dec 08 13:55:42 -0800 2008 3675707 90114 lemons