It Is A Genuine Sweetheart Cedar Chest

A Sweetheart Cedar Chest

Years ago, I can't remember exactly what year it was, but after 1999, I bought a cedar chest in a local antique store. It was in the basement and priced at forty dollars! A good price even though it had water damage. I wanted to use it for storage and was not concerned with how it looked. I put it upstairs in my house and there it stayed. I stored all my afghans and other treasured items in it. They were protected from mice, bugs and dust. I used to sit on it when I was up there taking pictures of items I was listing on eBay. It was a very sturdy chest. But when I moved it around the foot on one side would fall off. So I was careful.

There is some water damage and the foot on the right side.

Finally after many years upstairs, I wanted it moved downstairs next to my bed. I was not able to go up the stairs and had a bed in the living room. I used it for my clothing and as a coffee table and night stand combination. Actually a cedar chest is a good piece of furniture to use as a stand as it can double for storage too. In 2018 when I moved from the house to my small apartment, I had to be conscious of each item I brought with me. It needed to be necessary and if possible storage items were most needed. So the cedar chest moved with me. 

Manufactured by Ed Roos Company

Now I have had a chance to really examine it. The original paper label says  "This is a Genuine Sweetheart Chest" and was manufactured by Ed Roos Company, Forest Park, Ill. They manufactured wooden hope or bridal chests, as they were called back then. The sweetheart chest and others they made were sold worldwide. The chests were made from three million feet of cedar that was cut from 1200 trees yearly. During World War II the business was shut down by the government because it was considered a luxury item. It never really bounced back after that, so it was sold in 1951. (Roos Family)

Moved!

It is sturdy enough that I could put cushions on it for seating. I can't see having that many people to seat in my apartment! lol So I have put my photos and my gel pens on it. It now takes care of the problem of blocking the electric outlet from my free roaming bunny. I could always refinish it and make it more attractive. Instead I want to keep it original since I read about the company that manufactured it. They did an incredible job! 

Still stapled to the inside of the lid!

They included a three year moth insurance policy which was a hundred dollar value at that time. Well, I have never had any moth damage inside of it and it is well beyond that policy. I am sure there are many more of these chests around since they were so well made. A tribute to a hardworking responsible company! 

Copyright © 2020 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2020  Kathleen G. Lupole

Updated 2021

Making Room For A Recliner In A Studio Apartment

Living Room Area

Rabbit and I  spend time together in the early morning when I am having my coffee. I sit here in my rocking chair and read, write or make lists. Rabbit likes this time as it is when he awake and alert. He runs, hops and does binkys when I get up, running circles around my rolling walker. I have to be very careful not to run him over. Rabbits sleep for a long time during the day, so I didn't want to waste this time with him. 

I stopped getting on my computer early and started spending the time with him. I am glad I did. It has been good for me too. Starts my day off positively instead of negative vibes from social media. I feel though, I need a comfortable chair to sit in. This one hurts my arms and back if I am in it for too long. I also have no place for visitors in my apartment unless we sit at the table with my computer. 

Flat screen can be reversed from bed to living area.

I decided to change this area with that in mind. My idea is to get a new recliner so I can put my feet up. Maybe I can watch videos on my flat screen monitor that is presently only available to me from my bed. Sometimes I do not want to lay down to watch and right now that means my only option is to watch on my laptop. I studied this area for days trying to figure out the best option and use of my small space. I watched a lot of YouTube home decorating videos about studio apartments. Most are larger than mine (338 square feet).

Moving the rugs with my helper.

Moving the rugs to the area that I call my living area pretty much defined that space. In a studio apartment, one of the most valued things is furniture that is used for storage. Such as my two large dressers, the cedar chest, the old trunk, the curio cabinet, etc. I have gone through my things and gotten rid of much of it, but there are still things I cannot or do not want to part with. Maybe I will do that in time. The ceder chest fit perfectly under the window that has the air conditioner in it. I could not have anything that would block that. 

Cleaning before moving the rugs.

The small trunk, which is nothing special, not a piece of furniture but it hides my clutter for now (I am working on it!). Along side my chair, it doubles as a stand with my lamp. I need the lamp close enough to the chair so I can turn it on or off without getting up. It also has Rabbit's carrier on the back of it. I need the carrier easy to get to in an emergency (if the fire alarm goes off and we have to leave the building). It might not look pretty but it has to be there.

"Jazzy" is usually stored in the bathroom.

 I still want to have clear space in the center of the room for my rolling walker and my mobility chair (Jazzy). For Rabbit too, as he likes to hop and run around there during the night. The best way to start with this project was to move stuff around. I have many limitations due to having a free roaming rabbit. I have to keep private places available for him to hide (if someone comes to the door and startles him) or to sleep (as I said before rabbits sleep for long periods during the day). He enjoyed the process of me moving the furniture around. He is as curious as a cat! 

A new recliner will be here soon!

Copyright © 2020 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2020  Kathleen G. Lupole

Updated 2021

Ten Of My Kitchen Favorites

From kat's Kitchen

One of my favorite YouTube channels, Plain Vanilla Grandma, had a list of her favorite things in her kitchen and one of her bathroom. I thought it would be fun to do it on my blog. So here is my list and they are not in the order of what is my favorite as I could not decide what order they would go in. After writing this, I realized I could write another ten. But I will save that for another day. 

1. Duxtop Induction Cook Top

I love this and use it daily. I took all the burners off the electric stove in my kitchen and have the induction cook top on it instead. They say it uses less electric and I can't really comment on that since my electric bill is very low and I pay a set amount monthly. Your pans have to be magnetic to use on it and I have gotten rid of all mine that were not. Cast iron is, but unfortunately it is too heavy for me now. I kept my small cast iron skillet and griddle and have three other pans that are induction friendly. 

2. Nuwave Oven

The Nuwave Oven is another of my favorite small cooking appliances. It works great and can bake, toast or reheat all kinds of different foods. It can be used for baking cakes, cookies, pies, etc, Just about anything you can think of. Meats, casseroles, whatever. It too, is said to be energy efficient. I can even put a frozen piece of meat, such as a hamburger or sausage in it and it cooks it perfectly. I use it to make bacon and it comes out in flat long pieces. Just the way I like it! You can cook a whole turkey or roasting chicken in it too, though I have not done that yet.

3. Instant Pot Duo

I bought the Instant Pot before I moved here. I tried to use it a few times but it was not meant to be used with limited electric from solar panels. I see people who have solar and are living in rvs and vans use it with solar. So it is possible or newer technology helps. I use it a lot here. Cooking with it is a pleasure. Food comes out cooked perfectly (once you master using it) and fast. Not like a microwave for just reheating in a couple of minutes, but I reheat leftovers in it all the time. Does not take that long at all. 

4. The Hot Pot

The hot pot is made by a company called Dash, made in China. It is plastic but it works great. I have had it for almost two years. It heats the water super fast. I use it almost daily for making herbal teas. Anytime I need hot water for a recipe or any other reason I use this. You can also cook in it. I think it was designed for college kids to cook in their dorm rooms. I do not cook in it because I do not want it to take on the smell of food or seasoning. I bought it for heating water only.

5. Vegetable Chopper

I recently bought this vegetable chopper and I have been using it  often. The only thing I do not like about it is cleaning out the squares on the cutting blades. I have been using a toothpick to do it. If someone has a better idea, please let me know. It has made chopping onions tearless. I use it mainly for onions but you can use it for almost any vegetable to need to chop. It has two blades in different sizes. It is a good tool for preparing food and saving time. You still have to cut the onion in half or quarters to fit it into the chopper. 

7. Salad Spinner

I FINALLY found one that really works! I have tried so many of these salad spinners and they didn't really work. This one I bought a few months ago and have been happily spinning ever since. No more grit on our salad or Rabbit's kale and parsley leaves. Easy to use and well made. It is plastic and made in China. 

8. Salad Keeper

I love this so much I am thinking of buying a second one. It has a little switch to turn according to what type of vegetable you are storing in it and how much air flow, or if any, is needed. I just put it on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. Fresh produce is what I buy the most of so storing it properly is important. Rabbit and I eat a lot of fresh salad greens and herbs. This is a big help since I used to lose so much because it would go bad quickly. Now it stays fresh much longer.

9. Pantry Organizer 

In a previous post I wrote about this little space saver in Kitchen Storage Rack In A Small Kitchen. I cannot say enough good things about it! If I had a space for another one, I'd buy it in a second. It is made out of plastic but the heavy kind. As you can see, I have the quart size canning jars in it and other glass containers. No problem at all! Fits perfectly in that small space.

10. Vacuum Food Saver

It doesn't look impressive, does it? Well, I got sick and tired of the build up of frost inside those plastic freezer bags. The plastic bags for the food saver may be more money, but my opinion it is well worth it. I just can't stand seeing all the frost inside the plastic freezer bags. Now I buy the larger packages of chicken thighs and hamburger at a better price.  Then bring it home and vacuum pack the hamburger in small packages of one hamburger each. For the chicken thighs, I put two pieces in each package. I usually only eat one but like to have the other for a leftover the next day or so.

Copyright © 2020 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2020  Kathleen G. Lupole

Updated 2021