Have Yourself A Merry Little Kitchen!

Fire Up The Oven! We’re Going Retro!

Need another reason why the fifties rocked? The Bundt baking pan was invented in 1950 when Minneapolis engineer Dave Dalquist was approached by a sweet little lady who wanted to recreate the dense, heavy European cakes her Old Country family had once made. The hole in the center of the bundt pan proved to be the key­—it allowed heat to evenly cook the thicker European batter. The result was a glorious symbol of Americana that created a cake craze!

Harvey Wallbanger Cake, anyone? Maybe some sparkling 7UP® cake? I discovered long ago that baking is highly therapeutic! There's something about rolling around in dough that melts stress away and what better way to bake than with the Pillsbury® Best Of The Bake-Off® Cookbook? Everything from the famous (bundt-style) Tunnel Of Fudge Cake to an Orange Kiss Me Cake will have you licking the bowl when no one’s looking!

But why stop at dessert? Go to town on an entirely retro-themed feast with our Food Of The ‘50s Cookbook (chicken fricasse, Swedish meatballs, lemon bars), the Retro Hot Dog Stand (for quick fixes) and the über cool Milkshake Maker!

Share some goodies with your neighbors in your very own Personally Engraved Baking Pan, perfect for everything from pot luck casseroles to holiday cookies!

That’s what’s so great about the holiday season—it’s completely acceptable to eat until you pass out! So, bring on the meatballs, I say! Ladle some more gravy onto that roast, and save me some frosting on the big wooden spoon!

The Christmas Countdown Begins!

On Your Mark...Get Set...Go!

Shopping online and clicking one’s way through the holidays can eliminate 99% of yuletide stress and keep you from accidentally-on-purpose tripping the perfume-spray lady with your umbrella as you innocently glide through the Estee Lauder section.

That said, there’s a corny part of me that misses shopping at Christmas, at least the way it used to be. Not entirely unlike Ralphie and Randy from A Christmas Story, I was often bundled-up so heavily during winter months by my well-meaning mother that my arms struck straight out at my sides at a 90-degree angle. In the chilly evenings, our family would pile into the station wagon and putter on down to Main Street (yes, there really was a Main Street), where we’d walk with cups of hot chocolate, peering into shop windows. We were mesmerized by Kewpie dolls, teddy bears, baseball gloves, and model trains all framed with candy canes and rows of glittery garland.

Nowadays I send most of my gifts through the mail and my family’s celebration lasts two days instead of two months because we all have jobs to fly home to—but, no matter how much e-shopping, text messaging, or video chatting we do, there’s one place we meet up that takes us right back to those fairy tale storefronts.

We end up back in The Attic because year after year, as trendy “must-have” toys come and go, we always find the truly magical gifts right here. So, as my tribute to the spirit of Christmas Past, from now until December 24th, I'm going to offer a few of my personal favorite gifts each and every week. All available right here on our web site. No snotty cashiers. No sore feet. And no need to assault the perfume lady.

Just you, your mouse and the peace on earth that comes from shopping in your sweat pants. Click on them to read more and remember: it really was better when you were a kid!

Veterans Day: Honor History By Learning It!

It’s one of those cliched facts of life that once you get older, you wish you’d paid more attention in school. Learning becomes a luxury you wish you had more time for. Such is the case for me with history. Now that time is at a premium, I quite often look to The Attic for books and DVDs that quench my thirst for knowledge.

I’ve spent hours poring through crisp maps (I love maps, don’t you?), charts, diagrams and photographs recounting battles in our nation’s fascinating history. And it’s highly likely that during the weekends you’ll find me glued to a DVD about Lincoln or Patton while I fold laundry and pretend to balance the checkbook.

Is it odd for a soccer mom to be fascinated by military strategy? I don't think so! Characters like Custer and Rommel are way more colorful than all the Desperate Housewives put together! American Idol? I'd rather watch The American Revolution!

As Thanksgiving looms, we find ourselves seduced by thoughts of roast turkey and buttery mashed potatoes. Christmas is right around the corner, full of sugar plums and shiny paper. At the onset of the holiday season, Veterans Day, quite frankly, gets the short stick. Sure, it gets media coverage full of emotional vignettes about patriotism, but if you ask me...it never gets enough attention.

How do we truly honor those who sacrificed everything to keep our country, and so many other nations around the world, free of tyranny (to use an old but relevant expression)? Making sure that we never forget. How do we do that? By learning. Reading. Exploring maps and diagrams. Watching DVDs. Putting faces to names so that those dusty old textbooks spring to life with wild characters and the smell of gunpowder in the air. Think of this blog as me—slipping you a note during class: “History’s cool! Pass it on!”

Reading Is Magic!

It’s The 50th Anniversary of The Grinch & The Golden Books Turn 65!

In a soft yellow bedroom, tucked under a fuzzy pink blanket, I fell in love with books. My mother used to read to me almost every single night. It was our special time together. Some nights it was my big book of folk tales from around the world. Other nights it might be Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwocky and, when I got a bit older, it was The Hound of the Baskervilles on nights when the trees knocked at my window!

But far and away, my two favorites (although from very different eras) were Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas and the wonderfully-innocent Little Golden Books! Did you know that both of these classics are celebrating very big anniversaries? The Grinch has hit 50 and Golden Books are 65!

What child can resist the vivid imagery of Dr. Seuss and his mean green villain holed-up at the top of Mt. Crumpit? My favorite line from the cartoon version was “You're a foul one, Mr. Grinch. You're a nasty, wasty skunk. Your heart is full of unwashed socks. Your soul is full of gunk.”To a 6 year-old, “gunk” is a really funny word! I fell in love with Max, his canine assistant, and I instantly understood the message at the end that “Maybe Christmas doesn’t come from a store?”And speaking of adorable dogs from our childhood...“The Poky Little Puppy,” anyone? Holding those tiny Little Golden Books in my hands was so exciting and my mother read me every single tale, from the aforementioned slow-moving pup to “The Tawny Scrawny Lion” to “The Shy Little Kitten.” Each story was custom-sized for budding readers with big imaginations and the adventures flew off the pages!

Happy Birthday, Grinch and Golden Books! We loved you then and we love you now! Celebrate the timeless tales and share them with the budding bookworm in your life. If you’re feeling Seussarific, we have a Grinch Figurine you won’t believe and a festive tee!

More in the mood for The Saggy Baggy Elephant and Nurse Nancy? Enjoy all the Little Golden Books in one fantastic set. And remember...when you share a love of reading, the sky’s the limit!

She Dressed The Stars!

Edith Head: October 28, 1897—October 24, 1981

My children find it impossible to believe that there were fashion icons before Hannah Montana and The Cheetah Girls.

When I am poetic about Veronica Lake’s long luscious locks or Bette Davis’ moxy, they nod their heads to appease me and then go right back to blowing things up in video games. I myself shudder, and wish I could take them on a time travel trip to meet Edith Head, the costume designer for everyone from Mae West to Elizabeth Taylor, and the woman who was nominated for a whopping 34 Oscars®­—more than any woman in history!

When Edith ruled Tinseltown, she played by her own rules (unscrupulously at times, rumor has it) and matched wits and brawn with the gruffest of cigar-puffing studio heads. She was known as much for her formidable presence as her huge dark glasses and severe chignon bun. But the stars adored her because they knew she had the power to transform them from mere actresses to goddesses with a few silky swatches. Some of the icons she “dressed” were:

• Mae West in She Done Him Wrong
• Veronica Lake in Sullivan’s Travels
• Barbara Stanwyck in The Lady Eve
• Ingrid Bergman in Notorious
• Bette Davis and Anne Baxter in All About Eve
• Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard
• Elizabeth Taylor in A Place In The Sun
• Grace Kelly in Rear Window and To Catch A Thief
• Rita Hayworth in Separate Tables
• Kim Novak in Vertigo
  

If you love old Hollywood glamour and fashion as much as I do, you must must must check out our two new paper dolls sets! They combine one of my favorite games as a little girl with the most luxurious, gorgeous designs known to mankind!

The Hollywood Paper Dolls Book contains 24 silver screen sirens (with famous movie outfits) such as Rita Hayworth, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and more! The Fashion Parade Paper Dolls Book lets you dress a set of dolls with vintage couture fashions from the ‘50s through the ‘90s with iconic pieces from designers like Yves St. Laurent, Ralph Lauren and modern-day fashion iconoclast, John Galliano! Even if we wear our sweats 80 percent of the time these days, it doesn’t mean we can’t still daydream about slipping into one of these beauties!