Mary Reporting. Tour any Victorian home and invariably there’s an elegant dining room, with every inch of the table’s surface covered with fine china and silver flatware. In the adjacent butler’s pantry, the guide never fails to note that the lady of the house generally washed her own dishes and put them away. She took […]
Mary and Helen reporting. Today, our personal laptops are never far out of reach. A lady in the 18th and 19th centuries owned something very similar—but far more elegant—a lap desk. A fancy lap desk is an authentic accouterment of a fashionable Regency or Victorian lady. Made of mahogany, Brazilian rosewood—or of pine veneered with […]
It’s a shame most of us have given up real baking. If we dare to make a cake, it’s likely from a boxed mix. We promise this rich chocolate cake is easy and delicious. In its favor, too, is its size—one loaf pan. It’s just the right amount to satisfy a chocolate craving without overindulging. […]
