Amongst all this decluttering there are always those old faithfuls that I will never declutter unless they finally die. Today I honor five of those wonderful items.
- My old peg bag that I made about 12 years ago its in its last legs but I will remain faithful to it until the end
- The old flour sieve that was my grandmothers with has been in my possession since 1981
- The old flat skillet that my mother-in-law bought for me secondhand about 13 years ago. It is the best for pikelets and pancakes.
- The trusty old can opener that has outlasted the electric one and a couple of other ones I thought would be better but weren’t. Not sure how long I have had that but probably for the 23 years I have been married.
- My trusty old laptop. The one that I write my post on everyday. It may have a few issues but it has served me well for about 6 years.
ITEM 258 OF 365 LESS THINGS
A notch and dye set that I sold on ebay for $5.00. One of those ebay sales that wasn’t very lucrative I’m afraid.
I almost fell over when I saw the photo that was next to this post when it came up on facebook. It was the one of the skillet from grandma and I thought you’d gotten rid of it. It’s honestly the greatest skillet known to man..and the rest of those items are all some of my favorites. A little bit because they’re just really useful and good items to have around the house but also because through all the moving that we’ve done over the years, they’ve always been with us to make each new house feel like home.
Hi my sweet baby,
thanks for those lovely words. I know we are only talking about household items here but you are right they have been constants throughout the years.
I look forward to your barrage of phone calls when I get home. Love MUM xxx
I have a similar flour sifter from my grandmother, I too love it and will declutter it. In fact, I have it displayed, rather than hidden in a cupboard, as it makes me happy to look at it.
will NOT declutter it! That is.
Hi Rose,
there are always those things that a too useful to declutter. And sometimes they hold special memories as well.
What is a peg bag?
Hi Lynn,
It holds my clothes line pegs for hanging the washing out on the line. It hooks over the washing line so to be handy when needed.
I have my grandma’s peg bag too, only she called it a clothes pin bag.
Things I will keep: my sewing machine, knitting needles, food dehydrator, my mom’s photograph.
I knew what a peg bag was. (Well, I figured it out once I saw the picture). What I want to know is what is a pikelet that this skillet makes so very nicely? Little tiny pike (fish)? Somehow, I doubt it.
Cindy, lookit what I found on the internets – it looked so good I thought I’d post the recipe. It’s from about.com under Food & Drink – Australian/New Zealand food. Much better than fish!
A popular afternoon tea treat, the Pikelet is best described as a mini, unsweetened pancake. It is usually served with whipped cream and strawberry jam.
Ingredients:
* 1 cup (150g) self-raising flour
* 1/2 cup (100g) castor sugar
* 1/2 tsp of salt
* 1 Tbsp of castor sugar
* 1/2 tsp baking powder
* (3/4 cup) milk
* 1 tsp of pure vanilla essence
* 1 egg, lightly whisked
* 1 tsp hot water
* 1 Tbsp of melted butter
* 2 tsp of butter for frying pan
* 10 large strawberries, halved
* 1/8 cup of castor sugar
* Mixed berries for serving
* Whipping cream for serving
* Serves 4
Preparation:
1. Heat a small pot over a medium heat and add the strawberries and 1/8 cup of castor sugar. Stir and bring to the boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Set aside.
2. Whip the cream until stiff peaks are formed. Refrigerate until serving time.
3. Sift together the flour, sugar, cinnamon and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle of the flour and add the milk, egg, melted butter and water. Whisk the mixture until it forms a smooth batter.
4. Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in a large non-stick frying pan over medium-heat until it foams.
5. Pour two 60ml (1/4-cup) quantities of batter around the edge of the pan and cook for about 30 seconds or until bubbles appear on the surface and the pikelets are golden. Gently flip the pikelets with a spatula and cook for a further 1 minute or until golden. Transfer pikelets to a plate. Repeat with remaining butter and batter.
6. Divide pikelets amongst plates and serve with whipped cream, poached strawberries and berries.
Hi Cindy,
I think I may have spelled that wrong it might be piklet which is like a small pancake that we often put jam and whipped cream on or butter and sugar.
One thing I would never declutter is my Great Grandmother Klienfelter’s wedding ring, which I wear as my wedding ring. The irony of this, which I just learned recently, is that Grandma and Grandpa Klienfelter were total hoarders. Apparently you had to weave a path through their house, and one of my aunts has a room that no one but her is allowed to go in, which she calls her Klienfelter room, in “honor” of these grandparents.
Hi Cindy,
we all have those family jokes that only we know what they refer to and aren’t they fun. My husband and I often laugh together when he refers to one of these “inside jokes” and I understand right away what he is thinking of. I suppose you could call it word decluttering because one word to mean a whole sentence between us.