Norwood Furniture

The Sensible Designer

Norwood believes and I agree that your home should be the nicest place you'll ever go.  But what can we do to be sure this is true of our homes?  My suggestion is to look around and put your five senses to work. 

Sight, or the visual appearance of your home is the first impression you and your family will have upon entering.  Is the space free of clutter or other distractions that take away from the warm and comfortable feel you hope to achieve?  Clutter and confusion will create stress, which is something you want to avoid.  You can also use lighting to change the mood of the room.

The sense of touch comes into play in several areas.  Leather upholstery feels different to the touch when compared to fabric.  Each person will have their own preferences and a combination of different textures can also add to the charm of your space.  Other areas where texture is added is in your window treatments, carpeting or hard wood flooring, throw rugs, pillows and accessories.   These elements create quality and uniqueness to your home. 

Listen to the sound of your home.  Are there children laughing and playing?  Is there a crackling fire in the fireplace.  Do you have soft music playing in the background or is there a welcomed silence?  Is something sizzling on the stove?  The sounds we hear make up the heart of the home and add ambiance.

Have you ever walked into someone's home and notice the unique fragrances.  Good or bad the smell of your home makes an impression.  Create the right impression by using candles, flowers and soft clean aromas that are inviting.

Please come into Norwood and our 35 thousand square foot showroom and ask for me, I'd love to help you create the perfect environment for you and your family.  We have lots of things to choose from to assist you in creating the design you are looking for. 

I'll bet you are wondering how I am going to cover the sense of taste.  Happiness is a nice plate of sugar cookies sitting on the table.  Though the years I have gathered an impressive collection of cookie cutters for all occasions and I love to bake cookies (which brings me back to warm inviting fragrances, but I've already covered that topic).  I've done a lot of experimenting with sugar cookie recipes and I believe I have found the perfect cookie.  I'm not a fan of the thin crisp cookie, preferring rather the thicker, softer more textured ones.  My very creative side then comes out in the decorating.  Each cookie is it's own individual work of art.  I have included my recipe and hope you love it as much as I do.  

                                                                                                        

                                                                              

                                                      THE DESIGNER SUGAR COOKIE

                          1/4 Cup Crisco Shortening                                           

                          1/4 Cup Butter or Margarine

                         1 Cup  Sugar

                         1 Large Egg

                         1 tsp. Watkins Vanilla

                         1-2 drops of Almond Oil

                         2 2/3 to 3 Cups All Purpose flour

                         1 tsp. Baking Powder

                         1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

                         1/2 tsp. salt

                         1/2 cup sour cream

                         1/4 cup of cream cheese

Mix shortening, sugar, egg, and vanilla until blended.  Add sour cream, cream cheese and almond oil mix gentle with wooden spoon.  In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder and baking soda and salt.  Combine the dry mixture slowly to the wet mixture,and form into dough.  Gently handle the dough and form into a ball.  Make sure you do not knead. Place the dough in plastic wrap for 3 hrs. or overnight in the refrigerator. Take out when ready to bake and let stand 15 mins and then roll out approx 1/4" and use your favorite cookie cutter.  Place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake in preheated 425 degree oven for 10-12 min.  When cool, bring out your own inner-decorating skills and enjoy!

I look forward to meeting you in the future at Norwood.  Set aside some time when we can browse the showroom looking for the perfect treasures that will enhance your home.

See you then,

Jody Marcus (that's Jody with a "y"... yes there are two of us at the store.)

                         

Cornmeal Rolls

2 pkg. or 5 t. dry yeast                                    1/2 C. sugar

1/2 c. water, between 105 and 115 degrees        1/2 C butter

1 1/2 C lukewarm milk/soy                                 2 t. salt

1 C. cornmeal                                                  6 C. flour, divided

(Dough can be kept in the refrigerator for days until needed, then let set to room temperature prior to baking.)

Dissolve yeast in warm water.  Add milk, cornmeal, sugar, butter, salt and 2 cups of the flour then beat on medium speed with hand mixer.  When smooth, add about 4 cups more flour and knead 8 - 10 minutes.  Place in a greased bowl, turn to oil dough.  Raise until double, about 1 hour.  Grease 2 baking sheets and sprinkle with cornmeal.  Punch down dough and divide in half.  Roll each half to a 12" circle.  Cut into 16 wedges each, like a pizza.  Starting with the outside edge, roll each wedge to the center.  Place point down on baking sheet.  Cover and rise until double, about 45 minutes.  Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cornmeal.  Bake at 400 for 15 - 20 minutes.

Kelly Merkel ids

Norwood Furniture

It's the season of Orange

At the recent color event, I researched and presented on the color orange.  What do you think of when you see orange?  For me, I think of the bright orange of yams in my family's casserole at Thanksgiving.  It's a recipe that's been passed on, mostly by word of mouth, through the years.  Our name for it has become "Apple Yammy Yum Yum," but I think it originally had a different name.  Wanna give our recipe a try?

Two Baking Apples, thinly sliced

6-8 large yams

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup diced pecans

1 bag mini marshmallows

Oven at 375 degrees

Bake the yams in the oven for approximately one hour, until fairly soft.  Remove from oven and remove the skins.  CAREFUL--they will be hot!  You can also peel the yams beforehand and boil them for approximately 25 minutes.  Next, mash the yams to the consistency of mashed potatoes.  Take a 9 X 13" casserole dish, spray the bottom, and flatten 1/2 of the yams on the bottom of the pan.  Take some of your apple slices and cover the entire layer of yams.  Next, put on another layer of yams and follow with the remaining apple slices.  Mix the brown sugar and pecans in a bowl and sprinkle over top of apples.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake in oven for 45 minutes.  Remove pan from oven and put the mini marshmallows on top.  Turn oven to "Broil" and put pan back in oven for approximately 5 minutes.  Watch the pan because you only want the marshmallows to brown, not burn. 

I hope you enjoy my recipe.  And by the way, orange increases the appetite, so it's a great color for a dining area--unless you want to decrease the appetite. If you want to know more on how to use orange in your decorating or have other questions you can email me at shastai@norwoodfurniture.com.

Thanks for reading,

Shasta

Norwood Furniture