Did you know that Christmas Eve in Iceland is called the Jólabókaflóð or Book Flood?  

You see, folktales have deep roots in Icelandic traditional storytelling & so books have always played an important role in Icelandic culture. In other words, the people of Iceland love books and love to read!  Apparently, some Icelanders joke storytelling is a national pastime.

WHAT IS JOLABOKAFLOD?

Jólabókaflóð is the tradition of gifting books on Christmas Eve and then spending the remainder of the evening reading the gifted books along with drinking hot chocolate and eating sweet treats! Now that is a tradition I can get behind! - who's with me?! 

The tradition began during World War II when the nation was new & almost everything except paper was rationed. It has continued to this day. Iceland also publishes more books per capita than any other country.*

So, it comes as no surprise they have embraced this wonderful tradition. And what a lovely tradition it is, simple yet beautiful. There is nothing better than receiving books - pair it with sweets & hot chocolate & it makes a wonderful way to spend an evening.

START YOUR OWN TRADITION

Busy on Christmas Eve? Schedule your own Jólabókaflóð during the holidays or in the beginning of January. Why not start a new tradition in the New Year - wouldn't this be a great activity to plan for January when the post-Holiday Blues set in?  Gather a few close friends, exchange books (you know the website is filled with wonderful books including a collection of Folk Tales), serve up some hot chocolate along with a batch of these Oatmeal Fudge bars & enjoy a wonderful evening (or afternoon) of book reading & friendship.

And if spending an evening reading books isn't enticement enough to start a new tradition, how about a recipe for Oatmeal Fudge Bars you can make & share during the evening? This wonderful, sweet treat comes from my mom, who has been making it for as long as I can remember! It is a family favorite - among both our immediate and extended family. I love this recipe so much; my mom often makes it for my birthday each year & at Christmas as well. This recipe makes a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 jelly roll pan so I like to cut it into thirds & freeze two of the three portions to enjoy later. I have been known to hide the frozen portions so I don't have to share it - please don't judge me, it's just that they are that good, you will want to keep them all for yourself!

*Some information taken from goodnet.org

Join us in spreading joy this holiday season while celebrating the artistry & passion of women creators/business owners. Our carefully curated guide features a delightful selection of women-owned businesses, each offering unique and thoughtful treasures that are perfect for everyone on your list.

Nurturing Curiosity: Homeschool Curriculums Made with Heart

Prairie & Pine Curriculums is a thoughtfully designed homeschool curriculum designed by two former public educators that brings literature to life through engaging, theme-based unit studies. Their approach emphasizes critical thinking, creativity, and real-world connections, offering families a meaningful way to explore classic and contemporary works. With options for all grade levels, Prairie & Pine inspires a love of learning and storytelling in every home classroom.

My Gift Pick:  Understood Betsy Unit Study

For families cherishing classic literature and meaningful educational experiences, the Understood Betsy Unit Study - A Change of Pace is an exceptional gift. Inspired by Dorothy Canfield Fisher’s timeless novel, Understood Betsy, this curriculum offers a unique literature-based approach designed for elementary students. It engages children with thought-provoking activities that promote critical thinking, reading comprehension, and writing skills, all while building a deeper connection to this heartwarming story of resilience and growth.

Shop with Purpose: Fair Trade Seasonal Gifts & Decor

For those searching for the perfect seasonal gifts that capture the magic of the holidays, Welljourn presents the Christmas Favorites Ornaments Collection. This woman-owned business specializes in creating enchanting and timeless holiday decor that adds a touch of whimsy and joy to every celebration. The shop is filled with fair-trade, artisan-made items from around the world.

My Gift Picks: Bird Ornaments

Transform your holiday festivities with these adorable bird ornaments. Each piece is a work of art, handcrafted with attention to detail and a commitment to infusing the season with charm. From classic and elegant to whimsically delightful, these ornaments are designed to become cherished keepsakes, bringing a touch of joy to your holiday traditions.

Art That Inspires: One-of-a-Kind Pieces and Workshops

Tyree Dworak Art has drawn inspiration for her work from the world around her throughout her career as a visual artist. From painting bucolic farm scenes and animals to sculpting woodland creatures, she has made a large variety of things over the years. Practicing with such a variety of media has given Tyree a strong foundation for the work she now creates. In the last few years, she has found a home with ceramic sculpture. Tyree creates figures in clay and has cultivated her own style of slip application to create texture while using her painting background for a variety of surface treatments. Tyree deftly combines skills and materials across mediums to create stories with her whimsical sculptures. Inspiration might spark from a found object or some personal tale. Regardless, the feelings Tyree portrays are universal: humor, joy, curiosity, loneliness, love. Tyree’s work invokes a feeling of kinship in her viewers: they are part of her world and she is a part of theirs. Visit her account here to explore the pieces currently for sale.

My Gift Picks:  Give the Gift of an In Person Class

What better gift than the gift of learning?  Tyree offers several in person classes throughout the year including an upcoming ten-week study of the human head starting early next year. This sculpture class explores the study of the human head & is tailored to enrich beginners and experienced artists alike. 

Give The Gift of Nostalgia This Holiday Season

Imagine a bookshop filled with your favorite books from childhood all in one place.  That is exactly what Wendy envisioned when she created Log Cabin Vintage. This vintage bookshop is filled with books from our childhoods - from favorite Fairy Tales to the Classics we loved reading for the very first time, there is something for everyone. Did you solve mysteries right alongside Nancy Drew & The Hardy Boys, cry when Jack died while reading the Little House on the Prairie series, rejoice when The Little House was finally moved out of the city back to the country where she belonged? Does the mere mention of these titles bring back wonderful childhood memories? Then this is the shop for you.

My Gift Picks:  Classic Children's Literature

This holiday season give the gift of nostalgia with a vintage children's book for those on your list.  Here are a few unique takes on what books to choose – a book published the year the recipient was born, a book from their favorite genre, a favorite book from childhood...with a variety of collections to choose from, you are sure to find the perfect gift for each person on your list this this season.

On Monday my bestie & I visited the Brandywine Museum of Art in Chadds Ford, PA to view their exhibit Rooted: Family and Nature in Contemporary Children’s Book Illustrations.  It was wonderful - so many amazing illustrators were represented in the exhibit including several recent Caldecott Winners. We had a great time not only enjoying this exhibit but also the entire museum.  It was the first time either of us had visited & we were amazed by the artwork we saw.  

The Exhibit

If you know me at all, you know I love history & old farmhouses, so Sophie Blackall’s illustrations from her book Farmhouse immediately drew me in but let me tell you, all of the artists’ works were amazing. 

Two others I wanted to mention that I loved were The Train Ride is Long But My Mom Says it’s Worth It by Qing Zhuang from her book Rainbow Shopping. The book is filled with beautiful illustrations and colors depicting shopping in Chinatown in NYC.

Frank Morrison’s illustrations in The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver (written by Gene Barretta) had me studying each illustration to take in all their wonderful details. The one below, of George as a child reminded me of a modern day Maxfield Parrish painting - thankfully my bestie captured the image for me to share as I missed it.

Honestly every single illustrator featured had beautiful artwork.  Be sure to visit the museum’s Facebook page for a complete list & more video & photos of the exhibit (on exhibit until February 28th, 2024).

My bestie & I both came home with a few new books for our bookshelves including a few recent Caldecott Winners. I want to collect all of the Caldecott and Newbery Medal Books and read each & every one of them.  So this was my start - I came home with Owl Moon written by Jane Yolen and illustrated by John Schoenherr, which won the 1988 Caldecott Medal and Finding Winnie written by Lindsay Mattick with illustrations by Sophie Blackall, a 2016 Caldecott Medal Winner.  And of course, you know I bought Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall because the story and illustrations just spoke to me.  

PS The image of the boy & girl in the barn entry at the top left of this photo is exactly how my husband & I would be if we milked cows.  I have always wanted to live on a farm - him, not so much!

Hi I am Wendy the owner here at Log Cabin Vintage. I figured it was time I shared a little about myself here on the blog. 

I am a life-long resident here in Historic Bucks County, PA where I live with my husband, our youngest daughter, two dogs & a handful of chickens.  I am an avid reader & have been for as long as I can remember - when I was little my mom would take my glasses away at night because I would just stay up & read with a flashlight if she did not.  I grew up read everything I could get my hands on.  My earliest memories are of my parents reading board books to me & I specifically remember Pat the Bunny. In elementary school I remember falling in love with the Billy & Blaze series by C. W. Anderson because horse books were my favorites.  My mom read all of the Little House Books to us kids & I had a subscription to Cobblestones Magazine (American History for kids). As I grew older, I enjoyed Nancy Drew, Sunfire Romance books (which, let’s be honest, were more historical fiction than romance), Janette Oke books & on & on. As an adult I still love to read & have found such joy in reading through the books of my childhood again (especially those books I should have read as a kid but somehow missed reading).

I never felt I had a calling for a certain career & happily stayed home with our youngest while she was in school. I had a little vintage home décor business (I sold online, at in-person events & in a booth at the local antique mall).  And in 2022 I turned my online business from the vintage home décor business to an online vintage children’s book shop. And I finally feel I have found my calling!  My lifelong passion for reading & my love of collecting books has blossomed into a job I love. To me, there is nothing better than helping people find their favorite books from childhood. The feeling of nostalgia when you reread a childhood favorite cannot be beat. The memories of the beloved books & even more beloved are the memories of those who read them to us.

What makes Log Cabin Vintage different than other book shops?  Well to start with, I only source books I would want in my own library. As I mentioned above, I am an avid reader & I also collect books as well. Rest assured; I am not going to source just any old book to make a profit. I source books I either own, I would love to decorate with in my own home or a book that is going to teach me something. It is why you will always find beautiful editions of children's books in the shop, books focused on nature & learning, great classics everyone should read, books beautiful enough for decorating, & books worthy of gift giving.

Another thing that makes Log Cabin Vintage different is my commitment to the environment. Yes, I could buy fancy boxes & padded envelopes to ship your book purchases in, however, I have made a commitment to use as much recycled packaging & shipping supplies as possible. Therefore, all of my padded envelopes & boxes are used - saved by friends & family. My packing peanuts are from a local honey company's shipments of glass jars & are biodegradable, & the tissue paper is made from 100% recycled materials. The only thing I have not been able to find that is sustainable is the bubble wrap - but I do use recycled bubble wrap when I can find it.

It is my hope this website will bring back wonderful childhood memories, encourage you to reread the books you loved growing up & to fill your home with books.

Happy Reading,

Wendy

With the celebration of Earth Day this coming Saturday, I thought it was the perfect time to chat about why buying vintage books is a great way to help the environment. I also wanted to let you know what I do as a business owner to help reduce the carbon footprint of shipping these vintage beauties to all of you. Together we can make a difference in this world - one vintage book at a time!

Thrifting for used items has always been a part of my life and as an avid reader, I have purchased secondhand books since the third grade when I saved all of my fake, school money (we spent part of the year learning about money & used fake money in class) buying all of the books from the teacher at the end of the year.  She was moving & was not taking her classroom books with her. I was thrilled to bring home a huge box of books on one of the final days of school!  - That really was the beginning of my career, I just did not know it at the time - I have never lost my love of children's books.  When I decided to start selling vintage books, I knew I needed to do what I could to reduce their carbon footprint as much as possible. 

Here at Log Cabin Vintage my commitment to be as sustainable as possible has led me to do the following things:

• All of my books are purchased second hand & 99% are vintage!
• Use padded envelopes and boxes that are used - saved by friends & family.
• Use biodegradable packing peanuts & only use them when absolutely necessary to help secure books inside of a box for shipment.
• Use tissue paper made from 100% recycled materials.
• Use a thermal printer that does not require ink.

You can be assured you are helping the environment with the books you purchase here at Log Cabin Vintage.  Shop now.

According to an article published by Bookriot.com, a book’s carbon footprint may be reduced by half if it is kept out of a landfill. Here are a few great ways to do reduce the carbon footprint of each book you purchase:

• Purchase used books as often as possible – there are many great used book sellers out there offering a variety of genres of books for sale – the focus here at Log Cabin Vintage is vintage children’s books.
• Donating books – think outside the box on this one – not only do thrift stores accept most book donations, but often times places like nursing homes, churches and even local libraries (think used book sales as fundraisers for these organizations) will accept them as well.
• Share your books with others:
  • Start a book swap with your friends or co-workers.
  • Leave books in area Little Libraries – they seem to be popping up all over the place & there is nothing better than checking a Little Library and finding a book on your "To Read" list waiting for you!

Let's Make Every Day Earth Day!

October's featured author is Marguerite de Angeli.  She has local ties to the area I live in (Eastern PA) & her illustrations get me every time. I thought it would be fun to share a little bit about her & some of the books she has written and illustrated. 

Marguerite was born in Michigan in 1889, and her family moved to Philadelphia when she was only 13 years old.  It wasn't until she was married & was living in New Jersey when she really began to hone her skills as an illustrator. Before becoming an author, herself, she illustrated many children's books and was a contributor to The Country Gentleman Magazine.  She was also a singer and soloist in several church choirs in Philadelphia, having left high school to pursue her singing career.  

Over her lifetime she wrote and illustrated 27 books. The one that intrigues me the most is The Skippack School in which Christopher Dock is the school master. Anyone in our area of Bucks and Montgomery Counties, PA will recognize the name Christopher Dock as that of the local Mennonite High School. She also wrote about the Amish & addressed racial prejudice in 1946 with the publication of her book Bright April.

She has won countless literary awards and is known as the Grande Dame of Children's Literature.  At the age of 95, she was inducted into Michigan Women's Hall of Fame.  Her awards include:  The Newberry Medal for her book The Door in the Wall (1950) and The Lewis Carroll Shelf Award for Bright April.  She was also a two-time Caldecott Award Nominee.  

I always enjoy finding her books when out treasure hunting.  Shop available Marguerite de Angeli children's books for sale in The Marguerite de Angeli Collection.   

Some information taken from the internet, including https://miwf.org.