Friday, October 14, 2022

It's been a while but here's another Home Journal to download...

 I can't remember when I last shared a vintage copy of the Australian Home Journal to download, but today I have the September 1952 issue for you. 


My mum was eleven when this was published, and probably read the AHJ with her own mother, as would her two older sisters. 
Initially the Australian Home Journal was published as a fashion magazine, also including a few recipes, an advice column, three free paper patterns (instructions included in the magazine) and other patterns which could be purchased, movie news and a short fictional story. 
By 1965 the emphasis changed more to homemaking in general, so now I'm going to track us down one of those issues. 
In the meantime however, enjoy this 1952 issue I've got for you today.
There's a section on afternoon tea suggestions with cake and biscuit recipes which you may like to try, knitting and crochet patterns, as well as some fashion advice of the time, new movies and Hollywood news, womanly advice etc. 

The recipe for Ginger Snaps (below) sounds really good, and as Blossom and I have a genuine love for all things ginger this will definitely be made next week. 


Have you ever wondered who was giving the agony aunt advice in these kinds of magazines?  I'd love to know!


This is actually a very pretty top. Of course, I'd need the slim waist to wear it. ;-)
I also love the ad in the bottom right for "waist nippers", and the mention of step-ins...ha ha! Nana wore step-ins all the time. I'd completely forgotten that!



Use the link below to download the September 1952 issue (a few pages were missing) and I hope you enjoy it!





It's been a big week here on our quarter acre, with a few unexpected challenges to manage.

Life for most of us is one long journey of hills, plains and valleys - the hills being times of great joy or boosted energy to accomplish things; the valleys too often a season of struggle, illness, loss or darkness; and the plains, a welcome time of much needed rest, and sameness, the time when everyday rhythms bring predictable order back to our days. 

Honestly, I have never really looked at sameness this way before, but you know, I delight in weeks or months when life potters along without highs or lows, living each day as a simple gift just like the day before. No surprises, just calming rhythms following a familiar pattern. But of course, challenging times will come again, so that makes it even more important to relish the repetitive and predictable weeks as a gifted respite. 

I was pondering how much calmer I am today when facing unforeseen ups and downs, than even three years ago (pre-Covid on reflection) and wonder if it's due to choices like intentional slowing, the letting go of the need to have my hand in many pies, accepting whatever comes my way each day and giving thanks regardless...though mostly I would say its an undoubting faith that no matter my path, God is right there with me, speaking to me through His Word and directing my thoughts and intentions in ways that I could not have done myself. 

Learning that life can be slowly enjoyed, even in the midst of challenges, is what I have gained most as a woman this year. Being structured in my day to day rhythms, but not glued to them when things happen and my time and energy is required elsewhere, has also brought me peace, because when the crisis passes I automatically slip back into those well worn rhythms once again. 

That's the example Nana showed me through how she lived her own life. She would have thought it an inconsequential life, something of no report, yet looking back from this far along in my own 63 years, her life was profoundly important and of great consequence to me. 

There were times when her everyday routine was passed over if she needed to attend to more important or urgent things, but once everything was back to normal she slipped into her daily tasks again without skipping a beat. And it was because she worked around her little home so diligently each day, keeping on top of her chores and maintaining a home which was always in order should an unexpected visitor arrive at the door, that she could miss a day, a week, and still have an ordered home. For the longest time I imagined my own need to have everything ordered and neat a bit obsessive, but no - I had learned from a true homemaker, and had subconsciously stored everything away in my young mind until such a time as I could keep house that way too. What a blessing her life example gave me!

When I was chatting to my husband's aunt yesterday about childhood years, I found many memories coming to mind that I'd not thought of in decades. Vivid recollections of Nana's diligence to the task at hand, her constancy of purpose and deep pride in creating a home that made everyone feel welcome and loved, her ability to make something lovely out of very little, the way she seemed to effortlessly keep house (though it required much work without modern appliances) simply through living by her rhythms and routines....and the very basic meals which even today I would choose to enjoy over any restaurant fare. 

So where am I going with this train of thought??
Two things really.
Firstly, living each day slowly embracing what it holds and doing the best we're able with the time we are given.
Secondly, using the example of those who have left a legacy upon our hearts, to become that same example for the little ones who are watching us today as we live out our own lives. 

God bless you lovely ones! I have a sick cat to tend, an energetic puppy to play with, and a hearty lunch to make...how blessed I am to be given the opportunity to care for those under our roof today. 

Loving hugs
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14 comments:

Lin said...

Thank you for the magazine download Jennifer - I shall enjoy browsing the recipes and everything else. As always I enjoyed reading your thoughts and wish you a calm weekend. xx

Joanne said...

Hi Jennifer,
Those were the days before computers and printers that we know today ! That must have been quite the noisy office with typewriters and copy machines working on an AHJ publication :)
Copy and paste were two very different activites then :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nW8dGwa2zRw
Thanks for putting it all together on Interent !
hugs, take care,
Joanne

Martha said...

Jennifer, as always thank you for honoring your nana by relating her great influence in your life. You bring a serenity much needed in these trying times. I do not necessarily have a "homemakers heart" but I am drawn to your description of a life well lived. May God continue to richly bless you and yours. Returning your love thru the example of Christ our Savior. Martha USA

Allie said...

Oh thank you dear heart - I truly love these old magazines!!!
I love your description of day to day living, the hills and valleys - I too love the plains, the sameness of days, which has been all but eradicated since mum has come to stay. I tend to think of my days in a problem solving way - dirty laundry, put it in the washer, problem solved. Dirty dishes, put them in the dishwasher, problem solved. Unfortunately, that's an exhausting way of thinking, because as soon as you "solve" one problem, you see four more. Or the same problem crops up again minutes later. I'm praying the Lord gives me a new mindset on all of this - that I see everything not as a problem to be solved, but as a blessing to be enjoyed, and find a rhythm that works for me, not against me. I think the loveliest thing you can decorate your home with is a calm spirit, and I don't have that.
I dearly love these stories of your Nana.....I would have loved to have known her.

Elaine said...

Thank you for the magazine download. I look forward to reading it!

Susan said...

Thank you for the magazine and your thoughts on it. Strange, but yesterday I was reflecting on the qualities that I have, and which ones came from my mother and which from my aunt who took over my life when Mama died. I found some of the same thoughts you have voiced about your Nana, only it was my Mama. I can clearly separate the good qualities each woman gave me, and they were as different as two sisters could be. Mama loved freely and Aunt Bobbie covered her love in duty to hide her tenderness, which had tripped her up some in early life. I loved reading your reflections here, and how you love with your whole heart. Thank you, Jennifer, for being a friend. Hugs to you and a prayer over your migraines.

Susan said...

Thank you for the magazine download. I look forward to perusing it. I wish I had a Nana like yours. The only grandmother I knew at all was my father's mother, and she was mean. We all hated it when she came to visit. I never knew my maternal grandmother as she passed away from pneumonia when my mom was 12. I am sorry your cat is sick and I pray she will get better soon and also pray you can soon be back in your rhythm of life.

Julie said...

Thank you for the download dear Jennifer - I just love reading these old editions. Another wonderful post - I am so sorry to read you have a sick cat & hope she is soon well again. xx

Lori said...

Hi Jennifer. I truly enjoy receiving your emails. Your stories bring me back to when I was a little girl. I miss my gram every day. I learned so much from her. We were buddies and she took care of me from a very young age. Her home was always in order. She would give me little chores to do,,like dusting the Knick-knacks very carefully. When all work was done the Bobby pins came out of hair, her signature lipstick went on and last but least the earrings. I must say I am very much like her and proud of it. She and gramps made a huge impact on me. I give this day to her and my God. Bless you and your family🥰

dewdrop said...

Thank you for the lovely magazine download....it just happens to have been published the same month I was born. Although it is from Australia & I'm in the United States, it is still quite fun to see what the interests were back then. Your inspiration to live more simply, to enjoy the days as they come is so appropriate at this time in my life, too. Here we are headed into winter, the perfect time to spend a bit more time on making the home cozy & doing the little changes that are so easy to postpone over the busy summer months. I sincerely hope your cat is going to be okay & soon is back to good health. - Diane from northern Minnesota, USA.

Carole @ From My Carolina Home said...

Thank you for the download, it is always a pleasure to look at a slice of life from the past. It does seem like simpler times.

Mary-Lou said...

Thanks Jennifer I look forward every Wed to my women's weekly! Similar to your one! I think I remember my Mum getting it! Hugs Mary-Lou

Caroline said...

Thank you for the download. I love these old magazines, great to look back on a simpler life

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the BOM and the magazine. I look forward to look through it this evening.
- Hillbilly Tonya