I think if I could have a dream part-time job it would be to curate a Tumblr for my local library system. One of my absolute favorite things to do is to just wander the stacks at the library, discovering things in odd places–if it’s vintage, so much the better! My local library has many incredible vintage books in their small selection and I found myself lost in the cookbook section, where the technicolor imagery had my mouth watering–not for food reasons, but aesthetic reasons. I mean who can RESIST the mountain of crayfish pictured above?? Not to your taste? How about mysterious egg dishes or stuffed tomatoes!
Oooh la la!
Or how about the sad chocolate mound man? “Please don’t eat me,” he cries!
Or a salad garnished in Nasturtium and radishes? Mais oui!
Speaking of dessert: How about a green frosted Autumn Festival Cake to KICK OFF THE SEASON? Who can resist? Who??
I don’t know why these kind of images make me happy–I haven’t figured out what to exactly DO with them, but they thrill me to no end. They are just so BRIGHT. Occasionally, a girl just needs some color in her black and white comic world. Can you dig?
Paper Pencil Life 
How old are those images? They look old to me now, but apparently I’ve been around long enough that I remember a time when they wouldn’t have looked so quaint to me.
Think Kennedy era. I doubt that you are their contemporary, Ms. Rachel. 😉
Woo Hoo! Thanks, Summer- so glad you enjoy our vintage books. You need to talk to Suzanne about the tumbler thing… we might be able to reach a new segment of the population in town!
oh yeah!! My favorite late night, can’t sleep, reading is our Better Homes cookbook from the 50s. I love reading the recipes almost as much as the pictures. Whipped cream. Margarine. Canned cream of mushroom soup! So much gelatin! It’s like the exact and utter opposite of the hippie food I grew up on.
I love love reading the recipes too and especially the cocktail recipes–there’s one for a cocktail of raw oysters and vodka! And another that has a combination of creme de menthe & ceyenne!
Suzanne says it’s fairly obvious you weren’t raised in a Methodist Community!