Preserving memories

My gorgeous sister in law Deb picked up this vintage preserving set at a garage sale a few weeks back. She knows how much I love old junk and thought I'd love to use the drum for storage. It's already got a home in our dining room, next to the antique suitcases and the old farm chair.

Now, I'm too young to remember this but my mum assures me that my nan had a Vacola just like this, and she used to preserve a whole lot of things. One of the most vivid memories I have of days spent with my nan as a child involved picking fruit and veg from her garden (especially passionfruits!), so I've no doubt she was an avid preserver, pickler and bottler as well.

I took it outside on a rainy day and brushed off all the loose rust. It looks like the drum is pretty worn out, but finding all the jars inside was a little buried treasure moment. :)

So many jars!

Unfortunately there's no lids but it seems these are easy to pick up on ebay.

So I'm going to give preserving a go!  I'm thinking fruits; I'm not a huge pickle or chutney fan. Maybe preserved lemons? Why not!

I have these beauties in my fruit bowl right now.

Stay tuned for how they turn out!