Dried leaves piled into a bowl have that holiday spirit. I picked leaves off my fruit tree and dried them under a heavy sheet (that allowed the edges of the leaves to curl a bit, giving the leaves a holly feel). They are too delicate to string into the garland, so the alternative is this arrangement that reminds me of a wreath. Love!

mmm…I made this with beets from the garden. I pulled some young beets to use their greens for the salad. The colors are delightfully festive! The  recipe is from my favorite veggie cookbook, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. If this cookbook isn’t on your bookshelf, you must get it! The information about how to cook veggies to their best is worth the cover price, not to mention the recipes are all fantastic.

Soup season is here! This is my favorite soup to serve at the Halloween party, and it is always a hit. Plus, if there is any left over it keeps for days. I topped the soup with sour cream and dried flat parsley (which I blogged about here>>)

Follow this link to the recipe >>

We have a wonderful garden and sometimes it grows faster than we expect. One day we think we have it all under control~the next there are dozens of veggie varieties ready to pick.

I quickly gather our bounty and start canning. For this label (pictured) I used the Cricut Expression and the Preserves cartridge.

These make great gifts and the savory ones are especially appreciated during the sweet-sweet Holidays. You needn’t have a garden to make great foodie gifts…Buy local, organic veggies and can for yourself or for gifts. You’ll be a star among your friends and family. Those of you in the cold parts of the country better get on it…soon your local farms will be shuttered for the winter.

Speaking of the Holidays~October is just around the corner and that means Halloween is almost here! I’ll be spending the entire month~starting October First~making fun stuff for my favorite Holiday. Tune in for great ideas leading up to a stellar party!

September is a busy month for birthdays. That means I am extra crafty this time of year. My awesome mother-in-law’s birthday is today and I whipped out this cute little thing in under an hour. She loves to have herbs on her sill for easy picking, so I think she’ll be thrilled.

I used a wool sweater that didn’t end up felting in the wash. What you see here is the end of the sleeve (the cuff is at the bottom of the pot.) It’s easy to do. Find a pot that fits into the arm hole of the sweater. It could be any sweater, actually, not just wool. Slip the pot in, and cut the arm high enough so it tucks in but doesn’t hit the bottom. Then, drop in a small potted plant. This Sage plant was purchased at a local nursery.

I had to add a little something special, of course, so I needle felted two mushrooms in her favorite colors.