A Creative Day--Painting and Baking...

Hi Everyone,
Today has been one of those fun, creative days where one project just isn't enough and you have to do several!
I had some fun painting!


















Check out this gourd I painted for a Fall decoration. It is whimsical and kind of cute. I made a little felt star to glue on the stem. It will look great mixed in with some Fall leaves.



















Then I noticed some McIntosh apples I had bought and thought I would make some baked apple hand pies. My mother used to bake these and they were always a hit. You can just pick one up like you would a sandwich and munch away.

First I peeled and cooked the apples, adding a small bit of sugar and some cinnamon, a dash of cloves and a dash of nutmeg. That smelled delicious!

I rolled out the pie crust and cut in little rounds, put a dollop of apples in the center, folded them over and sealed the edges by using a fork all around the edges. I sprinkled with a tiny bit of sugar and some more cinnamon.

Baked until light brown, here is how they look. No, I didn't just make three....I made 12, as I plan to freeze most of them for when someone pops by and I need a quick dessert!

I did try one with a cup of tea and it was YUMMY!

"Pretty Fall Blooms"

Hi everyone,

I have started cleaning off my Fall garden spot although it is still so hot. Some things blooming right now have the lovely Autumn colors.

This Begonia is called a Florida Sunset begonia and you can see why by the beautiful variegated colors it blooms. I love the texture of the leaves, too.









This is one of my favorite hibiscus colors. Hibiscus blooms are so stunning!

Marigolds are always a favorite in my garden. I mix them in with my cabbages and broccoli and have never had a problem with worms! It is said that pests do not like marigolds and it must be true. Every year I make sure I have them mixed in my vegetable garden. Not only do they add a touch of bright color, but they protect the veggies from pests! I usually buy established plants and then harvest seeds and plant them, too, so that I have lots of them.

In Florida, it is time to start planting our winter gardens and the cut off date for successful planting is October 19, I'm told. It is still hot here, but we are getting lots of rain and it should start to cool a bit soon.

Wishing you colorful Autumn days!

"Fall Activities in Florida"

Hi Everyone,

Well, you know that in Florida, we actually have very little Fall weather! We dream of it, we TRY to have it, we make Fall decorations and hang Fall wreaths. I went in my favorite antique shop today and even had a cup of apple cider!



However,










Early this morning I was exercising and swimming in this beautiful pool at the local KOA!

It is 90 degrees right now! Oh well, we can
THINK Fall, anyway!

"The Pumpkin Sisters Painting and other Fall Decor"

Hi everyone,
Well I finished the painting of The Pumpkin Sisters. That is Lolita at the top left, Jessie to her side and at the bottom is Pumfrances. As you can see, Pumfrances tried to take over and get out front in the limelight. If you want to see a closer view, click on it! Did you know that I sell my paintings on http://egrettawells.blogspot.com/






Do you remember when I decided to plant some flowers in my rustic little stove on the porch? Well, the hot summer sort of did in some of the plants, so I have added some artificial Fall leaves and a little happy faced pumpkin. I will add some new plants later.

On my TV cabinet door, I hung a quilt handed down to me from an aunt. It is a scrappy quilt with big orange blocks that always remind me of pumpkins. Sitting at the top is a canvas pumpkin that is so cute!

And do you,remember the pumpkins I made? I couldn't resist putting all those plaid ones in a row sitting on the china cabinet. Can one have too many pumpkins? I think not!!

"Henri, the Butternut Squash"

Greetings from Ten Gables Cottage,

Do you remember my lovely looking butternut squash I posted a while ago? Well, I named him "Henri". He was very pleased with his name and tried to grow as large as he could. He wanted to outgrow all the other squash I had in the garden and he gave it all he had!

I checked on him yesterday and he was ready to be picked. How did I know?



Well, his stem had dried and was almost broken off itself, so with just a little snap, there he was in my hands.

I know he was worrying about whether I would pick him before some bad raccoon got him or he would just lie there and rot.

I reassured him and happily carried him into the house where I introduced him to some other friends, some novelty and decorative gourds. His tiny little brother, Junior, was there too, as I had picked him earlier when I noticed his stem was already broken. He is a tiny butternut, as you can see. Henri must weight over two pounds---he is very heavy.

Here is Henri relaxing with some of his friends.

Nearby, the Pumpkin girls, Lolita, Jessie, and Pumfrances are nestled in a basket, waiting for me to do a still life painting of them. They are so proud of their beautiful golden stripes, and well they should be, as they are very attractive. The painting is on the easel, so I hope to show you it finished tomorrow.

It's Fall. Be Happy!!!

"Fall...Mum painting and Lima beans, cinnamon rolls

Hi everyone,
I hope you are having a fine Sunday afternoon! After church, I decided to finish a painting I was working on,"Autumn Mums". Here it is and I hope you like it. I am reminded of the beautiful mums my mother used to have in Kentucky! Here in Florida, Fall is sort of wishful thinking, at the moment. I am seeing mums in the garden center and will be putting some into my garden soon.










Now that I have finished painting, I thought it would be a good day to fix a Fall dish my mother liked to serve. She and my Dad were educated at Pine Mountain Settlement School in Harlan County, Kentucky. It was a boarding school with studies in many things besides books, as well as the best in "book education". Mother acquired many tasty recipes there that were staples at our house years later. One was "Lima Bean Salad" which HAD to be served with cinnamon rolls! Don't ask me why, but I will tell you that they compliment each other so well that I can't imagine one without the other!



To make Lima Bean Salad, you can either use canned green limas, or cook dried ones, draining all juice off. Add boiled and chopped egg, chopped onion, pickle relish, a little chopped green pepper, red, too if you want a little color, and stir in mayonnaise until moistened. Cover in fridge a few hours to let flavors blend. You can make cinnamon rolls your favorite way or an easy way, which is to dip canned biscuits in melted butter, then in sugar mixed with cinnamon. Be sure to poke some raisins into the dough. Serve as a meal in itself or add your favorite meat and perhaps a baked sweet potato. Lots of Yum appeal here! Try it. Making Lima Bean Salad is just like making potato salad, but use beans instead of potatoes. You'll be pleasantly surprised!

Wordless Wednesday

Come walk trough the garden with me.

Creating Little Pumpkin Pouches

Hi everyone,
I am still in a Fall Frame of Mind, so I have been creating little pumpkin pouches to hold treats! I just cut out two matching pumpkins from felt, cut out eyes, nose and funny mouth and a stem for the top...all from scraps of felt and then do some embroidering to attach to the pumpkin face. I leave an opening at the top so I can inset some little treats for all those Trick or Treaters (actually all I ever have is my grandchildren!).










I thought they would be so cute as a favor at each place when I have my friends over for lunch in October.

Or they could even hold the silverware!

Anyway, they are fun to make and I think the more you make the cuter they get! Maybe a whole basketful would be nice.......

"Morning Glory Muffins"

Hi Everyone, I wish you could just smell these delicious muffins cooling in my kitchen! Tomorrow I was asked to bring something to church for a Prayer Breakfast, so besides some watermelon chunks, I decided to take these yummy HEALTHY muffins.

For the past few weeks, I have really been trying to eat lots healthier and with no added salt! This recipe uses shredded carrots, apples, raisins, walnuts and calls for coconut, but I used dried cranberries instead of the coconut.

They are Yummy! Below is the recipe.

Morning Glory Muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup oat bran

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp. soda

1/4 tsp. salt(optional)

Combine all the above in large bowl and set aside.

3 eggs

3/4 cups applesauce

1/4 cup vegetable oil (you can actually leave this out if you want)

1/4 cup molasses

2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. orange extract

2 cups grated carrots

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup coconut (Iused dried cranberries)

1 medium tart apple, peeled and finely chopped

Mix moist ingredients together...add to dry ingredients and then fold in the carrots, raisins, walnuts and coconut, and apple. Fill muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and remove to wire racks. Makes about 18 muffins. Enjoy!

Rain Appreciation Day!

Hi everyone, Today I am celebrating my own "Rain Appreciation Day"! Everything looks so much better since we have been having showers most every afternoon or evening. Flowers are blooming and things are lush and green. Here are some photos of the back patio and garden.

The banana tree looks gorgeous and so does the plumbago and the Mexican petunia!

Here is a close up of the plumbago. The yellow butterflies love this bush and usually there are at least 3 or 4 on it!


Happy Rain Appreciation Day!

Making fabric pumpkins

Hello and welcome to Ten Gables Cottage,
I have been busy making fabric pumpkins. I'm really in the Fall mood, as you can see. The ones pictured here are made of an old chenille bedspread dyed a golden orange. I have also used all sorts of pretty fall fabrics, including some orange and black flannel.







I started with a piece of fabric cut twice as long as it is wide.





I think I usually cut the pieces maybe 22 by 11 or 20 by 10, 18 by 9, etc.

Sew up the side, leaving both ends open. Then take a needle and thread and hand sew across one end, gathering up the fabric. Stitch a few times to secure.









Now turn right side out and stuff with fiber fill, very tightly.

Stitch across the top, gathering it and secure. Now you have a "ball". Take a big needle with yarn and go up through the bottom to the top, pulling the yarn tight to make the sections of the pumpkin. Make a stem and leaves of your own design or use wood, silk leaves, etc. Glue in place and there, you have a pumpkin!

Think Fall!

Blogger Giveaway Prize from 52Flea

Hi everyone and welcome to Ten Gables Cottage,
I am so excited because I won a beautiful giveaway prize from one of my favorite blogs...http://52 FLEA.blogspot.com/ I hope you will go on this beautiful blog and enjoy it as much as I do. The card came with the gift and was handmade by Laura's mother. It's lovely!
Then I received 2 gorgeous wooden paddles tied together with twine and I think they are either sock darners or dryers or they are used in the kitchen. I must find out the original use. They are so smooth so I know they had a special purpose. Then I received a skeleton key tied with a bit of lace, a cute little bag of vintage white buttons, all sizes and shapes, a wonderful little tin scoop that I had to dispaly the buttons in, and an old wooden stamp which I must stamp and see just whose name is on it! what a nice lot of treasures and I want to thank Laura for giving me the opportunity to enter her nice giveaway. What a thrill to be a winner!