Winter White Aran Knit Chair Cover

Aran Hand Knit Chair Cover

and yes....

there is a matching ottoman cover.

Hand knit by South African designer, Lynn Garrett and yes, you can buy these on etsy by using the link beneath the first photo.

I hope you are snuggling in by a crackling fire during these cold Fall evenings with something scrumptous on your knitting needles.  The trees are ablaze with color in hues of brilliant orange, red and gold and seem unusally beautiful this year, don't you think?

It's time once again for the annual Pie Supper held in a one room school house called the Independence School, that my Dad attended when he was a little boy.  The local women of surrounding area bake a variety of pies like, coconut, apple, pumpkin, blackberry, peach, pecan, black walnut & raisin, chocolate, butterscotch, banana and cherry.  They also bake cakes for the cake walk.

Everyone in the community crowds into the one room schoolhouse - it's usually standing room only with the tallest in the very back.  Then the auction begins...children go first, bidding on their favorites.  Once the children are happily eating their pie,  the bidding begins by the adults.  Once everyone has a piece of pie, multiple pieces are placed in plates featuring a variety of pies that are auctioned off until every last slice of  the pie is gone for another year.

The proceeds benefit the upkeep of the school building for another year.

The local quilting club raffles off a quilt and they usually put on a few skits that are always a crowd favorite.  Hymns are sung and of course finishing with God Bless America.  It's old fashioned country fun at it's best.

Wish me luck getting a piece of my favorite - black walnut and raisin which is always sold quickly.  For those of you who would like to try a slice of heaven, here is a recipe for you to try.

Black Walnut and Raisin Pie


by Andrea Spring

CRUST

1-1/2 cups Crisco shortening

1 tsp white vinegar

2 T milk

1/2 cup hot water

4 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp salt

1 T cornstarch

Combine shortening, vinegar and milk. Pour in hot water. Mix well. In separate bowl, mix together flour, salt and cornstarch. Combine flour mixture with shortening mixture until dough forms. Separate into four equal balls. Wrap in film wrap and refrigerate 1 portion and freeze remainder for future use. Refrigerate for at least one hour before rolling out.

FILLING

3 eggs

2/3 cup granulated white sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup melted butter

1 cup dark corn syrup

1 cup dark raisins

3/4 cup chopped black walnuts

Mix eggs, vanilla extract, sugar, cinnamon, butter and corn syrup until well blended. Add black walnuts, mix well. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out one portion of pie dough. Place in 10 pie pan. Sprinkle raisins over bottom of pie shell. Carefully pour filling over raisins. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Lower temperature to 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until center of pie is just set.

Happy Fall and Blessing My Friends - Julie



Molly Buries Box Turtles

Most of you remember Molly, my sweet Jack Russell Terrier.  My sweet girl, Molly buries box turtles in my flower beds.  She picks them up and carries them to my flower bed where she digs a shallow hole, tucks the box turtle inside and then pushes the dirt around the turtle with her nose. 

I saw her do this the first time at the farm and thought it was a strange thing for her to do, but thought she did it on a whim.  When I saw her do it again this week in the city, I knew that was the true relationship she has with box turtles.  She buries them in my flower beds where she buries her most prized possessions like rawhide pieces, bones, and various toys.  She seems very pleased with herself when she is finished, bounding up the steps with her short little tail wiggling with glee.

A very large box turtle has made his way into our fenced yard to eat the peaches that have fallen from the tree in our garden.  He's rather large and barely fits in Mollys mouth.

Photo - Evan Shaw Blackerby

It's the game they play, Molly picks turtle up, carries him to the garden, buries him there then runs away.  The turtle climbs out of the shallow hole and goes about his day.  They have done this everyday this week.

I wonder if the turtle thinks, "Oh Great!  There's that nasty little dog that buries me everyday.  Can I make it to cover in time before she see's me?  One foot in front of the other, one foot in front of the other, one foot in front of the other....  Blast!  Tuck into shell quick...here we go again.  Rotten little dog."

It's been fun for Molly and me, and a nuisance I am sure to the turtle making his way back to the peach tree from the flower garden each morning.  Just another fun morning at my house...while I sip my coffee and watch the antics in the garden.

"You see Peter, there's this nasty little dog that picks me up in her jaws and carries me to the garden where she buries me under the cone flowers every morning!" exclaimed Turtle.  "Oh no, gasped Peter, how dreadful."

I have been organizing my studio space.  I have moved into a larger space and haven't had time to really organize until now with the Spring and early Summer shows which provided the perfect excuse to avoid rolling up my sleeves and getting organized once again.  It isn't one of my favorite things to do, but when things get out of control, you just have to take a pause and do a bit of housekeeping.  I still had bead stashes in plastic bags from the Gem Shows earlier this year.

I brought in three new shelving units, a new desk top made of vintage wicker that I love and a couple of vintage mannequins to model my jewelry as I work.

I am hoping to complete the space in time for a Fall Open Studio show but, I have a long way to go to bring it all together in time for a show this year in between custom orders and new jewelry for the Holiday season.

This is one of the things on my wish list for 2010...

Larger Studio Space - check

Hiking on the Konza Prairie - This Fall

Learning How to Make a Delicious Pie Crust -check

Mandolin Lessons - This Fall

Gardening and Planting Trees - check

Getting Physically Fit - in progress

Cleaning Up My Diet - check

Spending Time with my Parents - the very best of all - check

I highly recommend this excellent cookbook.

Over the weekend, I made my first great pie crust!  I was so excited, my crusts are usually doughy and tough.  But, I made an apricot galatte that was declicious with the apricots from our trees!  I couldn't wait until Winter.  One more thing off my list - check it off.

What was on your list this year?  It's not too late to make one filled with some of the things you have always wished you could do.  Work in a few of your dreams.

Blessings - Julie