Fall Mantel

I redid the mantel for fall a few weeks ago using my faux branch purchased many years ago at a floral shop. Although I have used it just about every year, it was usually in the solarium. This is the first time I put it in the great room. 

The sunflower print is made from a picture I took in a local field a few years ago.

The gorgeous maple leaf quilt on the hearth was a great find from a yard sale several years ago!

Autumn leaves and seed pods, sunflowers, pumpkins and gourds were all in my stash as I have often tucked them in and around this branch in previous years.

In the evening, the light illuminates everything.

                   Autumn blessings to you!

Tablescape Tuesday

Today's tablescape has an autumn feel to me.            

                        

The apples, plums, pears and grapes on the plates blend with the centerpiece (which is really a wreath). Red, purple, gold and green provide a fall vibe. 

It's a lovely late September day here.

I hope you are enjoying yours!

A Vintage Pumpkin

I have some lovely vintage fabrics which I enjoy using in a variety of ways. I think they add interest and texture to décor. I'm always happy to learn about new ideas and so when I saw a vlog (called Canterbury Cottage) on YouTube which showed the following seasonal idea, I was immediately inspired! The creator remade a sweet pumpkin using one she picked up at Dollar Tree and recovered it with some vintage fabric she already had on hand. Following her directions, I bought this small, lightweight pumpkin and used one of my vintage pieces. It looks cute as is with its burlap covering, doesn't it?

It turns out that each section of the pumpkin was covered with its own football-shaped burlap piece and the edges were tucked into the deep crevices. No glue was used. I carefully removed those and used one of them as a template. The gal on YouTube recovered her pumpkin with one piece of fabric, but that did not work for my situation due to the fabric I used. 

My maternal grandma gave me this table doily in a stack of treasures years ago. The handwork was done by her mother/my great grandma. Naturally, I wanted to highlight the embroidered orange and yellow flowers on green stems and leaves. If I left it in one piece to remake the pumpkin, much of the stitching would be tucked and folded. Even more of an issue was the fact that the flowers would appear upside and that was deal breaker for me!🙃 I decided to use the template and carefully cut Great Grandma Snook's linen into four individual pieces. I then tucked all of the edges, the top and the bottom into the deep grooves of the pumpkin. It required no glue or pins and is securely in place.

I reused the stem that came on the pumpkin and then pulled a leaf from an artificial stem that I had. To make it look a bit more realistic, I added a curled green wire to the top. 

It was just the right addition to make this trio. I have had the solid orange pumpkin for years and I picked up the orange and white checked pumpkin when I bought the burlap one. 

   

                        Happy Monday!

Tablescape Tuesday

It's always enjoyable to use my sunflower dishes this time of year. I find them so cheery!

Green glassware and linen napkins seem to go well with the plates.

We find it such a pleasure to eat on the patio throughout the summer and autumn.

               

A vintage watering can filled with a seasonal arrangement was made by a friend many years ago and I still love it.

              

            Have a bright and cheery day! 🌻

Butterscotch Pie, Anyone?

When I read that today is National Butterscotch Pudding Day, it made me think of my dear dad as this was his very favorite! Several years ago I blogged this recipe when I made mini butterscotch pies for his birthday, so I went back and snipped this picture from my archives for today's post. While the photo isn't the best quality since I enlarged it, it does the trick. Not shown is the whipped cream added at serving time. 

I made the following recipe. 

Butterscotch Pie

2 T butter

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar 

1 large egg yolk

1.5 T flour

1 1/4 cups milk

1/2 tsp. salt

 1 1/2 T cornstartch

1 tsp. vanilla

Melt butter in a saucepan, add brown sugar and combine well. In a separate bowl, thoroughly mix together egg yolk, flour, milk, salt and cornstarch. Slowly add this mixture to the hot butter/brown sugar. Stir continuously over medium heat until butterscotch filling  becomes thick. When you remove the pan from the fire, stir in the vanilla. Spoon contents into four or five mini graham cracker pie shells. Refrigerate; garnish with whipped cream. Obviously, you would double the recipe to make one pie, rather than minis.

For a printable version, click here.

Have a good evening!