Blog - Page 30 of 52 - Linda Nelson

HARVESTS FROM THE CRAFTY PUMPKIN PATCH

October 19, 2015

I didn’t grow pumpkins in my garden this year, but that doesn’t mean I was without harvest. No, I grew mine in a crafty sort of way, and my bounty was quite the menagerie.

I grew a distressed leather pumpkin……….

©Linda Nelson 2015

an ultra-suede one………..

©Linda Nelson 2015

a chenille one, and some velvet ones, too.

©Linda Nelson 2015

And, for my friend, I grew some furry, glitzy and glamorous ones.

©Linda Nelson 2015

Not too shabby a harvest, wouldn’t you say? They were very fun to grow. I love all the pumpkins you crafty folks have been growing, too. There are so many fabulous posts out there. Very, very pretty!

The pickings are slim with regard to harvesting the remainder of my summer flowers, but I managed to throw together this little arrangement; I’ll enjoy it for as long as I can.

©Linda Nelson 2015

My garden tchotchkes have all been stored away, save for a few things here and there. I always keep this little bistro set out; it looks so pretty surrounded by snow, especially when the birds come to feed.

©Linda Nelson 2015

Happy harvesting!

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THE NESTING INSTINCT

October 6, 2015

I don’t know about you, but when we get bouts of consecutive rainy days I go right into craft, clean and purge mode. Nope, one does not need to be an expectant mother to take on the nesting instinct. In addition to hormones, rainy days and the change of seasons can trigger it, too. I’ll bet that many of you can identify. Anyway, after some tidying, laundering, scrubbing and tossing, I broke out my crafting paraphernalia.

To start, I whipped up two decorative pumpkins, one from a remnant piece of plush velour, the other from a zebra print upholstery fabric sample. These diva-worthy pumpkins are for my friend; she loves glitz and glamour. I think she’ll love these, too.

©Linda Nelson 2015

I also began production of select items I designed, which will be offered for sale at our town’s local(and fabulous!) garden center come November. If you happen to live near the east end of Long Island, NY, or will be visiting the area this coming holiday season, be sure to visit Lynch’s Garden Center.

Aren’t these mushrooms darling? They’re perfect for fairy garden aficionados or anyone who appreciates the cross-pollination of the natural with the surreal.

©Linda Nelson 2015

Yes, I will be making my painted pine cones, too. And, lots of them!

They’ll be available in ornament form………..

©Linda Nelson 2015

as well as clutched in little, one-of-a-kind handmade nests. Did you know that finding a bird’s nest in a selected Christmas tree was once symbolic of luck and good fortune? This traditional belief is said to have originated in Iceland or Germany. However, I don’t think one needs to be a traditionalist, nor from one of these countries, to appreciate such a “lucky” find, or to simply see the beauty of a perfectly nestled nest amongst tinsel, garland and baubles.

©Linda Nelson 2015

There you have it.

I’ve been creative.

What about you?

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SEPTEMBER SNIPPINESS

September 15, 2015

I woke up this morning feeling a little snippy. No, not that kind of snippy, but snippy in that I was very inclined to fetch my pruners and do some playful harvesting. I had spent the weekend catching up on much needed seasonal yard work; therefore, a little creative puttering time was well earned.

There’s quite a menagerie of things to choose from and decorate with at this time of year, perfect for segueing into autumn. I always enjoy making floral bouquets. This one is a combination of fresh cut flowers, shrub foliage stems, various floral seed pod stalks and succulent cuttings.

©Linda Nelson 2015

Abelmoschus manihot seed pods make wonderful decorative jarred specimens…..

©Linda Nelson 2015

….. and Crocosmia’s spent flower stalks make for September sprays of loveliness.

©Linda Nelson 2015

Snipping and scavenging seem to go hand-in-hand for me; my favorite finds from the forest floor are feathers and pine cones.

Did I mention that I woke up feeling somewhat squirrely, too? The simplicity of gathered acorns showcased in a vessel is a timeless look for any home’s style.

Well, that’s enough snipping, scavenging and squirreling around for today.

Now……. it’s time for a little cat nap.

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HELLO FOLKS, IT’S ME, LINDA………..

August 30, 2015

………..the gal who would rather avoid culinary crafting at all costs. Well, I stepped out of my comfort zone yesterday and wowed my guests with a few homemade summertime treats.

We started the evening off with hand shook margaritas poured over ice. The recipe provided on the Cointreau’s back label is excellent. I tweaked it slightly by adding one teaspoon of Goya’s blue agave organic sweetener to each serving, and the consensus was to forego salting the rims of the glasses. These winner cocktails were the perfect accompaniment to a fabulous guacamole and chips starter, courtesy of one of my guests. My other guests, a fantastic husband/wife team in the kitchen, whipped up the makings for some gold star worthy tacos.

After another round of “Linda’s Margaritas” we finished our festive meal off with my homemade peach-mango granita accompanied with lemon-lavender shortbread. I divided the shortbread dough into sixteen equal pieces, rolled each into a ball, and then flattened them into mini pancake shapes. I found this method easier than trying to slice through a four-inch log.

The granita recipe is a combined variation of quite a few that I researched via the internet. Here’s my version –

LINDA’S PEACH-MANGO GRANITA

Dissolve 1/4 cup sugar in 1/2 cup hot water to make a “quickie” simple syrup. Puree syrup with 2 large ripe peaches (peeled and chopped), one jumbo very ripe mango (peeled and chopped), 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour puree into an eight or nine-inch deep dish casserole and freeze for four hours, scraping and stirring the puree with a fork every forty-five minutes. Be sure to thoroughly scrape the sides of the casserole dish each time, so as to prevent an undesirable texture to the icing process. Serve and enjoy!

The summer is not over, folks…….. it’s still a very granita season.

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