DIY Leaf Wreath

Today I have a tutorial for a Leaf Wreath! Thanks to sister Mandy, I also have step by step photos. (I always forget to take those...) Last week at work I was suddenly struck with a fit of fall craftiness and decided I needed make my own leaf wreath. I don't like letting all of Mother Nature's beauty go to waste! 

So on our Sunday morning walk with the Kerri dog we collected a huge stack of leaves! I had a couple of ideas on how to make the wreath, but ended up using my favorite styrofoam wreath wrapped in burlap ribbon. I wanted to really showcase all the leaves and I think it does!

The first step was to wax our leaves to help them last a bit longer without drying out and shriveling up. (I don't know how long it will actually make the leaves last, but I am hoping a couple of weeks.) We dried off any leaves that were dewy and laid them out on the table.

 Then we warmed up the iron, cut a piece of wax paper that fit nicely on the ironing board and arranged a bunch of the leaves on it. Make sure none of the leaves overlap, though we didn't worry about stems. It seemed to work better to lay the leaves face down on the waxed paper, preventing them from curling up when go to lay the top of wax paper on top.

 Place another piece of waxed paper on top of the leaves and iron. I had the iron on it's hottest setting and no steam. I didn't press hard or linger in any one place too long. Just like ironing fabric, smooth the wax paper across the leaves. You will see the paper melt together and on to the leaves.

Repeat these steps until you have all your leaves in wax paper. We had about 6 sheets of leaves. Once you are done, let them cool a few minutes while you gather the rest of your supplies.

You could do pretty much anything with your waxed leaves. Add them to a tabletop, clip them to twine for a garland or make a wreath!

I used regular sewing thread to wrap the leaves onto the wreath, thin wire would also work well. Knotting your thread at the starting point, wrap the thread around the back of the wreath, lay three or four leaves on the top and wrap the thread over the top of the wreath pulling snugly.

Continue placing leaves and wrapping the thread around the wreath being careful to keep the thread snug. This is the part where it is handy to have a second set of hands! Mandy would select a couple of leaves and lightly hold them in place while I wrapped the thread.

Keep on placing leaves and wrapping thread until you have covered your wreath. Somehow we came exactly perfect! We used the last of the leaves in the last wrap of thread! To secure the end of the thread, I pushed a straight pin into the wreath form, wrapped the thread several times around it and them knotted it around the pin. Once it was knotted, I then carefully pulled out the pin, moved it over a quarter of an inch to tighten it. And that is it!

Love all those fall colors! The leaves have already started curling a little bit, but it is still beautiful. 

Apple Picking 2018

Even though my schedule is a little tight right now, I wasn't going to miss apple picking! Two weekends ago my brother, his family and I all piled into the truck and went out to the orchard. It has become a family tradition now. (When you can't remember how long you have been doing it, it is a tradition!) Part of the whole experience is the drive, about 35 minutes through country roads.

I love these old apple trees! The area we picked in the trees weren't quite as big or old as other areas. But they are still nice sized trees with plenty of apples.

 This is my little apple tree. I got quite a tree full of apples this year, but unfortunately, most of them had worms. That didn't stop me from collecting the best ones and making an apple pie!

What is your favorite fall activity?

Apple Picking Aprons

We went Apple Picking several weeks ago (in blazing hot, very un-fall like weather!). Sometimes apple time seems to sneak up on us and we end up dashing out last minute to see which apple varieties are still hanging on the trees. But this year we were prepared! I even had time to make myself an apple picking apron!

Even in hot weather, the trees are beautiful.

I posted about this apron pattern here. It is from the booklet Dresses and Aprons for Work in the Home, copyright 1952. This apron has been on my to-do list for years!

I followed the directions except to cut out the apron skirt in two pieces. This allowed me to line the bottom section with a sturdy drill and to sew the bottom apple fabric the other way around so that when gathered up, the pretty side would be facing out. 

I wasn't sure if the strings to gather were very necessary at first, I would just unloaded the apples one at a time, but when picking was over it was nice to be able to untie it and brush out all the leaves and dirt! 

 With the leftover fabric, I squeezed out a small apron for my niece too. She was so ecstatic to have her own apron. She loves apple picking almost as much as I do!

Now that the weather is cooler and a rainy weekend is forecasted, it is time to start applesauce and apple butter making!

Happy Fall!

Happy Fall! Can you believe it is already here?

It is a bit disconcerting at the moment as the weather is decidedly un-fall like. Today is suppose to be the warmest day of the year! It is rather odd to step outside in flip flops, crunch through leaves and watch squirrels dart crazily about. Thankfully, next week the forecast says we will be back to our regularly programed fall weather.

 I looked out my bedroom window last week and was shocked to see it was indeed fall! There are already leaves on the ground! And look how yellow the top of the tree is getting!

And a sneak peak at how the living room plans are going! A bit of a shelf makeover. And plenty of painting!

Autumn Scenery

I haven't shared pictures of the park in awhile. Last Saturday even though it was a rather misty gloomy day, Mandy grabbed the camera on the way out for our morning walk. 

The gloom doesn't really make a difference, we still enjoyed a bit of nature. (Especially Kerri!)

Cozy Autumn

 We are moving on to that time of autumn where there are less and less leaves on the trees, hats and mittens are needed for morning walks and the days are shorter. Not only are the days shorter, but around here it is usually rainy. My favorite way to beat the dreary-ness? Do a little baking! Nothing makes the house more cozy then the aroma of fresh baked goods!

Continuing on with my muffin craze this year, my newest recipe are these pumpkin muffins from King Arthur Flour. A lovely fall treat! 

Below is a list of past baking posts.

Autumn Spice Cake

Rock Buns

Apple Crisp Deluxe

Chelsea Pies

Apple Upside-down Cake

Brown Sugar Cookies

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

What is your favorite cozy autumn activity?

Applesauce and Aprons

Some years we dream of apple pies, some years dried apples, sometimes the dream is just fresh crunchy apples. This year we were dreaming of warm applesauce and spicy apple butter!

As fast as we could get the apples home, the apple peeler and stock pot came out.

In no time at all we had a pot full of sliced apples! 

 Making the whole process speedy was our old fashioned apple peeler. Not a vintage model, this is an updated version that suctions to the table. But the apples are still peeled, cored and sliced the same way, by a hand crank!

 When it comes to fruit prep, I always like to grab an apron that envelops. My favorite is an apron I made years ago from my great-grandma  Anna's apron. It is super soft from many washings, a bit wrinkly from being stored in the linen closet and there are stains along the edge, but it is a part of making and baking for me.

Unfortunately, I neglected to get a photo of the finished product. But let me tell you, it was as good as we had been anticipating!! Now the dream is to fill a corner in the freezer with a small stash for winter.

Apple Season

It's that time of year again! Apple Picking! My favorite autumn activity.

This year I have scrumptious fresh apple sauce and rich apple butter on my to make list. Of course, I good bit of apples are just eaten fresh and there is always a bowl full tucked away for Thanksgiving pies.

These beauties are from my little apple tree! Final count was nine apples. I did have more, but the squirrels chomped up about half of them. I am still amazed I even got this many! Last year's apple count was two and that was after the traumatic bunny episode (I was more traumatized then the tree!)

For a bit of fall color, I decided to get out my grandmother's hobnail bowl and fill it with apples. Mom always called it the fruit bowl as it was kept on the coffee table with faux fruit in it when she was growing up. It has been nice to be able to have it out and enjoy it.

But these apples didn't last long in the bowl. Ultimate destination- Apple Pie!

Happy Fall!

 Finally, finally it feels like fall here! The leaves have just started to change and now there is a crispness in the air.

 It is also apple picking season! My little apple tree has 20 apples this year! Unfortunately the squirrels are having too much fun playing jungle gym in it. So about half my apples have bite marks in them. But I think there is still enough for an apple pie!

Do you go apple picking? Pumpkin picking or another fall related activity?