I started the week by finishing off the last of my woven kitchen towels and have called “an end to my summer weaving season” although I do have several new rug requests if the mood hits in October. We started the week by processing lots of apples in the form of cinnamon spiced apples, applesauce and apple jelly that yielded about 40 jars of product. Needless to say, apple product is up for grabs. Apple processing represents the end of canning season for us so we put away the equipment and will soon pack up the product readying it for transport to Arizona later in the fall. Our tomatoes are finished producing so I will pull the plants this coming week. We dried the last of our herbs; sage and mint and my annuals are on their last gasp. When the threat of a freeze is upon us I will move the basil and parsley plants inside to use until we leave in mid-November.
With these two tasks complete, I took to the road. First off, I made a road trip with my neighbor on a warm sunny day to a favorite pumpkin patch where I strolled through the large field and harvested a little red wagon full of pumpkins and gourds. I cleaned them up and strategically placed them on and around the front porch and added a few to my indoor fall décor as well. I wish seasonal mum plants would last longer but maybe I will buy a few more for the rest of the fall season. To top it all off I staked my large black metal flying witch into the ground for the final seasonal effect. You could say I am ready for ghosts and goblins. The other seasonal alert at the lake is the gathering of the geese who are readying themselves for their fall flight to southern climes. They can be a large noisy gaggle but I welcome the sound as I wander around the house in the night.
This weekend, I attended the Funky Junk event in Brookings with a historical friend along with her sister and mother. There must have been around 50 vendors profiling their repurposed and upcycled items for both the home and garden. There were lots of fall and holiday season items on offer to tempt those with an affinity toward seasonal interior décor. I showed great restraint in buying only three wooden black cats, several fabric pumpkins and a small black wooden multi-bowl serving dish for entertaining. There were lots of larger items to consider but what’s a girl to do when her house is already full up?
The next day, I traveled to Watertown with another friend to attend the North Country Fiber Festival that has been on my list of “to do’s” for the past several years. This annual event is a gathering of fiber artists, hobbyists and enthusiasts many of whom spend the weekend taking classes and/or gathered in a circle, doing what else but, spinning lovely colored wool roving (think cotton candy) into yarn. This is quite a sight to behold and I can only imagine the eye/hand/foot coordination necessary to spin quality yarn. Many of the vendors raise sheep that they sheer and then bring the bags of new wool to the event ready for cleaning and carding into roving before spinning or felting can commence. There were lots of beautifully textured and colored skeins of yarn to view and consider purchasing. Given I still have yarn from our New Zealand travels I choose not to purchase more this year. The highlight of the event for me was meeting a weaver from the Aberdeen area who teaches so I am signed up for a multi-day class on the overshot method of weaving in October. Can’t wait but what was I saying about the end of the weaving season?