It Was An Inside Kind Of Day...

Happy Friday, friends! I told you yesterday that we planned to clean out the last garden bed today. Once we were up, Handsome and I chatted about it and decided to take it easy on weary bones instead. As if to christen our decision, shortly afterward it began to rain.

Handsome exerted more the day before, and was much sorer than I, and I had a bowl of week old tomatoes waiting for me. I decided to process them into tomato soup. I put the ingredients called for in the recipe through my food processor and then everything went into my Kilner pot. It was a lovely mixture of tomatoes, onion, celery, and garlic. Six pounds of tomatoes yielded a paltry pint and a half of soup, and once I lightly milled the ingredients through my mother-in-law's chinois, I couldn't bring myself to toss all that goodness. Instead, I added spring water, reheated it and canned all of it to use as an additive for soup, roasts, or even meatloaf. I had three and a half pints to put into the pantry after all the jars were pressure canned.

Once that task was complete, it was late afternoon, so that's where I punched out for the rest of the day. I spent a little time on the porch with the cats, spent some time with the dogs, and shortly after made dinner for Handsome and me.

So, that means today will be the day I work on my Etsy shop. I'm also going to set up a few froggies in my hoop. One for my Gratitude Giveaway, and more for my shop. I'm going to finish them as scissor fobs once the needlework is done. I think that will take care of the rest of this day, don't you?

Last of all...Don't forget you can enter the Gratitude Giveaway once a day just for being a blog follower, but you get to enter again if you follow me on Facebook, and once more if you follow Brynwood Needleworks on Instagram. Good Luck!

Putting Our Garden To Bed...

 

Man, we worked yesterday. We were outside for about three hours, pulling plants and cleaning up three of the four garden beds. Handsome did all the heavy shovel work and pulling, while I pulled the simple stuff and drove our yard tractor.

These are the last of the veggies we harvested as the beds were cleared. All of them are minis. We were giggling about the size of the last of the carrots and green peppers.

 

I planted the squash later than I thought I should, but someone on IG said July wasn't too late. Those are little delicata and long neck squash, which should be much larger at harvest. Lesson learned. I'll be planting our squash much earlier next year. I also guess I'll be buying delicata squash from the farm stand this weekend, too. (I've already planned to purchase local potatoes when I go to Portage for Craft Day on Saturday.)

I also learned that you never have a surgical procedure with after-care restrictions in the middle of growing season. The weeds took over, but thankfully our plants were established enough to not be affected by them. However, those weeds are the reason it took so long to clean out the beds. their roots were deep, and of course, we needed to removed roots and all so they don't return in the spring.

All in all, our first year as real gardeners since we were first married has been a learning experience. Handsome and I are thinking that we may not expand our plot next year much more, as this year provided plenty of work for two folks our age (including preserving our harvest). My mind is certainly willing, but our bodies are saying, "Take it easy. You aren't spring chickens any more." I'll draw up some plans over the winter, and we'll see where we are once the weather starts to warm up again.

 

We still have one bed to clear, which we'll do today. Then I'll add the amendments for the beds (compost, etc.) so that I can plant garlic very soon. It will rest all winter in the bed, covered with a straw mulch, and then sprout after first frost in the spring. At least that's what I've learned from other gardeners. Time will tell. I think I'll take my Tramadol before we go out to work today. Better to be ahead of the aches, rather than playing catch up when we come back in.

Oh, and don't worry. I'm doing my best to follow doctor's orders, and I have my guardian, Handsome to remind me if I get a bit carried away. Thankfully, it's only one more raised bed. We're heading outside to finish our work to get this task accomplished. Once I'm back inside, I've promised myself a hot shower and a nice, relaxing cuppa...and taking it easy the rest of the day.

Another Finished Project...

 

I completed stitching this piece yesterday, so now I can show it to you. I really loved working on this one, choosing colors with special meaning to the recipient. 

 

 

Most of the piece is stitched in bullion knots, as well as cast-on stitch, stem and feather stitches. Those bullion knots were the ones that gave my hands the most grief, but as I said on Monday, my trusty needlework pliers saved the day once again. In the end, I think it was worth every stitch, and I'm going to do it again.

                                                  

 

The embroidery fits perfectly into a 6" hoop frame, and I completely finished the back of the piece prior to enclosing it in the frame. I would usually have my Brynwood label on the back of the frame, but this piece is a wedding gift for a dear friend, so I signed my name to it.

I've decided I'm going to add the option to purchase alphabet embroideries in my Etsy shop, too. I'm working up a fair price right now, and then I'll add these photos to get started. Soon I'll do a few more pieces (I have more frames on order), and then add them to my shop as well.

I did make a video of this piece to share on Instagram, so just click HERE if you'd like to see both sides of it.

 

 

Today, Handsome and I are going to put our garden to bed for the winter. Once all the beds are cleaned out, I'm going to add amendments to the soil, and then plant garlic into one raised bed. I'll cover it with soil and hay to protect it. It will overwinter, and begin growing right away once the weather warms in the spring. I'm planting a hard neck variety so I'll be able to harvest garlic scapes for pesto, and then the bulbs will be ready to harvest mid-summer. My plan is to not need to purchase garlic in the store anymore. (Fingers crossed.)                             

 

Once that's all finished, I'll be tidying up the studio and then deciding what my next project will be. Of course, I have another little frog to create for the winner of the Gratitude Giveaway November 1st. If you haven't entered yet, please click the link in my sidebar for the details. Remember, you can enter every day (up to three times if you qualify), but all comments have to be left on that post to count.