Sunday, October 26, 2014

Octoberfest Bloghop

*shushes the crickets as she clears away the cobwebs*

Yes, I AM still here. I'm sorry for the long silences between posts, but I just haven't felt the blogging bug biting me >.<  But here I am, as promised, to celebrate my favorite time of year :)


 Due to far too much rain and cold these past few weeks, I was unable to get out and take photos of all the beautiful golds and reds, and sore feet have put a damper on my long walks in search of the colours that still remain... as of today, the golds and reds are already mostly browns and blahs :(  That said, I do have photos to share that I took earlier in the month!

Below are a few shots taken at the biggest fall festival in my area 'PumpkinFest'. These was taken inside one of the big tents, where they were weighing all the giant giant pumpkins and other veggies in hopes of finding a new world record.



 The pumpkins were all so large that they had to be move via slings and forklifts!  The one in this photo weighed well over a thousand pounds :)

I was bitten by the painting bug a few times this month, and an autumn themed painting was always on the list, but until yesterday, it didn't happen. Even now, it's still not finished but I took some pics to share anyhow :)

 To start with, I took red, burnt orange, and antique golden yellow, and just drizzled it in zigzagging lines across the canvas, then took a sponge and dabbed them all together.

 Then once it all dried, I took a skinny sponge brush, and added in brown and a soft powdery blue. This about three quarters done now, and completely sponged at this point. Next I'll take the paint brush in and do some detail work, so whenever I get that done, I'll share it again :)


I had several necklaces and bracelets planned and in the works, all with an autumn theme to share with you, however none of them managed to get completed. They're all laid out on bead boards, or still in sketches :(  I do however have some earrings to show you :)
 Some leaf headpins made by Shelley of Tori Sophia, paired with antique copper wire, and black and bronze tone Swarovski crystals.
 Another set of headpins from Tori Sophia , this time layered over some light jade leaves, with antique copper and green swarovski.

 A pair of charms that the photo really doesn't do justice too. Also from Tori Sophia, and with antique copper, I added some sari silk bits to the back of them. I did have some golds and browns with them, but the bluey green just popped better.

 And of course, what is October without skull jewelry? I made four pairs of skull earrings, but I seemed to have misplaced both the earrings and the photos of them, so here are two of them lol
Above are red swarovski crystals with red skulls - the bigger ones are magnesite, but the smaller ones are from Michaels and the label says reconstituted turquoise...O.o look the same to me, but then they could be... I never bothered to look them up ;)
Below are more of the tiny Michaels skulls, paired with some silver skull charms and links.





And to finish this off, I'll share with you my own, much altered recipe, for pumpkin raisin muffins. I use rice flour in place of regular flour, but changed it back to 'normal' for this post. If you want to use the rice flour as well, just add a quarter cup cornstarch as well.

1/3 cup veggie oil
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup brown sugar ( not packed)
1 1/2 cup canned pumpkin ( NOT pie filling! I use E.D. Smith's Pure Pumpkin, or when they're in season, I get a couple small pie pumpkins and make my own puree)
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice ( you can make your own by using equal parts ginger, cinnamon, & nutmeg)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder

Combine all these into a bowl and mix until smooth. Then mix in 1 cup flour, and 3/4 cup oat bran . Once the flour and bran are all mixed in, add 1 cup raisins that have been soaked to plumpness :)

Fill lightly greased muffin pans until 3/4 full, then bake at 350'F for 23-25 minutes.
I use the extra large muffin pans ( texas size, apparently) so they take longer.


There you go :) Some giant veggies, some leaf and skull earrings, and some yummy muffins, which I should warn you, are rather addicting.

Carry on throughout the hop and enjoy what everyone else has to share :) I'll see if I can't have another post up in time for Halloween :D

 Click here for the OctoberFest Blog Hop Participants List

20 comments:

  1. I love your earrings. My favorite is the skull earrings. The pumpkin festival looked liked fun.

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  2. Loved your earrings, especially the skulls. And that's for the recipe, I will have to try it.

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  3. Loved the leaf earrings! Wow, it's hard to believe your colors are finished already. Ours have barely begun, we're still having temps in the 80's. It's like Mother Nature is standing at the switch, fall, summer, kidding it's fall, haha no summer. 87 today, 68 tomorrow lol Wondefully done!

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  4. Wow, you are creative! Lovely earrings. and what an amazing pumpkin

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  5. Hi Sandra, Pretty earrings. I really like your fall painting. I admire those who can paint as that is a talent that I do not have. Thanx for the gluten free recipe.

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  6. What great earrings! You definitely have the touch. And that painting is going to be beautiful. You are definitely multi-talented.

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  7. I'm looking forward to seeing you finishing the painting Sandra! Love the 2nd pair of earrings the most... such a great colour combination! Thanx for the recipe :-)

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  8. These pumpkins are impressive! The earrings are lovely and the colors of your painting gorgeous, I hope you will share it with us when it is finished.

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  9. Puctures of the pumpkin fest are great. Very pretty earrings. And thanks so much for the muffin recipe. I love all things pumpkin. they sound mighty tasty.

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  10. Very pretty earrings, love the skulls. Your painting looks glorious with such rich colors and I will have to try those muffins!

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  11. Those ARE some big pumpkins! I can't wait to see your finished painting.

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  12. I love your painting! I'm sorry to hear your feet hurt and hope you feel better soon. That is one big pumpkin!

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  13. Great pumpkin pictures, but I love the earrings made with the Jade leaves and headpins. Looking forward to the finished painting.

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  14. Love all the earrings and look forward to seeing your finished painting! Muffin recipe sounds very yummy!

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  15. Your painting looks lovely. I really like it as it is but looking forward to seeing it completed. The colours are perfect and so suiting for this blog hop! Thanks for sharing ( and spelling colour the correct way!)

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  16. Those are some big Pumpkins!!! Your painting encompasses that blazing and fiery palette that is what makes autumn so beautiful! Your earrings are beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing!

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  17. The earrings are lovely, and thank you for the recipe!!

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  18. Good to see you posting again! Beautiful earrings!

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  19. Those big pumpkins are impressive! I love all of your earrings.

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