Folksy Friday Harvest Festival

The September Stars on Folksy are having a harvest festival!

Some rather tenuous links here! Why did I choose such a hard theme?!! Anyway, here's the bountiful crop that I've picked... (click on the shop names to find out more about each item).

Brighten up your home with these cute Russian Doll Matryoshka Hanging Decorations by Court & Spark - with their rosy red apples!

Prepare yourself for that scary party next month with these Happy Halloween Pumpkin Earrings by Miss Bohemia.

Sweet and very practical Baby Dribble Bib - Cherries by Painted Ghost.

Add some individuality to your correspondence with Swirlyarts Jack and the Beanstalk Recycled Envelopes.

I think this luscious Red Cherry Coin Purse by Pipdesigns would certainly cheer me up on a cold, dark winter's day... especially if it was full of money ;)

And finally, Ialbert has produced this very stylish Fine Art Print - Damask design is all over an apple - perfect for your dining room wall.

Have a lovely weekend!

Gardener's autumnal delights

After a fairly crafty past couple of weeks, I've neglected the garden somewhat. I managed to clean the pond of fallen leaves and clear away all the decaying hosta leaves on Sunday but the weeds are multiplying on the drive and patio, and there's all sorts of seedlings growing on the bark path (some which I'll rescue and pot on to make into nice big plants). Aside from the multitude of weeds though, there's still a lot of colour, texture and interest in the garden.

It was gorgeous and sunny on Sunday and I really enjoyed pottering in the garden for a couple of hours. I find the ever decreasing sunlight quite depressing at this time of year and I hate not being able to come home from work and just sit outside and enjoy the plants growing and the bees buzzing.

But I do still enjoy the pleasures that autumn has to offer. I love the ripe fruits and the wispy grasses, russet leaves and shiny conkers, crunching through fallen leaves and harvesting plump tomatoes and juicy onions from the garden. The colours are so much richer and the textures more apparent in the low autumn light. I really seem to appreciate the delights of autumn more than any other season; it's almost as if my senses need to take in every scrap of colour and texture and pattern because I know that it's not going to last, and the cold dark days of winter will soon be on their way (but then winter has it's own delights too!).

Pyracantha 'Teton'

Cotoneaster horizontalis

Aside from the juicy berries and rich autumn colours and textures, there are still a few bright blooms around, determined to survive for as long as they can. This is the gorgeous Rudbeckia 'Irish Spring' which I grew from seed in the spring. It's flowered non-stop from July so I'll definitely be growing it again next year.

After the weekend sunshine, today we've had a day of horrible drizzle. The plants do look really pretty though with droplets of water settled on their leaves, and I managed to capture a few photos tonight before it got dark.

Leucothoe axillaris 'Curly Red'

Plain old ivy

Spirea japonica

Stipa arundinacea

I hope you're still finding some pleasure in YOUR garden right now!