Tag: DIY

Autumn Dinner … Smoked Sausage, Spinach and Orzo topped with grated parmesan cheese/ PLUS .. DIY Autumn Napkin Rings

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As the day unfolded, the lyrics to “Monday, Monday” by the Mamas & the Papas came unbidden to my mind.  “Oh Monday mornin’ you gave me no warnin’ of what was to be ……” not that I “can’t trust that day” as the song says, but our long Monday had already blended into evening, the evening quickly turned into night, and it became obvious that whatever I made for dinner needed to be easy, nutritional, and definitely, after the day we’d had, needed to be comforting.

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I went to the kitchen and after perusing the contents of my pantry and refrigerator, I think I created the perfect Monday Autumn Dinner that met all those criteria: it was easy, nutritional, and it was a delicious, steaming bowl of comfort food and … “It was all I hoped it would be.” (;

Autumn Dinner of Smoked Sausage, Spinach and Orzo topped with grated Parmesan Cheese

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Note: For those of you wondering what orzo is … it is a fine and creamy pasta, similar in shape and size to long-grained rice.  In fact, it is the small pasta in “Rice a Roni” that makes that rice mixture so creamy.)

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup chopped red onion
  • 1 cup orzo
  • 1- 13 oz. pkg Smoked Sausage (I used Butterball’s Hardwood Smoked Turkey Sausage)
  • 1 cup frozen chopped spinach
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 teaspoons Knorr’s chicken bouillon flavor
  • grated parmesan cheese to taste

Recipe:

Add 2 tablespoons of butter to a skillet and turn on medium heat to melt.  Add 1/2 cup of chopped red onion and cook until onion is  translucent.  Add 1 cup orzo and continue cooking until orzo is golden, and slightly browned. Cut up smoked sausage in bite-sized pieces and add to skillet.  Then add 1 cup of frozen chopped spinach and 2 cups of water  mixed with 2 teaspoons of Knorr’s Chicken Flavor Bouillon.

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Cover and turn heat to a little less than medium heat (watch mixture to make sure orzo doesn’t start sticking!) and cook for 20 minutes.  Uncover and stir.  Dish into bowls and top with grated parmesan cheese.

I think our “comfort meal” dished into my Johnson Brothers “The Friendly Village” is befitting for our cozy Autumn Meal.

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Then … look at these darling little napkin rings, that just took minutes to make!  I love the rough texture of the grapevine, in contrast to the silky leaf and shiny bittersweet!

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I just took a mini-grapevine wreath (usually sold in sets of 4 or 6 at any craft store.  I bought mine at Hobby Lobby) and hot glued an autumn silk leaf on it … then I wrapped one strand of bittersweet, bending the wire so the bittersweet arched over the top of the wreath, to highlight and frame the leaf.

PicCollage[463].png Voila!  A rustic autumn napkin ring … a perfect accent piece for your autumn meals!

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As I carried our tray of food over to our favorite chairs, put my feet up, said our prayer, unfolded our napkins, and ate our first bite … I heaved a sigh; thankful the day was over, thankful the Lord had gotten us through each worry, care, and task that had to be done, thankful I had a home to share with my dear husband, and “in everything” I did “give thanks” as the last words of the song wafted through my mind …”Monday, Monday, so good to me.”

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Here’s hoping for you that …”Every other day, every other day, every other day of the week is fine, yeah” ! (:

From my cottage to yours  ~  Trenda

Thank you so much for spending some time with me today!  I’d love to hear from you and I am truly delighted reading what you have to say.  Please post your comments or questions below.  Don’t be dismayed if you don’t see your comment “post” right away.  Word Press checks all posts I send or receive for SPAM and all have to be approved, before posting … “it’s a good thing.” (:

 

 

 

 

DIY “Jolly Jack-o-Lantern” Halloween Wreath … by Trenda

“A Halloween of Memory Past” by Trenda  In just a little over a “fortnight” we will have a host of little ghosts and goblins coming to our doorstep.  Once, not really so very long ago, I was one of those happy “trick or treater’s” … traipsing down the streets, I peered to see out of my plastic mask that was always askew, had eye slots that were cut too small to properly see and was held in place by a thin rubber band that pulled my hair and I was always afraid would snap and pop me in the face!  I made sure I stayed close to my strong, broad shouldered father and seeing his comforting silhouette outlined in the shadows was particularly assuring on a night called All Hallows’ Eve!  My father carried a railroad lantern to lead his little band and family of mix-matched character’s … a hobo, a skeleton, 2 gypsies, and a clown … and I remember the red glow cast by his lantern, added to the mystique of the evening. (to be continued)piccollage

 

Remembering that feeling, I love to make our home as welcoming as possible on Halloween and enjoy creating an expectant atmosphere, befitting the night, that the children can sense as they climb up each step to our door.

Now with all that in mind … today I am writing the DIY instructions for this Jolly Jack-o-Lantern Halloween wreath that you can make and hang on your front door to welcome each of your little visitors!  The “jewel and sparkle” a wreath adds to your door, is like adding a necklace to your outfit! (: 

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Below, is a list of supplies you will need to make your wreath.

Materials needed:

  •  metal wreath form
  • up to 3 rolls of mesh in your choice of Halloween colors
  • pipe cleaners
  • glue gun and glue sticks
  • assorted Halloween decorations
  • scissors & wire cutters

Instructions:

First, make a simple loop hanger using a pipe cleaner and wrap it around the back of the wire wreath form.  This is the hanger you will use to display your wreath on your door, but it is also convenient to use while constructing your wreath.  Tip:  I always use  pipe cleaners that match the colors I am using in my wreath.  Then, when I am finished they aren’t easily seen and “blend” right into the decorations and colors of the wreath.   Take your first color of mesh and go around the form of your wreath, bunching the mesh loosely.  To form a “poof” or segment, wrap a pipe cleaner around the mesh and wire wreath form to secure the mesh to the form.  I trim my pipe cleaners off at this point to keep things neat and so they won’t get “in the way” and snag my material.  Continue bunching and securing mesh around the perimeter of your wreath form.  Don’t be timid!  There’s no wrong way to do this! (:   

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Then, do the same thing again with the next color you have chosen for your wreath.  Gather and bunch your mesh and secure it with pipe cleaners to your wreath form.  Be sure and “stagger” where you bunch and secure your mesh, not conforming with the same pattern you used with the first color.  This will make your wreath fuller.  See picture below.

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Repeat the same procedure again, using your last color of mesh and making sure to weave and bunch your mesh in areas you see that need more fullness.  Note:  It is up to you how many colors of mesh you use.  Sometimes, I use only 2 fabrics or even one color of mesh or burlap.  Just make sure when you are using fewer colors that you bunch your fabric tighter, so you have a full wreath.

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Now, the fun part begins!  Take your decorations and just hot glue them to your wreath.  I add my biggest items first … next, any smaller items I have.

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Then … I add my “filler” last.  Filler is added to your entire wreath and “pulls” the look of your wreath together, unifying and blending all your colors and decorations on the wreath.  Filler can be any material – it adds texture and conformity.   In the photo below … see how I’ve used my neon green curly twigs as filler.

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Then, I added a few “bursts” of accent with a ribbon that incorporated all the colors of my 3 different mesh … a purple, orange and black plaid.  Wherever I wanted a little more color, I cut some random lengths of my plaid ribbon and “wove it” into the mesh ribbon, and hot glued the ends to hold.  The final step was gluing some sparkly wrapped paper candies … table confetti, that I found at Hobby Lobby for only $1.50 … in just my colors of purple, orange, and neon green! 

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Now when …

“Silent phantoms

of the night

In their robes

of ghostly white.

They are always to be seen

On the night of Halloween.”

come to your door, they will be delighted to see the wreath you made welcoming them to your haunt! 

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Thank you so much for spending some time with me today!  I’d love to hear from you and I am truly delighted, reading what you have to say.  Please leave a comment, below.  Don’t be alarmed when your comment doesn’t post, immediately.  Word Press makes sure each post I send or that I receive hasn’t any SPAM attached … “it’s a good thing!” (: 

From my cottage to yours  ~  Trenda

 

 

 

 

DIY Autumn Leaf Drink Markers …… by Trenda from Cottage Green on the Lake

It’s time to hang our autumn wreath on the front door; time to put out “Hal” … our wooden scarecrow with a green trellis backdrop and spunky black crow perched on the railing, and time for home fragrances and candles in mellow, spicy scents of autumn.  It’s time for the magical transformation of our home, putting “touches” of the season on tabletops, mantles, and throughout each room that reflect the warm, cozy feeling of autumn. <!–more–>

So far, the chandelier is dressed for autumn with leaves, grape clusters and a draping of golden acorns.

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And … summer decor on the buffet is slowly being replaced with pumpkins, bushy-tailed squirrels, and glittered acorns.

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Dressing our home for the fall season includes how I set my table … which dishes I use, which napkins I match up with what napkins rings, and all the other “accoutrements” I have to accent my table … “4theseasons.”

I made the cutest autumn drink markers that I want to show you how to make today.

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I bought all the supplies I needed at Hobby Lobby on the bead/jewelry-making aisle.  The wire loops, tube of assorted beads and cards of autumn leaf buttons were all on this aisle.  The only other item that I used in making these drink markers was a pair of needle nose pliers, which I used in bending one end of the wire loop to slip and secure the drink marker into the eye-hole, after all the beads and leaf were in place.

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These are so easy to make … Just take the size wire hoop that you want to use for your drink marker and begin “threading” beads in whatever order  you choose.  When you have half of the ring filled with beads, put on the size and color of leaf that you want to use for your drink marker and continue threading on the other half of your beads, matching the sequence you used on the first side.  Make sure you leave room at the end of your wire loop to make your fastener.  After all your beads are threaded, bend the very end of your wire hoop so it will slip into the wire eye on the other side of the hoop, and fasten. (Notice how the end opposite the “eye” of the wire hangers are straight before I bent them to make a fastener.  I’ve also turned some of the leaves over so you can see that they are just buttons!)

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Our family get-together’s range from small to large gathering’s so I made lots of drink markers and had fun using all different bead color combinations and sizes of leaves.  We always reserve the biggest leaf for my husband and our youngest grandchild gets the smallest leaf … and everyone remembers which glass is there’s by the color and size of their leaf!

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Now that you know how to make your drink markers, it’s fun to pick out different buttons and beads to make markers for every holiday and occasion. I’ve even bought block letters on the bead aisle and have made one-of-a-kind drink markers for our family using the first initial of every family member. I’ve also made drink markers and added them to wedding gifts as a little “bonus” gift for newly-weds … with their “love” names for each other, spelled out on the drink marker.  Halloween pumpkins and ghosts … Christmas trees and candy canes … Spring flowers and bunny’s … the possibilities are endless!  I hope you have as much fun making these as much as I do!

From my cottage to your’s  ~ Trenda

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