Hey Pumpkin

Not only is he our favorite NPR radio voice,

Ira Glass looks pretty durn good on our pumpkin this year.*

*Engineered and carved by my valentine and I. Alright, honestly, mostly my valentine.

Another Sweet Something

Bonjour, madames and miseurs. Presenting another candy-inspired "Sweet Something" from fourhatspress... with a french twist. Get em at Urban Standard or here!

Falling for Flavors

(Image from Smitten Kitchen)

As alluded to previously, I've been bobbing for pumpkins and apples in the kitchen. The results have produced some satisfying seasonal deliciousness. Some of the recipes I've most enjoyed include:

These Whole Wheat Apple Muffins (pictured above)

This Pumpkin Apple Soup

This Nutmeg Maple Cream Pie

This Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecake

These Sweet Potato Biscuits (most especially with buttered brown sugared ham)

Next, I think I'll try Martha's Pumpkin Ravioli with Brown Sage Sauce.

What are some of your favorite fall-ish recipes?

A Retrospective

It wasn't that long ago that I woke up to this every morning. This time last year, each new sunrise would find me in the spot right behind this camera lens angle. Coffee cup in hand, I would sit on the front porch of the Craft House at Penland, taking in these sights, breathing in pristine mountain air. I would read, I would pray, I would journal and prepare for another day in the studio;

another day of creating.

This was the view from the expansive windows of our studio. It was settled right into the mountain below the colorful blanket of autumn-kissed trees where the season unfolded over each slow and full day. Inside its walls, the sound of presses cranking and metal cylinders rolling woke me up from a creative slumber. I was renewed to the possibility of engaging both my hands and my mind in my work.

I'm more than a little nostalgic for this beautiful season in my life, but the memories of this momentary pasture live as I'm shifted to another bright vision.*

* reference to Mary Oliver's, "The Fall Song"