ahhh it's ginko time,

fire in the hole

nothing is as fun as woodfiring- quiet times out in the country.  just you and the crackling fire.  just keep throwing the wood in there to keep it hot.  all that ash is landing on the pots as it makes its way through the kiln, leaving its mark on each pot.  high hopes for the results, but since there’s no predicting the outcome, try not to get your expectations too high!

fall flora

last week,

design*sponge

was in town for their book tour.

it was fitting to welcome them with a southern flora sampler:

while some may think the ingredients weedy, to us they are the prettiest things to be found right now:

sweetgum, chinaberry, and ligustrum...along with beauties like hydrangea, maple leaves, and viburnum.

puttin' it up- saurkraut!

i  love spending an entire day in the kitchen;  putting up food, making  jellies, sauces, and butters.  there is a feeling of satisfaction that you get when you seal the jar and put it on the shelf.

now after having a child and a business;  my to-do list seems to keep getting longer....and longer.  those days where i can play in the kitchen are few and far between and i have been craving that satisfaction.

the other day i got this huge green cabbage from a local farm and thought that i would make some saurkraut.  there was

this

article in the october issue of Martha Stewart Living that showed me all of the steps.

really- all you need is cabbage, salt, water, some jars, and then patience.  it is a pretty simple and fascinating process, a perfect canning activity for kids!

i tested out a few variations in each of the jars.  i made some plain, roasted jalapenos, garlic, and some apple varieties.  just enough to get us through the winter months!

beauty is where you find it

loading the wood kilns

i spent yesterday loading the last shelves of the wood kiln at geoff pickett’s.  it was a beautiful fall day out in the country.  steady working, figuring out what to put where, making sure the shelves are clean before we put them in the kiln, and wadding the bottoms of the pots. wadding is a mixture of stuff that you roll into a ball and stick on the bottom of the pot with some glue.  it keeps the pot up off the shelf so it (hopefully) doesn't get stuck from all the salt and drippy glaze. here’s geoff putting wads on a pot and placing it carefully in the kiln.  today the doors will be bricked up, then we’ll light the fires![gallery]

leatherhead in louisville

on our recent trip to louisville my sister and i stumbled across this great little leather shop called

leatherhead.

  it didn't look like much from the outside, which oftentimes is an indicator that it is pretty amazing on the inside.

we stepped in and immediately took in a dose of the sweet leather scent.  the owner, Nick Boone gave us free range of the place so we took full advantage and wandered through the rooms looking at everything.

the first room is filled floor to ceiling with western boots and attire and then there is 2 rooms of workspace that is packed with treasures from his 34 years in business.  take a peek and what we saw!

[gallery]

from bud to bloom: dahlias

dahlias are one of my favorite flowers and they amaze me at every stage.  i love their symmetry, vibrant colors, and size.  any day now the dahlia farm could see their first frost which means we have a long wait for fresh dahlias...  hope i can get another visit in!