Autumn + Anthropologie

Oh Anthropologie... you sure do know how to get a girl reeeeeal excited about Fall...

Oh, and did I mention that I'm drooling over the new catalog?

Chalk Halloween

It's here it's here! The harvest season is in full gear making it time to prepare ourselves for all the fun that comes along with it- carving pumpkins, hunting down last-minute pieces for our costumes, picking up candy at the store- and gathering last-minute decorating ideas. Here's something that can save you some time and money- using chalkboard spray paint! The dark color is perfect for spooky decorating- and it's also versatile enough to use for the rest of the year! Take a look at some nifty ideas you can use for your halloween!

I love this DIY chalkboard pumpkin from the blog Hip Hip Horray!

Candles from All You. Chalkboard stickers from Ilo Deco.

Chalkboard picks & tags by My Sweet Life

Pumpkins on the Mind

I'm horrible at carving pumpkins. It takes strength, endurance, and patience- none of those qualities will ever be used to describe me. I loooove pumpkins though. They taste and look wonderful- especially in the Fall. After visiting Miss Martha Stewarts Halloween site- it inspired me to pick up my carving tools this year- because these pumpkins are fantastic! Check out her site to see more...

Directions for all of these carving projects can be found HERE...

Easy Vegan Pumpkin Soup

I was at Trader Joes yesterday and saw they were bringing out the pumpkins! That always makes me excited. Although it may be a little too early too to start carving them- it's perfect time to start getting your pumpkin recipes out! I'll be the first to admit that I can't bake... so that scraps half of the good pumpkin recipes out there. I can, however, make really good soups. Thats mostly due to the fact that most soup recipes are really forgiving- if it's too thick, you just add more liquid. Too thin, keep cooking and it eventually thicken itself back up. I realize I've butchered many a recipe in doing so- but, I would never claim to be a cook! That's why I link you guys to other great sites like some in the past (Bento Zen and Sprinkle Bakes are a few lovely ones to name a few.) Here's another great recipe from the blog Sweet Beet and Green Bean for a healthy and EASY pumpkin soup!

chunky pumpkin soup
1 medium pumpkin (about 3 lbs)
3 cloves of garlic
2 medium shallots
1/4 c olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 c veggie stock
1/2 c soy milk (or other vegan milk)
a dash of cinnamon (optional)