Trick or Treat Halloween Banner

I had a little last minute Halloween decorating inspiration, and I designed a paper and ribbon Trick or Treat banner. I took my time creating this, but if you're moving right along, this should take you two hours or less.

You will need:
Print out letters -- I used this template from marthastewart.com
Black paper -- construction paper or thicker
Scissors
Glue stick or rubber cement
Colored ribbon -- I bought this black and orange striped version from Hobby Lobby
Orange marker
Hole punch (a 3-hole works fine)
Bowl
Pencil
Glue gun (optional)

Step 1: Save the letter template to your computer. Using Photoshop or Microsoft Office Picture Manager, crop the letters you will need and save them as individual files. This way you can print the exact letters you need, and be able to size them to your liking.

Step 2: In a Word document, insert and arrange 3 T's, 3 R's and 1 A, C, E, I, K, and O. Hint: Double click each image and under Format>Text Wrapping click Square. Will make it easier to move them. I made mine about 4" across. Print and cut out your letters.

Step 3: This is where the bowl comes in. I used one that is about 5" across, which gave me about an inch border around my letters. Use whatever you have on hand and that you like visually and leave enough room to punch a whole at the top. Trace the bowl with a pencil on your black paper. Cut out the circles.

Step 4: Glue your letters onto the black paper circles. Let dry for a few minutes.

Step 5: Punch holes at the top of the black circle. You can do one or two, like I've done, to really show off your ribbon.

Step 6: Embellish your letters. I simply added some orange around the star in each letter, but you could draw curlicues, color the letters completely, draw pumpkins, etc.

Step 7: Cut enough ribbon to string your letters, plus an extra foot to give you some room to work with. For this banner, there are 12 letters 5" across, so multiply that and you'll need roughly 6' of ribbon.

Step 8: String your letters onto the ribbon and space to your liking.

Step 9 (optional): If you have a glue gun, heat it up and glue the ends of your ribbon in a loop for easy hanging. Trim the ends if they're a little ragged.

Step 10: Find a place to display your banner and enjoy!

Fall in a Soup Bowl

Butternut squash soup is one of my favorite fall dishes, and it's always a pleasure to grab a bowl at a restaurant. I've always thought about making my own, but I usually go for chilis or bean and meat soups. And, to be truthful, I've been a little unsure of (okay, a little lazy too) dealing with squash.

But recently I had the opportunity to take home a nice squash after we used one in a photo shoot. It was just the right size to use for this soup recipe from Cooking Light. I settled on this savory version so I could pair it with chicken, sandwiches or salads.


After doing a little research in my cookbooks and online, I cut the squash in half first before peeling it. I unearthed a vegetable peeler I didn't know I had and got a peelin'. The contrast between the beige skin and bright orange flesh was very striking.


I simmered the squash, carrots, onion, and chicken stock for some time before throwing it in the blender and pureeing it.

I was a little worried when I tasted it initially, as the dominant flavor was carrot. I mixed it up and popped it in the fridge and hoped the flavors would blend better overnight.


I'm happy to report that all of the flavors melded after a day in the fridge and I've been happily sipping my soup. This recipe is actually pretty plain (the only seasoning is a little salt and the stock) so each time I've had a bowl I've added a different mix of spices such as black pepper, ground ginger, curry powder, and cinnamon. Now that I know how easy (and affordable) making squash soup is, I will definitely prepare this again.

Loafing in the Garden

Last night I headed to the Bham Botanical Gardens with some friends to catch up and eat some cocktail hors d'oeuvres at "Cocktails in the Garden," an even put on by the Gardens. This was the third and final event of the series for this year, and the food theme was "Autumn Harvest Feastival."


The food was pretty good, but I skipped on the drinks. For $15 I'd hoped they would include one non-alcoholic drink, but they were all a la carte. My favorite nibbles were the cinnamon and sugar sweet potato fries and cream cheese crostini. And...the doughnuts! Glad I didn't indulge in a Publix doughnut yesterday at the office.

Pumpking Carving and Dead Computers

So, I'd like to open this post with some bad news. Remington, my beloved laptop, has died. He is suffering in the no-computer's-land of fried hard drives. He got me through college and dozens of papers, study notes and countless hours wasted on Facebook. I perfected my resume and cover letters, watched hours of TV and movies, and kept up to date on the news, Cake Wrecks and icanhazcheezburger? He housed my photos and music, and fought valiantly against the many viruses attacking Windows.

I'd appreciate if you would bow your head for a minute and then pat your desktop, laptop or netbook and be grateful for all it's done for you.

Okay, on to happier news. My friends and I had a pumpkin carving get together yesterday at the house, and it was a lot of fun. I love carving pumpkins, and though my carving skills are limited to large shapes, I love to check out all the really cool designs online every year.

I did a traditional cat, and the boys did a jack-o-lantern meets Pacman. Two of my close friends asked another if she would carve them Edward and Jacob pumpkins (yes, from Twilight). Enjoy!

I love Hump Day

First, because, really, someone came up with that awesome name! Second, I only have one more day of work this week. And last, it's my free day.

I sent off my (re)application packet for the Southern Progress fellowship today. I'm pretty nervous about reapplying so soon, since I haven't had the chance to write any more clips or do any more tangible work. Yeah, I fact check for Atlanta but it's not the same as a final product.

I found out that Amy, one of the other Atlanta interns is also applying to SP. I thought, man, maybe I could have snuck by, but nope. Pretty sure even more people will apply now than did this past spring. In any case, wish me luck, and God willing+my great resume, etc. = an interview!

Also, my uncle put me in touch with a really nice guy who works for a publishing company. The company is H&A Media Group and they do a lot of things that I would love to get experience in. Kudos to my uncle Lynn for going out of his way to get in touch with said media guy!

I'm in the midst of reading a new book, Ghosts in the Snow by Tamara Siler Jones. It's like a medieval murder mystery with a taste of the supernatural. It's set in an original world where a older gentleman, Dubric, can see the ghosts of the murdered. Not coincidentally, he's in charge of security for his castle and someone is murdering young women. And his motivation, other than morals? Their gory ghosts haunt him, and they won't move on until he's solved their murder.

I really like it but gosh darn if Jones isn't leading me on a goose chase! My only complaint is that the world's history and the social network of the castle comes out in bits and pieces in conversation, so it can be hard to catalog past events and characters. Another update coming as soon as I finish!

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot! I went over to Bath & Body Works today. They're having their fall scents sale. Room sprays are $3 instead of $5 and I got Leaves (my favorite!), Autumn Apple, Spiced Cider and Fresh Balsam. Leaves is spicy, musky and really reminds me of the holidays. AApple is very much a crisp, clean apple scent; I'm not sold yet on Spiced Cider but I liked it better than some of their other scents. Fresh Balsam is, in my opinion, better that last year's Tree (also by Slatkin). It's less harsh that Tree, and more complex. I think the card in the store said it had pine, musk, apple and cedar scents blended in.

Their big candles are also on sale (2 for $20) and I got my mom the Vanilla Caramel (rich and sweet) and Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin. I like this one better than their Pumpkin Patch, which I really have no words to describe. I just think it's kind of bland and not pumpkiny or spicy at all. The other stand outs were the Ginger Vanilla and Harvest Berry. They're something unique, yet appropriate for the holidays, than the classic pumpkin, vanilla and spice based scents.

Am I gonna need an ark or a rake?

Tomorrow is the first day of fall, and as tired as I am of summer, I can't help but gush about it.

Speaking of gushing, we had what I'm going to assume is record rainfall in Atlanta this week. It's been so bad that schools and roads have closed. There are some really humbling pictures on clatl.com, twitter and ajc.com. Atlanta and the metro area are not known for their high rainfall, so this is doubly big news for us.

Back to fall -- the leaves actually aren't turning yet...oh yeah, because it's still in the 80s. Probably will be until into October. Oh well. However, I'm sad to report that three of our mock cherries (which drop nice leaves) have already dropped their leaves. Dead, ugly brown ones.

My brother Ben has pointed out that this might indicate the trees are dead. I'm totally bummed because cherry/mock cherry trees are some of my favorite. We have six total spanning about 75% of our front yard, so those three make a difference. We won't know until spring, and I'll continue to be optimistic.

This turning point in the seasons is one of my favorite during the year. Everything starts to cool off finally. I love knowing in my gut the changes happening. Probably still won't break out my sweaters and jackets until well into October, but it's nice to start thinking about cold weather again.

Being a homey, decorating, crafty type, I'm also excited about the onslaught of fall home goods. Decorative gourds and pumpkins? Yes, please. Delicious fall scented candles and room sprays from Bath & Body Works? Where's my coupon, BBW? Cheap, cheesy decorations from Hobby Lobby? Oh, yeah, 50% off!

And the food gets exponentially worse for my health -- good thing they're only around for three months at my house. My mom breaks out her best desserts and treats for family events -- lemon bars, pumpkin cake and pie, sweet potato casserole...must stop, I'm getting hungry.