Twine & Braids

As usual the holiday season is approaching at lightning speed.  Thanksgiving is just three days away and I swear summer was just a few weeks ago!  How did that happen?! Now while I don’t have any tricks to slow down time, I do have a few tips to assist in your Thanksgiving prep.

I’ve mentioned in an earlier post that I share an apartment with my boyfriend, Erick.  Being in a one bedroom without a proper dining room table (I’ve completely converted our table into my work space/photo shoot area) I’m, luckily, not expected to host the family for dinner.  I know that task will one day be passed onto me, but for now, I will happily travel to my parents house for the holiday bringing with me a few prepped ahead dishes and handmade place cards.

Cranberry SAUCE

First up is the cranberry sauce.  This batch was made with fresh cranberries, fresh orange juice and zest, and sugar to cut the tartness.  A similar recipe to the one I followed can be found here.

Pumpkin Bread

My grandmother has been supplying us with pumpkin bread (and banana and zucchini) since before I can remember.  It’s truly not a Thanksgiving meal unless you end it with a thick slice of pumpkin bread.  I make a batch or two each year and package it up to give as gifts during the holiday season. This year I baked my bread in decorative card board loaf pans.  Once cooled, I wrapped in cellophane and tied them up with twine, the perfect hostess gift!  Similar recipe here.

Place Cards

Creating the place cards and table settings is a task I enjoy taking on each year.  This go around I went with neutral earth tones and fall florals.  Finding all of the materials for this project at Michael’s; I picked up a bunch of their dried natural wheat and dried lagurus, cinnamon sticks and Kraft tags.  I bunched together a few of the dried florals, topped with a cinnamon stick and tied together with twine.  To finish I hand lettered each guests name on a rustic tag.  I love the simplicity of these place settings and am pleased with how they turned out.

Wishing you a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Enjoy!

Meghan