October Autumn Basket Quilt Block

This October Autumn Basket block is part of my Wooly Basket Calendar Quilt.  The pattern is from the Starry Pines Pattern Company: http://starrypinespatterncompany.com/spindex2.html

I used wool for the hand-appliqued basket, cotton flannel for the background fabric, and black perle cotton for the embroidery. 

October's Bright Blue Weather

O SUNS and skies and clouds of June,
    And flowers of June together,
Ye cannot rival for one hour
    October's bright blue weather;

When loud the bumble-bee makes haste,
    Belated, thriftless vagrant,
And Golden-Rod is dying fast,
    And lanes with grapes are fragrant;

When Gentians roll their fringes tight
    To save them for the morning,
And chestnuts fall from satin burrs
    Without a sound of warning;

When on the ground red apples lie
    In piles like jewels shining,
And redder still on old stone walls
    Are leaves of woodbine twining;

When all the lovely wayside things
    Their white-winged seeds are sowing,
And in the fields, still green and fair,
    Late aftermaths are growing;

When springs run low, and on the brooks,
    In idle golden freighting,
Bright leaves sink noiseless in the hush
    Of woods, for winter waiting;

When comrades seek sweet country haunts,
    By twos and twos together,
And count like misers, hour by hour,
    October's bright blue weather.

O suns and skies and flowers of June,
    Count all your boasts together,
Love loveth best of all the year
    October's bright blue weather.

by Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885)

Caramel Apple Dip

1 (14 ounce) bag caramels
2/3 cup milk
½ cup miniature marshmallows
Apples, cored and sliced
Sure Fresh

1.  In a 3-quart saucepan, place unwrapped caramels, milk, and marshmallows.  Heat at low temperature until caramels and marshmallows are melted.  Watch carefully and stir constantly.

2.  Serve as a dip with apple slices, which have been treated with Sure Fresh to keep them from turning dark.

 

Apples harvested from an average tree can fill 20 boxes that weigh 42 pounds each.  The average size of a United States’ orchard is 50 acres. 

You might also enjoy reading my previous blog post here.