farmers market

Field Trip to Farmers Market

| terriaw

We got up early on Saturday morning to get to the farmers market before it got too crowded. It turned out to be a perfect trip. Luckily, we got there in time to get a breakfast teddywedger (a cornish pasty or meat pie) before they sold out. They have other combinations, but the breakfast version with eggs, cheese and Canadian bacon is THE best!

breakfast teddywedger

It was great to see the community vegetable garden has been plotted out and planted.

community vegetable garden

There was an abundance of fresh-cut spring flowers.

another bucket of tulips

more tulips

bucket of tulips

There are always lots of gorgeous plants to put in your own garden.

purple geraniums

hanging plants

gorgeous begonias

We don’t usually buy much to carry home, and just enjoy eating our way around and people watching. We always buy 2 monster cookies from the Amish farmers, and our new discovery is the Chicago Mix of caramel and cheese kettle corn from Ernie’s Kettle Corn food cart. It’s so good, we have to buy our own bags so we don’t have to share!

I don’t know exactly what it is about farmers markets that we all love so much. Fresh air. Fresh produce and bakery. Outdoor shopping. Dining al fresco. Bringing city peeps and farmers together in an urban scene. Makes me feel like doing a whimsical illustrated map of our favorite stops along the farmers market (similar to the set I did last year).

Thanks for stopping by!

Terri

Field Trip to Farmers Market

| terriaw

I can’t remember the last time we made a field trip to the farmers market, so it was a thrill to go this past weekend.

It was the last weekend of summer, no better time to get out there while the weather was still warm and sunny.

There were so many vibrant colors to soak in.

I noticed a lot more varieties of peppers on this visit.

Has anyone ever heard of chocolate peppers? I wish I had asked the farmer what these tasted like, but it was so crowded, I never got the chance.

I’m excited for apple season, which has always been one of my favorite fruits (in addition to berries). I bought a few Courtlands that I’m excited to try.

Many of my favorite flowers, mums and asters, were blooming and ready to be taken home.

Every year, when Fall arrives, I see all sorts of big, bold, beautiful sunflowers, and realize I forgot to plant them. I think they are the happiest flower!

I also notice these strawberry flowers every year at the beginning of the Fall season. Talk about bold, vibrant colors!

Dahlias always get lots of oohs and aahs from passersby, especially these bouquets with their rich colors.

There was also a nice selection of ornamental pumpkins and gourds already, which really get you in the mood for fall.

Hope you found some inspiration this weekend too. Thank you for stopping by!

Farmers Market – May Update

| terriaw

We went to our infamous farmers market over the weekend.

Our weather was so gorgeous, making it a perfect morning to be outside browsing fresh bakery, cheese, produce and flowers.

As usual, we don’t buy much, mainly because we don’t want to carry it.

We got a breakfast sandwich, some monster cookies, lettuce, and some cheese curds.

This time of year, there’s just early season produce to be found, things like onions, radishes, rhubarb, and lettuce.

I always end up stocking up on pictures of some of the most beautiful flowers I’ve ever seen!

I hope the farmers don’t mind I’m sneaking pictures of their goodies.

Thanks for stopping by!

Autumn Farmers Market

| terriaw

Happy day – This is the first Saturday I’ve had off in over two months.

Since we haven’t been to farmer’s market since the 4th of July weekend, we’ve been looking forward to this day all week.

I  knew there would be a variety of colors to admire.

That’s the beauty of Autumn – colors and surprises.

Some of my favorite flowers are the daisies, sunflowers, asters and mums we see more of this time of year.

I always forget to plant sunflowers, so I have greater appreciation for them at the end of the gardening season. They are so majestic, aren’t they?!

I love the tranquil charm of Autumn’s harvest, from the varieties of squash to mini pumpkins to varieties of gourds.

I also love the vivid colors we see in Fall flowers.

It makes me happy to be able to enjoy my favorite day of the week, and to find this much inspiration for art projects and drawing practice.

July Inspirations

| terriaw

Sorry I’ve been so quiet lately. We’ve been having fun with family from out of town visiting us for the Independence Day holiday weekend.

We went to our famous farmers market on Saturday, and I finally found berries in season!

We were amazed at the size of these beautiful stargazer lilies adorning bouquets for sale.

There was an early crop of colorful tomatoes.

We were also surprised to see such a variety of mushrooms available.

Family time and surprises at the market were great inspiration for my art cards this week. (along with a little Ed Emberley doodle, which is the dude carrying a flag, as if marching in a parade!)

My sister-in-law and I gorged on summer fruit all weekend. We also made the tastiest watermelon slushy, a recipe I will definitely share soon.

Three cheers for the fabulous month of July and more beautiful summer flowers and crops!

Our First Farmers Market Outing

| terriaw

This weekend we made our first outing to the farmers market since it opened back in April. We usually make it to the opener but every Saturday in April and May were cold and grey. Lately, it’s been hot and hotter, which has been a nice change of pace from our eight months of cold.

The Market was crowded as usual.

I was hoping to load up on berries, but there were none to be found.

We saw lots of onions, radishes, and spinach amongst the abundant supply of cheese and baked goods.

The farmers always present such a wonderful variety of unusual colors and varieties of plants from their gardens.

As you can see, I was most interested in all the beautiful flowers!

October Farmers Market

| terriaw

It’s been about a month since we made it out to the farmer’s market, so it felt great to get out there today.

I love all the wonderful colors and varieties of vegetables to discover at the market in October.

It was the first day of the season that we had to bundle up with jackets and scarves because it was cold and windy.

I was amazed to see the things farmers are still offering for sale, like these beautiful, rich-looking flowers.

I bought a bag of Macintosh apples, which I peeled and cored just as soon as we got home.

I made a small batch of cinnamon applesauce, which I love eating while it’s still warm.

I also made my favorite dessert, apple crisp, using an old recipe from my aunt MaryAnn.

Peel and slice three apples. Layer on bottom of square pan.

Mix 3/4 cup oatmeal, 3/4 cup packed brown sugar and 1/2 cup flour. Sprinkle over apple slices.

Melt 1/2 cup butter and drizzle over apples and crisp mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

We are lucky our farmer’s market lasts until early November, so hopefully we will be able to fit in at least one more trip.

Final Color Palette – Farmers Market

| terriaw

One of my favorite things to do is go to a farmers market, so I thought that would be a great source of inspiration for this final day of the color palette blog walk. Luckily, we have an excellent market here in Madison.

Sometimes I come home with more pictures than produce or bakery from the market.

colors of onions from farmers market

colors of chili peppers from farmers market

colors of flowers at farmers market

colors of globe thistles from farmers market

I adore sunflowers, but I forget to plant them every single year. So I always seek them out at the market, just to soak in their beauty. You can’t have a farmers market without sunflowers.

That concludes my participation in Brandi‘s color palette blog walk. I have had a lot of fun doing this week-long color study. I have also learned a lot, in particular, how to really look at things around me. Hope you found some inspiration along the way!

Farmer’s Market- July Report

| terriaw

I can’t remember the last time we went to the farmers market! July was such a busy month for us that I guess this was the first weekend we had free.

Today, we saw a lot of patty pan squash, zucchini, carrots, onions, tomatoes and a great variety of flowers.

All the fresh vegetables were so inspiring that we had some of it for dinner last night (sauteed fingerling potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower).

I didn’t buy tomatoes because our garden is showing signs of ripening tomatoes, but these were so beautiful, I couldn’t resist a photograph of them.

In fact, I think I came home with more photographs of the produce than purchases!

It was so wonderful to get to the market this weekend and see all the farmers thriving. (The bakeries were thriving too, but we ate all those purchases right away!) It’s nice to see our community support these farmers and markets so well.