I am being more and more awakened to how much better we can do at taking care of God's creation. At home, at work, and in our faith communities. Whenever possible at Carrot Top Studio we try to use eco-friendly fabrics or re-purposed fabrics. We label the stoles as such on the website so you are aware that you can make purchases that support these endeavors. For example, this white labyrinth stole was crafted from bamboo fabric. We love this fabric because it has luxurious softness. The growing process of bamboo is very environmentally friendly. The manufacturing processing of bamboo has room for growth to become more chemical free but we like to offer this fabric to say to the fiber industry that we support the direction you are going (or growing-ha, ha!)
In the studio we also are mindful of using our materials in ways that don't create excess waste. Thinking about this in combination with the upcoming Thanksgiving celebrations in the United States makes me wonder how we do in not creating things that just get thrown away after use in our worship spaces. My home church will host a meaningful Thanksgiving Eve community worship service tomorrow night. The sanctuary will be embellished with plants and vegetables that are reflective of the harvest in our local area. For example, the wonderful color and shapes of many pumpkins will be in abundance. I suspect many of our clients do something similar. What do you do with the pumpkins afterward? Of course you can bake them down for pies (even if they aren't what the grocery store labels as "pie pumpkins".) Here's another suggestion that is a favorite in my household:
Pumpkin-Apple Bake
raisins
sugar
butter
chopped apples
nuts
cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut off the top of the pumpkin and scoop out the seeds. Mix chopped apples, raisins, nuts, sugar, and cinnamon. (Filling may be varied to include walnuts, pecans, apricots, dates or cranberries.) Pour mixture into the pumpkin, and dot with butter. Replace the top of the pumpkin. Bake it on a cookie sheet for one hour and 15 minutes to on hour and 30 minutes.
Scoop out some pumpkin with each spoonful of the apple mixture. The bonus gift is that the pumpkin, which will darken slightly while baking, will look beautiful on your Thanksgiving table!
Blessings for your Thanksgiving....Thursday if you are in the USA and in every situation, everyday!
