The Art of Doing Stuff

Setting the Thanksgiving Table - A Retrospective

Karen — Sat, 10 Oct 2026 03:28:00 +0000

The Thanksgiving weekend in Canada has arrived and as the rest of the country makes their way to fall fairs to marvel over the size of giant vegetables and take in a demolition derby I will be setting my table. Again. And Again. The Good China I use flow blue for Thanksgiving dinner because I...

The Dogs & Antiques of Aberfoyle

Karen — Fri, 09 Oct 2026 03:28:00 +0000

I went to the Aberfoyle flea market looking for a few specific things that I did not find. There are two strategies to implement when you're antique shopping. You can thoughtfully follow either one. Both will fail you. You can go into a flea market with a mission. You are looking for that one thing....

Thanksgiving is This Weekend & I Have Notes

Karen — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 03:28:00 +0000

This weekend is Thanksgiving in Canada. The menu will be exactly the same as it always is. The flow blue will come out. There will be turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and pumpkin pie. At some point I'll think I'm unusually organized. That feeling won't last. The $10 Thanksgiving Plates I got these at an...

I Have a New Front Porch. Sort Of.

Karen — Mon, 05 Oct 2026 03:28:00 +0000

I have a new front porch. It cost $18,000 and looks almost exactly like the old one. The difference is in the guts. My house was built around 1840 when modest workers' cottages like mine were built pretty much at soil level. Presumably this made for a shorter fall when throwing the baby out with...

Pogos, True Pie & a Hostile Potato Salad

Karen — Sat, 03 Oct 2026 03:28:00 +0000

This week involved 6 cups of blueberries, 60 bulbs, 100 plants, 114 pounds of tomatoes and one *poof!*. Here's how this past week went. The Healthy Salad Loophole I've switched from my regular kale salad to a more demanding kale salad. It's also more a more delicious salad. It has roasted squash, pomegranate seeds and...

Velvety Carrot Ginger Soup Recipe - for Winter Warming.

Karen — Fri, 02 Oct 2026 03:28:00 +0000

This Szechuan Carrot Ginger Soup will warm you from the inside out. Seasoned with ginger, hot pepper flakes and sesame oil this soup is delicious, filling and easy. It checks all the soup requirement boxes. Skip right to the recipe. I have absolutely nothing to say about Carrot Ginger soup. Nothing. As someone who is...

A Small Amount of Fall

Karen — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 03:28:00 +0000

I recently warned you to back away from the pumpkin spice because it was still summer. It isn't anymore. Fall officially arrived, which means I'm now willing to acknowledge it. I'm not ready to fill a wagon with scarecrows but I can manage a small amount of fall. It's not that I don't like the...

Halloween Picks

Karen — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 03:28:00 +0000

Everybody knows I like Halloween. It's my favourite holiday next to Christmas and Taco Tuesdays. Halloween is only a few weeks away. Eep. Here are my very Art of Doing Stuff picks for the season. A couple of years ago I couldn't find an appropriately creepy doormat in stores or online so I made this...

My Morning Routine & Why You Might Want to Adopt It.

Karen — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 03:28:00 +0000

2026 UPDATE: I wrote this post in 2019, two days after becoming a Morning Person. I had plans. I had advice. I had apparently undergone a complete personality transformation. I meant to update you on my impressive progress over time. I didn't. With that information, please enjoy the following expert advice. I'm one of them. ...

The Landscape Project: Perennial Picking

Karen — Wed, 23 Sep 2026 03:28:00 +0000

It's time to pick a peck of perennials for the landscape project. Every flower and variety that's been selected for the front yard landscape project. Earlier this year I unrolled the most expensive piece of paper I've ever owned: The landscape plans. I have a general landscape plan and a plant list, but no planting...