The Little Things

It's a rainy day.

The perfect day to enjoy many of the little touches in my home.The fall leaves on the shower curtain holders.The perfectly stacked candles lying amid the gleaming mercury glass candle sticks topped with faux pumpkins.A beautiful, very feminine, little table---a recent thrift store acquisition.A pretty little pumpkin plopped a top a curvy plant stand.A huge hurricane containing a plethora of acorns and white pumpkins, finished off with the perfect touches of jute twine and vintage keys.

Out of the Mouths of Pre-teens

One day, as I was prepping a thrift store item for paint, my youngest said in his somewhat sarcastic pre-teen voice, "Let me guess, you're going to paint it black right?" I defended myself, "I don't paint everything black!" and proved it by listing all of the colors I had recently used. However his comment made me pause and take a fresh look at my home. Was the decor a bit dark, heavy and predictable? Perhaps in some areas. Or perhaps his comments just gave me the motivation I needed to change things up a bit.
I began the transformation in the living room, in a spot where I noticed a high concentration of the color black.I admit that I found it easy to transform because I had recently picked up a beautiful mirror from the thrift store and an irresistible lamp on clearance.Then I turned my attention to the coffee table. It had no black, but it had looked this way all summer and it too needed a little lightening up.It's amazing how rearranging a couple of surfaces in a room can make you feel like the whole room has had a makeover.
How about your home? Are things a little too predictable? I'll be happy to send my pre-teen over to give his opinion!

Altered Reading

I bought a couple of old books at the thrift store to add to my Halloween decorations, but they needed a little altering.One book's cover was beginning to separate.Which made it very easy to rip the entire cover off and I didn't have to feel guilty for damaging a book (that's the teacher in me).I sanded the spine a bit to achieve a more worn look. Then wrapped it with jute twine. Next I cut and frayed a piece of burlap and used a permanent marker for printing a title. Now I have the perfect addition for my mad scientist's shelf!I was attracted to the second book because of the cover's textural pattern. I removed the label on front using a little water and a scraper.A cotton swab and some fingernail polish remover worked for taking off the wording on the spine.I added a new title using a paint pen and permanent marker.It's the perfect addition to my Halloween library.And it looks fantastic on my witchy inspired entry table!

P.S.
I am humbled to announce that I am
the Friday Feature over at A Little Tipsy.
Thank you Michelle for the opportunity.
It was fun!

Places For Vases

I am a collector. . . .either that or I am obsessive compulsive. I prefer to think that I am a collector. One of the many things that I enjoy collecting are vases and planters. I do try to keep it to a few certain types of vases----cream, moss green, and milk glass.
Since I've re-focused my efforts on decorating the guest room, I decided that it would be a great place to display a few of my vase collections. I had a few aqua pieces that look great on the mantle of the faux fireplace. And I thought that the long, long shelf would be a perfect spot for a few pieces of milk glass. I began by gathering milk glass vases from various areas of the house. When it was all gathered, I was really surprised at how many pieces I had. I then laid everything out to see if there were "families" of vases. Again to my surprise, I had several. Next I grouped the vase families together beginning with the largest ones in the center of the shelves. And then I worked my way out to fill in the rest. I think the contrast of the white vases against the grey walls looks beautiful!
But now I see a big blank wall. There's only one thing to do. Look for the perfect empty frame in my supply and give it a coat of silver spray paint because this room needs a little more sparkle to match the chandelier. The cute fleur de lis hanger is just the right touch. Yes! Now I think this room is complete. . . at least for now.

Let's Pretend

As a child I loved to play pretend! It was one characteristic of childhood that I did not want to leave behind. I find myself many, many years later, still playing pretend when I decorate, especially for Halloween.
Wouldn't it be fun to have my huge dining room shelf look like it was part of a mad scientist's lab? It would need stacks and stacks of old books, a skull or two---happy skulls would be best. Of course it could use the old brown bottles from the thrift store complete with the labels I purchased last year at the dollar store.A couple of old looking lanterns would be perfect. A few scary little pumpkins. And to make it complete, an old crow and a rat. I suppose some spider webs strewn across would also look eerie, but I prefer to pretend that this mad scientist still works in this lab.........she's the one who is giddy and doing the happy dance because her imagination looks even better in real life!

Mantle Evolution

One of the many wonders of blogging is being able to look back at photos to see how my style has evolved. In 2007 I was trying to work up the nerve to start a blog. Halloween was the first holiday with my new digital camera so I documented my decorations. Even though I used pretty much the same items to decorate with in the last three years, there are still subtle differences. I like that! I like to feel that my decorating style is constantly evolving---if only slightly.
I thought it might be fun to share photos of my family room mantle with you from the past three years.

Halloween 2007Halloween 2008Halloween 2009

This year I added the haunted castle that I bought at the thrift store months ago for two dollars. But now that I've looked at the last two years decorations, I remember using those branchy looking things. I think I need to go into my "inventory room" and find where I put those. Aren't old photos wonderful?

A good photo is better than
a good memory any day!

Dear Sweet Blog

Dear Sweet Blog,
I am so, so sorry that I have ignored you this week. I have let dental appointments, design consultations, wedding consultations, family needs and broken bones come before you. Please forgive me. Maybe this little tutorial will help you feel better and make up for my neglect.

Sincerely,

Joy

How to Make Your Own Halloween OrbsYou'll need:
Wooden Balls
(Ping Pong balls might even work)
Black Spray Paint
White Paint MarkerSpray paint the orbs (balls) black.Helpful hint: Place balls on cloth surface so they won't roll.
When dry, print on scary words using paint marker.Place Halloween Orbs in a pretty bowl, vase,
or apothecary jar and ENJOY!