10.19.2011

more halloween decorations

i told you i had a few more projects for halloween to share with you.  so, here they are...

the first is my crafty witchy wreath that is currently hanging on my front door.  my friend, elise, and i decided to start our own craft club.  yep, just two members right now, but i don't care.  i am so excited to have some adult conversation and someone else to craft with!!  the witch wreath was our first project.  super easy.  you can follow the same great tutorial we did.  found it on lemon tree creations here.  instead of free handing the sign, we used my cricut to create stencils out of contact paper.  worked great! 



the other project i wanted to share is my halloween mantel.   


i made the pennant out of burlap, ribbon, chip board letters, plastic spiders, and googly eyes.  use what you have on hand!

to make it i cut triangles out of burlap.  no need for sewing.  yay.  next i found some orange and black ribbon that i had on hand.  i hot glued it to the top of the triangles.  after the glue was dry, i trimmed the extra off.  the letters were a bluish color, so i just gave them a few quick coats of black spray paint.  after they dried i hot glued them to the triangles.  i added some plastic spiders and googly eyes to the first and last triangles.  these were things i had on hand, thanks to resigning my teaching position and having to clean out my classroom.  :)  to hang it on my mantel, i used a couple of 3M plastic hooks with the removable sticky pads.  i used some twine and cute little clothespins that i found in the office supply aisle of wally world.  here's another close up...


nothing fancy, but the girls love it.  and that was the WHOLE point!

the other halloween-ish items on the mantel included an orange, beady garland from joanns @ half off (woop, woop), some candles with black tulle tied around them (had on hand = FREE), and 4 ghoulish candle holders.  i used mason jars that i had on hand.  the black ones are just wrapped with black tulle.  the ghosts are wrapped with toilet paper (because i didn't have white crepe paper on hand) and then some googly eyes hot glued to them.  waa laa.  some cheap, easy decorations for the month of october!



my entryway

the vase i scored on clearance at joanns for $1.67.  i added an orange, beady pick and some branches spray painted black.  the halloween sign was also from joanns for half off.  (woop.  but only one woop because it was still around 10 bucks...)

10.17.2011

ring around the rosy, halloween-style tutorial

boo!  the bewitching hours are upon us.  no, not the typical kind that visit my house every night before bath time...the halloween kind. 

i decided to put some effort into making decorations for the house specifically for halloween month.  i have a few that i plan to share with you all before the 31st.  tonight's is my thriftiest one. 
ring around the rosy ghosts
late one evening i found inspiration somewhere in blogland but have not been able to find it since that night.  couldn't even find it when i needed the instructions.  sorry followers, i cannot direct you to the spot but i will not let you down.  i managed to take pics of each step.  yay me. 

for this project you will need:
dowel rods--i used 3/4" from joanns, 1 per ghost
newspaper
duct tape
white trash bags--3 per ghost
black permanent marker

i had all of this on hand except the dowels.  i bought 5 of them at 99 cents a piece.  under $5 for this project!!  okay, onto the steps...

step 1:
wad newspaper into a ball and secure with  a few wraps of duct tape.  i think i used about 5 full sheets form a newspaper for each head.  then attach the ball to a dowel rod with a few more wraps of duct tape.  i sort of shoved the rod into the ball before taping like a mad woman. 

step 2:
pull a trash bag over the head.  i decided to use the bottom corner of the bag as the pointy part of its head. 

step 3:
make a hole in the middle of the bottom of another trash bag.  then slip this bag onto the rod and over the first bag until you reach the head.


step 4:
fold the 3rd trash bag diagonally once.  then gather it in the middle, like so...

this bag will be tied at the neck of the of the ghost.  it serves two purposes: to keep the 2nd bag where it belongs and to become the arms of the ghost. 

step 5:
use the marker to draw a face on the ghost head.  i chose to just draw eyes.


step 6:
after finishing all of your ghosts, take them outside to your desired location.  i chose to put them around a tree in our front yard.  shove the dowel into the ground at an angle so your ghost is leaning backward a bit.  space them so that the arms can reach each other.  tie the arms together so it looks like the ghost are holding hands.  enjoy your cheap craftiness.  all the neighborhood kiddies will!



10.16.2011

kiddo bathroom makeover

holy cow...contrary to belief...i am alive. so much has happened since my last post in april. i'd hope so, right? i mean, that was 6 flippin months ago. in may, the hubs and i found out we are expecting our third child. gulp. after the initial shock, we are so stinking excited. it's a boy! baby brother is scheduled to arrive november 17, if not sooner.

since finding out about our butterball, i have made list after list of all the projects that i need want to get done before 11/17. the first on my list was the kids' bathroom. i have been dying to paint that room since my first pregnancy but held off until we found out the sex of our "final baby".

this is the ultimate inspiration behind the personality and decor of the bathroom.  i found this print a few years ago at an art show in south haven, michigan.  bought the frame and the mat at hobby lobby for half off.  the mat was originally white so i painted it with some craft paint i had on hand. 

i settled on a bright green for the walls but was afraid of how overwhelming it might look in a small room. then, i searched the internet and found inspiration for adding board and batten to a room, here and here.

i decided to paint the top half of the room first. then the hubby helped put the boards up. lots of caulking, then painting the bottom half. i love how it turned out!

i made the sign that hangs above the toilet and the one to the left of the sink. i just used paints i had on hand, scrap wood, and my cricut. woop! woop!


i found the coordinating rugs, trashcan, toilet tote, and container at target.



the towels are from home goods. i love the bright colors!
and yes, we removed the door that separated the sink from the toilet/shower room.  it was always open and just in the way.  don't worry, it'll be replaced after my babies can bathe by themselves.  :)
just add cute babies and water...