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Monday, September 28, 2015

Fall ~ 2015

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I went right up to the few days before Fall officially began before I brought out my decorations.  Of course, this week it is going to be in the 80’s and humid again!

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I realize more each year that I am okay with keeping the seasonal decorations simpler.  When my kids were young and at home there was definitely more.  I think I put out even less this year than last, and, even now, I feel like I could take one or two things away and be fine with it.

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I haven’t bought anything new for Fall in a couple of years, so I’m using what I’ve got and not all of it came out of the bins.  No, that’s wrong ~ I did buy this little cream colored pick-up truck {CVS} so I could use it with the little pumpkins I have for crafting and then, come Christmas time, I can also use it for some little bottle brush trees. 

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Some decorations I set up just like I did last year and some I changed up a little bit.  In another couple of days, I will add the bits of Halloween in and then they can come away easily ~ without leaving any gaps ~ and it will just be Fall again.

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I’ve got mums in the garden urns outside by both entrances.  I tried to pick those with mainly buds, but just where you could see what color the flowers will be.  They are just starting to bloom now.  Purple for the front door area.

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And a mix for the garage door urn.   Right now it looks predominantly yellow, but there is purple, copper, rust, the yellow, and I thought I saw a couple of the cranberry red buds.

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I can’t believe it is the end of September already!

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Do you keep Fall decorating simple or do you go “all out”?

 

Monday, September 21, 2015

Summer’s Last Hurrah

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The other night, I made the last cuts of the season to my hydrangea bushes. Out of the three I have, two bloomed all season and the third started to bloom last week {go figure}.  I decided to enjoy them in the house and used them in the pot I showed a few posts ago on our dining room table. 

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I used the glass hurricane and a faux candle in a pumpkin color {I couldn’t find an actual pumpkin pillar candle in the real candles}.  It was 50% off at Hobby Lobby so I felt it would do for this arrangement.

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I tucked in some of the hydrangea flowers I had cut around it.  As I had said in that previous post, a flat bottom votive candle holder turned upside down inside the pot brings the candle up to a good height.  This will do until the blooms dry out and then I can put the faux florals and leaves in their place.

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I also took a final picture of our urn by the garage door.  You might recall that I have shared it a few times over the Summer months to show you how it progressed in size.  It continued to grow even after my last post!  Here is the progression in pictures, with the date taken listed below each photo.

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May 24, 2015 – first planted

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July 7, 2015

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August 16, 2015

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September, 2015

Such a great combination and coleus is always a winner in my book.  I will have to look back at these pictures for next year’s planting.  

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Picture Perfect Halloween Treat Bags

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I thought I’d share some Halloween treat bags I made up this year in plenty of time for you to make some of your own.  This is an idea I got from Somerset Holidays and Celebrations magazine {2009}.  Here are the supplies I picked up to do this project:

  • Kraft paper bags with handles {these came from Hobby Lobby and were 5/$1.99};
  • Halloween-like scrapbook paper of your choosing;
  • Cardstock {black for the witch hats and matting, and another color also for matting your picture};
  • Pictures of your recipients;
  • Halloween stickers with text;
  • Other embellishments of your choice;
  • Adhesive {I used a glue stick for photos and glue tape}.

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I chose a subdued/faded looking orange color and black & white harlequin pattern scrapbook paper to layer onto the front of my bag.  I will also use them on the back just to give it a finished look.  I also did a couple with some vintage black and white children’s pictures; I’ll use these as decorations. 

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It is very easy and quick to do these, and they will be sure to bring a smile.  They are kind of a trick and a treat all in one!  Once they are finished, you can fill them with some shred in colors to match your scrapbook papers and then add some candy in. 

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In the case of the bags I made for my nephews, I took a picture of their school pictures {perfect head shots for this type of project}, and edited them to be black and white.  I did the same with a picture I had of my granddaughter; I tried to take a head shot the same as a school picture would be for hers.

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Cut them to size and adhere them to a piece of cardstock.  I glued the picture to the orange colored cardstock and then cut a slightly larger piece of the black cardstock.  I “double matted” it by gluing the orange cardstock with the picture on it to the black.  I used decorative scissors to cut the cardstock ~ the black is done with a scallop and the orange that the picture is glued to is called “victorian”.

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I then cut out some witch hats from the black cardstock.  You can embellish them with glitter, scrapbook paper or ribbon; I basically left them as is.  Glue them onto the picture.

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Once that is all set and good to go, glue the cardstock {with the picture wearing its witch hat} to the bag, which should already be decorated in the scrapbook papers you chose.  You can see I double layered these, too.

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I used a Halloween sticker pack I found that included text and images.  I used the text on the front of the bags, also giving them a bit more dimension by sticking them onto scrapbook paper and then cardstock.  In addition, {on some of them, because I forgot I had it} I added a strip that raises them up off the project a bit.

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You can use up the scraps of the scrapbook papers for the back.  I also added a Halloween sticker to the back.

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To do the shred inside the bags ~ I couldn’t find a prepackaged orange and black shred, so I bought black and orange tissue paper.  I put one sheet of each color together, then folded over, and cut strips into them – not cutting all the way to the end.  Kind of like making pom-poms.  I took some pictures to illustrate.

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That’s it ~ they’re done!  Then add your treats.  I put some candy and some small, inexpensive toys in mine.

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Trick or Treat!

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A big thank you to my daughter and sister for allowing me to put the kids’ pictures on my blog!

Sunday, September 13, 2015

The New Granddaughter!

My second granddaughter arrived on Friday, September 4, 2015 – 6 pounds, 14 ounces.

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She looks very like her sister did, except this one has dark hair and I noticed dimples.  Here is big sister trying her hand at feeding.

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It’s been wonderful holding such a small baby again, but we are making sure our first granddaughter gets quite a bit of our attention, too.  Anyway, now you know where I’ve been and where I’ll probably be if you don’t see me around!

Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Grain Sack Round Runner

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Can runners be round?  I don’t know, but since I have a round table in our dining area, I decided to do a round piece using that grain sack type fabric I used on my pillow that I showed you here.  This time I used the tan with beige striped fabric.

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I used a silver tray I had that was about the size I wanted the round to be, turned it over, and used a pencil to trace around it on the fabric. 

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I cut it out and wound up buying a vintage looking trim from Hobby Lobby to use on the edge.

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I sewed it on, ironed it, and it was done within a half hour!

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A pretty simple project and here it is on the table with my newly painted pot sitting on top of it.

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I’m not sure what else I might make with this fabric ~ I’m thinking about Christmas stockings and fabric gift bags. Even after the pillow cover and this table round I’ve still got plenty left!