Fall Mantel 2013

I've been thinking about decorating for the season for a while now-I'm always inspired by Fall! By the time the season gets here, I have a pretty good idea what I want to do. I even do some sketches as ideas come to me.

I didn't even get around to showing you my Summer mantel...this is how it's looked for several months.

When Justin and I were at Ikea last week, we bought this botanical canvas. I didn't know how much I would love it until I got it up on the wall.

 It's a large piece and it matches in scale the sconces that I have....It really makes a statement and I let it guide me in the rest of the living room. I wanted to do something different for Fall. I use all the colors anyway...green, brown, black, orange, and even blue....but the deeper green-that I've never used.

With my energy level being super low-the fireplace is the only area I'm going to decorate this year. I'll probably work on the porch as well, but we'll see. I made this little apple wreath to hang down the face of the fireplace. I've always admired the fresh apple versions but these are little artificial apples and will last year after year. All I did was cut a wire clothes hanger and push the styrofoam apples on one at a time and finished off the top with some burlap.

 Along with the emerald green, I decided to do a more muted palette vs. shocking orange which I've done in the past. I'm really liking it for this year.

 The lanterns I bought last year during Christmas time, so I am really happy to use them for fall this year.

 I seem to always anchor the mantel with an arrangement and this year is no different....it's what I do and I love doing them -so why not! This one is pretty tall, reaching all the way to the ceiling with the branches. Maple leaves, millet, hydrangea, berries and curly willow-all things I love to work with.

 Little mushroom images (from the Graphics Fairy), I printed them here at home, cut them and literally taped them to the mirror with washi tape.

 The little revamped garden stool from yesterday. Click HERE to see the before. It's the same shade of green as in the canvas and it looks fantastic up against the walnut buffet. This makes me happy about my decision to do a bold green!

 I'm still enjoying my ikat curtains and haven't changed them in several months-that's always a good sign.

 An evening shot-so cozy with the battery operated candles! ;)

I hope you are inspired and Happy Fall!

Joining Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick

New Fall Wreaths!

I spent a few hours in my studio this weekend and some fall wreaths happened. ;) It's been a while since I have felt up to designing, but fall always gets me inspired, so I ran with it.

You'll nearly always find a lotus pod or pine cones in my designs, no matter the season-two of my favorite elements.

Aside from plaid ribbon that is! This ribbon is a favorite and I already know I should have bought more.

But on the other hand, sometimes I don't use ribbon at all (yep, I'm a Gemini). I try to do different styles and this free form is probably the hardest for me....but once it happens, I end up really loving the result. The trick is not to think about it too much. Concentrate on line and texture and of course composition. This one sold late last night, so it will be going to it's new home this week.

Oh and sunflowers, how I love them too!

Studio time makes me happy. Are you getting ready for fall?

You can view my shop by clicking HERE, or click on my shop name on my sidebar.

***

I am almost done with my weekly trips to Houston, this week is it then they move to every other week-provided everything is still going well. Taking the trial medicine has been OK! I have been extremely tired which is my biggest frustration (what's new) and I've started noticing some abdomen pain (probably from the cancer itself) and joint pain recently. I'll be telling the doctors about it this week. Thank you all for the continued support and prayers!

My Crazy UK Flag Chair And Other Things...

 I know the first day of Fall isn't until September 22nd, but as we all know in retail it starts much, much earlier. In my mind August is when I like to start transitioning over to Fall...at the booth, mind you, not here at home...so I've been working on several projects for just that reason. I'll take pictures at the booth too, once everything gets in place.

 With Fall being my favorite time of year, it bothers me none to play with brown hydrangeas, rusty metals, dark stained doors and ummm...my weird British Flag chair.

 Yep, it's a deconstructed chair of sorts that I picked up at a yard sale this Spring and painstakingly painted the British flag on the seat. I put it in the back yard for a few days to get some weather and break up the freshly painted look of the flag....well, I forgot about my chair in the weather and discovered it just the other day once again. Whoops. 

 It had certainly aged, don't you think? I actually love what the weather did to it and I sealed it with some polyurethane to stop the paint from chipping any further. The chair didn't have a back and I thought it would be easy to cut a primitive back of sorts fairly easy when the time came.

 But then I had another idea. Wouldn't it be sorta cool if there was a basket in place of the back? I know that's rendering it completely useless to sit on (although, not completely), but it would render it into a really interesting display for a deck or porch. I imagine geraniums or potted ferns in the basket-wouldn't that look cool?
Just for the record: Justin does NOT think it's cool. He doesn't like the chippy paint or the basket idea....but I just reminded myself of what Eleanor Roosevelt said. Do what you feel in your heart to be right-for you'll be criticized anyway.  That can apply to painted chairs right? ;)

 I went to Hobby Lobby and found a basket about the same size as the backing space and tied it on with some jute twine-completely temporary. I might cut a back for it, but for now, it's a cooky flower-basket-UK-flag-chair-thing. The Queen can thank me later.

 Also going to the booth, a beautifully aged Texaco bucket. Nice and rusted to perfection, with no help from me.

I thought to myself, what else does my booth need for Fall 2013? A ginormous painted sign is what myself came up with.

 Actually, it's a scrap piece of backer board that I had from another project (more on that later). I framed it out using tomato stakes of all things and went to town painting.

 You guys have seen all my small versions of hand-painted signs, so I'm not going into the logistics and how-to's now, but this puppy is BIG and I'm hoping it will draw people in my booth.

 Surprisingly, it didn't even take me that long to paint, the hand lettering part is the most time consuming. Not that I'm anti-stencil or con Silhouette machine, I just prefer hand lettering...just me a pencil, ruler and an eraser. If you'd like to see the tutorials click HERE and HERE.

 I can't wait to get everything in place at the booth and of course can't wait to show you. I've got some smalls going in too and of course Flowers!!

I'll talk to you soon!

A Thanksgiving Tablescape

It's November, and we are so close to Thanksgiving, so a tablescape is definitely in order. This table is comprised of vintage, new and reinvented, which is always my favorite.

This is a lovely lantern I picked up at Hobby Lobby, it is metal and I really like the glass panels with the Tudor characteristic, very charming. Inside, I put 2 flameless candles inside along with moss and a little white pumpkin.

A couple of vintage turkey finds that I spray painted white. Take a look at the before below.

Pretty cheesy, right?

No more cheese! ;) Use moss to help steady wobbly candles.

A turkey container, that wasn't too bad, yet just not my thing...

...turned into my thing with glossy spray paint. I thought I was going to make a little arrangement in it, but decided to use more moss and a pumpkin and keep the focus on the gobbler.

These place mats were my Mom's...gosh, they have to be 50+ years old, I remember them being on the dining room table growing up (you know, a few years back). They are really neat...woven, fringed and reversible. Some of the flourishes appear black in the photos (at least on my monitor), but it is a really deep hunter green.

Plain white Gibson dishes....I bought these to go in my booth but couldn't resist doing a table with them first.

My turkey friends again.

The napkins are new from Target from the 'Threshold' Line. I think the new plaid and old damask looks fantastic together. For place card holders, I used a small pine cone and cut a leaf shape from book paper and hand wrote names.

I hope this gives you some ideas you can use on your table!

***

I had chemo on Monday and it wasn't too bad and ONLY ONE DAY!!! I won't have it again for 21 days! I did go to sleep immediately after I got home, but still no nausea and vomiting (knock on wood). The neuropathy is still pretty bad in my hands (which is why this is short and sweet)...the doctor is hoping that it will fade with a little more time and I need to keep taking the neurontin. Thank you for the emails and suggestions on coping with the condition, you guys never cease to amaze me with your helpfulness.

I am working on getting my booth ready for Christmas so be looking forward to seeing that. Because of chemo, I wasn't able to 'shop' as much this summer, so I haven't found a ton of Christmas....so I've been making things. Hopefully, people will enjoy the handmade aspect along with the vintage things, I know I do. 

I hope to do at least one more tablescape outside before the leaves completely drop. I'll talk to you soon! Thanks for being here.

31 Days With ME: War Eagle And Beaver Lake

 Oh. My. Word. Whose idea was it to go to War Eagle Craft Festival right after 5 days of chemo??? Oh, mine? What was I thinking. First, let's delve into the 5 days prior. Chemo. New drug...a lot easier than my last regimen AND only 3 three hours a day! Noticeable difference? FATIGUE! Lord help me. I was/am so tired. I would run down my daily schedule, but it's so pathetic. Basically, doing whatever the kids need....food, homework, etc...and I slept for the rest of the time. I was tired during the last regimen, but this is twice as bad. Good news? I only took one nausea pill the whole week, pretty heavy nausea meds went in with chemo, and it did a good job. I didn't get sick (vomiting) even once. Thank the Lord.

So I get done with my 5 days and I rest on Saturday and despite the chemo, we headed to War Eagle on Sunday. It's a massively huge craft fair that was even bigger than I remember. It's held at the War Eagle Grist Mill in Rogers, Arkansas. 

 There were soooooo many vendors, I barely took any pictures at all, it was just all so overwhelming. I definitely didn't bring my A game....or even my B game. I think I brought my F game, we didn't make it through the whole festival because of how I was feeling.

 I think these spoon flowers are neat.

I wore 'my hair' as Logan likes to call it.... "You're wearing your hair Mom!"...you know, like it's a choice that I've made or something! He's so cute. I also wore a hat, just in case my hair needed to come off (which it did).

Keegan and his girlfriend on the bridge. Am I the only mother that grimaces at the thought of her son dating??? When the time comes, I'm not going to make a good mother-in-law at all.

The festival ended around 4 and we head back down the winding road and stop off at War Eagle Caverns, which I did not have the energy to hike. So I rocked in a rocking chair while the kids went through the 'Lost in the Woods' maze, which they loved. 

Is the color on this tree not fantastic? God is so amazing.

After the caverns, we stopped off at Beaver Lake. To just walk around and explore and enjoy the view. There was hardly any people there at all and I actually liked it better here than around the crowds at the festival. Everybody skipping stones, except for me, I'm really bad at that. It comes really close to the being athletic realm and that, I am not.

  

We did get one pouter in the group...:) I forgot what he was mad about, but he sat on that stone til he got over it!

Me and my boys, and without my hair. :)

It was a beautiful ending to a great day and we all fell into our beds upon arriving home...especially me. I was beyond tired.

 

Have you ever been to War Eagle Craft Festival? Did you have a good time?