Halloween Decor

Halloween is my favorite holiday, so now that we have a home, I was super excited to decorate it for it! I have had this up since about mid September, butI figured it was about time to blog about it, now that Halloween is just 6(!) days away! 

Here is a shot of the mantel, below you can see a "play-by-play" of my items. 

 

1. Bat cut outs. I image those lucky enough to have a Silhouette could use it to it these out, but Ihave access to an old school die cutter, that I used. Dana at made cut hers out by hand.

2. A vintage window that I picked up for $10 at a local antique shop.

3. Scrap paper bunting - I just free handed shapes, then sewed them together, putting about 3-5 stitches between each piece.

4. Halloween Photo Banner -  I printed photos at Walgreen's, then cut them into squares. I wanted to print them in black and white, but I forgot. I still like them though! I used mini clothes pins from Michael's to hang them on a Halloween ribbon, also from Michael's.

5. Happy Halloween Banner - I had a Halloween sticker pack from the dollar section of Target a few years ago. I used the letters and put them onto old book pages, that I cut into squares. Then I used craft glue to attach it to more Halloween ribbon from Michael's. 

6. I bought these vases at a local antique store, to spray paint black, but then changed my mind once the mantel started coming together. The purple flowers and glitter accents are from Michael's. .89 cents each, can't beat it, for a little glitz! 

7. Black Feather Boa - I draped it across the back, in front of the window base, to give a spook factor. There are also purple Halloween lights behind the window. I got then for about $5 from Michael's, but Christmas Tree Shops had them for about $4.

8. Miniature Bird Cage - from Michael's summer clearance section, for just 1 cent! Win!

9. Paper Mâché Skull - I had every intention of covering it in white tissue paper, but I never got to it. But there is always next year! 

10. Jar of Buttons - I wanted to pull my purple, black, green, and orange color scheme to really pull together so I threw some buttons in those color into a jar to add to the effect.

11. Saranac Jug - Joe bring it home, drank it, and I rescued it from the recycling bin!

12. Jar of [googly] eye balls - I bought a pack of Halloween/monster googly eyes at Michael's.

13. Owl - from Pier 1's 75% off section! after Easter. I keep him out all year, but thought he fit in on the Halloween mantel. He is one of my favorites!

14. Candle - large purple sparkle pilar candle from Michael's Halloween section. 

We also have some pumpkins on the front porch, and of course, holiday kitchen towels. 

I love coming home to all the decorations! 

This is my first try at a holiday mantel, but I love it, and that all that counts right?! 

Do you decorate for Halloween? Share your links below so I can check them out! I love getting new ideas from seeing what everyone else is up to.  

Absence Explained

So I apparently haven't written since April, really?! Oyeee! I have no excuses for April - July, but in July we bought a house, so it all went crazy from there! I have lots of home improvement project posts line up, but before that is Halloween! Its my favorite holiday, and this is the first time with a home, so I got to go all out (as I could manage) with my decorations. Post to come shortly! 

Until then, here is our home! 😊

Camp Half-Blood T-Shirt

Freezer paper is probably my favorite craft. So quick, so easy, so satisfying.

 This time I used it to make two Camp Half-Blood tshirts for Halloween. One for me, one for the tween I babysit for. She is big on the Percy Jackson/Heroes of Olympus series and wanted to be Annabeth for Halloween. I've read the PJ series, and am slowly but surely working my way through the Heroes books, so I decided to make one too. 

We printed a design off the internet, and then went about freezer paper stenciling it onto orange tshirts from Michael's. We bought them on sale, her regular fit was about $3, my ladies fit was $6. 

Dana from MADE has a great freezer paper stenciling tutorial, chech it out here. www.danamadeit.com/2008/07/tutorial-freezer-paper-stencil-makenna-loves-goldfish.html

I am planning on wearing mine on Halloween too, but I'll either be Piper or Hazel, depending on what accessories I come up with between now and then! 

Freezer paper is great for custom shirts, onesies, or anything you want monogrammed! 

My tween and I have plans to make Camp Jupiter shirts next, yellow print on purple tshirts. Maybe in the next couple of weeks... 

How To Print Instagram Photos At Walgreens

So the other day, web going through my personal ocean of emails, I got one from Walgreens, that in one tiny spot advertised they were now printing Instagram photos. I immediately investigated! Before we start there are two very important steps:

Step one: Be in love with Instagram
Step two: Have a Walgreens nearby

After that, all you really need is a smartphone, tablet, or other similar device.

Download the free Walgreens app on your phone. Once its downloaded, open the app and click the photos icon. 

The photos menu gives you a few options for where to get photos from, including Instagram and Facebook.

Click the "print from Instagram" option. You will then by prompted to log in. After that you should see your Instagram photos, just select which ones you want to print, which Walgreens location you them printed to, and proceed to check out!

The nice part about printing from the app is you don't have to make a Walgreens username or password, you just put your name, phone number, and e-mail address. Once you've checked out, you photos should be ready in about an hour, and when they are you'll get an e-mail.

You pay in-store, so no credit card information goes through your phone. At my local store the prints cost .29 cents each, and because I've shopped there before I had an e-mail code for 25% off. A bargain in my book!

Then just head to your local Walgreens photo section, and pick up your super cool 4x4 photo prints!

I am in love with these cute little prints! I'm hoping to make something similar to this:

 [ Source ] 

It is an Ana White clothesline picture frame. I makes it so easy to swap out the pictures. Hope you enjoy your prints! I am absolutely addicted, and now I love Instagraming more than ever!

Polka Dot Pizza

My fiance and I love pizza! We're both born and raised in New York, so essentially "Life without pizza, is no life at all!" We actually met while we were both working at a pizza place, in high school, so pizza has always been a part of our relationship. However, now that we live in Maryland, we've realized that good pizza down here is hard to come by. This triggered us to started making out own. Its not only cheaper, but it also gives us the freedom to experiment.

My favorite to make at home has both fresh mozzarella and fresh tomatoes, but I hate having to deal with the cooked tomato skins when I'm biting into a slice, so I came up with Polka Dot Pizza!

You'll need:
Cookie sheet
Cooking spray
Pizza dough (regular or whole wheat)
Olive oil
Crushed garlic
Grape tomatoes
Fresh mozzarella
Spices
Fresh basil

Instructions:
Its very simple, start by rolling out your dough. I used Giant brand whole wheat dough, but you can use whatever kind you like. Lay the dough in a greased cookie sheet, then rub a little olive oil, and crush garlic into it.

Then take grape or cherry tomatoes, and slice them in half. Then put them onto the oiled dough, flat side down.

Slice fresh mozz and place the slices ontop of the tomatoes. I shook some dried Italian seasoning, and some crushed red pepper, before baking for 10 - 15 minutes.

Chop up basil, and when the pizza comes out, sprinkle onto.

Finally, cut up, and enjoy! I love that you can get a half a tomato in each bite, so no fighting with tomato skin! Yeay!

Little Button Pouch

I saw this tutorial on Pinterest, and since it takes only a little bit of fabric, I got right to it. First I made it with a button loop, but The loop broke, so I just put in a buttonhole. I use this when I carry my big purse to put my iPhone and iPad cords in. I love the pop of hot pink on the inside.

Here is the tutorial from Our Busy Little Bunch:
http://www.ourbusylittlebunch.com/2012/03/mini-clutch-tutorial.html

Quilted Christmas Tree Pants

So I wanted to make a Christmas tree skirt to match the stockings that I made last year. I had a bunch of left over fabric, so I used the scraps to essentially create a quilt that I turned into a tree skirt. Technically, these are tree pants because, it's square not round, but it serves the same purpose, and I love it just the same! 

I cut 6.5" squares, then sewed them into rows, then sewed all the rows together into a quilt top. I bought the cheapest battling I could find, and it was nice and puffy, just the way I wanted it. After it was all sandwiched, I used the largest pot lid in my house to trace the hole, then cut it out.

 I then bound the whole thing in red bias tape that I purchased as Hancock Fabrics. I sewed extra pieces on for the bows to secure it around the tree. 

Fold Over Zipper Clutch

After being MIA for so long, the other day, I decided that I needed to sew something. I needed to make something that I could just sit down, and sew, in a single sitting. After trolling Pinterest, I figured a fold-over clutch was a pretty easy project. I had made zippered pouches before, and figured this wasn't far off, so I gathered a bunch of tutorials, and got to work.

I had a bag pictured in my head, I just had to recreate it. I choose to make my pieces 11" x 15". (Which made for a 10" x 14" finished product.) I knew I wanted a zipper, metal specifically. I had to buy a 14" zipper, it cost about $4 at Hancock Fabrics, and cut it down. I also knew I wanted a back pocket, and an inside pocket.

I also bough a 7" metal zipper for a back pocket, that was about $2.75. I used all the tutorials below, to create the bag that I had in my head.

Lastly, I added the bow. It is made from felt, the $0.25 a sheet kind, so I might replace it with something better, but not yet.

I love the way it turned out. The inside is black fleece, which I regret, making the inside of a purse black, is never a good idea...

Other than that I love it. Espeically now, in the winter, the pop of yellow is a reminder, that summer is on its way.

 

Here are the tutuorials that I used to create my bag:
Kill Them With Craftiness - http://killthemwithcraftiness.blogspot.com/2012/04/tutorial-clutch-with-fabric-rosette-pin.html?m=_

Eighteenth Century Agrarian Business - http://www.ecabonline.com/2011/05/fold-over-clutch-metal-zipper.html?m=1

Oh Sweet Joy - http://www.ohsweetjoy.com/2012/02/handmade-monday-oversized-fold-over.html?m=1

Fab Handmade - http://fabhandmade.blogspot.com/2011/09/fold-over-clutch-tutorial.html?m=1

Sew Mama Sew - Zipper Pocket - http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/2007/07/tutorial-zippered-and-slip-pocket-tutorial/

Post Christmas Christmas Sewing...

Finishing up a Christmas sewing project today... Totally normal right? Haha! Full post to come later, be sure to check back!