Yes I Did

 I know that I have been caught saying that I wasn't going to add any more to my Halloween "stuff"-as a matter of fact, I think I may have said that I was going to downsize this year. But, as I was perusing Pinterest, I spied a picture that I just had to have.

Those of you who have been with me for awhile know that I do a lot of Edgar Allan Poe in my living room Halloween decor. My last name is RAVN and since Poe wrote "The Raven", it just seemed to make sense years ago when I first started the vignette. Then, daughter #1 gifted me with the antique typewriter that she found in an antique store and the vignette just continued to morph over the years. And now, I can't imagine my house without this vignette. In fact, the hints of Poe have even begun to find their way to other parts of the room. Here's what it looked like last year.

And so, when I just wanted something simple to do this morning I fell back on this.

I think by now we could ALL do this craft with our eyes closed-you know the routine. Paint the canvas-this time with black chalk paint-, use water to tear the edges of your print, distress the canvas and then go over it with distressing ink-this time I used some red to pull that little bit of red from the mostly black and white photo.

Then the print gets decoupaged onto the canvas and the torn edges get distressed. This time I used the red again. I just felt like the photo needed a bit of a pop. I have no idea where this will end up. The top of the chest is pretty well spoken for unless I move something so my guess is that this will have to find another part of the room to call home. We shall see-the other areas are pretty much full too so this may be the year that some things just don't make it out. Lol

I'm off to clean up before my grandson arrives. We're supposed to do some fence repairs today but the sky is starting to get dark so this might be a chore for another day. In any case, it will be nice to have a little visit with him! Stay safe and stay tuned.

Lazy Afternoon

 I had to run to the grocery store and bumped into so many people that my quick trip turned into a marathon. By the time I got home and got everything put away and then grabbed a quick lunch, enough of the day was gone that I didn't want to start any big projects so, after putting on a load of laundry, I found myself here.

Let's take a minute and talk about that laundry. I think I may have mentioned that I am not great at reading directions. I don't learn by reading and so I tend to neglect directories that come with appliances, etc. Well, I have had my new washer and dryer for probably four years now and have occasionally wondered why I don't hear the signal at the end of a cycle. Sometimes I blame it on my hearing and others I just assume my mind was somewhere else.

Well, the other day when I was right by the dryer and didn't hear the signal, it kind of piqued my interest-but still not enough to drag out the book. And so today, as I was loading the wash, I decided to give it a try and, lo and behold, I have been doing it completely wrong for all of those years and the signal hasn't even been turned on. Now, I'm still not going to guarantee that I will hear it, but at least now I know that it is working. Lol

So with that now out on the table let's head into the family room decorated for autumn 2024.

I did change the shelves up a bit. This is where I put the new pumpkin canvas that I did and the small painting from HL. I also added the corrugated cardboard pumpkin that I made last year to the mix. I like that the colors that are on the mantle are repeated a lot in these shelves. It's a bit of a softer autumn mix.

I also changed up the mantle a bit. I left all of the greenery that was there and then added the flowers and the pumpkin lights that I got from PB many years ago and still love so much. I don't usually leave the green on the mantle for autumn but by doing so I got so much more "lushness" that I'm actually trying to decide if I might want to do the same for Halloween...we shall see. I'm such a purist that Halloween pretty much just needs to be orange and black but I'm keeping my options open. Lol

I changed up the coffee table a bit as well. I had that small velvet pumpkin left so I decided to dress it up a bit with a few pip berries and some silk ribbon and then sit it on a greenery candle ring and the rest of my pip berries used as a second candle ring and all of it atop an old planter that I had in the garage. I need to remind myself that it is fun to shop the garage and take a new look at things I haven't used in awhile.

I still really love the pallet sign that I made out of old wood and painted to look peeling and grungy!

Here's where I hung the vintage autumn wreath that I made last year.

This room is so pretty at night when all of the candles come on. I took this frame from a video that I made from my TV watching seat the other night so it's not great and you can't see all of the candles but maybe you can get the idea. I took a video I wanted to share with you but somehow I haven't figured out how to do that yet. Maybe I should read a directory. LOL!

So that's it for today. My grandson is coming over tomorrow to help me fix some fencing that got crushed by some rather large falling limbs and then on Saturday, daughter #2 is coming for the day...that being said.... have a wonderful weekend. I probably won't be back until next week. Until then, stay safe and stay tuned.

There's an Old Expression...

There's an old expression that says "make hay while the sun shines"...and that makes sense literally as well as the way the saying means. BUT, around here we say "make hay BEFORE the sun shines". Lol That is about the only way I have been getting any of my gardening done this summer. Of course, I'm not actually out there before sunrise...but pretty much very soon after. And, today was glorious!! You would honestly have thought it was spring. The air felt perfect and there was the slightest cool breeze blowing.

And, I guess because it felt like spring, my brain was tricked into thinking that it was! My first task was to scrub the pool slide that always gets so horrible during all of the rains in the summer. And then, because I had bleach water still in my bucket, I just started scrubbing all of the pool furniture and then the glass tops on the tables and then the little side tables and...well, practically everything I could find that still had a layer of pollen or whatever!

I know you can't really see anything in these pictures but, that slide is shiny bright, the azaleas are down, the weeds are gone and the "sprinkler tree" is on and watering the side garden that doesn't get any irrigation-and that I often forget about.

And then while I was taking a quick break, my eyes saw some things around the yard that were driving me crazy now that I saw them and so...one of the bird baths got painted, I fixed the floater on the pool, I leveled several plant stands that were way off level, I edged the entire hydrangea garden again and got rid of all of the weeds as well as in the other garden on the side of the pool.

It was almost noon when I took my next break and made the mistake of looking at the temperature-89 degrees-feels like 100! And I was dying. And that is when I realized that the breeze was gone as well so I headed in to do some more of the same but in A/C-little things that no one but me would notice but that make me feel so good. I thought I would grab a quick lunch and then maybe head back out when the shade was on that side of the yard but, as I was just dragging out tomorrow's garbage and recycling cans, the skies opened and it is pouring rain out there so...

...here I am and I thought I would take you into the sunroom. 

I'm loving that $5 lantern from the $Tree. I just took off the yellow ribbons and sunflower tag and swapped the yellow candle for an orange one and it looks so cute. And, since it's on a timer it lights up a little of the sunroom at night.

Which actually got me to thinking...Lol

I know you probably get tired of hearing me say t but, the sunroom is once again at a minimum because we use this area so much and it's just easier if we don't have to move a thousand things first.

And, it's that time of year again. These two started school two weeks ago-Hudson is a junior and Presley is a sophomore: Just realized we're missing Bruno in this picture...not sure why.

And Harrison started his sophomore year at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy today. His roomie took the picture so it's not the best but just happy to see his smiling face.

So that's where I am right now. If the rain stops, I know what I'll be doing but, until then, who knows? Stay safe and stay tuned.

Yay!!!

 I am not rushing to put on my sweater or the heat but there is FINALLY a little break in our temperatures and I definitely hit the ground running this morning. I have been keeping up with most of the yard to some extent...except for the triangle on the other side of the pool. Since the heat and storms have pretty much kept me from being outside a lot, that is the one area of the yard that I don't really see so it has been forgotten. And, to top that off, last year I made the decision to let the azalea border just grow to see how pretty it would look in the spring.

Usually I cut the heck out of those things right after they bloom and I make sure I keep the lower areas limb-free so the snakes don't hide out there either. This year I didn't do that so when I got out there this morning I was shocked at how much they had grown and how much would need to be trimmed. I got going and kept at it even though my back hurt because I am used to that now that I am no longer a young one. And, I kept going after a number of scrapes and scratches. But, I did stop right here when I realized that I had raised four really good sized blisters on my hand from the clippers. 

You can see where I stopped-kind of to the right of the water hose in the fore front. I have since gone back and gotten the last of it done. In this picture it looks like there aren't any azaleas left at all. There are...but they're WAY smaller than they were. This is why my girls never wanted me to trim their hair when they were younger-I get going and don't know where to stop! Lol

Of course, now that most of the growth is away from the fence, the loose boards and mold are so much more obvious so that just adds some more to the list. Not to mention picking up all of this and then going back and weeding everything...and then edging the hydrangea garden...and scrubbing the slide...and scrubbing the bird baths...and.... Oh well, it's a good thing I enjoy gardening...and I actually really do so it will be fun to tackle the rest of the list-as long as Mother Nature doesn't change her mind about the temperatures!

I'm actually in the house nursing my "wounds" for a bit so I thought we could head into the dining room. 

I love this time of year for so many reasons. I love getting out all of the old jugs and crocks that I found in antique stores so many years ago. I used to have them out all of the time when my house was decorated in a bit more of a primitive style but this time of the year just seems to be calling for them.

Here is what the dough bowl looks like with that once "gray" pumpkin redone. I did try to put a bit of a shine on it but my matte sealer was all I had so the next time I hit HL I am going to grab a semi-gloss so it will match the others in shine.

I made this cross stitch as a gift for my mom many years ago and it came back to me after she passed away. It is such a pretty thought about how our family has changed over the years as everyone has grown up and brought significant others and new babies into the fold.

This is where I put the autumn "busted canvas" that I made and I do think it serves its purpose. I made it to fill in the gap above the vase because everything looked off balance before. I could always move one of the larger side pieces to the middle and put two smaller things to the sides but then the pretty part of the window frame would be hidden so I'm happy with this. 

I'm kind of getting excited thinking about possibly changing up this area just a bit. Daughter #1-who is an interior designer in St. Pete-is changing up her own home a bit and she remembered that I have been in love with a few of things she is thinking of getting rid of so she asked if I wanted them. Believe me, she hardly had time to get the words out of her mouth that I was yelling a resounding "yes"!! One of the things is a piece of a pediment in a kind of verdigris color. It is old. I think she found it in Atlanta many years ago. I am hoping to use it above the love seat. She's not sure it will work there but, believe me, if it doesn't it WILL work somewhere else. She also has two of the most beautiful sconce type lamps. They could go here as well but I'm thinking maybe they would be better in the living room. She's waiting for some art that she ordered to be delivered and once it is, these beauties will be on their way to me.

She also has two gorgeous chairs that I have always loved. She is on the fence about them. Do you think it is too obvious when I encourage her to look for new ones? Lol

So that's the dining room for this year. I'm off to grab a late lunch and then I am going to make a pot of my favorite Martha Stewart Vegetable Vermicelli soup. I know it's not exactly soup weather just yet but I can pretend. Stay safe and stay tuned.

When You Know. You Know!

 I have posted about days like this before...days when I want to do a craft but don't want to leave the house to buy supplies...and, even if I did, I don't really have an idea so I wouldn't know what to buy. These are the days when I should run, not walk, to any other project I can think of. And, I must have had an inkling that this would be one of those projects because I did do a dozen other things at the same time as the craft. I don't have much to say about the craft but I did get a lot of things done outside. Lol

Here's where I started. I knew I wanted to do something for Halloween and I did have a canvas and this picture of a haunted house that I printed and wanted to use.

Even though I'm not crazy about the new "busted canvas" pictures, they are easy enough to do and I thought the haunted house might make a nice background. I started by painting the canvas with black chalk paint. After seeing so many of these since they've gone viral, I decided that I like the ones with solid backgrounds the best. I think using patterns on all of your surfaces just makes it too busy.

Then, I turned it over and ModPodged in the paper I chose for the bursts.

When all of that was dry, I cut the canvas and peeled it back a bit to see what I had.

It was at this point that I decided to glue the "bursts" as they were instead of rolling them back as most people do. After cutting, some of the points were showing a bit of white so I decided to put some ultra fine black glitter along the edges.

And this is where I really wish you all could answer my questions. I wanted to try to keep this a sort of traditional vintage Halloween picture. I have LOTS and LOTS of Halloween embellishments from my scrapbooking days and I was trying all sorts of things but most of them were too "cutesy". I thought I might be close with this:

I was trying to convince myself that I liked it but then I realized that it was too much for what I wanted.

The corners needed something so I tried drawing on cobwebs with chalk to see what I thought. Then, I tried out two different vintage people cards. Now remember, this is after trying out a dozen other things ...none of which worked.

I decide that I liked the webs so I headed to get an orange paint pen...which I didn't have so I had to pivot and use a paint brush to paint over the chalk. And, even though I used a brush with only about 3 bristles, it still came out too wide and I was about to paint over the whole thing...or better yet, toss the whole thing in the garbage...when I decided to go over it all with black ink to tone it down. Then I glittered the edge of the little card and added some small wood blocks to the back to lift it a bit. And, I found the trick-or-treat sign, glittered its edges and added it to the top.

And that's where we are. I'm not in love with it. It might find a home this year-we shall see. I need to learn to listen to my gut feeling but this was a desperation craft. I just enjoy doing it. I guess I should learn to care less how it turns out but that isn't how I roll. I had a vision but just couldn't quite get there. Lol

And so, I am left with this mess and I'm not even going to show you my craft room. Every Halloween box, drawer, file, etc. is pulled out and scattered everywhere. Guess I know what I will be doing next.

I think I'm off to run errands tomorrow and then I will be back in the yard on Friday if it isn't raining but I'll be sure to check with you when I get a chance. Stay safe and stay tuned.