Thanksgiving – Dust Bunnies and Dog Toys

The Cutest Pumpkins EVER!

Published on November 24, 2014November 28, 2014 by JennaLeave a comment

Remember, last week when I said I had a little décor project to wrap up on the porch? Well, it’s finally done and I’m ready to share it with you! Wa-La! The cutest pumpkins EVER! At least to me anyway. 🙂

Besides being adorable, they were super easy to make. First, I spray painted some scrap pieces of 4×4 left over from our fence project. A couple coats of orange and they were looking like very square pumpkins. Now they just needed stems, so I went stick hunting in our woods, much to the dogs delight.

I let my pile of sticks “dry out” on the porch for a few days, ok, weeks – which caused several of them to fall victim to puppy playtime. But I digress. Once I deemed them “dry” I chose a few with interesting texture and curves and marked off sections for the hubs to cut. Yes I could have done it myself, but have a bad history with sharp objects so he came to my rescue.

Once I had all my stems ready to go I tested them out on the different bases and decided the combinations I liked best. A little hot glue and presto, stems!

Cute as they were at this point I felt like they needed a little softening, so I dug out some orange raffia I found at a yard sale long, long ago and tied some around the base of each stem. BAM. Delightful, rustic, recycled wooden pumpkins! On. my. porch!

They are the perfect finishing touch to my other fall decor on the front porch! Apparently Mother Nature didn’t agree because she added some little touches as well… LOL.

Thanksgiving Decor

Published on November 18, 2014November 18, 2014 by Jenna1 Comment

I’ve given ya’ll a couple sneak peeks of my fall/Thanksgiving décor and I’m finally ready to share it all. I kept things simple and used items I already had to create fun yet classic vignettes. You’ve already seen the entryway here, so today I’ll share the little holiday tree that sits next to the front door. It’s the perfect spot to show off my cute little jingle bell Thanksgiving ornaments – a turkey, scarecrow and a pilgrim couple.

Also in the entry way is the new welcome pumpkin I picked up on sale at JoAnns. It’s the perfect fit for the narrow space between the two coat closets across from the dresser and mirror. I’m loving the rustic feel and the contrast it provides with the wall color.

And here’s a full shot of the mantel with my pretty new painting made by moi! I picked up that amazing yellow ceramic vase for just $8 on the buy/sell page. I did my happy dance when I did because I’d been eyeing similar versions at different stores for months for WAY more. I filled in the rest with items I already had – antlers, pumpkins a couple gold votives, a little crow figure and some tall decorative grass in a tan vase. I finished it off with a fall colored ribbon garland I made, similar to the one in the entryway but with softer ‘harvest’ colors. Notice that one pumpkin on the floor? It’s the only one that the dogs aren’t interested in because it’s metal! 🙂

There are few other fall touches in the family room including a bouquet of orange mums in a small cream crock I thrifted earlier this year on the side table and a pretty pumpkin plate in the windowsill next to the fireplace. Somehow I neglected to take photos of those for this post, but I’m sure you can envision them. In the dining room, I paired a tall cloche holding a pumpkin and other natural elements with some gold votives on the buffet.

The windowsills in the dining room also got some attention. A metal owl thrifted last year gives a bit of contrast to my pretty purple plant and a small metal gourd on one side. On the other side I grouped a fall arrangement with a doily covered green pumpkin and my favorite little scarecrow.

I had grand plans to make a pretty centerpiece for the dining room table and a “Thankful” tree, but time is a scarce resource these days so I decided to table those ideas for next year in favor of other more important projects right now. I still have a simple craft project to wrap up out on the front porch and then I can share that with you, hopefully in time for Thanksgiving!I’d love to see how you decorated for Thanksgiving, so share a link to your site or leave a comment below and tell me what you did to show your gratitude this year.

Quick DIY Thanksgiving Decor

Published on November 4, 2014November 18, 2014 by JennaLeave a comment

Now that Halloween is over, I’m in full Thanksgiving mode and that means the decorating has begun. This pretty plate was a left over from a recent work event and it just screamed to be made into a sign. It fit perfectly on one side of my entry table and I thought a simple “Give Thanks” was the perfect way to welcome guests during this season.

I loved the texture it already had and new simple white letters would play well off that. I took some quick measurements and played with a few fonts on my Silhouette and came up with this!

I do wish it filled the space a bit more, but I still love it. And it only took about 5 minutes to create! All with materials I found for free or had on hand. That’s my kind of decorating. Here’s a quick sneak peek at the other side of the entry way table.

I found that little owl lantern at the thrift store for a few dollars earlier this year, and the wooden tote started out solid black as a clearance find at JoAnns. I sanded it down on a whim one day and loved the texture the left over paint gave it. And because it’s so simple it ends up being used in many of my vignettes throughout the year. And you might remember my little lace votives from this project.

Looks like someone approves of my Thanksgiving entry way decor! I’m still working on a few things for the other areas I’m decorating, but I’ll share those soon. 🙂