Halloween Doin's and I Made a Skirt!

I ran out of candy this year...and I had enough for 270 trick-or-treaters! Last year I had 212, so I thought I had gotten enough. My neighbor across the street was able to get his yard up in time for tonight; it rained all last night and half of today.

Luke and Katie came over tonight to go trick-or-treating. Luke's costume was supercute.





I decided to be Professor McGonagall this year. I was going to be Elizabeth Bennet, Zombie Killer, but I thought it would be too cold. (I was right.) So I ordered her trademark plaid tartan hat and made a wool skirt. I used a Simplicity pattern for a costume skirt that has an elastic waist. The curved hem was a bit tricky but I'm happy with how it turned out. It didn't take me long to make it. I'm sure that I'll be using this pattern a lot in the future!



One of the highlights of my neighbor's yard is his friend who dresses up as Gene Simmons from Kiss. He's wearing 4-inch platforms so he's standing about 7 feet tall. He had to lean over to be in a picture with me.

Halloween Crafts

My neighbor across the street goes all out for Halloween. So many people come to see his house that the police block the street off and we get more than 200 trick-or-treaters. I can in no way compete with him, but the excitement is contagious. I decided to do something fun for my front porch. This idea is from Martha, of course. You cut an opening in the bottom of the pumpkin, and you scoop out the flesh to about 1/4" to 1/2" thick. Heinz scooped out the flesh for me with an ice-cream scoop. I then marked where I wanted the holes to go with a Sharpie, and Heinz drilled them out with a 1/4" drill bit. I then inserted Christmas lights in the holes, which was hard on my fingers. You stuff the extra lights inside. I'm really excited with how they turned out.

Organic Pin-Tuck Bedding

I just love the Organic Cotton Pin-Tuck Bedding from West Elm. It is so comfy and I love the pin-tuck look. I bought the natural color for our bedroom and the white for the guest bedroom. After much deliberation, I decided to go neutral with the bedding in the guest bedroom so the look could be changed out easily.

Library Chairs

The recliners for the library arrived this morning! Heinz hasn't even had a chance to see them yet. They're the Buchanan recliners from La-Z-Boy. Except we bought them from Vance furniture in North Carolina for 40% off retail. Now all we need are lamps and a table to go between the recliners. If you need me, I'll be in the library reading a book in my comfy new recliner. Then later I'm going to have some brandy and smoke a cigar.

A Whole Lotta Paintin' Goin' On

I have painted three rooms plus a bath and a ceiling in the past few weeks, plus single-handedly copy edited an entire magazine. So that's why I haven't posted in awhile.

First of all is Heinz's office. Don't adjust your screens. Yes, it's bright purple; it's Benjamin Moore's Amethyst Cream. I didn't post the second room I painted. It's cream. I didn't think it would photograph very well.



This is the main guest bedroom. It matches some fabric that I picked out to make a quilt and some accessories. No, I don't know how to make a quilt. But if other people can learn to make awesome quilts from online tutorials, then I can too, right? The walls are Benjamin Moore's Providence Olive, and the ceiling is Icing on the Cake (a bright, light blue). I think it's really relaxing.



I painted the guest bath Benjamin Moore's Dill Pickle, which I found out is a lighter version of the dining room color (Jalapeno Pepper). It also matches the fabric. Stay tuned for guest bedroom updates!!

Two Great Crafts That Go Great Together

My latest artwork for the house is for the wall between our closets in the vanity part of the master bath. I combined some hand embroidery with copperplate calligraphy. I borrowed the idea of the tree from my friend Julia's wedding invitation. But after we put them up I realized that it might sadly remind Heinz of all the leaves that will need to be raked in the yard this fall and winter.

A Chandelier Theme

I recently had a new idea for the dining room, and that would be this chandelier decal from Blik. I thought it would be fun. After I ordered it, I was looking online for black-and-white damask curtains (so maybe I wouldn't have to make them) and came across these from Target. They look elegant, but when you look closer, you realize they have little chandeliers on them! I was thrilled to not have to make dining room curtains, plus they match the decal.

The Other Side of the Foyer

The twig hat rack from Pottery Barn came in this week. I think it complements the twigs in the foyer wallpaper nicely. It's also the same color as the handrail on the stairs, so it actually looks like I kind of know what I'm doing as far as decorating goes. On the wall is more homemade artwork. I got some twigs in the yard to mimic the twig theme. I then added some pieces of leftover wallpaper to it. The only thing I might add to it is an umbrella stand.

Homemade Art Fail

I had these big plans to put nine squares of styrofoam covered with cute scrapbook paper and ribbon on the dining room wall. Except when I started making them, they looked like crap. Like, not professional at all. I would take a picture of how awful they are but I don't really feel like it right now. So instead I'll show you Plan #2. Instead of nine types of scrapbook paper, I narrowed it down to three and put them in 12 x 12 shadow frames. I like how it turned out. And nine might have actually been too busy looking.

Living Room Furniture

This furniture is from the Candise Olsen collection at Norwalk. And it is soooo comfy. Especially compared to the old secondhand couch that we've been sitting on. There were several different leg/skirt options. I almost went with the more modern leg, but I decided that I really like the turned leg. It's definitely more traditional but I think it goes well with the house. And as an added bonus, the color of the leg we picked out goes well with the piano. Which I was going to paint, but now I'm not, so that if I decide to change my accent colors in 10 years I won't be stuck with a red piano.

Completed Feature Wall

The feature wall in the foyer is complete. The furniture piece is a bombé chest from Crate & Barrel. The lamp and mirror are from Ikea. I also got an antique calling card tray from England on eBay. That way if you come to call when I'm not here, the butler will allow you to leave your card on this tray.

I originally intended this lamp for my dresser in the bedroom. So I may need to get another one next time I'm there.

I still have some more work to do in the foyer. I need to touch up the paint, buy a hat rack and make some artwork.

Crazy Awesome or Just Crazy?

When I saw this candelabra at At Home in Homewood (how's that for repetition?), I had to have it. Because the turquoise color is the exact color of my second accent color in the living room. But so far I don't really have a good place to put it. My upright piano is so high that the candelabra is really close to the ceiling. (I have thought about asking Heinz to cut part of it off in the middle and to weld it back together.) Or maybe I'll just wait until we get a sofa table and it will look good on there. Or I might just keep it where it is.