Halloween Art

YES!!! My baby/right arm/computer is finally back!! It amazes me how many times a day I go to my computer, documents, pictures and music. One of the things I missed the most was all of my bookmarks and internet history. Having all of that stored for me really speeds up the most basic of chores.

Anywho, I know that means nothing to you and what you really want is for me to end the suspense of my Halloween art. On my window wall in my living room I have 4 fabric frames. While I love them, they don't really lend themselves to Halloween.


What to do??? After spotting a gorgeous metallic blue paper and some cute Cricut cuts on the Paper Doll Dress Up cart, I finagled:

(Can you figure out what I was watching?? Sorry for the crummy pictures. Trying to get one shot with no glares and a clear shot behind the glass is almost impossible!)

So what do you think?

Another Teaser!

It's another teaser, and not on purpose! My poor computer/right arm is sick right now. Apparently the speaker jack has a tiny part that has snapped and my computer thinks that it is always connected to speakers. While this isn't a bad thing, when I'm home, and not connected to anything, my computer won't recognize its internal speakers. That means no music, no sound effects and most importantly no voice mail. Oops! I can't exactly play my voice mails to a classroom full of people.

What does all of this computer issue have to do with my teaser post?? Well, all of my "before" pictures are on it and I can't get my "after" pictures to load correctly on my loaner. Frustrating, but at least I am able to get online, so it could be worse!

The hint I will give you about my latest fall decoration is a bat, a haunted house, a tree and a spooky moon, but not in the sense you're thinking... Have a great week!!

Fall Is In The Air!!

This morning I awoke to a fabulous 58 degree morning! Fall is FINALLY here! Yay! Now instead of just pretending it's fall, it really is! (For anyone who lives in a southern state, I know you're feeling me on this!)

In honor of this cooler weather, I added a little something to my coffee table centerpiece. I love decorating for fall and really love the pumpkins and fall leaves. That being said, I am a cheapskate. (lovingly termed by my mother...) Hmmm, how to get pretty pumpkins and fun leaves without spending much? First thing, pull out a couple of pieces of cardstock. Grab some Glimmer Mist and spray away! (I used tattered leather, black cherry, old lace and some green shade I can't remember.) Trust me, it looks really messy now, but it works in the end! Don't adjust your computer, the paper is in focus. This is just how odd it looks.


Use your Cricut and the Designer's Calendar cartridge to cut out a bunch of leaves in all different sizes. (I cut in sizes 3"-4".) Once you have the pieces cut out, admire how the blotchy paper became fabulously colored leaves, that unfortunately are missing a little something...


I love the shimmer though! After thinking a bit, I decided that the edges of the paper while white, weren't going with my fall theme. Hmmm... Chalk Ink to the rescue.


After adding a bit of dark green ink to the edges, my leaves were starting to look better and better. All that I needed was a little veining courtesy of my stylus. Don't look too carefully, it's pretty sloppy, but perfection isn't needed to add the hint of veins.

After getting a hold of some Dollar Tree pumpkins, some Martha Stewart glitter (get the good stuff folks, it makes a difference) and some Modge Podge, I managed to transform the cheap pumpkins into something a little more impressive looking. Mix those "new" pumpkins with some fall leaves and tuck them into the basket and Voila!


I have to say, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. What do you think? (Leave me a comment and let me know!)

Finally!

I know, I promised I'd post about my creation inspired by Craftaholics Anonymous and A Little Bit of Everything. I've been busy hanging with some awesome kids and experiencing the local county fair. Fun stuff. Anywho, life is getting back to normal and here is the much anticipated, at least by me, post!

I loved the idea of the wreath post and most importantly the overall cost! I started with a wire coat hanger, which I had to steal/borrow from some guests' clothes. (Don't worry, I replaced it with another hanger. I'm not that bad of a hostess!)


After getting the "circle" ready, I took my fabric, one yard of each color and 1.5 yards of the Halloween print and tore it into strips. (that amount of fabric ended up being plenty! I made another complete wreath and a half!) My strips in the pic, were WAAAAY too long, so I took all of them and cut them in half. I ended up with strips about 1" by 9" long. Again, it was very, very "about." Another great thing about this project, no rulers!! After having tons of strings all over the place, I discovered on several blogs that a rotary cutter makes this step a breeze. Oh well, live and learn...


After I had the strips cut and sorted into groups, I began the process of tying the fabric to the wire frame. This is where the episode of "Hoarders" came in. I can't ever just sit and watch a TV show, instead I have to be doing something, anything! So, while I watched these people who kept insisting they were "collectors" not hoarders, ha!, I tied strip after strip, after strip! Actually, it goes pretty fast and has instant gratification, always a plus in my book...


Once I finished tying all of the fabric, I decided that I once again couldn't leave well enough alone, and I needed to add something, anything...


I headed to my Cricut and cut out the word "BOO!" I also shadowed the letter in black. After layering the letters, I decided that it still lacked punch, so I coated the orange letters in tons of glitter. After sealing the entire set in Modge Podge to protect it from the humidity, I attached it to the hanger hook on the wreath and hung it on my front door. Who cares if it's only September?? I have been bitten by the fall bug!