Trick-or-Treat Party

Happy Halloween everybody! Welcome to the trick-or-treat party!

Do you have big plans tonight? Are you all decked out for Halloween? 

I found this wreath last year at Garden Ridge.

  I thought it needed a little something, 

so I added the black feather boa around the outer perimeter.  

This year I decided to join the white pumpkin trend, but only had orange pumpkins on hand. 

Good thing I never run out of white spray paint ;)

  Funny thing though, last night when I began to carve our pumpkin,

I realized that one of my little monsters had been using the pumpkin for target practice with his airsoft.

  Boys. 

Anyway, I had to be strategic with where to carve the face to include the pellet holes. 

Poor pumpkin.

Darkness is approaching here in North Carolina.

  It won't be long before little ghosts and goblins knock on our door. 

  If you would like to join the linky party, please jump right in.

  Be sure to link your actual Halloween post and not the URL to your blog. 

Also, please link your post to the party so that others can visit. 

Before we get started with the party, I wanted to introduce you to my loving family.

Mr.

The teenager

My baby

Handsome devils aren't they, tee-hee.

Happy Halloween & Linky Reminder

Happy Halloween!  

Just a friendly reminder to pop back over later today for the Trick-or-Treat party. 

You can link your Halloween decor here.  Front porches, jack-o-lanterns, costumes, and all make the cut. 

Stop by if you can....whahahahaha!

Last Minute Spookiness & Party Invitation

Just in case you are looking for some last minute Halloween ideas, I thought I would share some of my favorites.  Most of them are pretty simple using inexpensive items or things that you may already have on hand.

Country Living

I especially love the idea of using black for the more sophisticated spooks.  To find out how to make this wreath from black crepe paper, go here.

Country Living

Black bouquet anyone?  Go here for the tutorial.

Martha Stewart

When jack-o-lanterns are black on the outside, the faces seems to glow even brighter.

 Martha Stewart

Country Living

I also like the idea of using white.  For the old Scooby Doo haunted mansion feel, why not add old sheets to the furniture?

 My Home Ideas

White pumpkins seem to be the thing this season and I suppose you could always use spray paint to turn your orange pumpkins white, right?

Martha Stewart

Country Living

My Home Ideas

My Home Ideas

Twig and Thistle

Good Bones Great Pieces

 Study via Brooklyn Limestone
They used drained highlighters to achieve this look.  Very clever.

Eddie Ross

Martha Stewart

As of yet, I haven't pulled the Halloween box out of the attic.  I know, bad me.  Hopefully I can sweet talk Mr. into helping me with some decorations this weekend so that we don't look like the only non-participants on the street.  Be sure to stop by Sunday to join the Trick or Treat linky party.  It will be your turn to share your Halloween front door and carved jack-o-lanterns.  What do the trick-or-treaters see when they come knocking?  Is your house spooky or fun?
  Or are you hiding inside with the lights out eating all of the snickers bars ;)

Have a great weekend!

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Break the Glass

 
A while back, I blogged about wishing for a lantern to hang at the top of stairs.  It seems that I might be in luck...

Before

The other day, my friend Sherry from the blog, Design Indulgence, posted a great before and after of this lantern.  She had given it to a friend and I'm pretty sure that she wants it back now.

After

After a coat of black paint and knocking out the glass, this is what it looks like.  Thank you Sherry.  You have opened a whole new world for me. 

Houseplant Hodge Podge and a Solution

 Martha

Every year about this time, I grit my teeth at the thoughts of bringing the houseplants in from the deck.  In the spring/summer, our home feels so open and airy and in walks fall with its houseplants, fluffy blankets, eventual Christmas trees, etc.  Not to say that I don't like fall.  I do.  It's just that our little cottage begins to feel a bit crowded....and miss matched...and hodge podgey.

This year I am trying a different approach.  Instead of scattering trees and plants in miss matched pots around the house, I have given all of the containers a coat of Krylon, Dover White.  They have a new home in the sun room and are waiting on fresh sheets of moss from the mountains.  I am thrilled with the way this has turned out and wish that the idea had come to me in years past.

 By the way, if you are curious about house plants, but aren't sure where to begin, I found this photo gallery that has lots of answers.  There is even a tutorial for using your digital camera to determine how much light your room receives.

Do you have a house plant solution or tip?  I would love to hear it.

On the Hunt

Lonny

Lonny

Tracy Murdock via Houzz

Alex J. Bragg via Houzz

Apartment Therapy

 Full House

 Apartment Therapy 

My Home Ideas

 House Beautiful

 Domino via Apartment Therapy

 Coastal Living via My Home Ideas

 Coastal Living via My Home Ideas

 Country Living

Sarah Richardson via Decor Pad

Ever since Mom found a beautiful set of twin beds for the mountain house, we have been on the hunt for just the right piece to go in between them.  The room has a window in between the beds, so a chest of drawers would be perfect as long as it is low enough.  A small chest of drawers would also serve as useful storage.   One day while shopping the antique stores, we found a cute little bamboo trimmed chest that had been painted turquoise.  I almost cried - it was adorable.  Then we opened one drawer and could never close it again.  Phooey.  Mom and I both agree that it pays to wait for the right thing to come along rather than settling for something that we don't love.  A hard lesson, but one that pays off in the end.  I'm sure the right thing will come along in time.

The Black Bathroom - An Update

 My schedule has been a bit hectic as of late, but alas, a moment to order a shower curtain.  Nothing fancy, just an extra long one from Target in white.  So many of you have asked about the black bathroom so I thought I would share the inspiration board that I made to stay focused.

And here is a peek at the actual bathroom.  Hopefully soon I will be sharing the rest.

I hope that each and every one of you has a wonderful weekend.  We are starting our weekend off with home made pizzas and family.  Then we are off to Chapel Hill for a swim meet.  So happy to be with family again after a couple of weekends away.

OMG Boots

Well, I am finally home from market and am ready to roll my sleeves up in our sadly neglected home.  While at market, when I wasn't working with customers, much of my time was spent "people watching".  High Point, NC isn't known for being a fashion mecca, but come market time, with people from all over the world wandering in and out of showrooms, you do get a big dose of "what to wear".  Sometimes you might learn what not to wear as well, tee-hee.  Which reminds me of the frequently discussed topic, how old is too old when it comes to wearing leggings?  Hmm.

So anyway, if I had to pick a buzzword from market, it would probably not be furniture related, but instead clothing related.  Boots.  Over the knee boots.  Under the knee boots.  Riding boots.  Ankle boots.  Cowboy boots.  Black boots.  Brown boots.  Boots with buckles.  Wedges.  Spiked heels.  Suede boots.  Boots with dresses.  Boots with shorts.  Chanel.  Frye.  I'm pretty sure that we never saw the same pair twice and a couple of us were boot stalkers.

I'm really digging these from Nine West.  Do you have a favorite pair of boots?  Where did you find them?

Images: People Style Watch

Look Out Ektorp

Luxe

The other day I received an email from World Market stating that The LA Times has endorsed this sofa as the best value under $600.  I know there has been much conversation about the Ektorp lately, but this sofa from World Market has down filled pillows, an added bonus.  Like the Ektorp, slipcovers are available in several colors and I believe are all machine washable...another bonus.

 Avery Leather

After browsing the site, I found two more sofas that I like - both under $700.

Morgan