Belated Christmas Decor

Well, it's too late to give you any ideas about decor for this holiday season, but maybe for next year?

(Some of these things could be done for other holidays too!)

Our Christmas Card: I designed it in MS Word with the fantastic Budmojiggler font (download at dafont.com) with fun little flourishes from dafont too.

Our Christmas Tree: This year I went with a black, red, gold and white theme. Kinda Hollywood Regency. Kinda mod. Created a monogram "brand" for our gift tags using the Budmojiggler font. Found some way cool vintage ornaments at The Antique Mall. Gold cardboard and black pipe cleaner H's rounded it all out. Unfortunately, I took this pic today, and our tree is so dried out!

B&W Abstracts for the Tree: H and I painted with black acrylic paint on a large sheet of parchment paper. I then cut it into smaller rectangles. The frames are made from cereal boxes, painted with black and gold acrylic. I just taped the paintings to the back of the frames and tucked them into the tree. I love the way the light shines through the paper!

Christmas CardDisplay: Tack ribbon to the top of a door or window and secure cards with tiny clothespins. Last year I decked the kitchen with yarn and attached the cards all around the island. I also attached cards to what was the "Bat Tree" then became the "Fall Tree" and is now the "Christmas Card Tree." (I think I'll take it down after NYE and figure out a new display for that table.

Whoo's Gonna be the Cutest Owl on the Block?

H-MAN!
I'm following Martha's recipe for adorable avian attire this year!
We'll see how long the wings last... and the hat... and the goggles... Okay, so he may just look like a kid with white felt zigzags all over his chest.
But, he's still be the cutest kid on the block!

(Un)Inviting Exterior Decor

Gotta get ready for the trick-or-treaters! (Actually, we only get, like, three or four trick-or-treaters each year... so the decor is really more for us and our guests!)

This year I caved and bought some of those fake pumpkins. The sad thing is, they were cheaper than the real ones, and our Texas "Fall" isn't too kind to decorative gourds. Don't worry, pumpkin farmers! We're still gonna buy some real pumpkins to carve!

I custom painted the owl door hanger (from Michael's.) It was black and didn't really show up on the door. The white "branches" are just cut from white cardstock. Just use painter's tape to adhere to the door.

The giant spiders are from Target (last year.) They held up pretty well to the elements. And to the staple gun I use to hang them. Tough critters!

The crow is from Dollar Tree... but my mom may have bought them all!

It's getting creepy around here...

Spooky Silhouettes

Halloween is the time to let your creative goblins go wild.

Today, I created from black paper cocktail napkins. They've taken over the house! Each napkin makes 6 bats, so one package is plenty. The napkins are not quite opaque, creating a haunting effect. You could substitute black construction paper.

Caution: You may have to call pest control...

"Cocktail" Bats


1 package black cocktail napkins
scissors
bat pattern (1/2 of bat shape... or you can freestyle it with the scissors for a less uniform look)
scotch tape/adhesive dots
dried branches
big, heavy vase (filled with water or sand if branches are too heavy)

Find folded side of napkin and draw pattern along that line. Cut along pattern line. Once cut, carefully unfold and separate bat silhouettes. For a hanging bat, bring two wings in towards body and secure with adhesive dot. Use tape or adhesive dots to arrange on  dried branches in a vase or let them fly freely on walls, furniture, windows...