October Decor

I've been seeing such wonderful posts on the blogs and Pinterest with Halloween decor. So I've done a little decorating of my own. With not much money and trying to do with what I have plus we really don't celebrate Halloween- I just wanted to have some fun. I try to use spiders, bats, black cats and such, rather than really creepy or gory things. I do have some ghosts that were just too darn cute, along with a corn husk witch thats also a cutie. My October decor is still a work in progress but here's what I have so far:[Image]I decided to use my old bottle collection on the dining room table. A creepy web thing from the dollar store was a perfect runner- I love the vintagy look. I added some little adhesive foam bats ($ store) that I bought last year to the chandy shades.
I simplified the mantle from last year. The printable was found on Pinterest. I didn't get the chance to paint the candelabras, couldn't decide between black and white. I also added 2 more blackbirds ($ store). The banner was a printable from last year. I'm still not happy with the mantle but it was fine for this year. The entry table is a nod to a potions table with jars, a spider, and some vintage stuff. Next year I hope to fill the jars with all kinds of wonderful things

Here is my countertop: where all the goodies should have been- again, next year I suppose.

At the end of the counter, a place setting for two:



I kept the coffee table simple so I could keep it through Thanksgiving. I wanted some Spanish moss under the pumpkins but didn't get into town.

Front Door: Saw this on one of the blogs. I used my large quilting hoop, painted black and a crochet shawl from the thrift store and a $ store spider. This is my favorite "new" decoration.

That's my October Decor, Thanks for looking!

My Harry Potter Dolls

I am learning to crochet- From a book I found at the library- Rowan Presents Crochet Workshop-

I have been substituting some of the projects for patterns I've found on the web- While searching I came across a couple of really cute Harry Potter dolls- So I decided to try my own- I purchased the basic people pattern from Sherri Crochets http://http//sherricrochets.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=14_21-- I started with a Snape doll because his outfit looked the easiest to recreate--
My second doll has been waiting for a hairdo and she has finally been finished-
My Third doll is McGonagall- I found a pattern for her skirt on Crochet Pattern Central http://http//www.crochetpatterncentral.com/directory.php-- And winged it on her coat and hat-

My son has been making wands for me, from toothpicks and sharpie markers- My next dolls will be the Students of Hogwarts-

thanks for looking--

Linking up to-Naptime Crafters,

Vintage Suitcase Repurposed

For years I have used vintage suitcases to store items like computer disks and manuals, business items, my vintage Barbie collection and various craft projects, I've also used them to display items in my flea market booth- So it was a no-brainer that I was going to purchase this cute cosmetic case for under $2-

I've been seeing these suitcases relined and made into portable craft tool chests, so I knew this would be a great carrier for my crochet tools (my lastest obsession)- My thanks to Bitter Betty for her tutorial-
First I tore out the lid lining and used it as a template for the new fabric-

I also made a paper bag template of the top and used it to cut a piece of foamcore board- Then I laid out my hooks and things on  the fabric to get my layout- I drew two lines where I wanted to put elastic to hold my hooks-

I am trying to use things I already have for my craft projects- This fabric (thrift store purchase) was in my stash, the leftovers from someone's project-  I had some tiny elastic and red seam binding so I folded the binding in half and with the elastic inside, stitched the binding together stretching the elastic as I went- I hand stitched this covered elastic to the fabric tacking it down to leave spaces for the hooks- I marked where I needed holes for the scissor ribbon by laying the fabric on top of the foamcore board and using a crochet hook pressed in the right spots made little divots in foamcore-  I used my big Bite Crop-a-dial to make the holes-

For the needleholder, I made a crochet heart from this tutorial:

It is hand tacked into place and the fabric is glued to foamcore board with spray adhesive- The edges were hot glued, the corners were tabbed and hot glued, then I added seam binding trim to finish the edge-
The bottom is done in the same way, except that I cut out the side piece and folded and stitched one edge to finish it and stitched the seam binding to the top edge to finish it- I was fortunate that the locking mechanisms hardware came off easily- As I glued the sides on I cut slits for the locking mechanism hardware-
Every case is different and this one had a flap in the back, which I wasn't going to replace until I found that one of the hinges was broken and the flap helped stabilize the top of the case- I used a cereal box to back the fabric which is stitched on and then the whole piece is hot glued to the suitcase- Here is the finished case-

Things I wish I had done:  although I marked the straight lines for the covered elastic I didn't follow them very well and they are crooked- Also I should have made tack marks so they would be even on both strips- Once I started adding the hooks it became clear that there wasn't enough room on the lid to fit the larger hooks into both the elastic strips- right now they sit in one strip just fine, if I were to do it again, I would make a pocket for the hooks and stitch that in place instead of the elastic-
I plan to make a tag for my addy and ph # for the handle and some kind of decorative technique on the outside, for now: this will hold my current project work--
Linked to trash2treasures,Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, Under $100, Hookin up with HoH,Make it Yours, Transformation Thursday

Bedroom lamp redo

On one of my thrift store outings I found this wonderful globe lamp. I pounced on it even though it was missing its glass top.  The beautiful swirl bottom is what I loved and a bonus, it lights up as a nightlight, very romantic!  On another trip I spotted a top that might just fit-for $2.50.  I wasn't sure it would fit so I passed it by.  Two months later, the same top was marked .25 cents- now we're talking. This particular store is on two levels-while I was trying to get my stuff to the top level-where the cash registers are- I broke the top (part of me wanted to cry).  I took the top anyway since I needed to see if it was right for the lamp.  It was perfect--(Now I really wanted to cry). 

I pieced the broken pieces back together as best I could. you can barely make out the top in this photo.

But there were pieces missing so... Mod Podge to the rescue!  I tore some pages out of my craft copy of Pride & Predjudice and Mod Podged them onto the globe. I love the way it looks in low light, in fact I hardly use the globe night light on the bottom now.  One of these days I'll run into another top for this, but for now I'm lovin' it.