Mum House Witch

This charming house is surrounded by fields of mums and a humorous decoration. See it?

Mum House Witch

I love to see how people decorate for Halloween and to pick up ideas in case I have a wave of energy to do something for next year. By far, my favorite Halloween home decor inspiration is this house where I live in mid-Missouri.

First, the mums are beautiful, what a wonder garden sampler of colors and varieties, and they make quite a first impression as one drives by.  So much fall color on the ground as surrounding trees start to change color, too.

I don't have flower beds where I can do this but I am inspired by the visitor to the mums - see the witch legs sticking up out of the orange mum to the right of the wall with the address number on it?

Look at the orange mum in a metal container to the right of the front door. See the legs?

So clever to add the two legs with telltale witch shoes in an orange mum in a metal container in the back. Those legs look easy to make, too. I'm thinking this same idea could be applied for Christmas decorating, too, only with elf legs.

Maybe on a snowy day this winter I will be inspired. Wouldn't this also make a cute housewarming gift?

Charlotte

Welcome, Halloween!

Creative ways to add Halloween to a welcome sign.

Welcome, Halloween!

Halloween is now the second most popular holiday behind Christmas with millions of dollars spent on house and home decorations.

Although I love Halloween as well, I like to keep my decorating easy, simple and small. Which is why this charming Halloween sign caught my attention when I was visiting a local business. Look closely, each letter has a charming Halloween theme.

Bats are a favorite Halloween theme and this one looks easy to make.

And what is Halloween without pumpkins?

This charming sign inspires me to make my own. I don't have a router to cut out the wood shapes but I can paint similar shapes on a simple rectangular piece of wood.

Here is the Halloween sign with all parts together. Cute, don't you think?

Nothing like adding another project to my to do list but winter is not far off, this would be a perfect winter project on a snowy day!

Charlotte

Boo!

Halloween Cat vintage postcard with a mouse friend gives any room a quick Halloween vibe.

Boo - Very Easy Halloween Decorating

I love to celebrate the different seasons in my home but I don't have a lot of storage space nor do I want to spend a lot of time doing it. You could say I am an appreciative but otherwise unfocused decorator but that doesn't mean I haven't found a very easy way to decorate.

You have probably seen them at antique stores, boxes and boxes of old vintage postcards with charming designs. I have been collecting them over the years. Every season I get to pick one to feature in a picture frame in my kitchen, and I do have a tendency to pick up cat ones, especially for Halloween.

This year, I selected this adorable black cat with an orange witch hat to keep a vintage ceramic mouse salt shaker company.

Charming vintage black cat helps to bring a bit of Halloween into my kitchen.

Did someone say fun and frolic?

This is such a quick and easy way to add a little Halloween decor without taking up a lot of room or requiring a lot of effort.

If you want to add a little extra touch, add a complimentary salt and pepper shaker. I only have one of these mice but it looks like it just stepped out of the vintage postcard.

Vintage made in Japan ceramic mouse salt shaker gives my little Halloween vignette dimension.

Start Collecting Favorite Postcards

You can start your own little postcard collection visiting antique stores and picking up favorites for the traditional seasons: birthday, anniversary, spring, Independence day, Halloween, Christmas, New Years, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day and Easter. 

We all have a little stash of photo frames we don't use any more. If you don't, check your local dollar stores and vintage shops for inexpensive photo frames you can easily change. I double check the back to make sure the piece that holds the picture frame upright is not damaged or missing.

Changing out the photo frame is also a quick way to update the vintage postcard with minimal effort.

Wedding and Housewarming Gift Idea

Several years ago, I collected a series of vintage bird postcards and gave them to a friend as a wedding gift. When I visit, I still find them on display on her fireplace mantel, each one marking the passing of yet another special date. She uses one favorite photo frame and just changes out the post cards. Even simpler than what I do!

One more note: the treasure hunting can be a lot of fun. Start with one vintage postcard theme that sets the tone and go from there!

Charlotte

Cat Tails Wooden Chair

Wooden chair with carved cat tails on the back beckons visitors to take a load off!

Cat Tails Wooden Chair

I was visiting a friend in St. James, Missouri and was invited to sit in this lovely Cat Tails Wooden Chair.

I have a whimsical display in my garden of cat bowling ball heads on one side, cat tails on the other. I love cats so the displays make me smile every time I walk by that area, and this chair reminded me of those feline moments.

The chair itself was simply-designed. The chair backing was where the design took over, cat tails cut into the wood with long stems.

For our woodworking friends, a closer look at those cat tails, they look relatively easy to make.

I have several woodworking friends who look for ideas. Wouldn't this make a cute design on a wooden box top?

Charlotte

Hungarian Floral Embroidered Table Cloth

The center design of this hand-embroidered table cloth.

Hungarian Floral Embroidered Table Cloth

I had been invited to a new homeowner's house to look over her newly-inherited garden. As we moved through the charming old house, I spotted this table cloth on the dining room table.

We grew up setting the table for dinner, usually with a hand-embroidered table cloth. I still have a collection of table cloths my mother made, including a couple I stitched by hand growing up.

This table cloth was a gift from a Hungarian relative, so pretty in its primary colors against a solid sunny yellow background.

The corner of this square, handmade and hand-embroidered table cloth.eD

This handmade table cloth reminded me of the customer who had inherited a table cloth from her aunt. She had wanted a quilt but the other sisters got first dibs on the draw.

To make sure the customer could preserve her memories of having dinner at her aunt's house, we took the tablecloth and made it into a queen-size quilt.

Detail work in the hand-embroidery for this beautiful table cloth.

And yes, It did cross my mind we could make a lovely custom quilt out of this table cloth but I would be tempted to enjoy it on the dining room table first. 

If someone had a favorite table cloth, it would be a nice personalized gift to make it into a quilt or throw for Christmas, wouldn't it.

Penny, left, and Maggie, right, welcoming me to their new Rolla playground.

Meet my new canine friends. Penny is the 8-month old on the left, Maggie is the mature guard tod on the right. They are the new tenants of this established, fenced-in garden I was invited to tour. I showed their guardian where the poison ivy was so she could keep those paws clear!

Charlotte

Handmade Tuffet

A handmade tuffet from the 2015 Piece and Plenty Quilt Guild bi-annual show in Rolla, Mo.

Handmade Tuffet

"Litte Miss Muffet,  She Sat on a Tuffet

Eating her curds and way.

Along came a spider, who sat down beside her

And frightened Miss Muffet away."

That's a favorite nursery rhyme I remember from reading children's books to my sister and brothers. Not that I understood why the spider would frighten Miss Muffet away but then I do share the same name as an E. B. White spider and that is a different story.

As we start to think about holiday gift giving and what we can make for our loved ones, this is a lovely option. There may not be much call these days for tuffets to sit on to eat curds and whey but maybe that will change once you see this handmade one.

Made from 2 1/2 inch fabric strips by May Gunter, the fabric stool looks very comfortable and inviting. The written description doesn't explain what is in the filing but it should be a relatively solid filler to bear weight. Wooden round legs are on the bottom.

And what a great way to use up those lonely fabric strips with no project in their woven future.

The handmade tuffet with a printed explanation.

This charming entry in home decor won a second prize in the Piece and Plenty Quilt Guild 2015 bi-annual show in Rolla, Missouri.

Second place winner and I do so love those ribbons with a floral theme.

Congratulations, May, now all that is missing is a spider!

Charlotte

White on White

Bluebird Gardens white peonies in white vase.

White on White

Sometimes even in my home decor I want a calming presence. Whether it's a snowy theme throw with tiny differences in white fabric, or a flower vase with same colored flowers, the same color approach can be very soothing.

One of my favorite ways to soothe a space is to cut white peonies from my garden and add them to a white flower vase. They also look nice in a crystal vase but the white vase seems to magnify the peaceful spot and magnify the beauty of the flowers.

Cut flowers from your garden, in any kind of vase, also make thoughtful housewarming gifts.

If you use peonies in your home decor, make sure to shake them before you bring flowers in. Ants enjoy eating the honeydew on buds so don't bring any non-welcome hitchhikers into your home.

To keep peonies blooming longer, cut their stems daily and give them fresh water. What else have you done to keep your cut peonies fresh in a flower vase?

Charlotte

When Pigs Fly

Bluebird Gardens Pink Pigs Dish Towels ready to ship to their new home in Texas.

When do pigs fly? When they are on our homemade dish towels ready to head to their new home in Texas via US Postal Service two-day priority mail. That's a first class ticket to our customer's front door!

This charming set of vintage design muslin dish towels feature pink pigs in different summer activities, one for each day of the week. We make the dish towels ourselves. The design is hand-stamped and hand-embroidered in floss embroidery backed with a stabilizer so the embroidery will last.

Wash in cold water; dry on cool.

What colors would you like included in your custom pink pigs dish towels? Besides the pink for the pigs, of course?

Charlotte

Spring Bouquet

One of the fresh flower spring bouquets I have on my den coffee table.

So pretty to have a fresh bouquet of flowers nearby. I try to include fresh flowers in my life as often as possible and springtime is a wonderful time to make up colorful bouquets.

Although spring is often associated with pastel colors, a variety of spring flowers are a bright splash of color: red tulips, purple lilacs, and daffodils, in all sorts of shapes and colors. One other spring flower brings a dash of purplish blue, anemones. Not only are they striking in a garden but they also brighten a spring table bouquet.

If mixing these flowers, remember to allow daffodils to be in a vase all by themselves for a day. Daffodils have a toxin that will kill other flowers. If you allow the daffodils to sit in water for a day, they can be arranged with other flowers without any problems.

What spring flowers do you enjoy on a table?

Charlotte

Repurpose Favorite Birdhouse

One of my favorite birdhouses repurposed as a flower vase on my kitchen butcher block island.

I love having birds in my garden. They not only help with pest control naturally but are a lot of fun to watch, and hear, when I am spending time outside.

To make sure I have a nice selection of real estate, I often bring home interesting birdhouses that both birds, and I, can enjoy. One favorite rustic little birdhouse lost part of its roof during a storm.  Before I could find a piece of wood to repair it, the birdhouse had found a wonderful new use, as a table decoration on my kitchen island.

To repurpose a birdhouse, make sure it is clean both inside and out. In this case, the birdhouse had not had any occupants before loosing part of its roof.

If you want to add fresh flowers, fit a container inside the birdhouse. Either a small jar or plastic cup will work covered with sphagnum moss to hide the container.

Broken birdhouse repurposed into a table top flower vase easily works outside on a deck.

The repurposed birdhouse also makes a nice table decoration outside on a deck.

Have you ever repurposed a birdhouse?

Charlotte

Personalized Santa Gourds

If you have left over Halloween and Thanksgiving gourds, fun way to personalize them by painting them into Santas and writing someone's name and date on the bottom.

Remember to set them on their sides so the bottom can dry.

Here is another gourd painted into a Santa, this one was among a collection of Santas at a landmark restaurant "the Landing" in Van Buren, Missouri.

What is Christmas without at least one Santa Claus?

Charlotte