Halloween Decorations 2011

We interrupt this blog for a special announcement:  I friggin' made the banner!  By myself.  With Photoshop (Elements).  The "Spooky" is a PNG I got from Rhonna, but the rest is my design.  No, really it is….. back to your regularly scheduled blogging…

As you may have figured out, I love Halloween decorating.  This year I went a little nutty and really changed it up from last year.  I've been crafting Halloween for the last 7 weeks.  A little tour?  Here we go…

Today we tour the Den-ish space:
You might recognize the orange branches from my little tutorial/hint.  I love the entire little display.  I really love the orange branches in the black vase.  It doesn't show up on camera but the branches are very sparkly.  The Faux Mercury Glass Pumpkin is one I made last year.  I promise to teach you how to do it once the weather improves and I can go outside.  In the mean time you can play a little game of "where's Waldo" by trying to find all the Faux Mercury Glass Pumpkins in my house.  All the faux white and black pumpkins I used had their stems glittered black before anything else was done to them.  The large white pumpkin in this space was further decorated with sheer ribbon and orange berries.  Although it is hard to see, there is a tiny chalkboard I made from a small artist canvas and Krylon Chalkboard spray.  The tiny orange pumpkins were glittered with Martha Stewart Glitter and glue.

Across from this sweet little vignette are two windows. I slapped last year's outdoor Halloween wreath between the two windows for some color.  The windows are right next to the armoire that we use for our work station and the desk top computer.  On top of the computer armoire sits this beautiful large white pumpkin.  I also decorated the top of this pumpkin but this time I used black tulle, pieces from a black Halloween branch, and hand-dyed seam binding (colored with Raven Glimmer Mist).  After wandering listlessly through the world of Halloween Color Schemes for years i have finally  embraced a color scheme of white, black, silver, and a little bit of orange.

I used several types of pumpkins on top of the armoire.  I like to use  a variety of textures, shapes and sizes when I make a display.  I had great photos of the entire armoire display, but because I stepped up on a chair to take the photo, the dust bunnies that I can't see….well….ever….were very pronounced and frankly, I'm a little too vain to show that big mess.  If you're one of those people who wear white gloves when you come to visit and you want to gloat about your housekeeping skills compare to mine, you're in luck because I couldn't edit it out entirely.

The other items on the armoire include a PB Mercury Glass vase, a Faux Mercury Glass Pumpkin, and a silver crazed gazing ball that I adore.  I added one of my Paper Dolls that I have for sale on Etsy and for fun I added some Witch shoes I've worn with my witchy costumes.  I am contemplating whether to glitter them….. what do you think?  Too much?  Just right?  

Next to the big white pumpkin is a smaller
black one all blinged out.

On the other side of the window is a dark feather wreath that I have had for years and keep up all year.  I added a vintage looking paper cat-in-a-hat…ok not THE Cat-in-the-hat but A cat WITH a hat and a frilly collar.  Below the wreath is a framed Halloween laser cut overlay from a few years ago over apiece of orange paper.  Such a simple project.  Keep your eyes open for great papers when you are at the craft store.

There is a small table and light below the framed piece.  I just added a cool web ribbon to the lampshade simply by wrapping it a few times around the shade and then tying a simple bow.  Very easy.  Below that I used a spider mask from a few years ago and a scary spider candle.  Everything in this display was from my stash; I simply changed up how I used the items to keep it fresh.

That completes the tour of the fake den or den-ish area.   On to the living room...

The Living Room part 1:

This Year….I had lights  but half the string died….A.N.N.O.Y.I.N.G.

I'm just going to say it….The mantel is amazing.  I admit at first it seemed like a little too much, too busy, but the more I look at it, the more I love it.   I'm going with "more is more….then add glitter".  In fact, when I went back and looked at pictures from last year I realize that having a display that is very full is what makes it look so much better.  I'm not a Plain and Simple kind of girl… and I love this display.  

Last Year…..Kinda BORING!

Close up of decorated candle.

I glittered and altered the skull and vampire tags and stuck them up in a vintage flower frog.

I love the black and silver candles- I bought them this way.
The pumpkin is a faux mercury glass.

The small pumpkins were sprayed with Krylon's new Glitter Burst

Come back tomorrow for more….

Laters….