New Fall Wreath

 Summer is definitely on the wane.  How do I know?  The sun is lower in the sky, it is getting dark a little earlier each evening, and there are little hints of color starting to show in the trees.  All the stores have their fall merchandise for sale (and yes, Christmas too) and there were potted mums at the grocery store yesterday.  That means pumpkins are just around the corner.  Yahoo!

Today, I had a total creative itch that had to be scratched.  I was restless and irritable, annoyed actually.  The moving and unpacking is finished and I haven't done anything creative in almost two months.  Unacceptable.   Time to solve that issue.

I know it's a little early, but I made my first fall wreath and hung it on the front door.  I mean really, there is no use making anything else since autumn is on the way right?  Right.  I dug around in the craft closet and pulled out everything I needed.

The only new item used was that beautiful printed burlap ribbon I found last week at Michael's and it has been teasing me every time I go in my craft room.  Taunting me.  Look at the beautiful detail.  They have it with different designs on it.  I just happened to like the one that looked like cursive writing.

Today, the taunting ceased!  I unrolled that ribbon and twisted it into a couple of big loops and made two tails that I cut into V shapes and went from there.  It is anchored to the wreath with a brown chenille stem.  Now what?  Here's a tip.  I almost always start with the bow before adding anything else.  It's just easier that way.

 I have lots of fall leaves in a huge bag from previous seasons and I bought several silk flower bushes at the Dollar Tree the other day.  Glue gun, glue sticks, wreath form (from Dollar Tree) - voila, everything I needed so I went to work.

Sometimes, I know how Michaelangelo felt when he looked at a piece of marble and saw a vision of what it could be, like the statue of David.  Don't get me wrong, I am NOT comparing a door wreath with the statue of David, but I am talking about envisioning what something can be, how you see it finished.  It takes creativity and imagination - maybe even a little thoughtful study.  And sometimes, there are just happy accidents and something miraculous happens and you are happy, happy, happy with the outcome.  There is no right or wrong, just whatever you want it to be.

Sorry, got sidetracked there for a minute.  I put the big bow on the wreath and then proceeded to hot glue leaves in varying shapes and colors around the wreath.  I finished by arranging silk flowers in and around the bow, hot glueing them to the burlap ribbon.  That is really all I did.  Place first, glue second. Make sure you like the placement before you glue something down.  It's like measure twice, cut once.  It is hard to move something after the glue has set and you don't like where it is.  That's just a another little FYI from a floral designer with many years experience.

So, my itch was scratched and I am ready to move on to the next project whatever it may be.  Think about what you want to do for the fall season and start now.  It will be September in just a short while and then the real fun begins.  Let's hear it for fall y'all.

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

Be creative.  Be original.  Think outside the box.  There is no right or wrong in creating.  It may not always turn out the way you want, or it could be a creative catastrophe (have had a few of those).  What matters is if you like it!  donna

Thanksgiving Decorating Ideas

Next week is Thanksgiving already (where has this year gone?) -  the time when we gather with friends and family and give thanks for all the bounty and blessings in our lives.  Even if it's been a "hard" year, there is much to be thankful for.  When we eat ourselves into a food coma, maybe watch some football or our favorite movies, nap, enjoy time with those we love and enjoy at least one day off.  (At least I hope you get a day off)  Because Thanksgiving is celebrated in the fall, we use fall colors of oranges, golds, scarlets, dark greens and browns for decorations.  This is a beautiful time of year with a myriad of colors to use.  We all know the iconic symbols of Thanksgiving - turkeys, pilgrims, native people, pumpkins, gourds and fall leaves.  The choices are endless.

After Halloween, I changed a lot of my home accents from bright oranges to more fall-like colors of golds, bronzes, lattes, and browns.  How did I achieve this?  I spray painted all my gourds and pumpkins that I used at Halloween so that I didn't have to go buy new or throw out all the perfectly good ones I already had.  It is a very simple process.  I used Krylon spray paint in metallic gold, sparkly bronze and metallic latte.  I purchased my paint at Wal-Mart, but it is also available at Lowes and Home Depot.   All you have to do is spray whatever you want and let it dry.  Simple!

I took everything out in the yard to spray it.  It looked so pretty sitting in the dried grass and leaves that I snapped this picture.

Some of these gourds and pumpkins are real and some are artificial.  When they are sprayed, you cannot tell the difference and they are so lovely.  It just gives a new vibe to all of them and makes things look different without expending a lot of effort or money.

After Halloween, I added some artificial glittered "trees" to the mantel, removed some of the more Halloween type decorations, did some rearranging and added some of the spray painted pumpkins, gourds, pinecones and artificial acorns.  The more muted colors will carry us through Thanksgiving when it will then be time to start decorating for Christmas.  Whew.  It's never ending.  This is how our mantel looks now.

I also sprayed the big pumpkins on the front porch and added some lovely fall mums and a fall welcome flag.  Yes, I decorate inside and out - I  have just always done that.   Here is how the porch looks.

I also put my painted candy corn candle holders away until next year and made a new centerpiece for the dining table.  It is really easy to do and it looks like this.

All I did, was take a wide cylinder vase that I already had and placed in on a small serving plate.  I placed a candle in the middle of the vase and filled around the candle with small pinecones and acorns.  (Place the candle in the vase before you fill with anything to keep the candle in the middle and so that it will sit flat in the vase.)  Next, I added some artificial fall leaves that I had.  I laid more leaves on the plate around the vase and then placed small pinecones over the leaves.  I had some big artificial fall leaves that I placed on the table and then sat the plate with the candle holder on them.  ( Dollar Tree still has artificial leaves for sale and a whole package is only a dollar.)

If you are hosting Thanksgiving dinner next week, you can use some of these easy ideas to decorate your home.  Look around outside for branches, pinecones, acorns and leaves that you can use - even gum balls.  All it takes are a few candles,  some vases, a little imagination, and a few minutes to create a lovely table scape and decorations to welcome your guests.  If you are going to be dining at someone else's home, make a simple centerpiece to give to your host or hostess.  They will be so appreciative that you thought of them!  

We have family coming from out of town next week and I am busy making new pillow covers for all our toss pillows.  I will share some ideas for new pillow covers with you soon because next, it's the BIG holiday season when I want everything to look really spiffy.  I am also going to make "gratitude flags" by cutting triangles of paper in fall colors,  I will ask everyone to write something they are grateful for on a flag.  I will have a strand of sisal rope tied where we will hang these flags with mini clip clothes pins so that we can all read our "gratitudes".  Then, we will be reminded of more reasons why we celebrate this special day of Thanksgiving!  So many projects, so little time!  Time to get busy.

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, "thank you," that would suffice.  ~Meister Eckhart
 

Make A Beautiful Fall Arrangement

Is there anything more representative of fall than pumpkins?  Pumpkins = jack o lanterns in our minds.    Pumpkin carving has become an amazing seasonal art form.  But - pumpkins don't last very long.   They get smelly and shriveled and yucky.  Now, they are making these very realistic artificial pumpkins that can be used throughout the autumn season.  You may not know this, but they are hollow just like a real pumpkins and can be carved or used to make autumn arrangements in!  Or, you can set them in groupings  on your mantle or tables and they won't get all yucky and you can use them year after year.

Fresh flower arrangements in pumpkins are so lovely and will last as long as an average fresh flower arrangement - up to 7 days if properly taken care of and watered.  You know my love for fresh flowers, but I wanted something to sit on the table by the fireplace that would last through the Thanksgiving season.  Hence, the arrangement in the picture above.  Michael's has their artificial pumpkins on sale for 1/2 price so I splurged and bought one.  I had some artificial fall leaves, cattails, flowers and wheat that I planned to use in it.  This is a tutorial to show you how you can make a professional looking arrangement for your home.  It can be done on any scale to suit your need.  I wanted one that was fairly tall to fill up the corner in the living room.

There is a method used in floral arranging to get  proper scale and professional results.  For this arrangement, I wanted a round design.  In the shop, we called these "roundy moundies" and were the most common arrangement for centerpieces for tables.  They are not hard to do once you understand the process used.  For this arrangement I used one stem of japanese lantern, two cattail bushes, two fall leaf bushes, two mum bushes, and one package of wheat.

First, I placed the block of dry foam that I was going to use on the top of the pumpkin to get a measurement for the hole I was going to cut.  I wanted the foam to fit right inside the hole with little or no movement so I didn't have to anchor the foam to the pumpkin.  There are special tapes to do this with, but this is much easier.  After marking the area I would need to cut, I used a sharp knife (actually, one of our steak knives - don't tell) to cut the top out of the pumpkin.  You will have to make up and down cuts just like with a real pumpkin.

Remove the top and place the block of dry foam inside the pumpkin.  I call this dry foam, because wet foam is used for fresh flower arrangements.  You may have to shave the sides of the foam with the knife to get it to fit in the hole.  Square foam, round hole.  Just shave it a bit at a time so it doesn't end up too loose.

Next, you want to set the line for the height of the arrangement which should be at least the same height as the container or higher.  Mine is at least two times taller than the pumpkin.  I used a stem of japanese lantern to do this.  Since these are artificial, I broke the stem down using wire cutters, leaving the longest piece to go in the center of the foam.  The other pieces should surround the center at east, west, north and south.   Place them close to the center stem at varying heights.

Next, I used the cattails and placed them around the base of the foam at north, south, east and west, and then filled in between the base of the foam and the japanese lantern with more cattails so there is a symmetry and "fullness" beginning to the arrangement.  You will want to place these stems at northeast, northwest, southeast and southwest.  Make sure to cut the stems different lengths so the cattails are different heights to give the arrangement interest and depth.

Next, I used the fall leaves and mums to fill in between the cattails and the japanese lantern.  Use the same procedure and fill in at different heights and around the entire block of foam.  Because the wheat is real and the stems break easily, make them the last step when completing the arrangement.  Make one or two stalks of wheat tall and place them near the center of the arrangement.  Place one stalk at east, west, north and south and fill in the rest of the arrangement placing stalks of wheat all around the arrangement. Then, take the top of the pumpkin that you cut out of the middle and place a bamboo skewer in the middle of the underside by pushing it into the foam.  Put some hot glue around it to hold it in place.  

Now, take the pumpkin top with the skewer attached and place it into the finished arrangement.  

Wow, you now have a beautiful arrangement that will last through the entire autumn season.  How pretty is that?

Remember, I have been doing floral arranging for 30 years and it doesn't take me that long to put an arrangement together.  My goal is to show you the principles of arranging so that you can make professional looking arrangements.  Like anything else, it takes practice and patience.  Remember to always cut your stems longer than you think you will need them to be - you can always cut them off if they are too long.  The other most important thing is to have a really good pair of wire cutters to use.  That will make the whole process easier.  Now, go make yourself an arrangement to enjoy.  

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

"For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together.  
For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad."-   Edwin Way Teale

A Festive Fall Banner For Your Home

It's Friday and the first day of Fall!  What a great end to a week that simply flew by.  Perhaps it's because this has been fall project week here at the "Little Yellow Cottage."  Today, I finished the mantel and am  very happy with the results.  My project for today was creating the banner on the front of the fireplace.  It was so easy to make and adds such a festive look to the living room.

Remember, I am in my burlap phase, so today I used natural burlap for my pennants.  This is such an easy no-sew project.  Although I do sew and could have made these by sewing them over the sisal string, I made them with hot glue to show you how you can make this without threading a needle.

All you need for this project is some burlap in the color of your choice, a hot glue gun and glue sticks, artificial fall leaves, small pine cones, berries and artificial acorns (unless you have access to real acorns), some  small rocks, and a moss roll from the Dollar Tree.  This is a strip of moss on a web backing that can be cut and glued to most anything.

The first thing I did was measure a piece of sisal string on the mantel to know exactly what length I needed.  Next, I created my pattern for the pennant.  I drew a 12 inch square on a piece of brown craft paper.  Mark the center of the bottom line which would be at 6 inches.  Take a ruler and draw a diagonal line from the top two corners of the square to the center point on the bottom line.  You have your pennant shape.

Cut out the pennant along the lines you have drawn.  This pennant will have a 12 inch top which is rather large for indoor use.  I carried this pattern piece over to the fireplace and held it up to determine the size that I would want to use.   I made a crease on the edge of the paper where I wanted the top to be for the size pennant needed.

The pennant had to be cut down, so I folded the top over a straight edge, in this case a ruled, and creased it along the top.

Now, all you have to do it cut it straight across and you have the size pattern piece needed.  No drawing and re-drawing of patterns.  This can be reduced to a tiny little pennant if that is the size needed -  simple and easy.

Next, I folded the burlap and pinned the pattern on to start cutting my burlap pieces.  You can minimize waste by laying the pattern one way when cutting, then turning it the opposite way to cut the next piece.  This leaves practically no waste to the fabric.

I cut 12 pieces of  burlap for the banner that I would use across the front of the fireplace.  It is better to have a few extra than to find youself short and have to go back and cut more.  Next, I covered the table to protect it from any hot glue that might seep through the porous burlap.  I took my first piece of burlap and starting laying out pieces on it to get the look I wanted.  Each pennant I made is different, but you could make yours all the same if that is the look you wanted.

Here are some close-ups of a few of the finished pennants.  I  would lay down a leaf or two, some pinecones or acorns, until I'd get the look I wanted.   Then, I would glue them to the burlap. 

The pennants can be decorated an any way you choose.  After I finished all 12 pennants, I began gluing them over the sisal string.  First, I found the center of the string and marked it with a pin.  I laid the finished pennants out in the order I wanted them to hang on the twine.  I laid the first pennant face down on the table and placed the twine about 1/2 inch down from the top.  I ran a bead of hot glue along the top edge of the pennant and turned it over the twine and pressed it down.  Be sure and use something besides your finger to press the edge down because the glue is hot and may seep through the burlap resulting in a burn. 

 Next, I placed another pennant piece on the other side of center and followed the same procedure.  I used my finger to space the pennants so they would be equidistant apart.  I continued gluing until I had 10 pennants on the banner and had just enough twine left to tie the banner to the mantle.  That left two extra pennants which was great.  I found another place to use them.

I placed a clear push pin in the center of the mantle and one on each end.   I took the banner to the mantle and hung the center over the push pin and tied each end to the other push pins.  Finis!  (done)  I had to stand and look in admiration, it was just what the mantle needed,

The top of the mantle is decorated with gourds, pumpkins and Indian corn.  There are also some adorable paper doily pumpkins.  (There will be a DIY for these next.)  Now, were are all ready to settle down for an enjoyable autumn in our new home.  It has been a long time since was have had "firsts" in a home and it is rather exciting. 

This is a fun and easy project for any weekend crafter.  The banner can be hung anywhere you would like and adds so much color and pizzazz to a room.   What a fun way to welcome fall into your home.  What do you plan to do to decorate for fall?  

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul. Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal." ~ Pamela Vaull Starr

An Easy Fall Wall Hanging - No Sewing Required

I am not a pastel kind of girl - it's jewel tones for me every time!  Their rich colors make my heart sing.  Perhaps that is one of the many reasons Fall is my favorite season.  The rich colors of the season cause me to smile in anticipation of lovely days to come.  Vermillion, golds, greens, purples, oranges and rich, warm browns are the colors I love to wear as well as decorate my home with.   As summer days wane and the air begins to cool, it is time to put away all the lovely shells and beach themed decorations I used in the little yellow cottage this summer.  Its time for a change while Fall decorations are plentiful and varied.  

I did not want to use another wreath in place of my summertime shell wreath in our entryway.  There was an idea stirring to make a wall hanging of some sort and burlap was my fabric of choice.  There is something about the texture and colors available in burlap that make me think of fall.  You know what that meant - first stop - the fabric store.  So, Dan and I headed down the road to a few of my favorite places.  I shop for fabric and craft supplies, he goes to the guitar store.  Works for me.

I had several packages of fall-type leaves that I had purchased at the Dollar Tree when I made my fall wreath for out of doors.  There were yellows, oranges and browns, so I decided to use a red burlap for my wall hanging.  I bought two yards, knowing I only needed a little for the wall hanging, but I have plans for the rest of it.  Of course, I had to sashay around Jo Ann's to see what other interesting things were available and then headed to Michaels.  At Michael's I found a couple of packages of smaller leaves that would go nicely with the ones I already had.  There was a mesh bag of itty bitty pine cones that I also purchased and some things for another project.   Time to go home and get started.   (Anticipation - I LOVE the process of creating things.)

I measured the area where the new wall hanging would go.  The finished size needed to be 18 x 22, so I cut a piece of burlap 18 x 25 because I knew I had to make a hanger at the top using either a dowel rod or something to tie the hanger to.  Fabric is never straight when it is cut at the store, but burlap is very easy to make straight.  All you have to do is pull a thread the length of the piece you are using and then trim along the gap where the pulled thread was.  Easy Peasy.

If you look closely, you can see the thread I pulled laying on top of the burlap and the gap it left.  Trim here to make your piece straight.  I left the edges unfinished because I like the slightly fringed appearance it leaves.

I put a plastic trash bag on the table because I knew I would be using hot glue and paint.  You don't want to get it all over the table top and risk ruining your table.  Next, I laid the burlap on top of the trash bag.  Laying the leaves out on the table, I chose leaves and laid them in different ways until I got the look I wanted.  

This was my "base" for the decorations.  (Picking up one leaf at a time, place hot glue on the back and return it to the place it came from so as not to disturb your arrangement).  Next, I added smaller leaves to make the arrangement have more depth.

Now, repeat the same process.  Pick up each leaf, put some hot glue on the back of it and return it to the proper place.  

Next, I placed the itty bitty pine cones and some small pods I had around until I liked the look, put hot glue on the back and glued them down.  

Because burlap is a very loose weave, stenciling seems to be the easiest way to paint on it.  Since our last name begins with "K", I decided to monogram the hanging.  I googled images for the letter "K" and found one I liked.  You could enlarge it and print it out which would be the easiest way, but our printer is not working so I freehanded the letter onto a piece of printer paper and cut it out.  Pin the monogram to the burlap in the location where you want it.  You will need a stencil brush and some acrylic paint in the color of your choice.  You only need a small bottle and they can be purchased at most craft stores for less than $2.00.   Place a small amount of paint on a plate and you are ready to stencil.  If you have never stenciled anything, a stencil brush is flat on the bottom and you use an up and down pouncing motion so that the paint does not run under the edge of the stencil.  Fill in the entire area that has been cut out.

The finished stencil will look like this.

Let the paint dry.  Remove the pins and then the paper.  This is what you will have.

Lovely isn't it?  Nice and crisp like a beautiful fall day.  Now, it's time to add the hanger.  I had some pieces of wood that are used to replace broken lattice strips.  They are 1.5 inches wide.  You may choose to use a dowel rod, I just didn't want to purchase something when the lattice strip would work.  I cut it to 20 inches long so there would be some wood outside of the wall hanging to tie my sisal to.  This is how I did my hanger.  I turned the burlap over and laid the wood strip along the top edge of the burlap.  I used the hot glue gun and glued the burlap to the wood.  Then, I turned it down so the wood was covered with the burlap and glued the bottom of the wood to the burlap.  Next, I cut a piece of sisal (jute string) and tied it to the wood outside of the burlap.  I cut a few extra pieces of sisal in different lengths and tied it to the hanger with a knot.  Now, it was time to hang it on the wall.  It only takes a small nail, the hanging is very light.  

Here is the finished product and I am really pleased with it.  It is something different than a wreath, you could make it any size you want, big or small, (you could hang it on your front door if it is protected from the weather) and it was really inexpensive!  Now, how is that for a quick afternoon project?  These could make lovely gifts for friends and family too! How easy to do one for the Christmas holidays!  There goes my busy brain again, ideas are already formulating.

There is absolutely no sewing required for this easy project.  I hope you will give it a try using whatever colors you like.  Let me know how yours turns out.

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

Paulo Coelho
Live with no regrets and love with no apologies