The Decoration

I have found a new Fall interest this year.

Corn Husk Wreaths

I don't think I have ever seen these before, but while browsing Etsy I stumbled upon these from

The Keepers' House

I think they are beautiful...

She added the tassels from the stalks on this one...

And priced between just $15 and $25, they look well worth the money!



But...me being me, I started thinking...

Could I just make one myself?

Then good ole' Google led me to Suzanne...

A full post, complete with a How-To!

You have got to check out her tips on making your own. She gives clear step-by-step instructions and tells you exactly where to buy husks this time of year.

Thank you, Suzanne!



Martha has a tutorial for her version of a Harvest Wreath...

I like hers too!


But I gotta' say, I think I like the untamed version from The Keepers' House better...

So when it comes to seasonal wreaths, where do you stand?

Easier to buy pre-made? Or worth the effort of DIY?

Simple, yet striking.


~Fall is in the air!~


Photos courtesy of BHG.com

For me, decorating for Autumn comes in the form of using nature to reflect the change in season. Pumpkins, gourds, pinecones, leaves...

what you see outside, is what you will see inside.

On the living room mantel, the more candles, the better...

A candle wrapped in leaves becomes a glowing display of color...

And simplicity is key.

Nothing fussy or overdone.

Indian Corn standing tall in a vase is about as easy as it gets...

Berries added to the Family Room mantle say "Autumn has arrived"...

And I love big pumpkins, not just outside, but inside as well...

I have two pictures that come out every Fall. I don't leave them on display all year long because both photos were taken at the pumpkin patch (a bit too seasonal to look at during the spring and summer), but I love looking at them through September, October and November.

My boys...

Owen, taken a few years ago...

And both of my Will's, taken on Little Will's first ever trip to the pumpkin patch (he was 10 months old)...

In the Living Room...

you will find more of the same.

Pinecones, twigs, nuts...natural materials that reinforce the feel of nature...

and one of my all time favorites this time of year...

I got these leaves a long time ago down in Sumner, WA on Main Street. A few blocks of old town shops filled to the brim with home decor that screams cozy and homey.

These leaves are made of paper and extremely fragile, but despite a few rips and tears they make their way out for display every year. I put these on top of the new built-in in the entryway, as well. I love the colors of them and the way they are variegated ever so slightly on the tips...

My fall decor finds its place in between items that I keep on display all year long.

For me, Autumn is about layering...muck like the way we layer on long sleeved shirts, sweaters, coats and scarves, this time of year...

...introducing new colors and textures to our home.


And then there are the kids - if they had it their way, the house would be filled with ghosts, bats, jack-o-lanterns and witches. So, to satisfy their need for a fun-filled holiday, these make their way out...

Simplicity in seasonal decorating appeals to my senses...

...until the day after Thanksgiving when the Christmas decor comes out, and then,
all bets are off!

(It's going to be here before we know it!)



And last, but not least, my favorite Autumn wreath...

I got this when we lived in Arizona, at the local Safeway.
Seriously - Safeway!
In the floral department.
Crazy, right?

The leaves are the same as the garland from Sumner, but the nuts, pinecones, seed pods and twigs are all real and have been dried and preserved.

It's so pretty, and I normally hang it outside on the front door. But this year, I decided to keep it inside where I can see it and enjoy it everyday...

So now it hangs on the inside of our front door.

Makes me happy!


Speaking of our front door...

a change is coming.

I'm not exactly sure when. This is one of those projects that I would have done while Will was away on a trip, but now that there aren't anymore trips...

This is one of those projects that he'll say "Why?" to.
You know, like, "why go through the trouble? It's just fine the way it is!"

Typical.

But I saw an example over a year ago and fell in love with the idea.

I would love to have it done before Christmas decorations go up.
That gives me a month to get it done.

Hmm...I wonder if there is a Procrastinator Party happening right now?

Might be just the motivation I need...





P.S. Don't forget to enter our Giveaway for one FREE item from Leen The Graphics Queen!

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P.S.S. I am adding this post to Beautiful Life Friday over at The Inspired Room

and Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home

Several of you have asked questions about the bat project through comments and emails, so I figured a "How To" post was in order.

It all started with this photo from CountryLiving.com.

As soon as I saw it, I was hooked...

I was heading to the store anyway, so I bought a fresh pack of construction paper and we got started on the project as soon as we walked back in the door. We cut out lots and lots and lots of bats. I have no idea how many. But I knew that I was only going to be able to pull off the look I wanted with a very large quantity of them. So we kept tracing and cutting and tracing and cutting...

On CountryLiving.com you can find the template to use for cutting out the bats. Doing this made the whole process super simple...

Now, I have to tell you...this was one of those projects that I was really anxious to get finished (I get like that sometimes). I couldn't wait to see what it was all going to look like, and because of that, I didn't read any of the instructions before I started cutting out my construction paper.

I know. Shame on me.

Had I read the directions before I began, I would have known that the project was meant to be done with stiffened felt, not construction paper...

This would have solved the issues that rapidly revealed themselves after affixing the bats to the house.
(I'll get back to that in a second)

After we cut out the bats, we started to put them up in a sort of wave pattern. I used duct tape to affix them to the exterior of the house, thanks to a tip I received in a comment.

Thank You for that, Danielle!

(Something I also would have known had I read the instructions prior to diving into the project!)



So here is where you get to benefit from my mistakes...

I am going to make a case for using felt instead of construction paper:

(just in case any of you are thinking about using construction paper on your exterior, as well)


While the construction paper was super easy to use, extremely inexpensive and available even at the local grocery store, I realized the morning after putting them up outside that they might not even make it until Halloween.

Yikes!

The tips of their wings had curled up because of the low temperature over night. So, out came the duct tape once again and I taped all of their little curled wings down.

By day two, I could see that the afternoon sun was already fading the black color of the construction paper. They're not too terribly faded, but they are certainly not as black as they were when they first went up.


Between the paper curling from the cold temperatures and the fading from the sun, I'd say that felt is a much better choice.

However, using the construction paper, I was able to cut out five bats at a time. With the stiffened felt (based off of the directions - yes, I've read them now!) it would seem that you can only cut out one bat at a time.

*sheesh*

That could end up being a pretty big time commitment depending on how many bats you needed. I would have had to spend an entire evening cutting out bats had I used the felt, not to mention that my hand would have been ready to fall off. But the advantage would be that you could save them and reuse them every year!

I'm thinking there must be a happy medium.

Maybe heavy black card stock?


I'll let you know if I end up having to redo my bats. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they hold out for another 17 days! If not, I'll try the card stock. But next year, I'm going with the felt!

I'll do whatever I need to this year to make sure that we have a house covered in bats for the kids on Halloween. Not only for my own kids, but for the other kids in the neighborhood. I wish you could have heard them as they were walking home from school the day after I put them up. They were just as excited as my kids were over them!


Since so many of you have said that you are going to jump on the bandwagon and decorate your homes with a colony of bats, I would love to hear how you are making them and what you think of the project. Better yet...I would love to see your pictures!

I showed you mine, now you have to show me yours!



Ready for a Real Life photo?

Don't look too closely.
There is a reason that I kept the photo so dark.
It is a playroom after all...

Check out how the bats look from the inside, with the shade pulled down!

The kids flipped out when they saw that after we put them up!

Made them even more excited for Halloween!

Ahh...it's the little things that make them the happiest...




P.S. I hope that helps and that your questions were answered.
If not, let me know and I'll do my best to answer them!