Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween from Wilma and Fred Flintstone:

We are super excited this year because we are living in a house...in a neighborhood...which means we will have trick-or-treaters!!!  We are setting up a bonfire out front of our house, bringing out a bucket of candy and enjoying all of the costumes and jokes from all the kiddos!  Hope you have a great Halloween - be safe and have fun!

STL CARDINALS BEST GAME EVER

I am skipping my usual Fabulous Friday Finds to talk about the best team in the MLB, my St. Louis Cardinals.  Last night they played in a battle to stay in the series and extend it to the end, game 7.  Oh my goodness.......it was the best game I have EVER seen.  

The beginning was not so good...there was a total of 5 errors made between the two teams, the Cardinals were stranding runners and giving up big hits to the Rangers.  It was not looking all too great for the Birds.  However, something everyone should know about the Cardinals organization is that the fight until the end...they don't give up!  I think they do better under the pressure - they entered the Postseason last minute when no one thought that was possible and they pulled off an AMAZING win last night when most people thought all hope was lost.

In the bottom of the 9th inning the Cardinals were down 5 - 7 , there were 2 outs, 2 runners on base, and David Freese was up to bat.  He got down to his final strike and BOOM!! He hit a triple and scored both runners tying up the game!  Holy Cow that was exciting!!! There was hope...the Cards can win!  Then they got their last out and we went into extra innings.  

With the Rangers up at bat with 1 out and 1 man on first base, Josh Hamilton got a hold of one and hit a home run...UGH!! All the Cards energy and happiness quickly turned to fear.  They were down by two again!  They still had a chance...they got 3 outs and we headed to the bottom of the 10th.  We scored one run back so it became 8STL - 9TX  ... we had two outs with two people on base - John Jay on second and Albert Pujols on first.  Lance Berkman came up to bat and got down to two strikes (seems very familiar...hint hint last inning) and on the next pitch he rips a single once again tying the game...WHOA!  This is turning into a back and forth dual and the Cards aren't going to give up the World Series that easy to you Texas...they came to fight to the end!!!  The inning ended and we headed to the 11th all tied up 9-9.  

In the 11th, the Cards offense dominated and the Rangers didn't score.  Now we go to the bottom of the 11th...the Cards have their chance right here...all they need is 1 run to win Game 6.  First up to bat, David Freese.  Once again, it was down to a 2 strike count and the next pitch comes....

BOOM!!! HOME RUN!! CARDS WIN GAME 6!!!! 

They knew he hit it out of the park...GO CRAZY!

Lining up to tackle and LOVE on David Freese

Freese's heart HAS to be jumping out of his chest!! He tosses his helmet in between his legs...so cute!

Getting read to enter the receiving line of cheers and excitement!

Freese was definitely the hero of the night...he tied it in the 9th then won it in the 11th!! 

It was the most amazing game I have ever seen!! The Cardinals have such heart and played SO hard!! I am so proud of my STL CARDINALS!!!  Make sure to watch Game 7 and cheer on the BIRDS to a World Series Trophy!!

Win #11 in '11 baby!

Fabric Pumpkins

I have been SLACKING on Halloween decorations this year.  We have lived in an apartment/townhouse the last two years, so our space for decorating has been limited.  Now that we are in a house, it's apparent how sparse our decorations are.  I purchased some fun Halloween fabric a couple weeks ago and ever since they have been sitting in my craft room.   I have been debating whether to make just plain pillows or do something more directed towards Halloween.  Then I realized our house is missing one big thing that screams Halloween ... PUMPKINS!  We have not gotten a real one to carve and we don't have any plastic/decorative ones.       The solution = make fabric pumpkins!

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Fabric

Felt

Thread/Needle

Long Stranded Straw

Polyfil

Step 1:  Measure the fabric for your pumpkins.  The height should be twice that of the width.  For example, here are my three sizes:  9" X 18" , 11" X 22"  and 16.5" X 39".  

Step 2:  Fold fabric in half lengthwise with right sides together.

 Step 3:  Sew with a 1/4" seam allowance to create a tube.

hard to see but I sewed along the right side

Step 4:  Repeat step 3 with all fabric pieces.

Step 5: Trace out a stem on the felt.  Cut out two pieces per stem.  I used three different colors and sizes to match my three different fabrics.

 Step 6:  Sew around the edge leaving the bottom open, right sides together.

 Step 7:  Turn right side out.

 Step 8:  Stuff the stems with polyfil.

 Step 9:  Sew them shut.

Step 10:  Double up a long piece of thread and secure in needle.

Step 11:   Secure a knot in the end of the thread and sew by hand long stitches along one open end of the fabric (do not sew both pieces together).  

 Step 12:  Once you have reached where you began, pull the thread taught to create a bunched look.

Step 13:  Secure by flipping fabric right side out, sew through the bunch a couple of times pulling tight after each and knotting.

 Step 14:  Fill with polyfil.

Step 15:  Repeat steps 10-12 to the top of the pumpkin.

 Step 16:  Before securing the bunch at the top, insert a stem into the opening.  Sew the stem in place and secure the bunch.

Step 17:  Using long strands of straw, take one and wrap around the pumpkin like you would a gift.  (you can use yarn, ribbon, or other materials in place of the straw).

 Step 18:  Secure the straw at the top by tying a knot.

I didn't have a chance to make all of the pumpkins I cut fabric for, but I did get two finished.  I will have a whole "village" once I create the other three.  They are a great decoration to add to any spot in the house!  Just make sure you don't have a dog that thinks it is a toy AKA my dog Toby....If they are in his reach he will have that thing chewed up in no time.

I finished the rest of my pumpkins the next night...check out my "village"!

Check out the October Followers Fest.  Link up anything Fall or Halloween related and check out all the other fabulous bloggers who linked up!

Inspiration for Wall Gallery

Casey and I have a big wall in our family room that current has 1 mirror centered on it...and that's it.  Recently it has really been getting to me - all that space to use and all that is there is a mirror. I could do SO much more with all that space!  I have been looking to pinterest for inspiration and found some great ideas.  I really like the pottery barn country style look with the play on neutral colors (whites, browns).

via

via

via

via 

via (tutorial here)


Take some of these beautiful pieces of artwork along with personal photos and I think I can create a GREAT gallery wall.

Incoming and Outgoing Mail Holder

Anytime we get mail, it seems to start piling up on our island in the kitchen until we 1. mail it out 2. file it or 3. throw it away.  I DON'T like the clutter it creates, especially in the kitchen where we are most of the time and is a high traffic area.  Thus, I decided to make us a handy mail holder.  We can place incoming mail in the top and anything that needs to be mailed out goes in the "outgoing" slot in the bottom....PERFECT!

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Wood:

1 piece measuring 12" wide X 14" high

2 pieces measuring 12" wide X 4.5" high

4 triangle pieces measuring 4" X 4: X 5.5"

Wood Glue

Nail Gun

Paint

Stencils

2 Screws + Screw Driver

Step 1:  Cut all necessary pieces of wood.  I created a diagram of the measurements so that it would be easier to piece together.

**When cutting your two smaller pieces which will serve as your "mail slots" make sure to cut the bottom at an angle.  This will be the part of the wood attaching to the big piece - the angle will allow it to lay flat.**

Step 2:  Sand down all of the pieces until they have a smooth finish.

Step 3: Line up the pieces to make sure they all match up.  One slot will be flush with the bottom of the back piece of wood.  The other slot (with triangles in place) will be flush with the top.

Step 4:  One slot at a time, mark with a pencil the slot placement on the back piece.  Using the wood glue, go over the pencil and lay the pieces in place.  

Step 5:  While holding the slot in place over the glue, have a friend (aka Dad in this case) use a nail gun to secure the pieces to the back piece of wood.  To secure the front piece of the slot to the triangle sides, use the gun at an angle on the front and secure a nail trough onto the triangle piece.  To secure the entire slot to the back piece putting two nails on each side through the back.

Step 6:  Repeat steps 4-5 with the second mail slot.

Step 7:  Once the structure has been created, it is time to paint.  Paint the entire mail holder with a primer first if you are going to use a different color on top (other than white).  Paint a couple coats if necessary.

Step 8:  Sand again to smooth out any clumps from painting.

Step 9: Once the base color has dried, take a stencil and trace our "incoming" and "outgoing" on the two mail slots with a pencil.  This will ensure that the placement is the way you like it.

Step 10:  Go over the traced letters with your contrasting paint color - in my case brown.

Step 11:  To hang on the wall, use a stud finder in desired hanging location and make sure a stud is present.  Once you find it, secure the mail holder with two screws - one above the first slot and one above the second slot.

Step 12:  Start placing your mail in the correct slots and enjoy your clutter-free counter tops :)

Frankenstein and The Mummy

Happy Monday! Last week this tutorial was featured on Love Stitched along with a chance to win these two creatures through a giveaway.  The giveaway is now closed, but incase you missed the tutorial, here it is again! Enjoy!

Creating decor using wooden blocks has been all the craze lately.  I have seen different words spelled out using one block per letter, phrases created using several larger blocks and even designs that spread across the blocks.  In our garage, we have several pieces of scrap wood from previous projects so I knew they would be great for a project.  I thought about doing a HALLOWEEN sign using the scraps, but I wanted to try something unique.  While searching pinterest and fellow blogs for ideas, I started noticing Halloween monsters created out of different items - fabric/felt, tape around a juice box to create a mummy, monster decorated cookies, etc.  I thought that Halloween Creatures created out of wood would be a cute addition to any house for the holiday.  There are so many options as what to use to create these monsters - paint, 3-D features using fabric, stickers, hardware, etc.  After brainstorming and sketching out several different monsters, I started creating.  I made two creatures, The Mummy and Frankenstein, to test out my ideas.  Listed below are the tutorials for both these ghoulish monsters...read on if you dare!


Step 1:  Cut two pieces of 6 inch 2X4's. 

Step 2:  Sand both blocks until smooth.

Step 3: Spray the blocks black.

A. MATERIALS NEEDED - THE MUMMY

6" Piece of 2X4

Sand Paper

Black Spray Paint

Cream Acrylic Paint
Brown Acrylic Paint

Paint Brush (1 Large and 1 Small)

Burlap

Tacky Spray

2 Googly Eyes

Step 4A: Once the black paint has dried, paint cream acrylic paint over the entire block.

Step 5A:  Once cream paint has dried, sand the edges to let the black seep through.

Step 6A:  Cut the burlap fabric into 10 strips the length of the fabric, 1" wide. 

Step 7A: Start applying the fabric to the block.  Use the tacky spray on the block and apply 1 strip of fabric at a time.  Wrap the fabric around the block in a criss-cross pattern leaving a spot open for the eyes towards the top.

Step 8A:  Apply the burlap strips so that most of the front is covered.  Once the first layer is on the block, insert the two googly eyes in the opening.

Step 9A:  Glue the remaining strips to the block overlapping the existing fabric.

Step 10A:  Using a small amount of brown acrylic paint, lightly coat the tip of a small paint brush and apply to one edge of each burlap strip on the block, alternating the top edge vs. the bottom edge per each strip.

Step 11A: Finished Mummy Block Monster!

B. MATERIALS NEEDED - FRANKENSTEIN

6" Piece of 2X4

Sand Paper

Black Spray Paint

English Ivy Green Acrylic Paint

Black Acrylic Paint

White Acrylic Paint

Paint Brushes (1 large and 1 Small)
Pencil

Black Felt

Tacky Spray

2 Googly Eyes

2 - 2" Length Bolts

Step 4B:  Once the black paint has dried, paint the block with english ivy green.

Step 5B: When the green paint has dried, sand the block focusing on the edges to let the black seep through.

Step 6B:  Take the black felt and cut two pieces of hair - use a zig-zag pattern to cut alternating lengths. 

Step 7B:  Using the tacky spray, attach one of the hair pieces towards the top of the block 1" down from the top edge.  Glue the second piece over the first aligning it with the top of the block.

Step 8B:  Under the hair, apply the googly eyes to the center of the block.

Step 9B:  Use a pencil to mark the stitches (above left eye) and the mouth.  This will act as your guideline when applying the paint.

Step 10B:  When your sketched lines are to your liking, put black acrylic paint on a small fine tip brush and trace the lines. 

Step 11B:  Go over the black paint 2 times to make sure a nice dark color appears.  Use the edge of the brushes tip to create smooth edges on the mouth and stitches.

Step 12B: When the black has dried, apply a small amount of white acrylic paint to the small fine tip brush and create a tooth on the right side of the mouth. 

Step 13B:  To apply the bolts, measure 2.5" from the bottom of the block and 1/2" from the side to find the placement.

Step 14B:  Using a drill and a 1/4 size drill bit, drill all the way into the side of the block.  Repeat on the other side of the block.

Step 15B:  Take the bolts and using a 9/16 size socket wrench secure them into the holes. 

Step 16B: Finished Frankenstein Block Monster!

There are so many other variations of other fun creatures that can be created to make this set of two into a set of 4 or even 6.  Make a Witch, a Pumpkin, a Skeleton, or Dracula...the list goes on and on. 

Here is the set of 4 that I first created when testing out this project:

mummy, skeleton, frankenstein, dracula

Get creative and start crafting!