Happy New Year - The End of our Tree Project

One of my favorite projects this year - and also for our family and to anyone how visits our house - has been our tree. Unfortunately just before Christmas due to the strength and persistence of our #3 bunny our Christmas tree had a nasty accident.

We only lost two ornaments and the stick snapped in several places. No small child was harmed in the accident - but we all felt a little sad.

We had all been stuck inside due to snow falling outside when the incident happened. Feeling a little sad we decided to rescue what we could of the now year long project. My eldest bunny really loves to use scissors so her paper snowflakes made a perfect decoration. The vase and branch is now on the kitchen counter - I don't put it past #3 to make it up there and demolish it some more - but so far it has stayed out of his reach.

Here is a little recap of our tree.

Valentine Tree

Swedish Easter Tree

Recycled Cherry Blossom Tree

Coffee Filter Butterfly Tree 

Halloween Tree

Thanksgiving Tree

Christmas Tree

Wish you and your family a wonderful 2014 & thank you so much for reading.

Craft Pumpkins

I love Halloween. My husband does not understand my excitement over lit pumpkins and Halloween decor.

I think I have made it clear that I don't like to throw things away - but when it comes to real pumpkins I kind of faint at the price. Each year I buy a few more new craft pumpkins from Michaels when they are on half price. Each year I carve a few more and add them to our little display.

This year we have a few more additions to our own little pumpkin patch. 

A big mummy spider has joined the icky nest of baby spiders. 

Some scary pumpkin bugs have landed on the box woods. 

My favorite still is the pumpkin snake we made last year - he curls his way down the steps.

Every pumpkin you see in this picture is fake. We bag them up into large bin liners every year and store them in the garden shed until the next Halloween. I used to feel ashamed about my love for craft pumpkins until we visited the Pumpkin Garden at the New York Botanical Gardens - all their pumpkins are fake too!!

You can see more of my pumpkins from a post I made back in 2011!

Have a fun & safe Halloween tomorrow.

Halloween Pumpkin Decorations

This weekend we went to the New York Botanical Gardens to see the giant pumpkins. Pretty big eh? It weighs over 1000lbs!!I have also been decorating our front porch for Halloween. Last year I went to Michaels (after Halloween) and stocked up on craft pumpkins that were on sale. This year I discovered that Target sells craft pumpkins too at an even better price point. All the pumpkins have been sitting in our basement waiting to be carved and recently I managed to carve a few for our porch. I have used a mixture of craft pumpkins and real pumpkins for our Halloween display this year and orange fairy lights rather than real candles. I hope our craft pumpkins will be used year after year after year. I like the way it looks - but I feel I need lots more pumpkins ... here is a closer look.
Above is a spiders nest - I used a pack of 100 plastic spiders on the inside of the pumpkin and a little bit of the fake spider web. The faces below are an idea from Martha Stewart Pumpkin and Carving Decorating ideas. Each pumpkin has a hole drilled in the back of it and I put about six fairy lights from the string into each pumpkin.
This chap my lovely sister carved for us when she was recently here on a visit - it is supposed to be a portrait of her boyfriend. I stuck a carrot in the pumpkins nose hole - but this is no comment on what I think of my sister's boyfriend - he is very nice! And below is another idea adapted from Martha Stewart. I added black paint to my pumpkin houses and I love them - I shall be making some more for next year - perhaps we will have a whole pumpkin village!
Above is another take on a Martha Stewart idea - but I used a black pumpkin and a bat rather than a vulture. I was a bit disappointed with the mouse house pumpkins below. Maybe too many mice?
I love Halloween. Thanksgiving is my husband's favorite and luckily for him that is right around the corner too!