DIY Apothecary Jars

Is it possible to still be recovering from a party that was 2 weeks ago?!  If so, I think I am!  My bestie, Gina and I hosted our 3rd Annual Broomsticks, Bitches and Brew Ball (aka The Witch's Ball) on October 8th and I have been so tired ever since!  Of course that could also be from working 40 hours a week in a place that seems to just suck the life out of me then coming home to my other full-time job as a mother to a 12y.o. boy and a drama-filled 10y.o. girl and wife to a hunky hubby who won't stop telling me to "suit up!"  (and unless you watch How I Met Your Mother, you won't have a clue what I am talking about!  LOL!)  Oh well, life could be worse I suppose.

The Witch's Ball was great and everyone had a fantastic time.  I promise to share pics soon.  I loved all the costumes and since we revealed the theme for next year's Ball, I know some of the girls are already putting their thinking caps on.  SO fun!

I have managed to squeeze in a few projects over the last few weeks and I am looking forward to sharing those...today I thought I would show you the Apothecary Jars I made.  The idea certainly isn't something original to me...I have seen them on Pinterest and out there in Blogland but when I saw them I KNEW I had the perfect items in my stash to make some of my own.

What do you think?  I am really loving them and I kept it simple by just using black so I can use them all year long.

I started out with 3 glass candlesticks that I had in my stash...I seem to have a bit of an obsession with glass candlesticks -- didn't realize it until I went looking for some to use as the base of my jars!

Then I used 3 of my glass jars with lids.  I had picked up 4 of them at a thrift store for a total of $2.  They were assorted sizes and I opted to use the 3 smaller ones because the largest one was just too big to make work on the candlestick base and plus I thought a set of 3 would be more appealing to the eye than 4.

I primed the candlesticks and the glass lids (I tend to use the Krylon brand whenever I am spray painting since I have had the best luck with that one.)

Then I used the Krylon Spray Paint in a glossy black after the primer dried.  I used E6000 to glue the glass jars to the candlesticks and placed books on top and let them sit for 24 hours.  After that I put the painted lid on top and...TA DA!!

Since it is Halloween time I found some chocolate wrapped in cute paper and of course the ever popular candy corn to put my jars in the mood for Trick or Treating...

One of my daughter's friends was here over the weekend and she kept looking at the jars and then asked me why we had eyeballs.  "Um...'cause it's Halloween?!"  She just said "Oh."  *shrug*  Guess that means maybe she didn't like the eyeballs?!  LOL!

But I have pumpkins too...

So what do you think?  Do you like?

DIY Halloween Plate Decor

My house is looking like it just threw up Halloween right now...and things are scattered everywhere as I am doing last minute projects and prep for the Witch's Ball this weekend.  One of my easiest projects of late -- even easier than my Feather Boa Halloween Wreath, are my plates I made for the plate holders on either side of my big chalkboard in our eat-in kitchen area.

This is what the wall looked like before I started...

I picked up 4 white plates from The Dollar Store, 2 round and 2 square...I thought it might add a little "interest" if they were a little different.  And I found these Martha Stewart reusable Halloween Window and Mirror Clings.  Got them at Joann's with a 40% off coupon so they were less than $5.

I love that there are so many different designs to choose from and that I can reuse them year after year...and since I don't have to permanently attach them to the plate it will make changing out my plates each holiday easy and storing them a breeze!

I cleaned my plates, picked out my designs and stuck them on...it just doesn't get any easier than that.  And I spent less than $10 on this project...how awesome is that?!

I changed out my chalkboard quote and switched out the plates.  I also made sure to call out the family so that they could "ooh" and "aah" and tell me how great it all looks ;)

I am loving how it all looks and loving the price tag even more.  Can't wait to see what kind of window and mirror clings Miss Martha comes out with for Christmas so I can redecorate.  Guess I will need to try and find some more generic fall ones for after Halloween as well...can't wait!

P.S. If you want to see more fun ideas for projects under $10 and done in under an hour go visit 320*Sycamore's Linky Party!

A Feather Boa Halloween Wreath

I LOVE Halloween...and I have been putting out our decorations for the last couple of weeks.  I know it is early but I am hosting the 3rd Annual Broomsticks Bitches and Brew Ball (a.k.a. The Witch's Ball) with my Bestie in just 2 weeks so I have to be on the ball. (pun totally NOT intended!)

As I was putting the decorations out I had a spot that really needed something and I have this wreath holder I had picked up at my sister's neighborhood yard sale...they actually had 2 of them and now I am wishing I had just bought both.  My mom said that would probably happen -- so apparently even now I don't listen to my mother! ;)

Anyway, I pulled out the wreath holder but alas, I had no wreath.  Not too long ago I actually picked up a bag of styrofoam wreath forms from the thrift store near my office.  There were 5 of them in assorted sizes and I got them for $2!  SCORE!  

So I grabbed the biggest one and threw it on the wreath holder...then looked at it for a couple of days until I could figure out what exactly to do with it.  Getting ready for work one morning I noticed I had some black feather boas left over from the Mother Daughter Dance I did with my daughter at her recital a couple of years ago...

And inspiration hit! (totally HOT, right?  LMAO!) 

So I took the wreath form and the feather boas -- turned out I actually had 3!

and I just started wrapping them around the styrofoam.  I didn't want to commit too much with this wreath as I want to be able to use the feather boas again so I just used stick pins to secure the ends. 

Then I went by Michaels to pick up a few pieces to add to it.  Hunky Hubby kept saying it needed something orange so I took his advice to heart and picked these babies up...

I love the BOO sign and it actually hangs on a chain.  Since I am so non-commital with this wreath it just hangs on the wreath hanger.  PERFECT!  I attached the bow and then one of the spiders.  The bow attached easily enough since it had twist ties on it and then once again I used stick pins from the sewing box to keep the spider in place.  I used pins with yellow balls on the ends so I just grabbed a black sharpie to color them so they would blend in.  It took a matter of minutes to put it all together...

What do you think?

I am LOVING it!  I added it back to the top of the entertainment center.  Will post a pic of its final resting place soon...just have a couple of other things to add before I do :)



I Never...

I put a couple of projects on hold in order to get some scrapbooking in for The House of Paper this week.  It has been a little bit since I really sat down to scrap and with all the new stuff that has been coming into The House lately I couldn't wait to play with all the new yumminess.  The challenge for the Interior Designer's this week was to finish the sentence,  "I Never..."

SO, this is how I decided to finish it...

I NEVER THOUGHT OF MYSELF AS A TRUCK KIND OF GIRL...

Please tell me I am not the only one who has recently become addicted to the show Top Gear on The History Channel?  These guys are SO funny together and even both of my kiddos enjoy watching so we actually have something we can all watch together as a family, which I absolutely LOVE.  I never really gave a "you-know-what" about cars in the past but this show has definitely given me a whole new perspective...and any truck that actually has a LOUD button is for ME!  HA!



I NEVER TIRE OF YOUR SWEET SMILES...

Those are my sweet babies...9 years ago!  HOLY SMOKES...how did THAT happen?  They were so sweet and loving to each other back then...loved being together.  THESE days...yeahhhhhhhh...not so much!  LOL!

I recently finished a super quick and easy Halloween wreath...promise to share it SOON!  I have just been super busy trying to get things together for the annual Witch's Ball I host with my BFF...this is our 3rd year and every year we get just a little bit bigger!  LOL!  Can't wait to share the costume I am making too!  Halloween is totally my favorite holiday!

Crepe Paper Rosette Balls

At the beginning of August, my siblings and I surprised our mom with a 60th birthday party.  It was AWESOME!  We went with a black and white theme and since yellow roses are her most favorite flower we decided to use accents of yellow.  I really wanted to try my hand at making some of the rosette balls I had seen throughout Blogland and I thought making them in yellow would be perfect for the party.

I used THIS TUTORIAL from The House of Smiths although I made a few changes.  Rather than using styrofoam balls I recycled some tissue pom-poms that I had used for my sister's bridal shower I hosted last November.  They were sitting in a box all smushed and for whatever reason never made it out to the recycle bin and since we were on a pretty tight budget for the party I figured it couldn't hurt to see what I could do with them.

I started squishing and bunching them up and forming them into balls...

I just used the blue painters tape I had on hand to help keep the shape and then I cut some strips of white copy paper to put around them as well.  I have to confess, I am not really sure why I did that...maybe to help hide the purple underneath?!  Who knows what I was thinking!  LOL!

Then I just got busy cutting my strips of crepe paper, crinkling, twisting, twirling, gluing, burning my fingers, etc.  I cut the "stems" off of my mine and then starting gluing to my "ball".

I used some of  my leftover "stems" to fill in any white spots that were left in between the rosettes.  Not sure how many hours it took me to complete these or how many times I may have burned my fingers, but the the end I was really happy with  how they turned out. 

And even better was that the whole project cost me a total of $2 and that was for the crepe paper streamers.  I had to get 2 packages of them from the Dollar Store.

I love that I was able to recycle to tissue pom-poms from my sister's bridal shower and I am even more thrilled about these because I am planning a little "face lift" for these very soon for Halloween!

And this is how they looked on the dessert table for the party...

What do you think?

Can't wait to try my Halloween makeover on them...cross your fingers it turns out...and if it does I will be sure and share it here!

Trying times

This isn't a crafty or creative post today...although I do have a few things to share in the next couple of days.  Today is more personal if anyone is reading you may feel free to just ignore me (although really, you are free to ignore me and my posts everyday!  LOL!)

I love being a mother. It is not an easy job sometimes but the rewards far outweigh the hard times. I have been blessed with two beautiful, smart, kind, loving and wonderfully healthy children…and a boy and a girl at that. As most any mother could attest…sometimes the love you feel for your kids is just indescribable – there are no words that really do it justice.

Last night though was, by far, the most challenging moment I have had as a mother so far. More so than all the sleepless nights and Terrible Two tantrums combined. I so desperately wanted to call in sick to work today because I am simply exhausted in every way possible…mentally, emotionally and even physically. My daughter really put me to the test last night and unfortunately I feel as though I failed miserably.

When it comes to kids testing their limits I tend to think of the younger years since that seems to be when most kiddos are seeing how far they can go. My Diva Darling is 10 years old right now and definitely seeing just how far she can push. Hunky Hubby is always telling me that the Diva and I butt heads because we are so much alike, and I guess I can see that.

I do my best to keep my cool and walk away when I need to. Last night though, she wouldn’t let me walk away. She kept pushing and pushing, and I finally lost my temper and really yelled at her. I said things that I just shouldn’t have said. Please don’t judge me too harshly as I am so ashamed to even admit that. I was finally able to get her to stop and just go to her room and I went to mine and we both bawled our eyes out. I felt like the worst mother in the world for losing my cool like that. It was such a terrible feeling and I am still in tears about it today.

When Hunky Hubby got home he was able to talk to both of us and he was very supportive of me reminding me that I am only human and that when someone continually pushes and pushes it is inevitable that you will break at some point…I just felt I should have been stronger. Once things finally calmed down, her and I both apologized to each other and this morning was hugs and kisses as usual when I dropped her off for school but I am struggling with the beginnings of a migraine and unbelievable feelings of guilt for yelling like I did.

I am not and never will be the best mom in the world but I sure as hell want to be the best mom I can be to both of my kids…but last night, I definitely was not. I have to give my own mom credit for not killing me now that I think back on some of the smart mouth things I said and some of the stupid things I did growing up. I am afraid of the teenage years right now….ugh, just thinking about it makes my migraine worse.

She did write me a very sweet letter promising to never behave like that again…however I tend to think of that as a pie crust promise, as Mary Poppins would say…easily made, easily broken. I am praying and holding out hope however that we will both learn from last night and that we will be able to work together and better handle things in the future. I am sure I am not the only one who has ever had a night like that as a parent…but right now, it sure feels like it.

In the words of Anne Shirley..."Today is a new day...with no mistakes in it."  So today I will "Just keep swimming..." and repeating those words in my head.

  

Love by Candlelight

After learning about all the joys that thrift store shopping can bring, I went on a search for thrift stores in my area.  As it turns out, I have 3 that are actually right near my office…ROCK ON!  So when I am lucky enough to have some free time on my lunch hour I love to spend it strolling through to see what treasure I may find.  I swear, I just don’t have the same luck as some of the other gals out there in Blogland but one day this candelabra caught my eye and I KNEW it had to come home with me!

Can't you just SEEEEEEE all of it's potential?  It definitely needed a little loving to get that yucky green crud off...

So I set to work with some sandpaper, primed it and grabbed some black spray paint and when all I was said and done......

Beautiful, right??  It looked great as part of the decor for my mom's surprise birthday party at the beginning of August don't ya think?

I think it is going to look even better when it is dressed up for Halloween and my upcoming Broomsticks, Bitches and Brew Ball (aka the Witch's Ball) that I host each year with my BFF!  Can't wait!

I just love looking at it...kind of reminds me of Disney's Haunted Mansion ;)

This past weekend I stumbled across another thrift store closer to home...totally can't wait to get out there and check it out!