.jpeg "Original Sweet Sweater Spookies TM Ghost Tutorial")
.jpeg "Book Page Pumpkin + Paper Bag Stems Tutorial")
Continuing with my bookish inspiration this autumn, I made two pumpkins using paperback books...
I know making things using folded books & magazines is a craft that has been around for a long time - my Mom was making angels, trees, and Santas using magazines back in the 60's, and she and I made a few for our holiday decor back in 2016. They are an easy and cheap way to make pumpkins, too, and with the plethora of books in my garage, I figured I'd revisit the past a bit - simply because it fits my current theme!
You'll find a basic 'book pumpkin' tutorial AND a quick paper bag pumpkin stem tutorial in this post. Continue reading for more...
.jpeg "Peat Pot Pumpkins Stems on Glass Globe Pumpkins TM")
I was cleaning out my gardening tools storage area, and came across a stack of small peat pots / seed starter pots in a bucket. The bottom pot was a bit damp, and when I picked it up, I accidentally squished it - and an idea hit me!
With a little bit more water and some experimentation, I turned those peat pots into stems for various pumpkins - it's a little bit like working with paper clay or papier mache'.
Continue reading for my easy tutorial...
.jpeg "Book Page Leaf Wreath Tutorial")
.jpeg "'book pumpkins' tutorial")
Before I continue into this project's tutorial, I have a question for my fellow creatives: Have you ever been 100% certain that you did something, and that there is photographic evidence of that something, and you can actually SEE it in your mind - but can not find ANY of the photos, or the blog post you swear you published, to prove it????
As I was posting my last project, a previous one came to mind and I intended to link it as 'Related Content'... but I can't find it. I am absolutely certain that I created this before, and posted it here on my blog and on Pinterest and my facebook page, while I was in my 'Yellow Era'.
I can't find ANY evidence of it. I've searched my computer files, my facebook files, my Pinterest boards, my blog posts (even drafts that never published). ZipZeroNadaNuthin'.
Guys, I have a photographic memory. It is stunning even to me how my brain works visually, and this conundrum has me spinning in circles because I know what I know. I made this same exact project using yellow books, and photographed it on my faux mantel. And yet I can find no tangible evidence of that...
So I am doing what any somewhat sane but confused creative person would do: I'm making the thing that I thought I had already made. I'm taking photos of the thing, and I'm sharing them here on the blog. (And what do you want to bet that at some point in the not too distant future, those 'lost' photos and blog post are gonna' show up out of nowhere?? I'd bet money on it.*)
Continue reading for one of the easiest tutorials you'll ever see from me....
..jpeg "SPRING terra cotta pot garden totems tutorial")
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This isn't a secret: Deb becomes obsessed with POTS in springtime! I've waxed poetic about my collections here, they are the very first thing I look for at thrift stores and yard sales, and you'll find projects using terra cotta pots for every season of the year here on the blog.
I recently saw an idea on Pinterest and thought I'd give it a try... using plain old terra cotta plant pots to create 'garden totems'. It's a simple project that works as art AND a way to store unused pots in style:
This style is made with all the same size pots. Mine use varied sizes because that's what I have on hand - and that's my favorite way to decorate.
Follow along as I show you just how easy this one is...
.jpeg "Crepe Paper Spring Leaves Tutorial")
..jpeg "Tutorial: Make A Portable Potting Table Made with a Vintage Ironing Board")
.I found a vintage wood ironing board really cheap about a year ago at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in my area. I happily forked over FIVE DOLLARS for it and hauled it home, knowing that I would come up with a plan for it eventually.
Even before I had a plan for how I would USE it, I knew how I wanted to spiff it up: Paint, of course... so I painted it. Last year. Since then, it's been folded up and leaning against the wall in my studio, only pressed into service - pun intended! - when I set it up to help store the elements of last year's holiday projects while I was photographing them.
I recently began working on our backyard, doing all of the spring cleaning and prep for new plants - and that's when I decided that it would work splendidly as a portable potting table! And it couldn't have been easier...
.jpeg "Easy Yarn Nest Tutorial")
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.jpeg "Mid Mod Holiday embellished stockings + personalized gift wrap tutorial")
.jpeg "Mid-Mod Style Paper Chain Decor Tutorial")
I'm not really a 'trend' girl, but when something grabs the collective attention, I notice it.
Like the release of Taylor Swift's 'Life of a Showgirl' album, which hatched four fun sparkly pumpkins for my fall blog series. The deep-hued color palette and classic elements included in the 'new' holiday look dubbed 'Ralph Lauren Christmas' is just a new name, not a new style. And the recent selection of a white hue for the color of the year 2026 and the responses to it are most certainly trending right now - and oh, I DO have thoughts, but I'll keep those over on Instagram to spare you from my disappointment.
There IS one current trend that I can get on board with...
As a creator of seasonal decor using primarily re-purposed, re-used, and sustainable materials, the fervor over paper chains this season is giving me LIFE!
I love seeing all of the ways that people everywhere are creating them and using them in their holiday decor - and many have expressed that they'll be keeping them up well after the new year, too. I'm all in on that idea! (And I may just make MORE to add to my studio!)
I whipped up two different 'chains' that fit my current Mid-Mod inspired theme, just for my own enjoyment... but once I hung them on my studio wall, I decided to include a blog post about them. It's not like you need a tutorial to tell you how to make them - most of us have been doing that since kindergarten. I just thought I'd remind you that you can use just about anything to create them - including vinyl placemats!
The inspiration from mid-century modern style comes from my memories, as well as documented trends and styles from that period. So incorporating a childhood (mine was in the mid-sixties through the 70's) craft in this holiday series just feels right... and I even included a special little touch that my Mom used to add to my paper chains way back when!
Continue reading for all the details...
.jpg "Mid-Mod Tiered Tree Tutorial")
I have had a lot of fun (and a few mishaps!) creating these trees to share.
The tiered trees are made of wood, and are a recurring element in my holiday decor - showing up with new paint colors, new coverings, and new trim for the past FIVE years! (I've linked them all below the post)
You all know I love to re-use elements, as well as to find ways to use things differently than intended... like vinyl placemats, for example!
As soon as I began cutting shapes out of the vinyl placemats, I thought of making these. Three of the trees have circles of vinyl covering them, and the fourth tree is a skinny styrofoam tree that I gave a makeover to in 2020. This year, it has a new 'coat' of leaves cut from the placemats... and it's my favorite of all four!
Let's get busy creating!
.jpg "Mid-Mod Holiday Ornament Tutorials")
.jpg "vinyl placemat from Dollar Tree")