terra cotta Christmas: clay pot trees

it's tiiiiiime! (channeling Mariah Carey there...)

there's no waiting any longer to start sharing holiday decor content!

my muses love to yank my chain....

i HAD a plan for holiday content this year on the blog. yes i did.

and then... 

surfing through IG one night when i couldn't sleep,

a photo shared by one of my former employers and clients
came across my screen - and wouldn't you know it,

that one photo inspired a whole NEW idea and theme.  

this is the photo posted by Molbak's Garden Center near Seattle

to promote one of the themes of their holiday products this year.
(i used to be on the visual merchandising design team there,
and love keeping up with what they are doing now - it's amazing!)

those are turned wood trees on the mantel.

but that's not how i interpreted it... 

instead, i saw a forest of terra cotta trees made from pots!

that one photo inspired me to create decor
that was subdued, simple, natural, and elegant -

along the lines of something from Pottery Barn, Terrain, West Elm.

in the process, i've come up with different ways to use terra cotta pots
to embody a new theme for the holidays this year...

(and there's not a BIT of yellow in it! ;) ) 

...continue reading to see three styles of terra cotta trees!

diy tomato cage 'cornucopia' door + wall decor

are you one of the few people in the world

who is looking for some Thanksgiving decor?

who hasn't moved on to decorate for Christmas already?! 

i'm one of you - and my next few posts will center on this holiday that i really love!

last November i shared my tutorial for making a cornucopia

using a wire tomato cage and some burlap.

this year, it's been elevated from the tabletop

to hang on the door as a gorgeous 'wreath'
or as welcoming 'wall art' anywhere in your home.

continue reading for all the details (and a link to my previous tutorial)

painted 'chocolate' pumpkins on a sweet sweater cake

a fitting conclusion to my recent faux food project posts,

this one really takes the cake....

this project came about because i had some tiny styro pumpkins,
which made me start thinking about making a very REAL cake

like my Mom used to make every fall when i was a kid.

it was always a round two-layer chocolate cake with chocolate icing

and adorned with tiny orange candy pumpkins all along the top edge.

i loved that cake.

we took them to school fall celebrations and church harvest festivals.

we took mini versions - cupcakes - to friend's houses.

we never brought any of it home, either!!! everyone loved it.

instead, i decided to make a fall 'cake' in my own style...

because deb does NOT need more calories!

continue reading for the before and after...

fall glamping with Miss Dot!

i'm at a vintage trailer rally at the beach this week,

so i thought i'd share photos of the 'glamping' decor that i created

for Miss Dot at a past rally (2021)...

you've seen a tropical decor theme (from 2022) in a recent post,

now here's a look at how switching out decor elements and a new color addition

creates a whole new vibe - this one's beachy!

(the rally is held in Newport Beach, CA and always has a 'surf' theme)

planning the decor theme for each glamping excursion

reminds me so much of how i played in my grandpa's Shasta trailer as a kid,

spending hours in their backyard decorating and dreaming...

continue reading to see how my yellow obsession extended to our Shasta trailer...

repurposed crochet hat pumpkin

i'm a hat girl. always have been. i love wearing them
and have a pretty big collection of hats for every season.
i have thick straight hair and on the many days when it won't cooperate,
i just pop a ballcap or sunhat or cloche on my head and fuhgeddaboutit.

the only hats i don't like on my head are beanies. my forehead's too big.
but when i found THIS beanie, i fell in love with it and had to buy it...

because the moment i saw it, i KNEW it had to become a pumpkin!
here i am using things in ways they weren't intended to be used again LOL

continue reading for my tutorial (which is much like my sweet sweater pumpkin tute)...

a NEW LOOK for my Original Sweet Sweater Pumpkins!

september is here, and you know what THAT means...
it's time for sweater weather AND sweater pumpkins!!!

i've been making + selling my Original Sweet Sweater Pumpkins TM since 2007,

and while i haven't sold any since i had my little hwf shop in 2017,

i occasionally still make new versions!

in 2021 i made a batch of new yellow 'sweeties' for myself, 

and this year after creating a huge new multicolor batch for my daughter Bethany,

i've made a revision to the way i finish them...

continue reading for a quick addition to my original tutorial...

NEW: beach towel pumpkins!

as August comes to a close in the weirdest way possible

(a hurricane in Southern California? AND an earthquake? okay....)

i am still stretching 'summer' to the very last moment

with this new original pumpkin design...

dare i say 'it's time for beach blanket bingo'??!!

i've noodled the idea of creating pumpkins using colorful beach towels for awhile... 

first i tried to make them the same way i do my famous sweater pumpkins

but towels just don't *squish* like sweaters do - even thin ones.

 i tried a kind of 'gathered' approach - nope. still too bulky.

then one day i was scrolling Instagram,

and right there in front of me was a fantastical, incredible, creative,

 ORIGINAL and colorful new form of art that just blew my mind -

AND solved my pumpkin problem!

continue reading to see what i saw, and how i translated that into pumpkins!

TROPI-fall decor in our Shasta trailer!

before i start sharing NEW pumpkin & fall decor ideas,
i wanted to time-travel back to last September and show you
my 'TROPI-fall' pumpkins in a different kind of setting!

though i don't share many photos of our home here on the blog,
all of our rooms and decor have a tropical vibe.
since we are unable to travel to Hawai'i now, we 'live Aloha' here at home.

as summer wanes and autumn approaches, 
i bridge the seasons with pumpkins that i create in beachy, tropical styles...
faux painted bamboo and sand, coconut tiki mugs with stems, and more.

so would it surprise you to learn that i ALSO use tropical decor
in our Shasta camping trailer, Miss Dot?!!!

i 'shop the house' for decor elements that fit the season or theme
of the campout we're going to
(we are members of three different trailer groups),
put them into a storage bin, load it up, and then
have as much fun decorating Miss Dot as i do decorating our home...

continue reading to see how Miss Dot looks with TROPI-fall decor!

fall favorites: ALL of the pumpkins!

well, here we are in August already...
a month that i always think of as 'summer's golden hour'.
and fall is just around the corner. 
i LOVE summertime and am always sad to see the season go,
and usually i keep creating + sharing 'summer' content this month...

but i know everyone out there is ready for fall and all that comes with it.
and that means PUMPKINS!!!!

have you heard the voice clip on Instagram that goes 
"Do *I* like pumpkins??? Yeah. Yeah, I like pumpkins!!!!"
not only does it describe me, but the voice actually SOUNDS like me!
(it isn't me, but it's a bit eerie hearing it all over social media every fall!)
so yeah, i like pumpkins. i've collected them all of my life,
and i REALLY i like making pumpkins
out of just about any element + material i can find...

from painted tin cans to silvery trays, rusty metal junk, and copper kitchen scrubbies
to sweaters and yarn and lace and macrame' and even balloons,
from faux painted concrete, terra cotta, kintsugi, and Pyrex + china patterns,
to ping pong paddles, plant pots, wire waste baskets, picture frames, books, and paper,
i've made DOZENS of pumpkins over the past three decades...
and i'm sharing a link to ALLLLL of them!

click to see every pumpkin i've ever created!

i hope these projects inspire you to try a few new DIY pumpkin projects this fall!

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thrifted knit beanie mushrooms

you've heard of March Madness, yes? 

i may be pushing that description by embarking on my own twist:

March Mushroom Madness!

i've had some new 'shroom ideas rolling around in my noggin' for awhile now,

and i decided that since March is my birthday month,

i can do whatever i want. so mushrooms it is!

yep, all month long, you'll see the things that have been growing

in my super-charged imagination. 

(hold on tight, and keep your hands and arms inside the vehicle at all times!)

up first, my easy-peasy tutorial for making these happy mushrooms

using thrifted knit beanies and cheap ceramic vases!

continue reading for all of the details!

my FAVE winter decor projects

all of the Christmas decor is packed up, and i've been thinking about winter decorating
and all of the many ways i've 'warmed up' my homes every winter over the years...
 some of those projects have been successful several times in more than one home

as i re-create them in new versions + colorways.

over the past ten years of blogging here at homeward found decor,

i've shared hundreds of my original diy home decor projects

in 733 posts since i launched this blog in August 2012.

if you've been reading my blog for the past decade, THANK YOU FRIENDS!

if you're new here, i hope you enjoy discovering some of my past creations

as i share a look back... 

continue reading for some of my FAVE winter decor projects!

pumpkins + mushrooms = 'shroomkins!

last spring, when i created my new Original Sweet Sweater 'Shrooms,

i ALSO had the idea for this project. i just ran outta' time to make them!
 and forgive me, but i gotta' be honest
and say that they are one of my FAVORITE creations ever!

since mushrooms are still having a moment,

and pumpkins are my JAM, i combined the two

to create these whimsical fall decor pieces

that i'm calling " 'shroomkins"

continue reading to learn how to make these -

from cheap styrofoam pumpkins and a pool noodle!

hello, september!

september has arrived,

with nary a fall temperature in sight here in So Cal...

it's 106 here today, and was 113 in Palm Springs yesterday. :P

but i'm attempting to accept the inevitable arrival of 'pumpkin season'!

while i'm finishing up some NEW and original pumpkin decor ideas

and prepping those blog posts to begin (next week!), 

i thought i'd post here to link up ALLLLLLL of my past pumpkins.

and that's a lot of squash, my friends.

i've used a variety of materials (recycled, repurposed, thrifted, and found)

over the past few decades to decorate my own home

and have shared many of those ideas with you here on the blog for the past TEN YEARS!

click HERE to see all of my pumpkin posts!

... and watch for NEW posts starting next week!

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DIY boho pumpkin decor tutorials

boho style is still going strong in decor trends,
so i thought i'd share three currently popular boho tutorials here on the blog:

Faux Terra Cotta Painted Pumpkins
Lace Pumpkins  .  Lace/Doily - Embellished Pumpkins

continue reading for links to these budget-friendly tutorials - and more!

Deb's top three pumpkin tutorials

it's still summertime,
but i know many of you are looking for diy ideas for your fall decor, so....

here are my three top pumpkin tutorials:

Sweet Sweater Pumpkins
Faux Concrete Painted Pumpkins
Glass Globe Pumpkins

continue reading for links to these budget-friendly tutorials - and more!

wire lampshade mobile

you've all read my statements that 'i see things differently'
and 'i never really use things the way they were intended to be used!', right?
i'm very into 'use what you have' decorating & crafting using 'everyday' elements.

one day in 2020 when i was bored outta' my skull here at home,
i looked at a stack of wire lampshades and wire domes in the corner of my studio,
 and just played around to see what i could DO with them.
they ended up as a giant kinetic sculpture / mobile hanging from my studio ceiling.
and i shared that version here on the blog.

since then, i've changed it up a bit, and added a new element that makes me smile.
wanna' see?

...continue reading for wire lampshade mobile part 2!

sweater-wrapped vases

on a cold rainy fall day waaaaaay back in 2007,

i visited designer Danny Seo's blog...

and when i saw a photograph of something Danny had created, i was smitten.

the guy took old sweater sleeves and put them on clear glass vases!

i jumped up and grabbed an ivory cashmere sweater of mine

that had recently become to small for me to wear.

(i did not become too big to wear the sweater - that's my story and i'm stickin' to it!)

i cut the sleeves off of the sweater, popped them into some clear vases

then added candles and bare branches to them...

the result was a cozy grouping that warmed up my dining table.

(when i added some small pumpkins to the grouping and looked at them side by side,

 i thought up the very first Original Sweet Sweater Pumpkins!)

i've made a few different versions of sweater-wrapped vases over the years,

and this year i had fun combining a few ideas.

continue reading to see how vases and ornaments and sweaters are a perfect match...

Thanksgiving tablescape

for my Thanksgiving table decor this year,

i've rounded up most of the newest pumpkins i created

along with my new Sweet Sweater 'Shrooms and scrap paper leaves.

together, they created a table with a warm golden glow that is perfect for fall

and i didn't have to buy a thing. LOVE that.

ps: at the end of this post, i've linked ALL of my Thanksgiving tablescape ideas

that you've seen here on the blog since i began in 2012!

continue reading to see the easy details...

NEW! Sweet Sweater 'Shrooms!

happy November, friends!
no, i am not done with fall yet!
there are so many beautiful things in nature in fall that inspire me...
and when i saw mushrooms of all types and materials going crazy online,

 i came up with my newest Sweet Sweater creation:

 Sweet Sweater 'Shrooms!

these are a fast, fun, easy craft / diy decor project perfect for fall and Thanksgiving
that i had a lot of fun making - i hope you will, too!

continue reading for my newest no-sew sweater decor tutorial...

harvest moon shadow box

miniatures are all the rage right now...

from dollhouses and tiny 'rooms' that sit on bookshelves

to tiny spaces behind walls and accessed by little 'fairy doors', 

it's a trend that engages our childlike imagination.

i was inspired by that to create a sort of miniature setting,

and chose to use a shadowbox frame as the structure for it.

a simple project that took very little time to assemble,

it makes use of items i have used in past projects...

and i hope it will inspire you to try something similar!

continue reading to see how it all came together...