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Hey, Besties, it's nearly officially Autumn!

Time to start cozying the house up and layering the seasonal touches

that let you slide from September through Halloween

and right into Thanksgiving Home Base.

I'm trying to get my Fall on in between camping at the condo,

and yesterday, I scored.

Does your family wash their hands like OCD is rampant?

Around here, we call it CDO...I like the letters in the right order.

And actually, we do have one actual official case of OCD.

I'm talking to you, THOM.

 So since we go through gallons of hand soap,

I'm always on the lookout for inexpensive supplies of foamy stuff.

 I was at Walmart yesterday stocking our larder,

and look what I stumbled across!

No, not the Feline Overlord.

Smidgeon is just our spokeskitten for this post.

 These adorable plastic soap dispensers are reusable

and filled with Pumpkin Harvest scent soap.
It's like spicy pumpkin pie in a pump!

 The smell is delicious.

 If pumpkins aren't your thing, they also have a maple leaf shape

and a spooky little white ghost.

Best of all?

They're $2!

With the soap!

These will be reappearing in my house year after year.

The Fast and the Furiless

 The day I hung the shelves and hooks in my room, I envisioned order.

Scarves, belts and purses were going to hang in harmony.

The truth of the matter was more like...

 THIS.

 The jumble became astounding.

 Instead of the easy system I'd envisioned, I had layers of accessories that frequently

avalanched to the floor while I was trying to get ready.

 That lead to more work, not less. Time was being wasted, not saved.

 Not. Cool.

 One quick fix coming up!

A ladder provides vertical storage.

This wants to be a ladder when it grows up.

It's actually the back of a curbside daybed.

Always try to look at possibilities, not the piece itself.

IKEA sells S hooks for a couple dollars a package.

 Put the two together and...

 ...I can find my stuff now!

 Every bag is now in plain sight right at my fingertips so I can waltz out coordinated in minutes.

 I have a few other horrors to untangle in my room.

When it looks like this, I'll stop.

Dream bedroom by IKEA at my local showroom.

Gotta love inspiration rooms you can actually load into the car.

Heavy Metal Makeover

 When you find raw ingredients for a project, sometimes you have a vision,

 and sometimes you don't

 I had a few possibilities in mind when I loaded this package of

 31 leaves in my cart at Joanns.

None of them included leaving them as is.

 On a recent trip to Z Gallerie I saw this little pumpkin...

...and these.

The medium 5.5 inch pumpkin will run you $29.95.

EXCUSE ME???

The 7 inch beaded pumpkin is a relative bargain at $19.00.

My wallet flashed before my eyes.

No, no, put that twenty away; we've got this.

Grab several leaves and put them in a shallow box face up out in the workshop.

 (Cue the angels)

My twist on traditional Fall colors is going to include a lot of metallics and shine

so we're gonna start with some Rustoleum Bright Copper..

 Give the leaves a little dusting of color.

 We're NOT going for full coverage here, just a sheen.

This dries fast, like within minutes,

 Reposition and respray as necessary.

I wanted some of the original russets and orange to show through.

 Now we'll take these cheap, tawdry pumpkins...

 The color is overkill, but the size, shape, and price are perfection.

Little orange foam diamonds in the rough.

 One coat on the bottom...

 ...flip them over, and add a coat of copper on the top.

The lighting out here is just awful, though, so let's head inside.

 Yeah, that's better.

Are we starting to see a little Z?

 These cards with SIX Autumn hues of glitter are from The Dollar Tree.

Could this BE any more conveniently coordinated?

Each little packet will do two or three pumpkins.

Pick one.

 Take a small artist's brush and stroke a little decoupage medium on the grooves.

Work in sections so the glue will remain wet.

 Sprinkle the glitter over it, tapping off the excess.

This heavy gauge wire is from Joanns, and it comes in tons of colors.

I went with a bronze for this project.

 Snip about 12 inches and wind it into a coil around a pencil or pen,

leaving 2 or 3 inches straight.

 Poke it right into the pumpkin.

Stab it.

Laugh maniacally.

Glance around to see if anyone caught you.

If there's a family member backing slowly and warily away, you're in the right frame of mind.

Maybe throw some Ozzie on the stereo for effect.

 Now choose a couple of victims leaves,

making them different sizes for realism.

Yeah, right.

We aren't going for a natural look, are we?

 Put a generous glop of hot glue near the stem.

 Press the leaf into the glue, listening to the sound of your fingerprints sizzling off.

 Repeat with the other leaf, overlapping them slightly.

Stand back and gloat.

Feel free to laugh like a fiend again.

 A little hot, steamy before on after action.

Can you picture these luxe little gourds in your decor now?

Parked in a soup bowl on your holiday table?

And they ring up under $2...

that beats $19 or $30 ANY. DAY.

I also have silver and gold paint, by the way.

And 16 pumpkins.

If you'll excuse me, I have paint fumes to huff.

Wow, that explains the laughing, huh?

Family Tradition

 You know me.

I'm just a little bit South of Normal.

 I like weird things.

(Chimp candelabra from Z Gallerie, $9.98)

 And the holidays?

Forget about it.

My taste in decor is a departure from tradition.

More like a divorce.

I prefer to festoon with aquas and green, which doesn't interrupt my usual style one iota.

 Lately though, there has been a disturbance in The Force.

My usual whacky ideas have come under scrutiny and question,

and there has been an objection from the peanut gallery.

SOMEONE wants some orange and brown in her Autumn.

Who, you might ask, is disrupting my style so radically?

Ironically, the only person in the house smaller than me...

HER.

My mother is a china teacup of a person with Pfaltzgraff, pewter,

a champion show dog, and brocade furniture.

She needlepoints for fun.

She's a Master Gardener.

She's a tropical fish hobbyist.

She owns a Victorian home.

She's a stereotypical, church-going, gravy-is-a-beverage, 

sushi-might-be-good-if-you-cooked-it Southern lady.

 She's really confused by me.

 After 2 years of hearing, "Pumpkins are not blue, Dear.", we're going

to buckle under the pressure change our artistic direction slightly 

and go a little more with the flow.

The monkey stays though.

First, we'll start with a short runner.

I like a runner that doesn't need to be removed when you set the table.

 This one is easy:

Take 1 yard of fabric and fold it in half with the right sides facing.

Fold each end into a point and trim off the excess.

Stitch all the way around, leaving a six inch opening.

Turn right side out; stitch the opening closed, and you have an anchor for your centerpiece.

Got a yard in your stash?

 Grab the gourds and pumpkins I know you ran right out to The Dollar Tree and bought.

These go together in seconds.

 Give Dollar Tree mini hurricanes a little presence.

Denim blue pillars draw in the usual colors in the house.

Twisting a little Fall jeweled garland into custom candle collars

get them noticed.

We'll add that blinged up hurricane and

the cake plate we made to add some height,

but not so much that I can't see my hubby's handsome face down the table.

I like LOTS of candlelight with dinner...

 So medium size hurricanes with their own blue tint will help me with that.

 Add some white glazed pinecone salt and pepper shakers,

and this could stay put until Thanksgiving.

 The lacy pumpkins reflect the light and let it peek through.

How much glitter can I use before I'm tacky?

I'm sure I'll cross the line one day.

 For now, I think it works.

 I love the light, the sparkle, and how easily it came together

 And maybe traditional isn't the worst thing in the world...

 But then, around here...

...traditional is a little different.

We'll see you tomorrow. 

I have to put these Murano pumpkins somewhere safe from the cats.