Savoring Fall... Living In The Moment...

A little late posting, but this is my favorite time of year... and I want to savor it!  Let's not talk about Christmas yet... There are plenty of things to enjoy now.
So, I am pushing the pause button... and Savoring Fall...

I love it when the leaves change color... they're beauty always captures my heart... I also get excited to wear tights and boots... Silly...  I know...

Going to the Pumpkin Patch... An annual tradition...

Fall decorations... I was lazy this year, and reused my wreath from last year.  Except for the corn... I made it from yard clippings(to change it up I added the leaves this year)...

 I love decorating with nature...  gathering up treasures found on walks around the neighborhood... I can always find them a good home...

I also made a few of these paperback pumpkins... super easy... you can find tutorials for them all over Pinterest...

Together with my found items... they made the perfect center piece for my table.

Making Halloween costumes... always a good time...

This year my son wanted to be Steve... a character from the game Minecraft...

My daughter took it easy on me and went as Super Girl...

We always enjoy carving pumpkins, and roasting the seeds... My sons reached a whole new level of scary this year...

Trick or Treating...  We tried out a new neighborhood this year, and enjoyed how festively the houses were decorated...

And to top it off... The first Eggnog latte of the season...

Happy Fall!

***Jennifer

Fall Has Arrived On My Door Step...

It's here! It's here...  Fall has finally arrived to my neck of the woods!  I love the crisp sunny days, the vibrant colors of the changing leaves, and eggnog lattes!  Every year we visit a local farm to pick out pumpkins and gourds to decorate with...  We have a blast going on the hay ride...

Visiting the pumpkin patch...

 And going through the Corn Maze...

 I also bought some dried corn to add to my wreath...

To make this wreath... I started with the grape vine wreath I made last year...

 To this I added clipping from the yard...  I used the dead stalks from Lambs Ear, Thistles, and  Hawthorn branches...

 I wove these into the wreath... twisting the ends together as I went around...

In the Fall the kids and I also love to pull on our boots... and go foraging in the neighborhood...  They get such a kick out of displaying our finds on the dinning room table.  So far we have pods from some trees, acorns, and pine cones...  We also love to gather leaves, and press them between magazine pages...

On one of our walks I found this branch laying across the sidewalk... I of course brought it home and hung it in my window...

 I love all of the moss and lichen clinging to it... and couldn't resist adding a couple of birds...

Such fun!  I hope you are enjoying the change of seasons... are inspired to show your Fall colors... and warming up with an eggnog latte.  Cheers!

***Jennifer

Putting some Fall in my wordrobe...

My favorite part of the week is Friday... this is the day that I can unwind, enjoy a cup of coffee, and search for treasures...



This week I found a vintage velvet jacket... just in time for Fall...





I paid a whopping $6 for it... who says fashion has to be expensive?

   

The only thing I didn't like were the buttons... 

So I switched them out with some black vintage glass buttons...

Makeover complete... sometimes it's the little things that make a big difference!

***The second piece for Fall that I put in my wardrobe was a sweater vest...

I am in love with this seasons trend... layering lacy slips with sweaters...

I started with this vintage 70's pattern... 

 



I had just enough of this vintage sweater knit to cut out for the front...





But, I had to use this plain red sweater knit for the back...




  

To give more detail to the belt, I layered lace over green seam tape(on top of the red belt pieces) and then zigzag stitched it down... encasing the green tape down the middle...

 

After it was completed, I felt the belt was to bulky to tie... so I improvised a bow closure instead...

Snaps ensure it stays put...

 

I could not wait to wear this with my vintage slip(Grandma's)... paired with my beloved rain boots made it a fun and functional outfit... Love the mix of frilly and rugged... I've been known to be described as eclectic, but I don't mind if that means I get to have fun with my clothes... 

So, I challenge you to take look at your wardrobe this week... bring out those long forgotten slips, and layer them with sweaters...coats.. or over sized shirts.  Have a jacket or dress you never wear?  Try changing out the buttons, for a completely new look... I try every season to inventory what I have... sometimes it just takes seeing it in a different light, to make it new again...

Getting in the mood for Fall...

With the air being crisper, and  the days getting shorter... I'm am in the mood for Fall!  The Hawthorn berries are ready, so even though the leaves haven't changed into their Fall colors yet... I'm going to start decorating!  Everything that I used decorated my house with this week cost me nothing... I used only items that I already had, or gathered them from the yard...

 ***My inspiration this week was the Hawthorn berries...

And since I haven't been able to collect leaves yet I decided to make my own out of newspaper...

The first thing I wanted to do was make a wreath (we grow Kiwi and grapes so I have plenty of vine)... 

Stripped of all their leaves, I started with a vine and made it into a circle the size I wanted... then just added and twisted the vines around until  I got the shape I wanted...  This could be done with young branches also, (I've done this with pussy willows, willow trees, alder, poplar, etc.) they just need to be able to bend a little.  Please keep in mind that when the vine/branched are cut, they need to be used right away... once they dry out they will break if you try to bend them... 

 Now I am ready to add some color...

First some of the Hawthorn branches were added... because they were fresh cuttings, I was able to bend and weave the ends in (don't fret if want you want to add doesn't bend... at this point since we have our
shape structured with a wreath you can use wire/string to keep items in place)

Next I needed to cut out my leaves... Picking a leaf from the yard, I then traced it onto newspaper.  Cutting out a few at time got the job done quickly...

Then I added the paper leaves to my wreath... I used tape to keep them in place...

I really like the contrast of the paper mixed in with berries and leaves of the Hawthorn...

My front door is ready for Fall...

Now to bring Fall inside...
Here are some other ways I used to decorate with the Hawthorn and newspaper leaves...

Taped together,  the newspaper leaves made a quick and simple garland...

Here's how it looked draped in the window...

Its final resting place was on the mantel...

I also gave the garland a little twist as I hung it, giving it a little more texture...

I spread leaves down the dinning room table...

And mixed them in with mis-match candle holders...

The leaves also looked cute wind swept across the window...

I used the leftover Hawthorn branches, and suck them in mason jars... adding some of the newspaper leaves to complete the look...

I love this kind of floral arrangement, because no water is required... yes the berries will dry up, but they still look lovely... 

It's been fun sharing with you what I've been doing this week... Hopefully you will be inspired to look out your window and get in the mood for Fall... It's could be as easy as changing out your place mats on the table, or cutting some branches and sticking them in a jar/vase/pitcher to adorn your table/coffee table/entry way...  I'm in the mood for Fall now... are you?