Summer is unofficially over now that the Labor Day holiday has come and gone. But before the heat waves even began to dissipate, Fall started creeping upon us as pumpkins, scarecrows, colorful leaves, and even skeletons for Halloween showed up on the shelves of craft stores everywhere! 

I usually welcome Fall and cooler temps with open arms, but this year I wasn't ready for Summer to end. The end meant the beginning of my step-daughter's first semester at college, the start of her freshmen year! It was tough for all of us, we cried and cried some more. That was about four weeks ago, and though we still miss her being here we're all starting to get back into the grove of things. 

Now that all the hustle and bustle has settled a bit I figured it was time to get back to my little blog here! 

I love this quote, everything changes in the Fall and life seems to start all over again. The quote is from The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. 

Who doesn't love a good hashtag?! I was considering this one or #PumpkinSpiceEverything! 

Looking for more Fall Things? Check out a few of my favorite fall posts...

Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cookies

Fall Favorites

Pumpkin Craft Night 

Have you picked up a Pumpkin Spice Latte yet, or gone shopping for Fall decor? What do you love most about this season? 

In remembrance of tomorrow...

DIY Spider Web Frame & Painted Pumpkin Craft Night

Happy Halloween Week! I'm so excited to share with you today the photos and craft ideas from the painted pumpkin craft night I hosted two weeks ago. To decorate our pumpkins we used items from the Plaid® Crafts box of Mod Podge goodies I received in the mail including glow in the dark Mod Podge, Folk Art paint, mod molds and mod melts. We used scrapbook paper and glitter as well (tons of glitter). I also put together a fun last minute Halloween decoration inspired by a post I saw on Michaels Stores Instagram page. 

Wicked DIY Spider Frame

Supplies Needed:

Picture Frame

White Yarn

Mod Podge Mod Melts

Mod Podge Mod Molds 

Paint {I used Folk Art Multi- Surface in Lime Green and Sequin Silver}

Hot Glue Gun

Scissors 

Paint Brush 

Spider Cut Out

An awesome daughter who is willing to help!

1. Remove the glass from your picture frame. Next paint the frame with the Folk Art multi-surface lime green paint and let dry. Then paint the multi-surface sequin silver on top and let it dry again. The box of goodies also included a silicone craft mat and was the perfect surface to use while painting my frame and using the hot glue gun to make the molds. It cleans up so easily, the paint wipes right up with a wet paper towel and the mold melts peel right off! 

2. Recruit a family member (my step-daughter helped me!) or friend to help you make the yarn spider web. Cut the yarn into long strands and start with the legs of the web, then the inner circles. 

3. Next I used my Cricut® machine and Doodlecharms™ cartridge to print out the spider. If you don't have a Cricut machine, search Google for a free spider printable. 

4. Using the Mod Podge mod melts, mod molds, and a glue gun make the fun skull character and spell out the word "EEK" to attach to your frame. 

5. Find a spot to hang your DIY spider web frame and get your Pumpkin Craft Night on! 

Painted Pumpkin Craft Night

I was finally content with the look of my decorated space and was ready to host the best painted pumpkin craft night ever! I set up the table the night before and pre-made a few mod molds including DIY skull push pins. 

DIY Skull Push Pin

Supplies Need: 

Mod Podge Mod Molds

Mod Podge Mold Melts

Mod Podge Silicone Craft Mat 

Hot Glue Gun

Push Pin

1. Plug in your hot glue gun and put your mod melt into the gun to heat up. I used orange and pink mod melts for our craft night, orange being the more popular color of the two. 

2. When your mod melt is ready to go fill in your skull mold starting at the center and working your way out. Make sure to fill in the entire mold. 

3. Once the mold is filled quickly place your push pin into the middle of the skull before it hardens. 

4. Use your glue gun to put a few more drops of the mod melt over the area of the push pin and let it cool/harden for about 10 minutes. {You can check the temperature by touching the bottom of the mod mold, if it's still warm to touch let it sit longer.}

5. Once it's cool enough, remove from mold and decide where you'd like to use it in your Halloween decor. Or make a few more to give as Halloween gifts in your office or to your teens! 

After painting my pumpkin with the Folk Art multi-surface lime green paint, I covered the stem with the Mod Podge and sprinkled on the glitter (tip: place a paper plate or folder under your pumpkin to gather the falling glitter and pour it back into the bottle to reuse). I let it dry overnight then added a top layer of Mod Podge to seal in the glitter so I wouldn't have glittery hands every time I picked it up! Then I topped it off with the skull push pin! 

We each had two pumpkins to decorate for the party and I was very excited about trying out this next technique... 

DIY Mod Podge Pumpkin

Supplies Needed: 

Glow in the Dark Mod Podge

Colorful Scrapbook Paper 

Paint Brush

Scissors

1. Cut strips of 12 x 12 scrapbook paper to the length of your pumpkin. {Tip: Make sure you have enough of the same pattern or color for your pumpkin, as you can see in the photo below I ran out of the butterflies and used a similar patter/color!}

2. Using the paint brush, generously brush the glow in the dark Mod Podge onto the bottom of the scrapbook paper strip and onto your pumpkin. 

3. Neatly place the paper strip on your pumpkin, smoothing out any creases. 

4. Once your pumpkin is covered with scrapbook paper, brush a top layer of Mod Podge over the entire pumpkin. Be sure to brush out any clumps, the Mod Podge dries clear but clumps of it will dry white. 

5. Next, brush your stem with Mod Podge and cover it in glitter. 

6. Once your pumpkin is completely dry hold a light up to it for a minute or so, then turn out all of the lights to enjoy not only a Mod Podge pumpkin but a DIY glow in the dark pumpkin as well! 

I love that I have two ways to enjoy my one pumpkin design. In the day time she's fancy and glittery pink, but at night when the lights go out she's a green glowing machine! 

Everyone had a wonderful time painting, using the Mod Podge, glitter, scrapbook paper, and mod melts for pumpkin craft night. I can't wait to do it all again next year! Who needs to carve a pumpkin when there is glow in the dark Mod Podge to enjoy?!

If you're still looking for Halloween or Day of the Dead decoration ideas, fun gift ideas, or other ways to craft with Mod Podge products check out these great videos, posts and Pinterest boards....

DIY Faux Sugar Skulls with Collage Clay by Mod Podge

3 DIY Decoden Cell Phone Cases with Mod Podge + Dollar Store Jewelry

Introducing Mod Podge Modeling Clay

Mod Melt Spider Webs

Plaid Decoden Pinterest Board

Plus don't forget to follow Plaid®  and the Plaid Palette Blog on social media {YouTube, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google+ } and sign up for their newsletter for even more creative ideas. 

I'm linking up with other bloggers who participated so be kind and show them some love. I'm also linking up for the Dream Create Inspire Party and the Show Me Saturday Party. 

I wrote this post as part of a paid campaign with Plaid and Blueprint Social, however all opinions on their awesome products are my own.

Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cookies

I bought a can of Pumpkin puree a month ago and had been searching high and low for the perfect recipe to use to make something special for my Pumpkin Craft Night. Did I want to make pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies, or something else? When it finally came time to make a treat for the craft night I wasn't up to making something with too many ingredients or steps. Luckily that's when I stumbled upon Desiree's three ingredient pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe on The 36th Avenue! 

Three ingredients, I can handle that...right?! Well, I actually used five ingredients, two are optional as you'll read below. Are you ready for these amazing, delicious, I want to eat the entire batch in one sitting, cookies?! 

I bet you are trying not to lick the computer screen right now, aren't you?! 

Pictured with the pumpkin spice chocolate chip cookies are the three main ingredients that Desiree mentioned on her recipe post. I included her one optional ingredient, brown sugar, but also added a few dashes of pumpkin pie spice to the batter as well. 

I figured the pumpkin pie spice would add a bit more pumpkin taste to the mix, plus I hadn't used it in a recipe yet and wanted to test it out! These cookies were so easy to make and would be a great recipe to introduce to your kids when they start to get interested in helping mom out in the kitchen. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 box of Spice Cake 
• 1 large can of Pumpkin Puree 
• 1 bag of chocolate chips 

Optional 

• Brown Sugar 
• Pumpkin Pie Spice 

Directions: 

• Preheat oven to 350°F
• Combine the spice cake mix (no eggs, water or oil needed) and pumpkin puree in a large mixing bowl.  
• Add a few dashes of pumpkin pie spice. 
• Mix in the chocolate chips 
• Using a table spoon place the batter on a cookie sheet. 
• Sprinkle brown sugar on top of each cookie. 
• Bake for 7 to 10 minutes depending on your particular oven.

The cookies are a bit softer than your average chocolate chip cookie, but should be firm. 

I hope you enjoy making and eating these cookies as much as I did. They were a big hit during the pumpkin craft night, which I will have more details and photos from on the blog tomorrow so stop back. 

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day! 

Fall and Halloween Decor Ideas

I've never been afraid of mixing different decor ideas for one party. Our wedding was a little bit Spring and a little bit Summer with yellow calla lilies, hydrangea and lemon centerpieces, and a beach themed cake! 

My pumpkin craft night is next week and I wanted to have fun with the same idea and mix fall and Halloween decor ideas together for the party.  The inspiration for my party decor started with this incredibly awesome spiderweb garland Jen of 100 Directions created for the Cricut Design Space Star Challenge.

{Source}

Jen made a downloadable SVG file of the spiderweb and since my boss Monica of East Coast Creative blog is part of the Cricut Design Space Star challenge as well, I already knew how to use the new Cricut Design Space. 

However, that's when I found out the hard way that my Cricut Expression is not compatible with the new technology that the new Cricut Explore machine uses. Therefore I was unable to download and use Jen's awesome spiderweb in the design space. 

So I went through the cartridges I had on hand and luckily I found a few fall images, like the pumpkin seen below, that I could work with.   

I have a lot of scrapbook paper in my craft collection and found the perfect colors for this project. 

Items Needed for DIY Pumpkin Garland: 

Cricut Cutting Machine

Cricut Mat

Cricut Cartridge: Stretch Your Imagination 

Scrapbook Paper

String, Ribbon, or Tape 

Hole Punch

Zots (glue dots)

Step 1: Lay your paper on the Cricut Mat and load it into the Cricut machine. Determine what size you would like your pumpkins, mine are 4'', then on the Cricut Expression machine you will hit the "blackout" button then the pumpkin symbol, and hit cut.

Step 2: Once you have enough pumpkins cut, I printed 24 of them, punch out a hole on the edge of each pumpkin. Next string them onto your ribbon. (Note: If you don't have a hole punch or ribbon you can just use glue to hang them up in a line like Jen did with her spiderweb garland, easy peasy!)

Step 3: You can leave it as is and tie the ends of the string so the pumpkins hang with space between them. Or if you want your garland to look like mine, use zots or craft glue to connect each pumpkin together. I overlapped mine so the hole from the punch wouldn't show. 

Step 4: Hang your garland and enjoy the beauty of your work! 

After I hung my garland I stood back and felt like I needed more decor on the wall (the garland came first then the owls and leaves!). I went back to my craft room/office and grabbed my Hoot 'n' Holler cartridge to look for an owl image to cut. 

I just couldn't host a fall party without a few owls on the wall! Look how cute this little owl family is. Why haven't I been using my Cricut machine more?! 

I now had the fall decor look I was going for, but still needed more Halloween decorations to go with the spooky signs I had. 

So I went back to look through my cartridges for a third time and couldn't believe the Halloween images I discovered on the Paper Doll Dress Up cartridge. There was a witch hat, a bat, a mummy and a skeleton, a ghost, and wait for it....a spiderweb! Can you believe that I found a spiderweb image right in my own cartridge collection, who knew it would be hiding among the paper dolls?!  

I used tape instead of stringing them together since the web was so delicate, a few of them actually ripped as I was trying to hang them up!

The paper doll cartridge was hiding these awesome skulls as well! 

Have you started decorating for Halloween yet? Or do you keep your October decor strictly fall themed? 

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day! 

Linking up with Sarah at Sarah Halstead for her new link party...

DIY Pumpkin Craft Night

Can you believe it will be October 1st tomorrow?! It may say September 30th on the calendar, but outside it feels like Summer again. Just when I was all set to wear jeans and a hoodie every day, the temp goes up to 77 degrees and I need to pull the shorts back out! 

Well, at least the leaves are still changing, because honestly that is my favorite thing about fall, well that and all things pumpkin! I don't have any amazing photos of this year's foliage just yet, so for now you'll have to enjoy these throwbacks from 2012! 

These were taken at a nearby lake that we love to visit and fish at. There is a beautiful walking/bike path that I have plans to visit in a few weeks. I'm just waiting for more coverage of the colors, right now they are pretty scattered. 

This year I'm excited to do more fall crafts, have you seen the DIY fall mason jars I painted? They turned out exactly the way I pictured, and that's pretty epic for me! Since I've been getting into a lot of crafts on my own (with the help of my handy guy), I thought it would be fun to put together a fall DIY pumpkin craft night with my local women's group. 

I explained that it will be no carve pumpkin craft night and sent them a few inspiration photos. Plus I have since found a few more fun ideas to try...

{source} 

I first shared these fun tribal pumpkins from Bliss at Home in my Fall Favorites round up post. I love the simplicity of this idea and the way it still makes a statement about your style and the current trends. Are you a tribal girl?

{source}

I can't decide whether it's the fun glittered stems or the pop of the color that I love more on these painted pumpkins from Aunt Peaches blog!  I just hope the ladies like glitter as much as I do!

{source}

I'm really looking forward to testing out this ombre look from Funkytime blog, now to decide on the colors!

{source}

I'm still a sucker for a pretty chevron print. I know some are over this trend, but to each their own, right? Plus, this print looks pretty cool on these pumpkins...am I wrong?! 

{source}

{source}

Whether it's newspaper, scrapbook paper, or stickers, you can use mod podge to help decorate your pumpkins with creative designs like the ones seen here. I love both of these ideas; while the top idea is more for Halloween, the botanical white pumpkins can dress up your home all season long! 

Our DIY pumpkin craft night is set for Tuesday Oct. 14, so you'll have to stop by on Oct. 15 to see how everyone did! Which pumpkin design is your favorite? 

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day! 

DIY Fall Mason Jar Decor

Happy first day of fall...y'all! The weather is breezy, the leaves are golden, and I'm rockin' my favorite hoodie, which means it's the perfect day to share my fall mason jar decor with you! 

If you don't have the Rhonna Designs photo app, you need to get it. After seeing an inspiring fall photo from Just a Girl on Instagram, I used the photo app to transform my own fall leaf photo into a masterpiece. Every time I look at it I have images of Thanksgiving dinner, colorful fall walking paths, Steelers football games, and tons of pumpkin recipe goodness dancing in my head! 

Fall is my favorite season to decorate for, I love the way the warm tones make our home feel so cozy and inviting. This year I created DIY fall mason jar decor that matches perfectly with the other items I already had stored in my closet from last year. I really enjoyed making these and may even put together a DIY mason jar craft night for my women's group for the holidays...what do you think ladies?! 

Last week I posted the DIY spray painted mason jars I made for my sisters and gave a little hint of how crazy I went with the gold! But, I'm not sure you were ready for how much gold you were going to see! 

My little craft crate was painted yellow a few weeks ago, but after I sprayed my mason jars gold I just couldn't stop and wanted more of this bold metallic color. Plus, the yellow didn't match my mason jars! My husband was getting a little worried and asked, "Are you going to spray everything in the house gold?!" Well, is there anything else that needs a makeover?! 

This adorable basket didn't need any gold, but the little mason jar did! When you're a Steelers fan and have black and gold spray paint handy, this is a must.

The mixture of colors I spray painted the jars looks great with my fall decor and with the zinnias that are still blooming in my garden. Now to create a set that matches my Christmas decor!

I can't believe all of my mason jars are now painted, it was just a few months ago that I posted craft ideas for them! I guess I'll have to restock, who wants to take a trip to the craft store?!

Have you started decorating for fall yet? I can't wait to pick up a few pumpkins to decorate, have you seen this DIY ombre pumpkin from Funkytime....

{source}

Thinking this is what we'll make for our little craft ladies' night in instead of the mason jars, hmm decisions, decisions?!

Thanks for stopping by today, have a great #firstdayoffall! 

Linking up with Marvelous Mommy and friends, and for the Weekend Retreat at Aka Designs! 

Fall Favorites: Food, Decor, and More!

Yesterday over on East Coast Creative, where I'm the blog assistant, Monica posted an amazing collection of modern and unique fall decor ideas. So, I thought I should probably finish up my fall post that I started to put together 2 weeks ago!
 I've seen so many amazing fall decor and recipe pins trending lately and wanted to make a list of my fall favorites to share with you. Have you started to pin ideas for fall yet?! 

East Coast Creative {Chicken Chili}, Tatertots and Jello {Fall Front Porch}, Bliss At Home {Tribal Pumpkins}, Whipperberry {Candy Corn Wreath}, This Girl's Life {Pumpkin Spiced Latte}, The 36th Avenue {DIY Pumpkin Jars}

1. Crockpot Chicken Chili...

I've been waiting for cooler weather to start the crock pot and make one of my favorite chicken recipes that I shared with you guys last year when I found it on East Coast Creative. It's so easy to make, and taste so good that you'll want to dive in for seconds and maybe even thirds! Stop by the EC2 blog for the complete recipe details. 

2. Fall Front Porch...

It doesn't take much to make a small space look festive for the holidays, you don't want to over do it but you don't want to skimp on the details either. These simple tips from Jen of Tatertots and Jello on how to create a beautiful fall front porch show you how to create just the right amount of character and charm by using more than just fall decor. My favorite ideas that help pull the look together for any season are the rug and seating area. Throw in some pumpkins and a festive wreath and you are good to go! I can't wait to decorate my front porch area for fall! 

3. Tribal Pumpkins...

This DIY pumpkin post from Bliss at Home may be from last year, however the tribal trend doesn't seem to be going away any time soon. I'd like to get a little more creative with pumpkins this year, there is more to them than just carving out a jack o' lantern! Kristin used white craft paint to create the arrows on her pumpkins, and well that's it! Fall decor can't get easier than that folks. 

4. Candy Corn Wreath...

I love the ombre effect on this candy corn wreath from Whipperberry, it's not your typical fall wreath but works so well the colors of the season. I used to be a big fan of candy corn, but I guess as I got older I realized that there is a world full of candy out there that tastes much better! I may no longer enjoy eating candy corn, but this wreath is pretty cool and looks fun to make. 

5. Pumpkin Spiced Latte....

Coffee house lattes can really pack on the calories and may include unnecessary ingredients. So what's a girl to do when she can't get enough of the pumpkin spiced latte during the fall and winter seasons? Well thanks to This Girl's Life blog, this girl (me!) can make a homemade version...yum! 

6. DIY Pumpkin Jars....

I am currently obsessed with painting mason jars, oh wait until you see the DIY project I'm going to share with you later this week! OK, back to these adorable pumpkin jars from The 36th Avenue, I mean they are just too cute! I would love to place these with my fall owls that sit on the bay window sill in my kitchen, especially that little fat jar in the front....oh my word! Make sure to stop by Desiree's post if you love painting mason jars too, she has some really great tips on how to perfect this craft! 

So, what are some of your fall favorites? Do you obsess over pumpkin recipes and fall decor as much as I do? 

If you're looking for more, here are a few fall recipes I made last year. I can't wait to make the pumpkin pancakes again! 

Thanks for stopping by, enjoy your day! 

What Fall Taste Like!

Who doesn't love the taste of Fall, if you don't well too bad because that's what my post is all about! Pumpkin flavor is everywhere, it started last year with pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin donuts, and pretty much pumpkin everything! So we thought we would jump on the bandwagon and make pumpkin cookies, they were okay but not the greatest. A few weeks ago I noticed we still had an unopened can of pumpkin puree sitting in the cabinet and I kept thinking, "How can I one up that cookie recipe!"

Last year I had pumpkin pancakes at an adorable country restaurant and have been dreaming of them ever since. So, I thought why not make some myself...with the help of my hubby! The recipe was a winner, which made me feel much better about baking more with pumpkin puree, I just couldn't leave that bad cookie recipe hanging over me and haunting my pumpkin dreams!

Easy Pumpkin Pancake Recipe

The pancakes only called for 3/4 cups of canned pumpkin, so what was I to do with the rest of the can? Cupcakes first came to mind, but I'm pretty cupcake'd out at the moment. Then I thought, "How amazing would a pumpkin spice muffin be in the morning with a cup of pumpkin spice coffee!" NAILED IT!! OH and do I mean, I nailed it! 

Best Pumpkin Muffin Recipe EVER!

Note the actual pumpkin in the photo is not what I used....just for looks! I knew the true test would be how well my daughters liked them, and when they said they loved them...well now Mama knows what she'll be making more of! 

It's a pretty simple recipe, however I did notice that in the ingredients it only called for baking powder and in the directions it mentioned the powder as well as baking soda. What was I to do? So I read the comments to see if it was noted and one reader mentioned that she used 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda....sometimes it's the smallest ingredient that can throw off your recipe! 

The recipe also called for pumpkin spice, which is noted in the comment section is a blend of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and allspice. Well, mama didn't have all of those ingredients so she improvised and just added an extra teaspoon of cinnamon to the recipe, the other teaspoon of cinnamon is for sprinkling on top. Check out Smitten Kitchen, adorable blog name, for this recipe and many others. Right now she is featuring a homemade pizza...dough and all!

What recipes have you tried this Fall? What have you been dreaming of tasting, but haven't had the chance to try yet?