A FEW THINGS: PILLOWS, FALL BREAK, FAMILY & PUMPKINS

Occasionally I have a some things to tell you that don't warrant their own blog post, so "A Few Things" is my opportunity to share all of those random bits and pieces with you and catch you up on what's happening around our house. (*This post may contain affiliate links, read my full disclosure policy here.)


LET'S TALK PILLOWS!

It's no secret that I love experimenting with new colors and pattern combos, and the changing of seasons is the perfect excuse to add in some new pillow covers.  I've been sewing for Fall, and thought you might enjoy this video tutorial that I shared on my Instagram Stories.  Click here and then click on the circle photo below my picture that says "pillow tutorial" underneath to view.  I made them with custom piping and zippers, which just takes a bit of practice and isn't too hard at all.

This is the fabric I used (or shop the pillow already made here).  It's a really expensive designer fabric usually available only to the trade, but I found mine on Ebay for about 85% off of the original price (the listing I linked is a different seller than I used, I bought the only piece from my seller).  That's always a great place to check for fabric at a substantial savings.  And because I can't resist I'll go ahead and tell you about this one too... you'll see it made up in my Fall Tour on Wednesday!

FALL BREAK

Our Fall Break was a couple of weeks ago, and due to the kids' work and activity schedules we didn't have much time to go anywhere.  However, we slipped away for less than 24 hours to one of our favorite area State Parks.

We've made several day trips there but had never spent the night.  We rented one of the cabins which came with it's own picnic table, grill, and firepit right out back so we felt like we had the best of both worlds... a "camping" feel but a real bed and bathroom just a few steps away!  ;)

Ray came well prepared and brought everything we needed to cook our dinner outside- Hobo dinners (hamburger patty, potatoes, and carrots foil packet), green beans, cheddar biscuits, and triple chocolate cake all cooked on the campfire!

A vacation spot with virtually no cell service... just what we needed!  ;)

We took a few initial Senior pictures with Caleb, but Emily wanted in on the action too.  She's in the thick of tough Sophomore year classes and working a new part time job at an indoor soccer facility teaching kids' classes.  I can't believe she'll be a Senior before we know it!

I wrote a post about Roman Nose here, if you're in Oklahoma or just in the vicinity some day it's a fun spot to visit!


SENIOR NIGHT

Caleb has completed his last High School marching season, and Senior Night for the band students was last Friday night.  It was bittersweet, but we are so thankful that he's had such a wonderful experience in band.

Leopard Cardigan 

(I suggest sizing up unless you want a close fit, maybe even two sizes.  It almost seemed like Junior sizing to me. I started with a M, returned for a L which didn't seem any bigger, and ended up liking the XL) 

COLORING BOOK

I stumbled on an end cap of coloring books at Hobby Lobby the other day, and was pleased to see some there that I had not flipped through before. I've heard about Young House Love's coloring book since it came out but had not seen all of the pages yet, it's wonderful!  It's full of drawings of furnished rooms that you can color however your heart desires.  A treat for any design lover!

I also loved the Cath Kidston coloring book and am a fan after becoming familiar with the brand when we visited London.  Either of these would be great stocking stuffers!

DAD'S BIRTHDAY

We celebrated my Dad last week as he turned 75!  We are so grateful for his consistent leadership in our family, he's always willing to use his talents to help anyone when needed, and I learned so many of my DIY skills from him (like figuring out the math for the angles of the moulding and pattern in the powder bath...couldn't have done it without him!)  We love you, Dad, and hope the coming year brings many good new memories!

Leopard Sweater- several years old but here's a good $20 option, or here's another similar one. 

PUMPKINS

My friend Paige posted this darling wreath last week that she found at Marshall's.  I spent the next day searching all over town for one, but to no avail.

However, I came home and searched online a bit and found this wreath that I think is pretty similar!  I removed the dried leaves that were tucked between the pumkins and grapevine stem wrapped around it, and prefer the simpler look.  After adding a bow I'm enjoying it on my Fall porch!

You're getting a few in progress shots today that will give you a hint of my Fall decor this year.  Spoiler alert... It's not traditional and is super colorful!

Last year I painted a handful of pumpkins sticking with a hot pink and orange color scheme, and this year I added even more colors to the mix.

Here's a tip for painting smaller faux pumpkins.  Most are foam at the core and the plastic stem is just inserted.  It can easily be removed if you gently pull it straight out.  After removing all of the stems, I insert a wooden skewer in the hole left by the stem, then spray paint whatever color I desire.  (These are $1 pumpkins from Walmart, and the bigger one is from Hobby Lobby.)

You can hold on to the end of the skewer and move the pumpkin all the way around, painting top and bottom all at one time.  Then, just stick the skewer in the ground and let the pumpkin fully dry!  So quick and easy.

I painted a few larger faux pumpkins as well, and was inspired with a new pattern after visiting a friend's home over the weekend.  She had these cute pumpkins out in their barn that they use for gatherings.  I saw the spotted one on her porch last year and forgot about it, but was glad to see it again to remember that I wanted some like that too.  And can we just talk about how darling those little yarn pumpkins hanging on the branch are? 

I adjusted to fit my color palette and these were so fun and easy to make.  I painted random larger irregular shaped dots around the pumpkin, then went back when that dried with a smaller brush and added a swipe of gold paint around the edges.  It looked best to feather the paint out with the brush along the edges, but it's totally a trial and error process and there's no wrong way to do it!

After spraying the base of the pumpkins glossy white, I used craft paint for the colors and this is my favorite gold metallic paint to brush on.  The craft paint dries with a very flat finish, so I went over that with a quick coat of polycrylic to give it some shine (I could have used a polycrylic spray but only had the liquid on hand- either is fine!).  If you're painting on white pumpkins, don't seal with regular polyurethane, the finish will yellow.   You don't necessarily have to seal it either, I just did because I wanted it to have a glossy finish.  Sneak peek...!!!

Alright, you're all caught up on what's been going on around here!  Next time I'll be back to finally share my Fall Tour with you, so see you tomorrow!

I'd love for you to join my email list! You'll receive a notification straight to your inbox any time there's a new post on Dimples and Tangles. Simply enter your address below.
EMAIL

Instagram  ||  Facebook  ||  Pinterest  ||  Twitter