A Signature Item

 As Lindsay and I find things worth spending a little extra on, we will highlight the item as a signature piece.  This black tree is one of those items.  I fell in love with it when I had a jewelry party as the jewelry girl hung her necklaces on it.  Well this year, I found it at TaiPan for $49.97.  I was able to use a 25% off coupon, so it was only about $37.  It stands about three feet high and looks great on top of my toy chest in the family room.  It reflects in the mirror which makes an interesting effect. I chose to decorate it for Halloween using all items purchased again from TaiPan.

 My favorite pieces to add were a spider garland and pieces from a berry and candy corn sprig.  I unwrapped the pieces of the sprig and then entwined the separate pieces around the tree.

 Then I simply added Halloween ornaments and some ribbon.

I realize the picture is a bit fuzzy, but I love how the berry sprig looks throughout the tree.  This tree could be used year-round in your home as a table decoration or in the corner.  I absolutely loved how mine turned out and hope it inspires you to look for something different as a signature item!

The Power of Three

 I love grouping objects in threes.  Not only in threes, but in varying heights and sizes.  Take this grouping for example.  I love how the two pumpkins are similar but vary in height and size.  The witch is the perfect to fit between the two and add a different size and dimension.  When looking for objects to group together for any vignette, put them together at the store.  I find a space on the floor and start arranging.  That way I know before I leave the store if I like it.  All three of these came from Rod Works.  (Here's a little secret: The Rod Works in Draper is hardly ever busy and has a great selection.  It's located at

12200 South 726 East
(Dillman Square)
801-816-1272

Here's another example of a group of three.  I like this one as the pumpkin and sign tie together nicely.  I threw in the little sign to hide the sign holder and found that even though it's very small, it works with the set. 

 This grouping is actually five, but again the odd number of objects looks better on the table.

I also like to use a traditional object, like this candle stick, in a non-traditional way.  Instead of placing a candle on top, I placed the skull on top of the glass bead garland.  I got all three from Rod Works; the skull is made of metal and was only $4.95. 

Fun Find Monday

My fun find for Monday comes from Scrooge and Marley's.  I found these darling spiderweb doilies there and they make the perfect centerpiece for my Halloween plates.  I got the package of four for $5.  This month's gift certificate drawing is for a $25 Gift Card to Scrooge and Marley's (100 East State Rd in Lehi.) Remember if you are a follower or bring someone new and leave their name in a comment, you'll be entered into our drawing.

 Here's the centerpiece for my Halloween table.  At TaiPan, I got the "Boo" sign for 3.97, the bead garland for 3.97, the sparkly leave sprig, and small berry garland for $4. The tin pot was one I had in the closet.  I just spray painted it black.  I simply deconstructed the sprigs to make an arrangement in the pot.

 Rod Works has darling Halloween ribbon for $1 a yard.  I simply wove it through the light fixture and attached the bat.

 I added one of the black sparkly leaf sprig behind the berries to make it look more Halloween. 

My favorite way to decorate for holidays is to set the table for the holiday.  I did my entire table, plates and placemats included for under $20.   The plates and skeleton ornaments came from TaiPan.  The placemats from Target for $2.50.  Now I am ready to host a Halloween dinner.

Pumpkin Pops

 My friend Adrienne made cupcake pops as a thank you for a baby gift awhile back....she got the idea from bakerella.blogspot.com (such a fun site!)  They were DARLING and I had to try making them myself.  Although a bit time consuming, they are unique and delicious!  A twist for Halloween are pumpkin pops!  Here's the directions...

Items you'll need:
Cake mix
Cream cheese frosting
Orange and chocolate candy wafers (Roberts)
Green M&M's
Treat bags and lollipop sticks (Roberts and Walmart)
Flower foam or styrofoam

•   Make cake as directed and let cool completely
• Crumble cake into fine consistency and mix with cream cheese frosting (the back of a spoon helps to blend it well)
• Roll mix into 1-1.5 inch balls (for the pumpkins I did more of an oval shape...what I thought looked like a pumpkin!) and place on cookie sheet covered with wax paper.  Stick in the freezer for about 15 minutes to harden

•  The cupcakes turned out great with the orange top and were a bit easier than the pumpkins...to shape them, you need a small flower shaped cookie cutter...I use the round shaped Wilton Crinkle Shapes Fondant Cut-Outs (sold at Roberts...comes in a four pack).  Take the rounded balls out of the freezer and squeeze the bottom half of the ball into the tool.  Shape the top to form a cupcake.  Once formed, place back on cookie sheet right side up and place back into freezer for about 10 minutes.
• Heat chocolate (can be heated in the microwave according to package instructions)
• For pumpkins, place stick into the bottom (sometimes it helps to put a little bit of chocolate on the tip of the stick first).  Dip pumpkin in the chocolate top first and drizzle chocolate around the cupcake.  Turn right side up and place M&M on the top while the chocolate is still soft.  
• Place in flower foam to dry.
• Once dry, wrap in treat bags and tie with bow!  They make for a fun table display at parties as well!

  The cupcake pops take a little bit longer to dip...

• Melt the brown chocolate and dip the bottom part of the cupcake.  While chocolate is still soft, place lollipop stick into the bottom.  Place upside down on wax paper for chocolate to dry.  
• Once dry, dip top part of the cupcake in orange chocolate.  Hold right side up and let chocolate form around cupcake.  Place M&M on top while chocolate is soft. 

If you want to avoid lollipop sticks you can just dip them and place in small truffle boxes (they sell them at Roberts).  They would make a great teacher thank you or party favor! 

Again, bakerella.blogspot.com deserves the credit for these...she's come out with a book called Cake Pops which looks awesome!

Halloween at Kallee's

Lisa and I have a great friend Kallee who is sharing her Halloween decor ideas with us.  Now and again we'll highlight homes we are inspired by and love...and Kallee's is one of them!  She's found some really great items over the past few years...

 Don't you love her armoire?  It's from Rising Sun Woodworks in Orem (801-227-7189, rod@risingsunwood.com).  They were reasonably priced and custom-built it according to her size dimensions.  

 Kallee has been collecting for a few years so she's able to fill her space well.  One unique thing in this area are the purple, green and orange sparkly ball picks she found at Kneaders for about $5 each.  ***Holiday decor sale at Kneaders in West Jordan this Saturday...info at the bottom of the post!***

I love her witches...and all of them came from Scrooge and Marley's in Lehi.   They often have a 20 percent off coupon in the Utah Valley mailers.  She said they have quite a few right now on the pricier side.  If you're in the market for a great witch make sure to stop in the store as soon as their 50 percent off Halloween sale starts (we'll make sure to notify everyone as soon as we know!)

 The ghost jars came from Tai Pan last year and she's filled them with candy corn, beads and sparkly balls.  Glass jars make for a great way to display anything Halloween...another cute idea would be to buy 5-7 jars of different sizes and fill them with candies.  I saw a sign at Tai Pan today that says "It's all about the candy" that you could display with it...as long as you can keep little hands out of it!

 Small table display...love the vintage witch sign (too bad it was last season)!

Here's a fun addition to her light fixture!  Boas are really inexpensive at Roberts (about $2 with 40 percent off coupon).  She just wrapped it in layers around her light and hung little ornaments from the bottom.  The darling tree is at both Tai Pan and Rod Works. 

Thanks for sharing your great Halloween decor Kallee!  What a fun space!

***Kneaders in West Jordan is having a sidewalk sale with all of its home decor 50-75 percent off this Saturday, Oct 9th from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.  (7713 Jordan Landing Blvd, West Jordan, Phone # 801-282-0025).  Grab a cinnamon roll for breakfast while you are there...they are delicious!

Decorating with Halloween's Past

Pull out old Halloween photos, buy a few cheap frames and you've got a festive display that brings back great memories!  It's a fun way to revisit what your kids (and maybe you!) have dressed up as in years past.

 The black frames were $2.50 each from Walmart and the cute Halloween one was $5 from Target.

I forgot I had a few Halloween decorations laying around in the basement so I pulled them out to add to my table.  Otherwise I think it works to just add a few Halloween photos to any space in your house...no extras needed! 

 A fun tradition we do with my in-laws is the giant pumpkin carving/photo shoot the week before Halloween.  If you can get your hands on an over-sized pumpkin and have a baby, take the opportunity to snap a few photos.  They turn out SO cute!

On a different note...I love candles but unfortunately my favorites are at least $15 each....until now!  Walmart sells a great fall candle with three scents for $4.  Nothing better than the smells of fall in your home!

Wreaths

I love to look for new, unique wreaths for the inside of my home.  I have a floor to ceiling rock fireplace and had felt it was somewhat empty since we moved in.  I'd been on the lookout for a big green wreath for above the mantle and never found one quite big enough.  While at Down to Earth at Gardner Village this summer I came across a unique wrought iron piece which could then be layered with a pretty green wreath from Rod Works to add the color I was looking for...

I was so pleased with how it turned out!  I learned how much I love to layer wreaths on top of other pieces.  If you are looking for a great wreath that can stay up year round Rod Works usually puts their eucalyptus wreaths out late spring and have them through the summer.  The smaller size is usually $25 and the larger around $35.    

I also hung a wreath on the door down to our basement...who said wreaths can't be hung on interior doors too?

 I have a spot leading into our kitchen that is one of my favorite corners of my house...I'm able to change the wreath according to the season and keep my kitchen area a little more festive throughout the year.  Wreath stands are a great addition to a smaller space like this.  This particular wreath stand is on sale right now at Target.com for $7.48 (regularly $25)!  Click here to buy!

I've also had a few people comment on my front door wreath I found a few months ago at Target.  They still have it...$39.99.  You can find it here.