Friday, October 29, 2021

Faux Clove Oranges

Seasonal Decor


I can remember, way back in Kindergarten, making clove stuck oranges around Christmastime.  I loved the way that they smelled and since then have associated with the scent of cloves with the holidays.  Since that time of year is fast approaching I thought; why not make up some faux ones?  That way they can keep their shape and color as well as smell wonderful!

It was super easy to do, check it out:


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Disclosure - This post may contain affiliate links.  If a purchase is made through an affiliate link then (at no additional cost to you) I will receive a commission.  You can read more about affiliate links here



Seasonal Decor

For this project I used faux oranges from Hobby Lobby, real cloves, ribbon and hot glue.



Seasonal Decor

I started off by wrapping ribbon around a couple of oranges and gluing into place.



Seasonal Decor

With the ribbon secure I then used a pair of tweezers to poke a hole into the foam orange.



Seasonal Decor

Follow up with a bit of hot glue and insert a clove.  
Keep going with whatever pattern you wish!



Seasonal Decor

As you can see I did some with ribbon, some with cloves all over the place,
and others with a swirl pattern. 



Seasonal Decor

In order to make the swirl pattern stand out a little better, I highlighted the line of cloves with a bit of puffy paint in chocolate brown.  Just insert a pencil into the base of the orange (before applying the paint) and then balance inside of a container until dry.  Once done remove the pencil and fill the hole with another clove 😉



Seasonal Decor

And there you have it - pretty and fragrant faux clove 
oranges that won't shrivel or lose their color!











Friday, October 22, 2021

Halloween Village From Christmas Decor

 

Halloween

A couple of weeks ago I showed you how I transformed a dollhouse into a spooky Halloween House.  Today I'm sharing a similar project, this time using a few of Dollar Tree's 
miniature holiday village houses.

Check it out:

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Disclosure - This post may contain affiliate links.  If a purchase is made through an affiliate link then (at no additional cost to you) I will receive a commission.  You can read more about affiliate links here


Halloween

Here are the tiny plastic houses as I found them, cute and colorful, all ready for Christmas.

(You can click here to browse Dollar Tree's online selection of holiday decor)



Halloween

A quick coat of black spray paint and I was ready to decorate!



Halloween

The materials I used to embellish my spooky houses were acrylic paints in gray and glow-in-the-dark, a collection of embossing powders and some of Dollar Tree's moss 'ribbon'.



Halloween

My first step was to sponge on bits of the gray paint, then followed up with 
a layer of the glow-in-the-dark.



Halloween

When the paint was dry I gave the pieces a light coating of spray adhesive and sprinkled on the embossing powder.  I like to start with my darkest color first, then layer on the lighter colors with another coating of spray adhesive in between.  I was also careful not to apply the embossing powder evenly as I preferred the random look as opposed to full coverage.



Halloween

I really like the moss 'ribbon' and used it in these Halloween cloches as well.

Attached to a backing, the moss stays in place without crumbling apart or otherwise making a mess.  It's also really easy to cut and shape with scissors, and is flexible so you don't have to attach it to a flat surface.  Once you have your desired shape cut out, just attach with a bit of hot glue and you are good to go.



Halloween

Here you can see my little houses after attaching the moss.  I used it here and there to add texture and interest.  If you want you can also use it to cover up any Christmassy details, such as the wreath on the front door of the house on the right.  Not wanting a blob of green on the front door, however, I decided to let mine be.  It's hardly noticeable anyway 😎

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Here are some close ups of the newly completed Halloween village:

Halloween

Halloween

Halloween

And there you have it - an easy to make Halloween village from Dollar Tree's Christmas houses!



Friday, October 15, 2021

Spider 'Salad' - A Faux Halloween Dish

Halloween Decor

After having so much fun with my fake bake projects and now getting into the Halloween spirit, I decided to combine the two interests...

Read on to see how I put together a faux spider 'salad':


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Disclosure - This post may contain affiliate links.  If a purchase is made through an affiliate link then (at no additional cost to you) I will receive a commission.  You can read more about affiliate links here



Halloween Decor

Here are the materials that I used:  A thrifted glass bowl, some greenery from my stash, Spanish moss and toy spiders (both from Dollar Tree).

(You can read how I converted the plastic toy spiders with a bit of spray paint in this Halloween post)



Halloween Decor

Starting with a mix of faux greens, I hot glued them into my salad bowl.  I tried to do so in a way that allowed only the shiny green surfaces to show and also hid the glue.



Halloween Decor

Once satisfied with my arrangement of leaves, I topped them off with a bit of Spanish moss.
It's easiest it add a dab of hot glue to the leaves themselves, then place a pinch of the moss on top.  Otherwise you end up with a gluey mess 😏



Halloween Decor

After that it was as simple as gluing in my spiders.


Friday, October 8, 2021

Spooky Halloween Specimen Decor

 Halloween

A couple of years ago I made a collection of potions for my Halloween decor.  Wanting to add to that display, I thought a few spooky specimens would be just the thing.

Read on to see how easy they were to put together:


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Disclosure - This post may contain affiliate links.  If a purchase is made through an affiliate link then (at no additional cost to you) I will receive a commission.  You can read more about affiliate links here



Halloween

I found these wooden plaques in Dollar Tree's craft section.  
After removing the strings I painted them in green acrylic.



Halloween

Next I used spray adhesive to sprinkle on some embossing powder, then hot glue to attach the bugs.
The embossing powder is something I picked up at a yard sale one time.  I've never used it for any actual embossing, but I love the way it gives some 'grit' to my decorative projects 😊

  Lastly I tucked in some bits of Spanish moss with hot glue as well.

The little bugs are Dollar Tree toys that I sprayed with black spray paint.
You can see an example of  how I did that in this Halloween cloche post.



Halloween

And here my specimens are, all ready for a Halloween display!








Friday, October 1, 2021

Dollhouse Turned Halloween Decor

Upcycle


I've been seeing lots of posts on social media where crafters are taking ordinary dollhouses and transforming them into holiday decorations.  When I came across a used Fisher Price dollhouse, I decided to give it a try myself.  Read on to see how I did it:


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Disclosure - This post may contain affiliate links.  If a purchase is made through an affiliate link then (at no additional cost to you) I will receive a commission.  You can read more about affiliate links here

Upcycle

Here is my dollhouse as I found it, FREE on the side of the road!
(You can click here to read more about what else I picked up that day)



Upcycle

After removing the furniture I sprayed the entire piece with black spray paint.



Upcycle

When the spray paint was dry I followed up with acrylic paints to add grass, flowers and the walkway, as well as detailing to the doors and windows.



Upcycle

Because the toy is intended for cheerful play, there were certain whimsical objects molded into the walls.  If you look closely you can see the small butterfly on the left and the birdhouse on the right.  I left these black with a plan to cover them up eventually.



Upcycle

After painting I used spray adhesive and embossing powder to give the house
 a more weathered, rugged look.



Upcycle

Just spray on the glue and sprinkle the powder here and there until you like the look.

*Note:  You don't have to go out and buy embossing powder, I just use it because I have some 😆
Other materials that would work just fine could include sponged on paint, sand, or even cinnamon!



Upcycle

Now it was time to add dimension while camouflaging those butterflies and birdhouses at the same time.  Using strip moss and Spanish moss (both from Dollar Tree), I cut and glued bits of the materials here and there as I saw fit.



Upcycle
Upcycle
Upcycle

In these photos you can see how the house looked with the bits of moss in place.



Upcycle

Using more Dollar Tree supplies, I added embellishments to different areas of the house.



Upcycle

My favorite was this 'guard' spider for the front door.

*If you look closely you can see that I also added a new street number, 31 of course 😉



Upcycle
Upcycle
Upcycle

Here is my little Halloween house in all of it's spooky glory.



Upcycle

And there you have it, a dollhouse upcycled for your Halloween decor!

Loving how it turned out, I went ahead and did a Christmas one too.  
I'll share that post closer to the holidays 😍