{$3} Haunting Halloween Wreath

   

I’ve been slowly getting ready for my little Halloween Party and I’ve been trying to keep the costs down, so the dollar store has been my friend. I made this wreath for $3 with stuff I had and 3 dollar store items.

I made a loose wreath base with grapevine from my Grandpa’s garden wanting it to look more aged and  rustic.  Next I spray painted old ferns and berries and stuck them in with some Spanish moss I had on hand. 

The creepy tombstone and the skull garland are form the dollar store.  I glazed them a little to darken the white.  Nested on the Spanish moss is a little $ store crow and my Haunted Wreath was complete.

  I wanted this wreath to look old and unintentional, like it had been abandoned and transformed throughout the years.  I may add in some spiders, but for now…

I think it will do the trick to set the tone for my Ghoulish Guests.

 

  

Decorating Ideas for Halloween

Think black for Halloween. Here are some easy and affordable decorating ideas from Country Living to celebrate the Halloween holiday. I love the black tapers

in the silver candelabra!

More Halloween Decorating and More ways to follow BB&B

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Mini Skull Vase Fillers {a pb knock off}

I know it is a little early for Halloween, but I am hosting a party this year so I have been working on a few projects to get ready.  I don’t know if you saw the Mini Skull Vase Fillers in the PB catalog, but I quite liked them.  So you can only imagine my excitement when I found these skulls at the dollar store! 

   

I got a pack of like 8-10 for $1.  They were a little smaller and brighter than the PB ones, but very similar.  To tone down the whiteness I put the skulls, along with some brown acrylic paint and a little water in a Ziploc baggy.  I mixed them around and moved them about so they were coated with the paint and then let them dry on a paper towel. So very easy.

I simply placed them in an apothecary jar with Spanish moss and finished it off with a rustic tag I stamped.  Who’d ever guess it only set me back a couple bucks?  And did you check out the price on PB’s?  Mmm Hm.

Thank you Pottery Barn.  Thank you dollar store.  Happy Halloween. ;)

Linking up …

Sawdust and Paper Scraps “Everything Halloween” Party!!

 

The Ghosts of Halloween Past: Advertising Mascots

Every year we have a crazy adult (if you can call us "adults") Halloween party with a theme. We usually start at our house & then get a limo out into Georgetown where the streets are mobbed with costumed-people. I just LOVE IT!!!! (This year, being pregnant, I just wasn't up for the crazy night out, so we had a fun kiddie one instead.) But, I thought I'd share with you one of our past themes: advertising mascots. The first one up is the Sunmaid Raisin Girl:

The box of raisins inspired the whole party. I've always thought my friend Lindsey looks like the Sunmaid Raisin girl & would always suggest she dress up as her for Halloween. Then, I thought of all the other advertising logos & how my other friends could dress up as them. Here's Lindsey, aka "The Sunmaid Raisin" girl in her costume I made from Goodwill finds. (The bonnet is the sleeve of a red button-down shirt and her corsette is from a suit.)



And next is Chiquita Banana:Marcela's costume is AMAZING. She paper mache'd the basket on her head & meticulously glued all the fruit down. She was such a trooper & it stayed on all night!!!! I made her dress out of cheap t-shirts from Michael's:



And here's our Chiquita's husband, Juan Valdez:



Billy, AKA "Juan Valdez" actually made his entrance to the party by knocking on the window and handing in a cup of coffee... It was perfect!!! The mustache got a bit crooked as the night went on & Billy is just hysterical:

And who can forget the Land O Lakes Butter Girl?
Mo was adorable!!!

And even though she's underage, we decided to let the Morton salt Girl join the party.

Erin was perfect! Check out that little mary-jane-clad foot kicked up just like the real Morton Salt Girl:

And we can't have a party without the beer! (ok, we totally can, but let's just pretend! ;)

Here I am as the St.Paulie Girl with a costume made from Goodwill finds:

(I'd originally tried making a "Chicken of the Sea" costume but it was just way too hard to walk around in!) And of course my husband, Sam Adams, was there to help host:

Here he is posing with his friend The Quaker Oats Guy (married to the Morton Salt Girl- what an age gap!! shocking!! ;):

There were a few more gusts I don't have pictures of .. argggg.. Anyway, we've had lots more of these crazy parties & I'll share some more next year. I can't tell you enough how much fun I have on Halloween. We usually start planning in September and my best friends & their husbands come in from out of state. Everyone stresses like crazy about not "having a costume" and in the end they always look awesome. I'm so lucky to have friends who will go along with my silly plans & I love them for it.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

xoxo,

lauren

ps- the hanging scarecrow wasn't visible at night so no one noticed it (phew! ;) and the kids loved the ghost & taking pictures with him.

Halloween from Pottery Barn Kids

We get REALLY into Halloween. I mean disgustingly into it. We have a party every year and there's always a theme. (We usually start at our house with a bunch of friends & play games & then get a limo into Georgetown... but really? A bar 6 months pregnant? Just not happening.)

So this year I think we might stick to a smaller, family & kid-friendly party... (We might have to do both parties next year...)

Anyway, since I have this kid-friendly party on my mind, I checked out the Pottery Barn Kids catalog & just loved what I was seeing!!! I think (with a LOT of patience!!) you could make this chandelier (In all honesty, this is not a project for me this year... ) But how adorable is it? ($59)

Love this canopy too:

And I'm crazy over all of these cute kid costumes!!! The traditional pumpkin is always adorable. (I think both of these are $29-- not bad at all!)

As we looked through the catalogue last night, Christian said he wasnted to be this lady bug... Daddy vetoed it so I MIGHT have to try to make him a more masculine lady bug costume...

How cute is this little bear?? I love that their costumes are microfleece to keep the kids warm!

We've been into alligators lately: ;)

And finally, here's a pic of me with Christian (AKA "Superbaby") last year:

As Halloween gets closer, I'll have to post pics from our previous Halloweens... They're ridiculous! Have an awesome weekend & talk to you all soon!!!

xoxo,

lauren