The Silver's House: It's Scary

Really, the amount of time I have put into the Halloween decorating is frightening! LOL!

Special Note: This blog post is for my sister and all the out-of-town family so they can see what our house looks like with all our halloween decor up. I'm not starting any competitons (I'd loose, I'm too cheap to buy more things) nor am I trying to show off my mediocre decorating skills (I'll take ideas if you have them!) I just want my family to see! Friends are welcome to read along but even more welcome to come over and hang out with me and a bag of halloween candy!!! LOL!

Okay, FIRST let me say that the whole 'effect' is lost on viewers because you can't smell the scent of fall in my entry way. I snagged this delicious little room spray for $3 at Bath & Body Works and I LOVE it!



It smells like cinnamon and a walk in the woods. I'm nuts about it and I love that 4 sprays scent the front half of the house for 6 hours! The fragrance really adds a lot to the whole ambiance that these photos lack. Just thought you should know that! :D

Alright, let's start outside the front door. Here you will see our (somewhat unimpressive) Halloween lights and the grinning bats* & purple spider web in the windows:

*Any lopsided or injured bats are the work of Aiden. PETA would probably like to have a word with him.



After you have stumbled in, wondering why on earth I piled so many lights in the plant pot (so the purple glitter "Beware" sign will sparkle at night), you notice this on the wall in front of you:



Yes, this is false advertising. There are no sweet treats at all.
Now wondering exactly how much vinyl I have wasted, you turn to your right and find our mail center and more decor: (Look! The shadow box is full of real candy! Ingenious decor until Aiden notices it...)



The little yellow bucket is stuffed with suckers and the orange vinyl phrase over the black witch hat reads "Take One My Pretties!" The purple glitter shelf sitter says "Hocus Pocus" and the green shelf sitter says "A Little Monster Lives Here". The big orange gerber daisy was the item we simply could not leave Hobby Lobby without the other day. I owed it a good home and my sincerest gratitiude for entertaining my child for 45 minutes so, since it was 50% off, I bought it and placed it by the little monster sign. Can't imagine who that little monster would be......... Moving on!

This fabulous $5 HomeGoods find is what has replaced the welcome sign on our entry closet door: (with more rabid animal vinyl decals)



And here is our spider friend again with a new cute thing hanging off the office door:



Down the hallway is our mirror where my hot pink-ish Boo sign, bright orange pumpkin and black vinyl bats all sit:



And that's about it! I'm sad to say that it looks much better in person but I'm not expecting anyone to drive down to see it.

In case you were wondering, between the front door, the wall decals & the lettering for my newest shelf sitters, I have used 6 sheets of 8x15 inch vinyl. Not very much at all but I think it really adds a fun touch! (Or at least I'll think it's fun until I have to take it all down.)

Hugs & Happy Halloween!

Eerie Hand-Rubbed Paint Finish

I really wish I could take credit for coming up with this but I didn't. I was poking around on Etsy a couple weeks ago when I found this gorgeous handmade halloween sign and LOVED how the green paint had been rubbed away to reveal the black underneath. The seller didn't answer my convo when I asked her how it was done (no surprise) so I googled it myself. After a lot of digging, I found VERY vague directions about how to do the technique and I had to figure out a lot as I went. Since then I've completed 5 projects using the trick and had lots of questions about it so I'm posting instructions here!

First, some example pictures to illustrate what I'm talking about:



My shelf sitters were painted green first, then black and then rubbed to reveal the green.



LOVE the irregular, chippy look!



A close-up shot so you can see what gorgeously grungy results you get!
BTW, the shelf sitters are halloween decor and read "Spells & Potions (Hexes Cost Extra)" LOL!

I also used this trick on my witch letters.
(The star has a purple undercoat & orange top coat rubbed away at the edges with opalescent glitter spray from Wal-Mart over the entire piece.)

Tay's Method For Eerie Hand-Rubbed Paint Finishes:

1. Paint your wood with one or two coats of the base color. This is the color that will show through. Let the wood dry completely. (30 minutes if using craft paints on unfinished wood.)

2. Take a candle or votive with white or clearish white colored wax and, using firm pressure, rub it heavily and repeatedly along the edge of your painted wood and in towards the center by at least 1/2 inch. You should have small flakes of wax crumbling off the edges and visible smears all over the wood. Do this over your kitchen sink - the wax shavings will ruin your project if left to sit.

Note: To get the effect pictured on Etsy, select a rough cut piece of wood and do not sand it. Paint and wax the entire surface, applying an extra-heavy coat of wax to bumps and raised surfaces.

3. Using your hand, gently brush and smooth away extra wax flakes. (Again, do this over the sink. It's kind of messy.)

4. Paint your wood in the overcoat color, using 2-3 or more thin-to-normal coats. Most projects will require 3-5 coats. Let dry in between coats.

5. Once your project is completely dry (2 hours), use an old cotton wash cloth and gently begin rubbing along the edges and areas where you applied candle wax. The wax will not allow paint to adhere to it and both the wax and top coats of paint will rub away, leaving a grungy edge that has the appearance of old, chipping paint.

6. Apply vinyl lettering or surface decoration.

7. Use a clear coat spray sealer on the wood when you have the desired effect and after applying vinyl lettering. I use a Clear Satin spray urethane that I bought at Lowe's. This protects the project from having any more paint rubbed away.

That's it! Enjoy your cool new painting trick!

Halloween Decor Pics

Some quick pics of some of the Halloween decor I put up this year. These are kind of lame and dull - I'll see if I can get a better shot of my entry way and all it's details. It's pretty done-up!



These are the Witch letters we are making at our craft day. I did mine early because I won't be able to make them on that day (I'm teaching a craft myself). I used different paint colors and techniques so this isn't how everyone's will look.



I thought this looked cute hanging from the hook under my little hall mirror. I added the S monogram a couple months ago and have really liked it!



LOVE this! I picked the spider up last year on clearance for $3 and I think she looks really great high up on our entry wall with the vinyl lettering under her!



And this is the project I am most proud of: my tri-colored front door vinyl! This took a bit of time and 4 separate vinyl cut runs, including 2 full sheets of orange, but it was worth it!

Edited To Add: The font is Inkster. It's a pay font and can be purchased here!

I've really gotten into Halloween over the last two years. Kelsey is probably to blame for some of it (LOL!) but I also love all the candy & family fun. I'm not into scary things but it's easy to find cute decor. Now I just need to find the time to FINISH all the handmade decor projects I have started! Will post pics of those, too!

New Floor Photos!

Okay, Thursday night we hauled everything out of the office and ripped out the carpet. I took this picture on Friday morning before we left to go pick up the planks:



I'm skipping some of the in-between shots but here is Brian working on the most difficult part of the floor. Everything went pretty smooth until we got to the doorway with it's weird cuts:



We had to bring in some professional help...



And this is how the room looked when we finished it - trim and all - late Saturday night!



We're pretty proud of ourselves and I have to admit the floors look more gorgeous than I thought they would. This photo shows the color and variation pretty accurately. We got all the furniture moved back in and it looks like a whole new room! It's nice to have all the hurricane/baby daze/vinyl/craft clutter gone. :)

Brian says that he would do it again. I don't know if I agree. The bickering about whose math and cut angles were more off was enough to convince me to not do a big flooring project together again. Better left to the guys in my opinion! LOL!

Gone For New Floors!

My computer is going to be unhooked tonight and I'll be cut off from the world as I know it (LOL!) while we put in the new floors. I'm so excited, though! The office is completely cleaned out and ready to have carpet removed tonight. I pulled out all my halloween decorations today AND cut some really cute orange, black & white vinyl. (You'll have to come take a peek at my front door if you're in the neighborhood!) So many fun things, so little time!

Before I go, here are some quick shots of the card I made for the World Card Making Day hybrid challenge:







I sent out the first of the gift cards today and it's been so fun to have my friends share a new hobby with me! I'm still giving away gift cards to anyone who completes & photographs a hybrid using Miss Mint's or Jen Wilson's stuff between now and Halloween so go on, make something fabulous and let us see!!!

While I'm away, feel free to drop in on Miss Mint's blog. She's had a bunch of great articles this week and the Halloween fun is just beginning, so if you need some super cute & unique gift ideas for teachers, neighbors & friends, check it out! Of course you can always take a peek at these inspiring projects from her gallery:

Halloween Party Invite & Envelope

Trick or Treat Bag Toppers

Tay's Hybrid Decor Sign

I'll post pics of the new floors and all the new halloween decor when the computer gets hooked back up!

1 going on 15

Aiden has recently discovered my iPod and I've discovered that, just like his dad, he loves music. But migraine-inducing, annoying children's songs are banned from our house until he's at least old enough to beg for it in complete sentences! Currently on my iPod are some fun, top 40 songs that I like to listen to while I house clean or craft. When Aiden wouldn't sit still in the tiny exam room at the doctor's office yesterday, I pulled the iPod out and let him have full control. It's a RIOT seeing an 18 month old with the white ear buds on, holding the tiny electronic and listening calmly (and, OMGosh, quietly!) to what he's hearing! Hey, it kept him still for ten minutes. Even Disney can't do that.

Yesterday I tackled cleaning out the office. New floors are going in on Friday so everything has to come out. Only problem is the office has taken the brunt of Baby Daze, Super Saturday, the three craft shows, Hurricane Ike, all my on-going craft projects and the huge vinyl cutting job I'm doing for my mom. To say it was a disaster was an understatement. I spent all day cleaning it out with lots of help from Aiden. We got it done just minutes before Brian got home. Here's what I learned:

1. Toddlers are naturally and instantly attracted to the most sharp or dangerous objects in any room.

2. After that, they are attracted to the most expensive items and electronics in the room.

3. All buttons must be pressed repeatedly, no matter how many times mom says "no" or how close the computer/printer/digital camera/vinyl cutter sounds like it's going to grind to a hault and die from abuse.

4. The only thing better than scattering the contents of a bin on the floor is to follow it with the contents of another bin so mom really can't tell what went where.

5. Unrolling brand new vinyl is a great way to get mom to pick you up.

6. Empty print cartridges will still leave ink on your lips if you try to lick them.

At one point yesterday when Aiden was bored with the clean out, he walked along the edge of the cluttered desk, looking at me with an amused expression and skimming his hands along the items, patting each one and moving on, just to see what thing would get the biggest reaction out of me when he touched it. I tried to let him have fun exploring but when his little hand landed on my pointed vinyl weeding tool, I gasped and said "No, Sharp!" Of course that was the reaction he was looking for. A smile began to spread across his face as his hand immediately closed around the point and he stuck himself. He melted into tears, more out of frustration than the tiny jab that didn't leave a mark. Stubborn mischeviousness can be painful. For everyone! LOL!

NEW Minty Pre-Made Pages & FREE GIFT CARDS!

You asked for it and now they are here! Pre-made pages from Miss Mint using her newest kits 25% Off Right Now!




Use them to create gift albums for Christmas (slip in your photos and print multiple copies) or use the inidividual pages as you like in your own digi scrap albums. They are VERY easy to use. You open the page and put your pictures behind it, so that the image shows through the open frame. No photo cropping or additional skills required! Use the text tool to add journaling then save and print. Requiring less than 10 minutes per page from start-to-print, you'll have a stunning memory book in no time! (That will rival the ones I'm pouring hours upon hours into for Aiden! LOL!) Pages come sized 12x12" but can be quickly and easily re-sized in photoshop to 8x8, 6x6, 5x5 or anything in between!


NEWS: FREE MONEY FOR HYBRIDS!

I have some VERY talented, crafty friends and I know you've been thinking about trying your hand at hybrid projects. Here's the push you need to get started! E-mail me a pic of your hybrid project using Miss Mint or Jen Wilson's products for me to post in the gallery (credited to you) OR send me a link to your gallery on their site with the project posted and I'll send you a gift card to buy more digi goodies! My offer is good all the way through Halloween so you can make your own Halloween items or décor and get paid for it!

World Card Making Day is this Saturday October 4 and handmade hybrid cards are a great place to start. It's as easy as printing alpha letters or a word strip from a kit and accenting it with scrapbook embellishments. (See the Peppermint Creative Hybrid Gallery for examples on how simple but stunning the cards are!) 1 sheet of cardstock or heavy paper cut in half will make 2 cards. Miss Mint is celebrating it on her site so don't miss out on the fun - there are rumors that she might be giving away prizes! I want to see what my friends create!

$5 Peppermint Creative Gift Card for Any Friend of Mine Who Makes a Hybrid Card & E-mails Me a Photo Before this Saturday October 4!!!

You're already guaranteed to get a gift from me so why not have some fun! Digi scrap items can be printed on your printer at home and the same items can be used to make gift tags, too! Impress me with your creativity! I'll upload your projects to the gallery for you (credited to you) or help you create a gallery login so you can show off your projects.

P.S. "Any Friend" means someone I personally know locally or online through scrapping.