Let's start a campaign for Instant Autumn

Don't you feel like September should be instant fall?  Like, who cares that we're likely coming from the hottest month, and summer vacations.  The moment September hits i feel like Mother Nature should drop the temperature about 30 degrees and we should all start wearing flannels, tall boots and sip hot cups of pumpkin spice lattes whilst bumping along on a hayride out to the pumpkin patch.  There should be a crisp, yet slight chill in the air, leaves of gold and reds, and Halloween costume planning.

September-when it's still in the 90's, with humidity, and it's hotter than it's been all summer long-i feel like Instant Autumn could have a following.  Instant Autumn means i could once again return to the sunroom.  Even the cats came inside last weekend, and that's saying a lot of it's too hot for them out there.  Instant Autumn all the things.

Instant Autumn would mean pumpkins lined the stairs (but first you'd slather them in vasoline to keep the squirrels from nibbling)

 You'd break out your wreath in all it's wispy goodness.

You'd have pinecones everywhere and ribbon wrapped books.

You'd corral ceramic (dollar store) pumpkins galore atop collected candlesticks

Instant Autumn is something you could easily add to your regular decor.

Both inside and out.

What are you doing to add some Instant Autumn to your home?

sharing is caring: thrifty treasures @ southern hospitality, travel photo mondays @ travel photo discovery, places i've been @ the tablescaper,  travel photo thursdays@ budget travelers sandbox , Monthly projects @ Evolution of Style Make it Pretty Mon @ Dedicated House  inspire me mondays and power of paint @ domestically speaking, Places I've Been @ The Tablescaper,  Before and After @ Thrifty Decor Chick,   Sundays @ Suburbs Mama  Mod Vintage Life, Motivate Me Mon @Keeping it Simple, persia lou, the diyers @ homecoming,  home stories a-z, nifty thrifty @ Coastal Charm, be inspired @ elizabeth and co, the scoop @ stone gable,  inspire me tues, lil luna, get your craft on, sugar bee crafts. your designs this time, inspire me weds @ 733, wow us weds @ savvy southern style,  work it weds @ the blissful bee, outdoor weds @ a southern daydreamer, whimsy wednesday, wicked awesome weds @ handy man, crafty woman, look what i made,  whatever goes weds @ someday crafts,  charm of home, link party palooza @ tatertots and jello, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring, open house @ no minimalist here, creativity unleashed @ shaken together,inspiration gallery @ Craftberry Bush, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, my romantic home, jennifer rizzo, Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity now,  furniture fridays @ mustard seed, Feathered Nest @ French Country Cottage, design it fridays @ finding fabulous, best diy @ 36th ave, overflowing w/ creativity @ it's overflowing, nifty thrifty sundays, under the table and dreaming. inspire me please @ liz marie blog,sunday best @ the girl creative  shaken together,

Don't be fooled by the rocks that i got

Cats. Squirrels. Two creatures, apparently, who are not so into the fact that i have potted plants.  Or rather, they're a bit TOO interested in the potted plants.  They're just not interested in how i intend these plants to live, which is INSIDE their pots and with the dirt UNDISTURBED.  I have found, both inside and out, my plants dug up and unearthed, dirt on the stairs and dirt covering the carpet.  No more.  For i have found the answer.

Rocks.

Don't be fooled by the rocks that i got, i'm still (i'm still) planting in my pots.  That's right.  Nothing a little j. lo wordplay can't fix.



This may be a no brainer-certainly this is not rocket science-but it IS one of those "why didn't i think of that" moments.  Because, people, this WORKS!  Consistently ALL summer, no more dirt on my front steps.  I seriously stand behind this.  The other idea for keeping squirrels away, that gets pinned a millllllion times, that didn't work for me.  But this works.  Pin THIS a million times.  Because i wish i would have known about this sooner.

This also keeps my cat Lily out of my indoor plants.  Yet another genius idea from the boyfriend, one that i didn't fully grasp right away.  When he said i needed to add rocks to keep her from digging, i assumed he meant the ones from our travels. 

So, i tucked in a few heart shaped ones from Aruba and France, added a little pottery shards from Israel, some shells from Hawaii...and expected it to work.  Not so, my friends.  For outdoor use and for consistency across the top of the pot, you're gonna need the little stones that come in bags from the dollar store or Ikea.

Gives it an added bonus of a finished, decorative look.  And not coming home to dirt on your floors or your stairs is always a good thing.

Go forth and rock on.

Get it???

I refrained from using this one, but i can't get it out of my head now.  "I like the way you work it...no diggity." Remember that song?

J.Lo ain't got nothin' on me.

sharing is caring: thrifty treasures @ southern hospitality, travel photo mondays @ travel photo discovery, places i've been @ the tablescaper,  travel photo thursdays@ budget travelers sandbox , Monthly projects @ Evolution of Style Make it Pretty Mon @ Dedicated House Throwback Thursday @ Sweet Pea, inspire me mondays and power of paint @ domestically speaking, Places I've Been @ The Tablescaper,  Before and After @ Thrifty Decor Chick,   Sundays @ Suburbs Mama  Mod Vintage Life, Motivate Me Mon @Keeping it Simple,  give me the goods @ rain on a tin roof, home stories a-z, nifty thrifty @ Coastal Charm, be inspired @ elizabeth and co, the scoop @ stone gable,  inspire me tues, lil luna, get your craft on, sugar bee crafts. inspire me weds @ 733, wow us weds @ savvy southern style,  work it weds @ the blissful bee, outdoor weds @ a southern daydreamer, whimsy wednesday, wicked awesome weds @ handy man, crafty woman,  whatever goes weds @ someday crafts,  charm of home, link party palooza @ tatertots and jello, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring, open house @ no minimalist here, creativity unleashed @ shaken together,inspiration gallery @ Craftberry Bush, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, my romantic home, jennifer rizzo, Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity now,  furniture fridays @ mustard seed, Feathered Nest @ French Country Cottage, design it fridays @ finding fabulous, best diy @ 36th ave, overflowing w/ creativity @ it's overflowing, nifty thrifty sundays, under the table and dreaming. inspire me please @ liz marie blog,sunday best @ the girl creative  shaken together,

A sunflower bridal shower

How is it that my baby brother is getting married in just a few weeks?!  Super happy for him and his soon to be bride.  We hosted a sunflower themed bridal shower for her a couple weekends ago, and i think it came together really well.  The wedding is being held in a barn, as they all seem to be these days, so we wanted to go with that rustic, ball jar, low key sort of feeling.  I also did something rather bold for me, and me as a blogger; i reached out to the owner of Wild Herb Soap Co. and asked if we could partner on the favors.  And i was truly shocked when she said yes. So in full disclosure this is not a sponsored post, but rather a partner post about her Etsy store.  And of course, i wanted to share the details of the shower with you all.

Does this invitation (also from Etsy) say casual and rustic or what.  We had the image printed on top of the cake, too, but it didn't come out that great. Perhaps stores who offer such services should then package the cake without material to smudge the icing of the image one carefully selected. Just saying. 

 

This was the display when guests entered, to drop off their recipe cards and to lay out the fabulous favors.  We used clip art of a giant realistic sunflower, printed with the words "Thank you for showering Julie with love" and then the soaps-the delicious smelling soaps-displayed in the box next to it.  Also a good saying would be "From Julie's shower to yours" but that one just gives me visual images i'd rather not have.  So "showering" with love also makes sense with soap, and doesn't give anyone mental images of Great Aunts they'd rather unsee.

I wish this was scratch and sniff.

From the moment we opened the box, they smelled  Hea.Ven. Ly. Heavenly.  They are bundled together with raffia, and come in flavors like Citrus Explosion and Green Tea and Aloe.  Individually, they smell and look amazing, but together is like Wow.  And the shape/size is absolutely perfect for a favor.  They are packaged with 3 handmade slices, 1.5 ounces total, nut oil free and soy free.  There was a slightly smaller option, but i would absolutely recommend the size we got as any smaller would be too small.  We opted out of customized tags, but you can go that route, too. I love the scalloped edges on some of them, and the color variation.

The recipe cards had the same image as the bigger invitation, and the wood box was perfectly sized for guests to deposit them for the bride. We also encouraged guests to share a recipe for a happy marriage or a date night idea, and they were placed in two Ball jars.



The gift table early on, with more Ball jars, and more sunflowers.

To add some extra wedding-ness, i stuck these cake tooth picks in some of the desserts and hung the lanterns from the dining room chandelier. 

White paper lanterns mean instant festive feeling.

We were lucky to have great weather, and of course everyone had a nice time and loved their soaps.  Who wouldn't.  Seriously, i can't recommend Carol and her handmade soaps from Wild Herb Soap Co. enough.  She was super to work with, going above and beyond (like when i had a question but was leaving for vacation, so i asked her to email my mom instead) to make sure the customer was satisfied and up to date.

Please visit Carol's Etsy shop www.wildherb.etsy.com  or go directly to www.wildherbsoap.com if you'd like to order or find out more info.

Now let me ask you about some wedding etiquette-My cousin got married 9 months ago, when she learned that she was pregnant.  So she and her husband were married, in front of immediate family, by a rabbi, before she had the baby, who is now 7 months old.  She had a baby shower, as one should, for their first child.

Well, now i'm invited to her wedding.  But she's married. For almost a YEAR she's married, but, you know, i'll give her that and attend the wedding and buy a wedding gift (even though she chose to get married before her daughter was born, did i say that yet?).  But then-i get a bridal shower invite.  And here is where i draw the line and get all capital letters on you.  YOU ARE MARRIED! YOU DON'T GET A SHOWER!  I'm sorry you got pregnant and then had a shot gun wedding, but that is what HAPPENED and you have been MARRIED for almost a YEAR.  You don't get to go BACKWARDS and pretend you're NOT MARRIED and get MORE gifts and then MORE gifts!  Or is that just me?  I joked to my mom that i'm not married-nor am i engaged-but apparently there are no rules.  So with these no rules, even though i'm not engaged and not married, i'm gonna have me a "we've been together for 17 years SHOWER" and everyone can BUY ME PRESENTS.  How's that for ya?!

Am i being crazy to think this is just a ploy for gifts?  What would you do?  I'm not going and i'm not sending a gift.  This just bothers me to my very core. Tell me your thoughts on it. 

All opinions are 100% my own, i received a percentage off the favors in exchange for blogging about the store.

sharing is caring:  living savvy outdoor extravaganza, thrifty treasures @ southern hospitality, travel photo mondays @ travel photo discovery, places i've been @ the tablescaper,  travel photo thursdays@ budget travelers sandbox , Monthly projects @ Evolution of Style Make it Pretty Mon @ Dedicated House Throwback Thursday @ Sweet Pea, inspire me mondays and power of paint @ domestically speaking, Places I've Been @ The Tablescaper,  Before and After @ Thrifty Decor Chick,   Sundays @ Suburbs Mama  Mod Vintage Life, Motivate Me Mon @Keeping it Simple,  give me the goods @ rain on a tin roof, home stories a-z, nifty thrifty @ Coastal Charm, be inspired @ elizabeth and co, the scoop @ stone gable,  inspire me tues, lil luna, get your craft on, sugar bee crafts. inspire me weds @ 733, wow us weds @ savvy southern style,  work it weds @ the blissful bee, outdoor weds @ a southern daydreamer, whimsy wednesday, wicked awesome weds @ handy man, crafty woman,  whatever goes weds @ someday crafts,  charm of home, link party palooza @ tatertots and jello, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring, open house @ no minimalist here, creativity unleashed @ shaken together,creative connection @ making home base,  inspiration gallery @ Craftberry Bush, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, my romantic home, jennifer rizzo, Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity now,  furniture fridays @ mustard seed, Feathered Nest @ French Country Cottage, design it fridays @ finding fabulous, best diy @ 36th ave, overflowing w/ creativity @ it's overflowing, nifty thrifty sundays, under the table and dreaming. inspire me please @ liz marie blog,sunday best @ the girl creative  shaken together, seasonal sundays @ the tablescaper,   sunday soiree @ craftomaniac

Punched up dining room

You're probably saying to yourselves "Here she goes again with that dining room." And you may be eye rolling. You'd be pretty much in line with my family, then, who is unfamiliar with the rapid rate of tweaking and change ups happening in my humble abode. I mean, usually a person tweaks, and then there's a finish line. There's not a "let's start again, go a whole different route" line. But, you know, these things happen. I'm becoming the queen of Before/After/Better After....Best After.

I'm a start you off with the Best After.  This is where we are now, and where i hope we stay.  

Previously we were here, with the Better After.

And it was all because of this light fixture.  As it often is, am i right?  I thought it made the room feel taller, and brighter, and lighter.

But then all you saw were RED CURTAINS. Loud and yelling and demanding all eyes on them. Opposite of lighter and airier.

And now it's all like, ahhhh.  Pattern, and light colors, and nothing SCREAMING at you.

New gallery wall pattern (before there were just sconces with red candles on either side of the mirror).

Just to reiterate with the SCREAMING RED curtains.

And letting the light fixture lead after.

Let's consult the archives-this was the old fixture that was special order, man.  i loved that thing.  But we never hung it as low as we should, and it gave off an orangey glow.  Note the sconces and wasted space on either side of the mirror.

Here we have our very first after, along with aforementioned orangey glow and table runners turned window valances.  Don't say this gal ain't crafty.
 

And our very first before, when the dining room was a bedroom.

You've come a long way, baby!  I think (nay, i know) your tweaking days are over.  Of course, i did declare success in the debrownification of the living room, and well....you'll see.

In case you're new, and are wondering why there's a victrola in the corner...

source list: gray curtains: homegoods, light fixture (previous) lowe's, current (euro style lighting: win) change of art frames: win, marbled paper in ikea frames,large mirror:diy, candlesticks,tray,bowl:thrifted

Monthly projects @ Evolution of Style Make it Pretty Mon @ Dedicated House Throwback Thursday @ Sweet Pea, power of paint @ domestically speaking,  Places I've Been @ The Tablescaper,  Before and After @ Thrifty Decor Chick,   Sundays @ Suburbs Mama Craftomaniac,  Mod Vintage Life, Motivate Me Mon @Keeping it Simple,  give me the goods @ rain on a tin roof, home stories a-z, nifty thrifty @ Coastal Charm, be inspired @ elizabeth and co, the scoop @ stone gable,  inspire me tues, lil luna, get your craft on, sugar bee crafts. inspire me weds @ 733, wow us weds @ savvy southern style,  work it weds @ the blissful bee, outdoor weds @ a southern daydreamer, whimsy wednesday, wicked awesome weds @ handy man, crafty woman,  whatever goes weds @ someday crafts, thurs are your day @ 52 mantles,Transformation Thurs @ The Shabby Creek Cottage, charm of home, Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple, open house @ no minimalist here, link party palooza @ tatertots and jello, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring, open house @ no minimalist here, creativity unleashed @ shaken together,creative connection @ making home base,  inspiration gallery @ Craftberry Bush, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, my romantic home, jennifer rizzo, Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity now,  furniture fridays @ mustard seed, Feathered Nest @ French Country Cottage, design it fridays @ finding fabulous, best diy @ 36th ave, thrifty things fri @ the thrifty groove,  overflowing w/ creativity @ it's overflowing, nifty thrifty sundays, under the table and dreaming. inspire me please @ liz marie blog,sunday best @ the girl creative  shaken together, seasonal sundays @ the tablescaper,   a round tuit,

Whispy Hwhispy redone wreath

You know on the Golden Girls, how Blanche is all Southern, like exaggeratedly so. I'm sure the words "Why I do dee-clayuh" (declare) have been uttered on more than one occasion. The episode my friends and I always referenced was where she lamented "Why, big daddy, why?"  except it came out exaggeratedly Hwhy, big daddy, Hwhy.  All breathy with the H first. 

So this redone wreath, with all it's whispy goodness, isn't just whispy.  It's Hwhispy.  All exaggeratedly whispy.  Say it aloud with me, big exhalation of breath, HWHISPY.

I love all those greens and bushy things poking out every which (Hwhich) way.

Did you know they sell whispy things at the dollar store? 

I do dee-clayuh, I did not. 

I plucked off all the sunflowers, cut off a lot of the green leaves, and added the whispy.  And by added I mean shoved them all in there, no glue gun required.  Yay for cheap instant gratification. 

It's officially fall in my home...

via

Partying as always, here: Monthly projects @ Evolution of Style Make it Pretty Mon @ Dedicated House Fall Nesting @ The Inspired Room  power of paint @ domestically speaking,  Places I've Been @ The Tablescaper,  Before and After @ Thrifty Decor Chick,   Sundays @ Suburbs Mama Craftomaniac,  Mod Vintage Life, Motivate Me Mon @Keeping it Simple,  home stories a-z, nifty thrifty @ Coastal Charm, home stories a-z, tweak it Tuesdays, you're gonna love it, Tuesdays Treasures @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, be inspired @ elizabeth and co, inspire me tues, lil luna, get your craft on, sugar bee crafts. sugar and spice @ 733, wow us weds @ savvy southern style, outdoor weds @ a southern daydreamer, wicked awesome weds @ handy man, crafty woman, beyond the picket fence,  whatever goes weds @ someday crafts, 52 mantles, spring into spring, Transformation Thurs @ The Shabby Creek Cottage, charm of home, vintage thingy thurs @ the colorado lady, Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple, open house @ no minimalist here, share awesomeness @ 36th ave, tutorials and tidbits, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring, open house @ no minimalist here, happy hour @ Craftberry Bush, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, feature yourself fri @ Fingerprints on the fridge, my romantic home, jennifer rizzo, Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity now, free for all @ 5days5ways, Feathered Nest @ French Country Cottage, frugalicious friday @ finding fabulous, thrifty things fri @ the thrifty groove,  overflowing w/ creativity @ it's overflowing, nifty thrifty sundays, under the table and dreaming., shaken together, seasonal sundays @ the tablescaper,   a round tuit

A punched up living room

Did everyone else experience that gorgeous little teaser of fall weather we had?  Did you get out your leaves and your gourds and your owls and your pumpkins?  Yeah....not me.  Not with the weather going back into the 90s this week.  I can't think boots and sweaters with the weather calling for shorts. 

And what's a gal to decorate with when the weather patterns all wonky?  This gal focuses on her love of all things travel and all things cheap.

Cheap as in Christmas ornaments from the clearance section used on tabletops.

Cheap as in ceramic "paper" airplane from a thrift store.

Cheap as in more ornaments. 

I like the touch of gold they bring in, and in fact-

I'm tired of this.  Don't get me wrong-my quest to debrownify was achieved-but instead of feeling brown, i felt blue.  And white.  And yes, brown.  Very cold feeling.  And i wanted to walk in here this summer and feel colorful.

So i tried out some cray floral curtains.

This actually works. 

And they're bright and fun, and i don't walk in here and get assaulted with a color theme.  I just get assaulted with color.  And who doesn't want that am i right?!

And although they're floral, they've got warm tones of rust and eggplant and marigold that remind me of what i love about fall. Even if it might not feel like it yet.

So these puppies are staying up til winter, when the browns and blues return.

I did have to adjust my circular art since it was too much with the florals, and too color specific.

Totally on trend with the "made by a two year old" painterly look.  Some a little more trendy (ahem) than others. 

Colorful living room, i love you and your floral curtained self.  But i wouldn't turn away some boot and sweater weather soon.

Is it boot and sweater weather yet by you? Send some this way!


Partying as always, here: power of paint @ domestically speaking,  Places I've Been @ The Tablescaper,  Before and After @ Thrifty Decor Chick,   Sundays @ Suburbs Mama Craftomaniac,  Mod Vintage Life, Motivate Me Mon @Keeping it Simple,  home stories a-z, nifty thrifty @ Coastal Charm, home stories a-z, tweak it Tuesdays, you're gonna love it, Tuesdays Treasures @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, be inspired @ elizabeth and co, tabletop tues, lil luna, get your craft on, sugar bee crafts. sugar and spice @ 733, wow us weds @ savvy southern style, outdoor weds @ a southern daydreamer, wicked awesome weds @ handy man, crafty woman, beyond the picket fence,  whatever goes weds @ someday crafts, 52 mantles, spring into spring, Transformation Thurs @ The Shabby Creek Cottage, charm of home, vintage thingy thurs @ the colorado lady, Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple, hooking up @ house of hepworths, open house @ no minimalist here, share awesomeness @ 36th ave, tutorials and tidbits, Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring, open house @ no minimalist here, happy hour @ Craftberry Bush, Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest, feature yourself fri @ Fingerprints on the fridge, my romantic home, jennifer rizzo, Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity now, free for all @ 5days5ways, Feathered Nest @ French Country Cottage, frugalicious friday @ finding fabulous, potpourri @ 2805, thrifty things fri @ the thrifty groove,  overflowing w/ creativity @ it's overflowing, nifty thrifty sundays, under the table and dreaming., shaken together, seasonal sundays @ the tablescaper,   a round tuit