Halloween Bats

Working on a budget definitely has it's advantages. I get very creative. I've seen a lot of really awesome Halloween bats on Pinterest, most made of felt. I'm not a big fan of felt, especially for the outdoors so I came up with something more durable and *bonus* recycled.

                             

 I just started by drawing bats on an empty water jug I had laying around ready to throw out. You could use a bat template, there are a million of them online, but I just decided to freehand mine.

          Next I cut them out. I started with an x-acto but I found it was easier to just do it with scissors.

I sprayed them with some flat black spray paint I had on hand, once on each side.

Once they were dry I used some mounting putty (sticky tak) to make a little swarm outside my door. I might make more later to go further up my house. (My wreath is a little messed up from the wind by the way, but I haven't fixed it because there is a really cool spider web in the middle of it... which is awesome.)

That's it. Super easy and really fun to make.

 

Recycled Light Bulb Christmas Ornament

     I know it's early to be thinking about Christmas, but I am so excited for this time of year I had to make a little something to start preparing. I have so many crafts I want to do since this will be my first Christmas in a city that actually has a Winter. I've seen a lot of light bulb ornaments, and thought I would give it a try when the perfect light bulb burnt out in my kitchen.

  I started with this round light bulb. I made a stand out of aluminum foil just to hold it up while I painted it. Used regular acrylic paint.

I painted very simple snow, trees, and snowflakes. Added some red "birds". These go all the way around and there's also a little snowman on the other side. When that dried I painted the screw part of the light bulb red.

Once the paint was dry I coated the whole thing in a layer of Gloss Mod Podge. When that finished drying, I glued ribbon around the top to disguise any imperfect edges and glued a bow to the front. The hanger is made from a black pipe cleaner because that's what I had laying around, but you could use ribbon, string, wire, twine etc.

Very cute and easy, plus a great way to re-purpose something I would have otherwise thrown out.

*I'll add another, better photo later

Quick Halloween Craft

   I have found myself in the crafting/holiday spirit very often lately. Always thinking of little things to make to add a touch of the season to my house. I usually have more ideas than I do actual projects due to a very rambunctious three year old. But I whipped these up in no time and I am actually quite pleased with my little craft.

                                               Not the greatest photo, but you get the idea.

These are just pumpkin shapes I drew on and cut out of cardboard I had laying around. Quickly painted, and added the words "Trick or Treat"

Truly frugal decorating. 
 

Parmesan Cream Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms

    My husband usually eats vegan so I was really excited last night when he requested something I haven't made in a long time. My stuffed mushrooms are always a hit and super easy to make.

What You Need:

•   Mushrooms (washed with stems removed)
•   1 pkg. of cream cheese
•   1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 
•   1-2 tbs. spices (get creative, I use salt, a little pepper, red pepper, garlic and a dash of Italian seasoning I have)

Step One:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange mushrooms on cookie sheet.

Step Two:
Soften cream cheese in bowl in microwave (about 30 seconds) Once softened,  mix in Parmesan cheese and spices until blended well.

Step Three:
Using a fork (it's easier to work with) stuff the mushrooms with the cheese mixture. A little overflow is good but don't pile it too high or the cheese will burn.

Step Four:
Bake for 25 mins or until cheese starts to brown. 

Fresh mushrooms will leak a lot of water during cooking so be careful when removing from oven. 

That's it! Hope you enjoy them as much as we do. Great as an appetizer but very filling and can easily make a great dinner when paired with a salad.      

Very Simple Halloween Wreath

                                                                  Happy October!
     I have been seeing so many great Halloween wreaths and couldn't resist making one myself. I'm not one for a lot of frills and flair, especially for Halloween so I wanted something really simple but really cool. 

What you will need:

• Twig wreath (I got mine at Micheal's for 5 bucks)
• Plastic skeletons (Mine are also from Micheal's but they are everywhere right now)
• Foam Skull (only $1 most places)
• Hot Glue Gun 

Couldn't be easier. Just place the foam skull at the top (or bottom) of the wreath and hot glue. I also broke off one of the twigs to stick through the back so it was a little more secure. Next, arrange the skeletons and hot glue into place.  Done!

If you like a little more going on you could add ribbon, plastic spiders or bats, some glitter or spray paint. Whatever you like.

Thanks for reading, happy crafting! 

My birthday kicks off the holiday season.

   I have always thought I have the perfect birthday (Sept. 28) It is not only the beginning of my favorite season, but it also is the kick off to the best part of the year. Nothing but fun things to look forward to from my birthday on. There is Halloween, Football, Thanksgiving, Christmas, my Anniversary, New Years etc.
   This is also a very special year for me. My daughter is just now old enough to really enjoy the holidays and I can't wait to make it as special for her as my mom always did for me and my brothers. We also moved to a new duty station this year and after living in Southern California for the last few years, I am so very excited to have a real Autumn and Winter. 
   My upcoming posts will be of my current projects to make this holiday season amazing. Hope you enjoy!