Friday, October 25, 2024

Thrifted Halloween Painting Trend: Upcycling an Old Painting into Halloween Art

With Halloween right around the corner, I thought I would share a recent project that I've been working on.  The thrifted Halloween painting trend hit the scene hard last year.  The idea is to head to your local thrift store and find an old painting that you can upcycle into Halloween art.  I saw a lot of people doing this last year by adding subtle ghosts to landscape paintings and they all turned out so well.  It has taken me a year to get around to it, but I'm glad I finally jumped on board.  It was a fun project to complete. And while my results are definitely less subtle than a few ghosts scattered into a landscape, they are also most definitely Halloween-esque.  Let me show you. 

So I headed to my local Goodwill over the summer and snagged two canvases, both were by the same artist and they were both folk art. I saw the smaller canvas first and immediately knew exactly how I could turn it into Halloween art.  Then I spied a similar larger canvas, and I became convinced that it was meant to be.  I grabbed both pieces and headed to the checkout.  Honestly, both pieces of art have sat in storage for months, but I recently remembered them and pulled them out.  After a little debating, I decided to start on the larger piece first.  

This is what the canvas looked like when I began.  Nothing in particular about this canvas screamed Halloween.  On the contrary, it is a very traditional folk art, with lots of barns and houses, little Amish people, and horses pulling wagons.  But in the back of my mind, I knew what it could become. 


And here are some of the details from the original art. 

Notice the bright orange sun and yellow sky.  I knew that would have to be the first thing I changed. 


I also immediately knew that I would have to adjust all the bright white picket fencing.  


Notice too all those quilt squares painted on the buildings and barns.  I knew I would have to come up with a plan to change those as well. 


But it was all the little people scattered around this painting that excited me.  I adored this little lady hanging out her quilts, and the mom and daughter to her right.   I had a pretty immediate idea of how I would use all these people in a Halloween painting.  And I'll bet you are thinking the same thing. 


But my first order of business was to get the basic color scheme corrected.  I chose a dark blue for the sky and made that sun into a much bigger yellow moon. Then I adjusted all of the trees and bushes to reds, oranges, and yellows to replace all the bright green that we started with.  I also made all of the previously white picket fencing black.  


With those basic changes completed, I was finally able to move on to the fun part- converting all those little people into my Halloween cast of characters.  

The very first character I started on was the little fellow on the bicycle in the center of the painting.  I took one look at him and decided he HAD to become the Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz.   And with a few easy updates, he did.  

Here's the before and after. 


Since the bicycle already had a basket, it only made sense to add little Toto in there as well.  But this was only just the start.  


Next up was the little character on a tricycle.  I thought to myself, what character would be riding a tricycle?  And I knew it had to be a clown.  Here's that transformation. 




Then the inspiration struck for my favorite little lady hanging out the laundry on the line.  I thought I could make her into the main Sanderson Sister, Winifred, and naturally the little socks hanging on the laundry line turned into witch's stockings.  I covered all the quilts in white until I could come up with an idea.  The white actually sparked the idea that two of them could be plain white sheets/ ghosts and then I just turned the last one into a Halloween colored quilt with a few random patches.  I couldn't leave this little scene without coming up with a costume for the dog, so I made him into a pumpkin. 


Then I remembered the two ladies behind my little clown who were folding a quilt.  And I thought they should be the other two Sanderson siters, Sarah and Mary.  And I just turned their quilt into a sign that reads Hocus Pocus. So now all of the Sanderson Sisters are present and accounted for. 


Longtime blog followers may remember that The Harris Sisters paid homage to the Sanderson Sisters a few years ago.  



And it just kind of snowballed them there.  I incorporated all sorts of Halloween characters and costumes, some of which are specific to costumes that my little family has worn over the years.  Others are nods to some of the Harris Sisters' costumed endeavors, while others are just easily recognizable Halloween characters.   The biggest challenge was finding costumed characters recognizable enough that you would still be able to recognize in miniature form.  This is a large canvas but there is A LOT of subject matter in it, making each individual character around 2 inches tall if they are in the forefront, and closer to only an inch tall (or less) for those in the background. 

Here is a look at some of my favorite Halloween characters from the scene.

This little guy raising the flag in the forefront of the scene became Fred Flintstone. 


This was a nod to the year my family dressed as the Flintstones, which incidentally turned out to be the coldest Halloween on record.  We froze ourselves, but we looked good for this one photo.  


I turned a couple of tiny little characters into Woody and Jessie from Toy Story. 


This was a throwback to our Toy Story Era, when we dressed as Andy's famous toys back in 2018.


And remember that sweet mother and child?  I turned them into Snow White and a bunny, two things that may not seemingly go together. 


But there was, in fact, one Halloween I dressed up as Snow White. 



And Lexi wanted to be a rabbit. 


And these may win the prize for some of the smallest characters in this painting.  There was actually nothing in this space originally, but I wanted to include Raggedy Ann and Andy so I added them in this space. 


Of course, this was a nod to the year that Lexi and I dressed as those famous rag dolls all the way back in 2016. 


I turned this little guy into Harry Potter.



Our family has dressed as characters from Harry Potter for the last two years in a row.  Here is Lexi as Hedwig, Harry Potter's snow owl, from two years ago. 


And as the zany but loveable Luna Lovegood last year. 


I decided to turn a couple more characters into Dorothy and the Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz to tie into the Wicked Witch I had already incorporated. 



And you may remember that The Harris Sisters all dressed as Dorothy a few years ago when we made our own trip down the yellow brick road


And I could not call this a Halloween transformation without adding my all time favorite Halloween characters, the Peanuts gang.  Did you notice the little boy and girl flying kites in the original painting?



They became Charlie Brown in his ghost costume (I had a little trouble with the scissors) and Lucy in her witch costume.  The kids with the kites were originally running in the church yard.  I felt like this area was screaming for a graveyard so I also added one and a few ghosts too. 



As for the kites themselves, I could not rest until I incorporated Snoopy flying on his doghouse.  So he became a kite, pulling a sign saying "Welcome Great Pumpkin".   And if you look closely, you will find Linus heading to the pumpkin patch on the left with his blanket.  That little detail was my daughter's idea. 


So this project really took on a life of it's own.  I worked here and there on all the little details over the course of about a month transforming all the little houses, people, and animals into their own sweet Halloweentown.  I added lots of pumpkins, candles, ghosts, lights, and signs throughout the scene to make the transformation complete.  Here is a look at the final finished painting. 


And here is a final look at how it all started. 


This was such a fun project and I would absolutely recommend.  But if you are a little hesitant to give it a go, I would definitely say don't start out as ambitious as I did.  Maybe working a few ghosts into a landscape is probably the better place to start.  And this trend doesn't have to just start and end with Halloween.  It might be fun to do something similar for other holidays or seasons.  In any case, next time you pass your local thrift store, I hope you will take a peek at the thrifted art and see what calls to you.  

Wednesday, October 23, 2024

Russian Tea Cakes

Russian tea cakes are an easy-to-make cookie that because of their snowball-like appearance make a perfect addition to your holiday cookie rotation. Are Russian tea cakes actually Russian? No. Are they cakes? Also no. But are they delicious? YES!!!


Russian Tea Cakes

Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature

1/3 packed cup confectioners sugar

1 cup lightly toasted* walnuts, finely chopped 

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Coating

Additional confectioners sugar

  1. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone cooking mat.
  2. Add all cookie ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
  3. Use your hands to mix together until all ingredients are incorporated into a dough.
  4. Use a 1-inch scoop to portion dough and roll into balls.
  5. Place balls a few inches apart on the cookie sheet to allow for spreading while baking.
  6. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-25 minutes, checking at the 15 minute mark. Remove from oven when cookies are light golden brown on the bottom.
  7. Let cool for 5 minutes.
  8. Toss cookies in additional confectioners sugar and return to baking sheet to continue cooling. The first coating of sugar will melt into a glaze as the cookies continue to cool.
  9. Let sugared cookies cool completely, then toss in confectioners sugar again to ensure the finished cookies have a generous coating of confectioners sugar.
  10. Store the Russian tea cakes in a shallow, airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.


Notes:

Toast the walnuts on a dry pan over medium heat, tossing frequently for about 5 minutes or until nuts are lightly golden and fragrant then remove to a cutting board to cool and chop. Toasting the nuts will bring out their best flavor and will make your cookies even better.

Nuts can burn very quickly. Never walk away from the pan, and be sure to toss the nuts frequently. As soon as you can smell the aroma of the nuts, they are done toasting.

Recipe makes between 28 to 32 Russian Tea Cakes.

Friday, October 18, 2024

Cherry Vanilla Jam

Who has cherry lovers in their family? We have them on both sides of our family so this homemade cherry jam recipe was a real hit! Today we're sharing our quick and easy cherry jam recipe that's a beautiful deep red color (so it's perfect for Christmas gift-giving).

This particular recipe is a mix of cherry and vanilla flavors, and it tastes delicious slathered on a warm, buttered biscuit. (And, here's another secret about this recipe, it's made it with frozen cherries, which means NO extra time pitting cherries and no stained hands!)

If you have never used a water bath canning method to can jams or jellies before, you'll want to read the complete instructions online before you start making your Cherry Vanilla Jam.


Cherry Vanilla Jam

3 pound bag frozen mixed cherries

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2, 1.75-ounce packages pectin 

1 tablespoon vanilla 

6 cups sugar

9 half pint (8 oz.) glass preserving jars with lids and bands

1 4 oz. glass preserving jar with lid and band


  1. Pulse cherries in a food processor and then place prepared fruit into an 8 quart pot. 
  2. Add lemon juice, pectin, and vanilla and stir. 
  3. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil that cannot be stirred down, over high heat, stirring constantly.
  4. Add sugar, stirring to dissolve. Return mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil hard exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary.
  5. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch head space. 
  6. Follow water bath canning directions to complete the canning process. Process Cherry Vanilla Jam 10 minutes. 
  7. Recipe yields 9 half pint jelly jars plus 1, 4-oz. jar for taste-testing.


Notes:

Jam and jelly recipes are finicky, so these types of things can cause your recipe not to set:
  • Doubling the recipe.
  • Measuring less than the full amount of sugar listed in the recipe or using a sugar substitute. If you want to use less sugar, use a recipe specifically developed for low sugar. 

Other Jam & Jelly Recipes You Might Enjoy:

This post contains affiliate links.

Wednesday, October 9, 2024

Sausage Balls

This is the Sausage Ball recipe that The Harris Sisters family made growing up. If you look up "Sausage Balls Recipe" today, you'll find many different variations of this savory appetizer recipe, including ingredients like pimento cheese, cream cheese, onions, and all sorts of spices. 

But the recipe we used was made with only these three simple ingredients: Bisquick, cheddar cheese, and sausage, and those sausage balls were a hit every time.

We usually made this recipe at Christmas time, but this Southern snack food is also perfect for game day, wedding or baby showers, or breakfast or brunch potlucks.



Sausage Balls

3 scant cups Original Bisquick Pancake and Baking Mix*

1 pound pork sausage* at room temperature

16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded* (4 cups)


  1. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl then mix by hand* until all ingredients are evenly combined.
  2. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls and place one inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
  3. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom.
  4. Serve sausage balls warm or at room temperature.

Notes:


To measure a scant cup of flour, scoop the flour into the cup using a spoon. Scant means almost a full cup, but not quite. Do not use the cup to scoop the flour and level it as you would normally do with baking, or you will use too much flour for this recipe.

We use Jimmy Dean Hot Sausage.

Make sure to shred your own cheese for this recipe versus using bagged cheese. Bagged cheese is drier than freshly shredded cheese and will contribute to a drier sausage ball.

The dough for this recipe is very stiff, which may make mixing it difficult to do with a spoon. You may have the most success kneading the dough with your hands as you would with bread dough.

The original back-of-box recipe (shown below) also includes the addition of Parmesan cheese, milk, and herbs, as well as sauces for dipping. We have never included those in our recipe. However, if after mixing your dough, it seems dry, you may want to add a splash of milk to help incorporate the ingredients.

Recipe makes approximately 4 dozen sausage balls.




Thursday, October 3, 2024

How to Host a Pumpkin Carving Party

A Pumpkin Carving Party is a Halloween tradition your family can start this fall season! This easy-to-host event is a great way to gather together with friends and family in the days before Halloween.

My husband and I have been hosting some version of a Pumpkin Carving Party for 20+ years now, so I wanted to share all of my tips for making your own party a success.


1. When to Host a Pumpkin Carving Party

This may seem obvious, but if you've never thrown a Pumpkin Carving Party before, how would you know the best day to have one? This will (of course) depend on what day Halloween falls on the calendar. We usually try to schedule our party for the weekend day closest to Halloween. This way, your jack-o'-lanterns have the best shot of making it all the way to Halloween.

Plan to invite everyone over around dinner time for dinner or party food. Then let the carving begin!

Some people prefer to start their parties early in the afternoon, but I find that not everyone has carved a pumpkin before OR people want to carve elaborate designs. And that takes time. If you go this route, people will tend to want to hang out to see what the last few folks carving are doing. 

So, make sure you leave plenty of time for the carving portion of the evening if you want to begin before dinner, as it's not always a quick task. And if you want to add any other activities to your evening (like a scary movie afterward) make sure to account for that too. Plan for the carving portion of the party to take about 2 hours.



2. Bring Your Own Pumpkin - BYOP

We have hosted so many Pumpkin Carving Parties (both adults-only, kids-only, and mixed groups). We usually specify on the invitations to BYOP - bring your own pumpkin. That way, everyone who participates is sure to be happy with the pumpkin they're carving. However, make sure to have a few extra pumpkins on hand in case someone forgets to bring their pumpkin and wants to participate. 

A lot of times, if you visit farms or pumpkin patches in the fall season, they will let kiddos of a certain age leave with a free small pumpkin (about the size of the one Aidyn is holding in the photo shown below). You can either let your own kids carve these (if they are old enough), or keep these as "extras" for anyone who may need a pumpkin the night of your party. 



3. What to Wear to a Pumpkin Carving Party

Unlike other Halloween parties, I usually don't encourage costumes for this particular party because of all of the pumpkin guts, which can get messy. When you send out invitations, you may want to specify "costumes not encouraged" so that anyone who has not attended a pumpkin carving party will know not to come in costume. 

Our family usually wears our Halloween finery in the form of Halloween colors or Halloween T-shirts to the party to keep with the spirit of the season. Here are two photos of my son Jaxon (one at his very first Pumpkin Carving Party in 2008 and then another in 2019 rocking his custom "One Cool Jax-O-Lantern" T-shirt).



4. Get Your Pumpkin Carving Supplies Ready

Some common supplies that you might want to have on hand for your Pumpkin Carving Party are:

  • extra trash bags (to spread on tables and for collecting pumpkin seeds and guts / these are easier to find nowadays than newspapers)
  • Ziploc bags (for pumpkin seeds, if anyone wants to take theirs home)
  • Clorox wipes or Clorox spray & paper towels (for cleaning the outside of pumpkins & for general cleanup)
  • candles & lighter or battery operated jack-o-lantern lights (one for each pumpkin)
  • knives, large metal spoons & metal ice cream scoops
  • pumpkin carving kit with tools & patterns
  • markers (for freehanding patterns on pumpkins)
  • alcohol or nail polish remover (for removing marker from pumpkins)
And, if you've got any little kids coming to your party, you might want to have some mini pumpkins and Halloween stickers and washable markers (or other craft supplies) that they can use to decorate pumpkins without carving them.

If everyone at your party is young (or parents with young kids), think about hosting a Pumpkin Decorating Party instead. Here are a few creative no carve pumpkin ideas:



5. What Music Can I Play at My Pumpkin Carving Party?


Set the mood for your party by spinning some Halloween tunes! Choose from songs on these two Halloween playlists to get started:




6. Pumpkin Carving Party Menu

My best tip for the menu is to keep it simple. For our Pumpkin Carving Parties, we usually serve party foods. This way, if guests offer to bring an appetizer or a dessert, you can take them up on their offer to help fill out your party menu. 

And, this time of year, there are lots of seasonal items in stores. So if you don't have time to make individual recipes, it's easy to fill out the menu with purchased seasonal items (for example, pumpkin spice cupcakes from the bakery section, caramel popcorn, etc.). 

Here are some popular party recipes that we serve from year-to-year at our Pumpkin Carving Party.

Butter Cookies with Sprinkles

Another route to go for your Pumpkin Carving Party would be to make an easy meal that serves a big crowd. Any of these recipes would fit the bill.

Sloppy Joes

Whichever type of menu you choose, make sure people know that your party is low-key and that people are welcome to serve themselves at any time during the party. For example, that they don't have to wait until everyone is finished carving pumpkins to grab a bite to eat!

7. Light Up the Pumpkins and Make Sure to Take Photos

When everyone is finished carving their pumpkins, make sure to light the pumpkins and take photos. You'll enjoy seeing not only the carved creations from year-to-year, but how the party-goers (especially kids) change! Here are some of our pumpkin carving party photos through the years:








If you follow these 7 tips, your Pumpkin Carving Party will be a success. But don't forget that the biggest tip of all is just to HAVE FUN! 

Some Other Ideas for Halloween Fun:


This post contains affiliate links.

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