Pumpkin Decorating Party

We Walkushes have thrown a Pumpkin Carving Party for 13 years now. Our annual party was supposed to have happened this evening. But, as luck would have it, Aidyn woke up with a high fever that we didn't want to pass along to all of our guests (I mean, what a horrible way to celebrate Halloween).

So, instead, I sent an email first thing to cancel the party and made a doctors appointment. When we arrived at the appointment, we were utterly surprised to see that they'd been decorating pumpkins themselves and boy do they look professional. I thought I'd share them with you! Many have no carving involved and would be easy for kids to help with. Take a look!

Both Olaf and Sven were there. Olaf is three pumpkins stacked and painted. He has twig arms, felt and pompom features, a scarf, and googly eyes:

Sven is a squash and a pumpkin with felt features, eyelash yarn hair and eyebrows, and twig antlers:

Their other Disney pal, Nemo, was also there. His fins looked like they might be made of modeling clay:

Other character pumpkins included Cookie Monster, M&Ms, and Mario. Cookie Monster was painted blue and had ping pong ball eyes. His mouth was carved and stuffed full of cookies. :-)

The M&M display included one large pumpkin painted like the M&M mascot (note: she's dressed like a bunny for Halloween!) and 6 mini pumpkins painted like regular M&Ms.

The Mario pumpkin was hand-painted and probably takes a little more skill than most people have! (Certainly more than I do!)

Finally, here were a few non-character pumpkins that you just won't believe. Here's a witch's cauldron display:

And a giant caramel apple:

And my personal favorite, a box of Dunkin Donuts made with mini pumpkins. I literally did a double-take on this one (Why are there doughnuts on the pumpkin table???):

The pumpkins that the doctors, nurses, and other support staff used for the competition were grown at The Farm at The Children's Home of Winston Salem:

A BIG THANKS to Ford, Simpson, Lively, and Rice for knowing how to put a smile on a kid's face even when he's feeling yucky! Really, hands-down the BEST pediatricians around even when they're not professionally painting pumpkins.

And the moral of this story is that sometimes when life hands you lemons, you're really getting pumpkins - and awesome ones at that.

For those of you interested, Aidyn was diagnosed with a simple virus (not strep and not the flu - woot!). Doctors say that he should be start to feel better by tomorrow. Yay!

Antique and Arts Show Equals Inspiration Galore

If you are a long time follower of the blog, you might remember that I have mentioned the City Farmhouse on more than one occasion.   They are the fabulous local Franklin, Tennessee antique shop that brought us both this prized Halloween photo, as well as our claim-to-fame shabby chic bedroom chair.  

We visited them most recently over the summer, and even then they were telling us that they were hosting a fall-time "pop up show" in the hills of Tennessee that would feature antiques and art from some of the best dealers across the US and abroad.  It just so happens that the show was this past weekend, and we were there.  Let me tell you, it was gorgeous!  One of Nashville's famed record producers offered up his mansion and property as the setting for this beautiful show.  The house was decorated sublimely, but it was the grounds where most of the action was.  Tents filled with treasures dotted the lawn, in addition to a food truck corridor situated just off the entrance to the "secret" garden (which was also open for the event).  Thankfully, we brought along the camera so we could share this event with all of you too. 

Check out this vendor's eyecatching display.  No, babydoll wasn't for sale, but she did attract a lot of attention.  Almost as soon as we plopped her down amidst these pumpkins, she drew a crowd.  I looked up and there were no less than 20 ladies standing there oohing and aahing over her.   Oh my!  Incidentally, these beautiful pumpkins and gourds were for sale.  I think almost everything that wasn't nailed down was for sale, so needless to say, we got babydoll out of there FAST!

Just a few steps further was the band.  They had set up in this great camper with red striped awning.  They weren't playing when I caught these photos, but I loved their look.  

Take a look at their license plate:

And they had their CDs for sale out of these old suitcases.  Too cool!

If it was Halloween you were in the mood for, you were in luck!  There was plenty to be had.  I loved these vintage ghosts. 

And check out the scarecrow.  Loved him too!

Lots of newer artisan type pieces, in addition to the vintage ones.  I loved them too! 

There was inspiration at every turn!

We saw this great pumpkin as we were close to the end of the show, and incidentally it ended up coming home with us.  

For those more interested in decorating and collecting for Christmas, there was plenty of that too!

There was also a ton of everyday decor and furniture, vintage, repurposed, and new.  You name it, it was there.  I fell for this table and chairs.  The set was vintage but newly restored.  And that lazy susan on the tabletop?  You guessed it- it is built in!  Be still my beating heart!!

I also loved this shabby chic set up, and loved how they styled the centerpiece.  Told you there was lots of inspiration there!

Check out this gorgeous display of delicately feathered hair pieces.  Love!!

And this old apple picking ladder and vintage mirrors displayed under a tree.  I couldn't turn a corner without seeing something else I was in love with!

We decided to use this gorgeous place as the backdrop for a few quick pics.  Here's hubby and babydoll showing off in those pretty pumpkins.  

And here are me and my girl exploring that beautiful secret garden I was telling you about.  

What a fun day!  Gorgeous fall weather, fresh air, vintage finds, and decorating inspiration galore!  Doesn't get much better for this girl!

Halloween Home Tour

Folks, I hate to be the one to break it to you, but Halloween is right around the corner. It even took me by surprise this year! We've had so many events planned in October, that it's hard for me to believe that it'll be here in less than two weeks!

So, I figured if you're in need of a little last minute decorating inspiration, I'm happy to bring it to you in the form of this Halloween home tour.

These are either side of my family room mantel. A haunted house ticket and blown glass owls on one side:

And a jack-o-lantern and candy collectors sign on the other side. I think the jack-o-lantern is supposed to be a treat holder, but he looked so regal on top of the mantel that I won't be using him for that this year:

And this is a closeup of a ceramic Halloween garland that I've strung across the fireplace grate below this mantel:

Remember when I showed off my vintage Lava Lamp as Christmas decor last year? Well, here's what it looks like among Halloween decor:

Over in the corner, I've displayed my witch themed sign and potion bottles:

 Moving on to the kitchen, here's a Primitives by Kathy Halloween subway sign:

And here's the handmade Halloween tassel that resides on my kitchen door:

A few years ago, I posted pictures of the Halloween Serveware Display in my glass door kitchen cupboards. Here's what it looks like this year. Looks like I've changed it up quite a bit:

And just because he's cute, here's my orange Halloween owl mug - his partner in crime, green Halloween owl mug, was not available for the photo. ;-)

In the Living Room, I've added a few Primitives by Kathy throw pillows that feature vintage Halloween images: 

And the side table is all set with Halloween coasters:

These jack-o-lantern and bat luminaries and vintage Halloween sign brighten up the bookcase:

Downstairs the Halloween village is in full swing:

And the Dining Room has been decorated in black and white. For all of you interested in comparing, this is what it looked like last year. And this is what it looks like this year:

The rusted metal letters that spell Boo are accented with a vintage Tilso skull ashtray because, hey, what else are you going to do with an ashtray nowadays? ;-) This particular one used to be Daddy's, and he was kind enough to pass it down to me for decorating purposes. What a score!

Here's a look at the buffet:

Closeups of left side:

Closeups of right side. Note the unwrapped candy (candy corn, candy pumpkins, etc.) in Mason jars. This has worked pretty well. It looks nice for display, but it also keeps the candy fresh and keeps little hands out of it because Mason jars confound the boys. :-)

And finally, probably the "scariest" thing I can show you about my Halloween decorating are the bats hanging from my Dining Room chandelier. The scary part is my chandelier. It's brass, and it came with the house.  :-)

Make sure to check out One Man's Trash: Vintage Halloween Edition to see my how I incorporated a vintage witch marionette doll and a Remington typewriter in my Halloween decorations.

Happy Halloween!