Learn how to create a budget Thanksgiving table setting with dollar store items that's simple and elegant, plus a fun DIY pumpkin centerpiece project.   It was just the two of us that Thanksgiving. As usual, since we moved to the Southtowns of Buffalo, there was snow and lots of it.     There was no way I was going to get in the car and drive 8 hours for dinner.  So I set the table as elegantly as possible and roasted a turkey. Tim and I were having a blast in the kitchen together, making a week's worth of stuffing, potatoes, Far East Celery, two kinds of cranberries, … [Read more...]

It's Pumpkin Season! Maybe you're not quite as giddy as me, but you have to admit there's something about a pumpkin that just makes one smile.  Yes? This week our Project Inspire{d} team put together a delicious mix of crafts and eats to tantalize all your senses. So... come on along and Get your "pinning finger" ready for these all Great Ideas... 24 Pumpkin Crafts and Eats You'll Want to Make   Easy DIY Dryer Vent Pumpkin Wreath from A Cultivated Nest Paper Plate Holder Door Décor from Sadie Seasongoods Milk Jug Jack-o-Lantern from Crafty Journal Monogrammed Cross Stitch Pumpkin from … [Read more...]

  My heart sings for simple doable home decor. Even more... when it's inexpensive to make. Oh!  And packs a WOW! Are you ready for a project that's all that and more? I'm going to show you how to create a flowery book page pumpkin that's extraordinary!     The best part is that it's whimsical.... it delights children... and make adults smile. I brought one with me when I went to visit a friend and she fell in love with it. Don't you think it's looks adorable in her tabletop greenhouse.     Sometimes we take seasonal home decor too … [Read more...]

We're in the holiday home stretch. For those of us in the States, we're counting down the days to Thanksgiving.  Just 26 from today! This time of year, I really enjoy pumpkin dishes.  You too? I make a pretty mean pumpkin pie... but my repertoire of tried and true pumpkin recipes is pretty small. That just might all change with these....   13 Pumpkin Recipes 3 Ingredient Pumpkin Cake from Robyn's View  Pumpkin Scones with Pumpkin Spice Icing from Simply Suzanne's Easy Pumpkin Cream Cheese Truffles from A Mitten Full of Savings  Pumpkin Pie Bread Pudding with Caramel from Scattered … [Read more...]

It's pumpkin time! I confess I am totally smitten with pumpkins.  You can find me plumping the window box with pumpkins, tweaking muffin mixes with pumpkin, "pumpkinscaping" my sideboard with pumpkins, and even making pumpkins from paperback books. When I saw all your pumpkin time treats this week, I did the happy dance. Here are 12 Pumpkin Ideas from sweets to decor....     Thrifty Find Upcycled DIY Vintage Pumpkin from Edea Smith Pumpkin and Plaid Wreath from Posed Perfection Canning Lid Pumpkin from The Turquoise Home Slow Cooker Sticky Caramel Pumpkin Cake from Platter … [Read more...]

Welcome to Day 29 of 31 Extraordinary Days to Be...  Or...simply: Be... Together, we will learn to Be… to live fully and beautifully in our “skin” and in our homes and beyond.  If you missed The Introduction or you'd like to follow the entire series, you can find each post listed here.   "To be, or not to be?" Good question! The correct answer is...to be.   Hands down!   The second question might be, "To do, or not to do?" What? Doing is good isn't it? Yes, it can be.     During this #31Days series we've been exploring being versus doing. Often, if we … [Read more...]

  Sometime ago, I was reading how a family decided to put themselves on a spending freeze for something like 3 or 6 months.  They allowed a small amount of money for fresh items for the month and that was pretty much that.  It seems that they realized that they had a full pantry, and yet were still filling up their cart at the grocery store each week.  The goal was to only eat what was in their pantry and freezer and not run to the store. That seems like a really good idea.  I notice on Pinterest and other blogs that people are always organizing their pantries.  And there seems to be a LOT of … [Read more...]

Day 30 There's no doubt about it.  This has been the year of pumpkins. You might remember when I shared my excitement and pumpkin blessing here.   Prior to my blessing I had made up my mind that I was just going to try to be creative with the things I had in my house, and the little bits of fall stored in my "Fall Decor" box. I had pretty much thumbed my nose to anything from the Fall Decor Store.  Of course that's easy to do when shopping the aisles of the Fall Decor Store is not an option.   I was enjoying the challenge until I experienced Pumpkins from Heaven!    Do you hear the … [Read more...]

Day 16 A  few years ago I was surfing the web and looking for Fall Decor ideas.  I was amazed at all the very talented people "out there."  One of the websites I came across was The Inspired Room.  I was very new to reading blogs back then and was fascinated by Melissa Michaels' blog.  The Inspired Room lived up to its name. It was inspiring.  But, not simply because of all the lovely vignettes and seasonal arrangements which graced her home and my computer screen.  It's the honest and approachable spirit with which Melissa writes, and her virtual hospitality of welcoming her reader into her home and helping us … [Read more...]

Day 12   A year ago today the movers pulled up to our house and loaded all our worldly possessions onto their long blue and white truck.  In the midst of a driving (make that...monsoon) rainstorm.  How everything did not arrive all wet and moldy is a mystery. After a good sleep, we pulled out-of-town with the cats and drove to our new home.  One of the first things I was excited to do at my new house was to fill the front window box.  With pumpkins.  But, there was no time, or extra money, for plumping with pumpkins.  Instead we were on a mission to clean, and paint several rooms, before the … [Read more...]

Fresh-Picked Pumpkins in our Home Decor   What did you do today? Me?  I had one of those very fun girlfriend kind of days. The kind where you both pick up pumpkins, go back to her house and create a magical moment with your stash?  Yes, one splendid day. And what a nice afternoon it was.  The temperature was perfect.  To take advantage of the sunshine, we flew out to her patio and engaged in the grown-up version of playing Barbies.  Only we used fresh-picked pumpkins in our home decor.  Did I tell you we had fun? We arranged a little sitting area and filled it in with all kinds of fall … [Read more...]