Tuesday Thanksgiving Nails

So I guess I jumped a season ahead and went straight to Christmas without giving Thanksgiving its due. That's the reason I started searching the internet for ideas about Thanksgiving Nails.

Here's what I came up with:

Aren't these little turkeys cute? If you want to read more about them, click here

Or here's another idea:

Or yet still another:

Now, I want to come up with my own... I'm thinking....

Christmas Countdown has Begun - Holiday Nails

Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat...won't you please put a penny in the old man's hat?
If you haven't got a penny, a half-penny will do, if you haven't got a half-penny God Bless You!

That's an old poem I remember from my childhood. I still love to celebrate every holiday and even more I love to decorate. So, I begin with my fingernails. Red and white...candy cane nails is easy to do.

First I paint my nails red.

Then using French manicure white polish, I paint a little line at the top.

Then, if one line is a little too thick, I touch it up with a little more red...it's fun, it's easy and it reminds me of the upcoming holiday.

The Morning After

Halloween has come and gone again . . . I always feel a little depressed the day after.

It's not just taking down the decorations and putting away the costumes, it's also having a bit of a stomach ache from eating some of the leftover treats...what am I talking about...? There weren't any leftovers, I just ate them before anyone got to them.

And now, we start into the real holiday season...or the gift giving frenzified time of the year. I'm going to try to make some of my gifts. So, knitting, baking, and sewing here I come...

How bout you? How do you feel after Halloween?

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

This is my favorite Halloween image of all time.

I hope you all get a chance to watch a good Halloween movie, eat some treats and have a Happy Halloween.

...What's Behind the Curtain

Have you ever wanted to bake a cake or cook a special homemade pan of macaroni and cheese...from scratch? Well, if you've ever tried to surprise someone when you're cooking, you know it isn't easy. The wafting aromas bring people into the kitchen and what's the first thing they do...? Yep, they peek in the oven. But...if you have a pretty linen, you can hang it on the door and have it act like a curtain. Then you can tell them, "NO PEEKING!"

The aromas might still give away the surprise but you'll still have the fun of saying, "Pay no attention to the man...I mean, what's behind the curtain." And, if you've ever watched The Wizard of Oz, you'll know what an important line that is ;D

And of course it helps if the linen is an antique hand-stitched beauty.

Each one of these stitches is a small work of art. Women used to make these linens for everyday use. I guess it was before T.V. and the internet . . . but still I find it awe...mazing. And, I look for special purposes for these old beauties.

So, the next time you're baking and want to add a little extra-special anticipation, try an oven curtain.

Popcorn Balls

It's easy and inexpensive to make popcorn balls. And if you add orange food coloring and a few candy decorations, you can make fun food for Halloween. (I don't mean you should give these out to trick-or-treaters - but you can give it to your family and friends)

Here's the recipe from Paula Deen's website:

2 cups sugar
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon white vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar - because that's what I had on hand)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
18 cups popped corn

Directions

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, water, syrup, vinegar, and salt. Cook over high heat until mixture reaches 255 degrees F (hard-ball stage) on a candy thermometer. Stir in vanilla. Pour over popped corn, tossing gently to coat. When mixture is cool enough to handle (and be careful because HOT sugar can burn badly), press popcorn into 3-inch balls with lightly greased hands. Cool completely on waxed paper.

(My candy thermometer was missing - think my daughter 'borrowed' it - so I tested the syrup by dropping a bit in a cup of cold water - to see if it was at the hard-ball stage).

Vintage Linens Repurposed

I love vintage linens but a person can only have so many table runners. So what can you do with a beautiful hand-crafted linen with beautiful French knots? Super simple...sew it and give it a new life as a pillow.

I took the fabric and laid it out to look it over.

Then I positioned the stuffing on top to make sure I had enough to make a pillow.

Then I turned the fabric inside out.

The edges were fairly frayed but that's okay. I simple sewed it around the edges - with the outside on the inside.

Then I stuffed the pillow and sewed up the edge.

Isn't it pretty on the front room chair?

Scary Nails

I love Halloween and I love silly decorations. Here's how I made these scary nails.

I took some French manicure white fingernail polish and painted it on thick. Then when the policy was nearly dried I stuck little wiggly eyes into the polish to hold the eyes in place. If the eyes aren't sticking, simply use a clear top coat of polish to hold them in place.

An Apple A Day

In the fall, I love caramel and apples and of course they go so well together. But after a long day at work, I don't like standing over a hot stove cooking so this is how I make quick caramel apples.

I wash off a couple of apples and stick some wooden sticks down in the core.

Then I take a bag of caramels and put them in a wide mouth coffee mug and melt them in the microwave (but first I add a few tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk). When the two components are well blended I dip the apples into the caramel and set them on waxed paper to harden as they cool.

But of course I can't just leave it like that. I have to use cookie sprinkles to dress the apples for Halloween.

And I only feel a little bad about eating these apples because doesn't the old saying tell us, "Eat an apple a day and keep the doctor away..."

So these treats are half good, in my opinion ;D

Zombie Run at Blue Lake

Zombie Run at Blue Lake on October 26, 2013. This is an untimed 5k fun run...well, if you can call being chased by zombies fun.

I'm thinking of doing this run but I'm afraid...and not of zombies but of being slow, too slow to get away from zombies (and remember zombies are supposed to be slow).

See, I'm not a fast runner...I'm a long-distance runner. So, maybe I'd make a better zombie than a "human". I'm still thinking about it because it looks like fun.

If a person is a "human", they get three flags and they have to try to avoid the zombies who will be trying to snag the flag. But, if a person signs up to be a zombie, they get a make over and I'm not talking a beauty makeover, this isn't a good makeover - it's a zombie transformation. That all sounds like fun...doesn't it?

Seattle

We spent a few days in Seattle. It was beautiful...especially at night.

And another angle

Making Monsters

My daughter, Fatina and I went to a pottery place to celebrate Fatina's birthday. We each picked out a piece of pottery and then we sat and painted them.

I picked a monster...mwha-ha-ha

My daughter picked a mug and so did Fatina

Then Pottery Fun fired the pieces and the glaze turned glossy

I filled my monster's mouth with suckers--perfect for Halloween :D

Run Like Hell Portland, Oregon October 20, 2013

Today was the perfect day for a run. Not to hot. Not to cold (except at the start when we were waiting around for the emcee to say "Run Like Hell!")

I thought I'd just share some of the photos I took from the race. Now, remember some of these people were running by me so fast that they are only a blur... ;D

The Book Fairy was waving her wand before the start to give us all a little wisdom on how to run the race.

Then we all had to wait around for the start. So we were checking our phones to see what time it was and how much longer until the start.

And then it was nearly time to Run Like Hell. There were normal looking folk and super heroes, fairies, and even gnomes running around.

I saw all sorts of get-ups. I even saw Mario

Lots of people running together and plenty running on their own.

Tons of tutus and some that I didn't even know what they were.

Capes and masks of all sorts.

Little devils and even some angels

People were having fun on this Halloween-themed run.

 Love the high-five at the finish line :D !

All in all, it was a great way to spend a day.

Bootiful Nails ;D

Okay so I'm not an nail artist but I love to decorate for the holidays. This is a really simple way to do it and for not a lot of money.

I used Jamberry Nail Shields. And it's sort of like contact paper for your nails. You simply cut them to fit your fingernails and then stick them on. You add a little heat with a hairdryer and wah-lah professional looking nails that last for days (okay I should have cut my shields a little larger - next time I'll have my reading glasses on ;)

But these are so much fun for Halloween. I love them.