Karla Nathan – Page 123 – Karla's Cottage

A magical, Halloween sister trip to Florida, a surprise hotel, and a ghost story

By Karla Nathan / November 6, 2015

And I thought last year's sister trip was fun. This one was just perfect, even better. Before I went to Utah for the Grand Masquerade, I flitted down to Tampa to meet my sisses at the airport for our new tradition of an annual beach trip.

(Yep, October was a whirlwind for me, three trips and a workshop at my home… now it is time to relax and rest up after all of that. No, wait! I think there is more to come… Christmas is just around the corner and if I want to sell any angel kits or other decor -dyed and glittered trees, anyone??- I need to get into HIGH gear)

My sisters had booked a week or so at a condo on Siesta Key beach, where we stayed last year and I'd liked sooooo much that I took all of my kiddos there this summer and where my husband and I had an impromptu wedding vow renewal.

Bobbie and Sissy were having a nice long trip (I met them for 5 days of it) but the condo wasn't available for their whole stay. So, they decided to each surprise the other with a night not too far from the airport.

Unknown to them, they had each chosen the SAME hotel. And what a place!! The Loews Pink Palace on St. Pete beach.

I figured that they had both admired it and spoke of longing to stay there sometime.

Nope.

Sis had never heard of it before, Bobbie had never mentioned it. They both chose to splurge (big time) and treat their sister to a night at a spectacular resort.

Since I knew both secrets, I called ahead, upgraded a tiny bit and made sure that we could check in one day and stay both nights in the same room instead of moving from one to another the next day.

We had a balcony room overlooking the ocean, at one of the prettiest hotels I'd ever seen. We walked along the beach, ate seafood, shopped at a boardwalk in Treasure Island, and just relaxed on the balcony.

They shared a king bed and I had a rollaway, otherwise known as my baby bear bed.

We had some crafting time on our vacation, and here is how I drew that sweet, little baby bear bed. Not so sweet?

Well, one night, I had the worst nightmare. I'm not much of a nightmare type, they happen very rarely for me. But this one was a doozy, and felt so real. It was one where I tried to call out for help, but couldn't make myself heard.

But I just KNEW that if I could force the sound out, my sisters could hear me and they would save me from the long arms (with claws) that were grabbing me from under the bed. It hurt!!

Finally, I croaked out what to me felt like a blasting scream, but what was in reality a scratchy, little creaking sound. But, it did the job, I awoke my saviors and they rescued me from the black arms coming from under my baby bear bed.

But, it still hurt.

Seriously, my shoulder and hip were hurting. I figured I had tensed up so much from fear that my muscles were aching.

Till the next morning came…..

AND I HAD TWO, HEART SHAPED, painful, BRUISES ON MY HIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (We called them ghost bites)

Later on, I read about the ghosts in the hotel, apparently the owner and his true love can be see at times. Which might explain the two hearts? (I didn't take a photo, because they were almost more butt than hip and no one wants to see that.)

As Dewdrop likes to say, "That's Crweepy!"

Well, in all actuality, I probably had bumped my hip the day before and didn't realize it and the pain was what caused the dream.

At least that is what I'm going with.

The hotel was amazing and except for the short, ghostly visit, was perfect. I enjoy older hotels with a lot of history. F. Scott Fitzgerald used to hang out there, and you could feel the Gatsby vibe.

As I like to do on vacations, I created a sea shell fairy as a thank you to the beach. Since we were having a Halloween themed trip, I called her a Sand Witch.

And it seemed fitting, since I was finding so many black shells on this beach. I wanted to make another witch later on for Siesta Key, but the shells were mostly a lighter color there. Each beach has its own look with its shells and the ones I pick up determine who or what I'll make.

But she is always a fairy of gratitude.

After making the shelly witch, we spotted this bench, a perfect photo op and place to play!

I loved the old faded colors of the boats and chair.

Sissy had gifted us all with these matching shirts (from Walmart) and they were ideal for our witchy week theme.

She even brought her cauldron mug for coffee. We aren't big drinkers, so coffee was our vaca brew.

And coffee has never tasted better than it did from this balcony.

She also gave us matching scarves in this sea color.

There were lots of laughs that week, like here where we asked the person at the next table to take our picture just as a bird was pooing on my head. I had to go to the restroom and dunk my noggin in the sink to wash it out, then came back out with a sopping, dripping head just in time to barely catch the last of the dolphins playing off the pier as they swam away. I guess they'd been showing off while I was scrubbing my hair.

Everything about our stay at the Pink Palace was just beautiful. The place was pure luxury through and through.

With never ending salt water taffy at the front desk!

I was not too shy to keep "trick or treating" the concierge. This is part of the haul that made it with us to the condo at Siesta Key later on. We were set for candy for the week.

We didn't make use of the hotel spa, but we did ask for a tour of the rooftop garden area attached to the spa.

And we spent some time at antique and boutique stores around town. I'm showing off the back of my new shirt here. I don't know why we even packed anything, between all the gifts we gave each other and the shopping we did, we didn't need anything from home at all!

Sissy even brought us silver ice cream spoons. They used to be our mom's.

And they made sure to use them when they went to the ice cream parlor at the hotel.

But as much as we loved the high life at our palace, the best part was the company.

An evening at a grand masked ball

celebrations, family, parties, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / November 3, 2015

This was not just a Halloween party.

This was something on a whole different scale.

Like nothing I'd ever been to before. (and honestly, even if I it was possible to get invited to another masquerade, and that seems unlikely since this was such a once in a lifetime experience, I don't think it could come close to matching this wowzer of a party)

Because this one was planned by my sister-in-law, Terry, who is a hostess to beat all. (And who also designed, created, and stitched this fetching,Phoenix gown)

She and her husband are a fun loving, generous couple who understand the art of entertaining.

The party was held at La Caille, a fairy tale, dream come true. You enter through iron gates and drive up a long, winding path lined with twinkle lit trees, to arrive at a French inspired castle in the woods.

Even before you open the door to the grand entry way, you know you're somewhere wonderful.

I channeled my inner Sugarwings and pretended to be a princess as I glided up the stairs. (well, I think I might have kinda clod hopped up in my heels, since they were making some clunking noises as I tried unsuccessfully to walk up the steps semi gracefully in them). If my grand fairy had been there, she could have spent hours just daydreaming and playing make believe on this magnificent stairway.

It was easy to feel like royalty walking into the party. The guests were dressed to the hilt and you could feel the excitement.

Here is our host again, this time with Kate Winslet!!!!!

At least in my mind that is who this was.

I only knew the people there that were relatives, and everyone was masked, so I just guessed at identities of the rest of the guests. Plus, it was such a fancy party, I just assumed that all of those glamorous people that I didn't know were stars or queens or billionaire yachting types.

Yet, I didn't feel like a rube myself at all. Terry and Dale are such a lovable couple, they made everyone feel right at home, welcomed, and ready for fun even in the most luxurious of locations.

Although, somewhere toward the end of the night, I realized that one of my sheer, tulle slips had been wadded up under the top half of my dress all evening.

(What every gal wants when she is all dressed up is an extra layer of poofy padding around the waist, right?)

Sugarwings was excited about me getting to go to this event, and found this pretty, lace mask for me while shopping with her mommy. It was special to me that I had a gift from my girls to carry. I added a stick to it and some embellishments to go along with my black bird dress.

My husband, on the other hand, wore a 59 cent, plastic mask, since he isn't much of a costume type. Neither is his brother. But they both looked handsome toasting their sis for her extraordinary party.

There was a buffet set up with a lot of choices for dinner. Here is my plate of deliciousness.

We had an assortment of mini cheesecakes and other dainty treats for dessert too.

Plus glass pumpkins filled with Halloween candy, Godiva, and Ghirardelli chocolates on each table.

Here is Terry's son, the Mad Hatter showing off some goodies he got from the dessert table.

Throughout the night, there was dancing. My husband even danced to my Halloween favorite, The Monster Mash with me. And slow danced to Micheal Buble singing about what a marvelous night it was for a moon dance.

I agreed with Michael.

Terry was fairy godmother to many of the guests, creating their costumes as well as hers. She designed the pattern for this Tardis gown for her daughter-in-law from a photo found online.

And Holly out evil-queened Regina in this Once Upon a Time inspired gown. Oh my gosh, I wish you could see the deluxe details in this!!!!!!!!!!

Terry covered a luxe purple fabric with black lace to create the look. And the day before the bash, she was figuring out how to make a ruff stand up on the jacket. No looking at youtube videos, using a pattern, she just winged it and came up with an ideal plan.

We were asked to come in formal attire with a mask, costumes welcomed, but nothing gorey. I'm always thrilled to have a reason to be witchy, so when I found the black bird dress on clearance at the Victoria Trading Co. outlet store, I knew it was just what I wanted.

The shoes are from Goodwill and spray painted to be sparkly. Since I have Fred Flintstone feet and shoes are always too narrow, I'm pleased when I find pre-broken in ones to wear at the Goodwill. These low heels were comfy all night long.

I am thinking about cutting the dress off to become a sundress later on, since I don't have a lot of occasions to wear a long gown. Well, maybe I do, with Sugarwings and Dewdrop around, we LOVE excuses to dress up. I might keep it as is, just to play in.

Now, if I could just get my Handsome Husband to slip into that tuxedo more often…. yum

The party was amazing, and the best part? It was also a mini family reunion for us and we got to spend an evening with my mother-in-law, Joan as well as the whole next day hanging out with people we love.

I even got to meet a brand spanking new nephew when Terry's daughter and son-in-law brought their little ones over to the house. There was football to be played, Eric's specialty pizza, and a World Series game too.

And I got to see trick or treaters! I haven't had one at my home in 20 years (except family members) but at Terry's neighborhood, we had so many I felt at one point like I was being overwhelmed by the mob at the front door.

Very cute and a lot of fun to see, though.

It was a beautiful weekend topped off with family fun. My husband was in heaven with a chance to play football with nieces and nephews, I got to catch up on family gossip, eat lots of chocolate, and attend this formal ball.

I can't thank Terry and Dale enough for their hospitality.

I'll leave you with a few more photos from this venue and of the dreamy evening I spent there.

Happy Halloween! And some zombies

family, holiday decor, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / October 31, 2015

My Darling lil Sugarwings has caught the zombie bug. She is still enamoured with princesses, but for this Halloween, she wants to be a Zombie Elsa. And her mom was pretty good with the makeup for the annual Lawrence Zombie Walk.

The kiddo was kind of creepy, she had the act down. She stayed in character and is a good little actress.

As usual, the town turned out for the show, with what seemed like half the population as walkers, the other half watching downtown as the undead paraded by.

It was very much like the herds on the Walking Dead.

ugh

Double ugh

Maybe some day, I'll join in, now that I don't have my trusty side kick to watch it with, she is one of the herd now.

Although, I'm pretty happy with my routine of getting a table at cafe that offers sidewalk dining and watching the event from the comfort of my seat. This time, I sat at the Roost and ate coconut cake with a decaf latte as the goriness tromped by. My husband was out of town, and the rest of the family was occupied (the girl's dad stayed home with Dewdrop, she is a bit sensitive for the scary parts) so I was on my own.

I almost didn't go, but when I found out that Sugarwings and her mommy were shuffling through town, drenched in blood, how could I stay home and miss that?

And it was a nice, fall evening, crisp but not cool. Those days are going to be getting fewer and fewer as winter approaches.

Plus, ZOMBIES!!!!!!!!!!! Why was I even thinking about missing that???

I'm glad I went. And I am already looking forward to next year!

Haunted House fun

Dew Drop, Sugarwings, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / October 30, 2015

This season, we discovered fondant. And for big time, PlayDough lovers, this is a wonderful thing to know about when you are making a gingerbread house. Some orange fondant came in the haunted gingerbread house that I bought at Michaels, and we enjoyed it sooooo much that we bought another package of orange and one of white.

It isn't cheap like Playdough, but it is worth the cost, because the grand fairies worked with it for hours and hours.

The house came assembled!!!!!! That was a huge plus for me, as the contractor for building the home, I'm gingerbread impaired and often struggle to raise the roof. (I've been known to resort to hot glue in the past)

This was also our first Halloween house, and while it was very fun to do, I discovered that the black and purple icing "glues" are a horrid mess to work with and the first batch of orange fondant ended up sorta grey from messy icing fingers.

Also, there wasn't nearly enough candy in the box to finish decorating the creation. At least not to our standards… we are big believers in GAUDINESS!

So, after a couple hours working on the house at the table, and smearing black icing everywhere, I smartened up and the next day when we finished the house, I had the kiddos spend time making their fondant creations and letting them dry before gluing them to the house with the goopy icing.

Sugarwings threw another Arabella Cinderella party to welcome her sister back from her trip out East to be with her mommy, and the gingerbread house made an ideal centerpiece for the table.

I rented Cinderella ( It is a beautiful movie, Rose and Rob Stark make a lovely couple,and I was glad to see that Rob's wedding went a lot better on this show than on Game of Thrones) and the grand fairies had a tea party breakfast watching the show. They spent most of the rest of the day making fondant pumpkins and ghosts in front of the TV, since the room was set up so festive, and we wanted to take advantage of the decor.

Sugarwings had made princess posters on Disney's online game page, printed them, and taped them all around the room to surprise her sis. Then, she set the table for breakfast and called her sister into the room for a surprise party.

I'd say the girl has a flair for hosting a stylish bash.

We will miss our tiny Dewdrop when she heads back to her Mommy. But like we tell her, we are so happy that she gets to be with both us and with her Mommy who she loves so much.

And we never cry about her leaving ( at least not in front of her). She is such a trooper and stays cheerful about it all. I have a feeling that having parties thrown for her doesn't hurt at all.

We have a photo album of her mother and siblings who are not with her, and keep it near her bed, to look through whenever she is feeling lonely for them.

And when she is away from us? I have blog posts full of pictures of her to look at and remember our fun while she was here. I hope that her other family enjoys the posts too.

Fare thee well to the renfest for the season

Dew Drop, fairies, family, parties, Sugarwings, Travel

By Karla Nathan / October 28, 2015

When I got off the airplane from my trip to Georgia to see my buddies, I went directly to the Renfest to see my grandfairies. They were there with some family members to see their daddy at work. And Dewdrop had just returned from her time with her Mommy out East, so I was really missing that lil cutey.

I know I've said it before, but I think that the addition of the Mermaid Lagoon to the festival is a giant improvement. We sure love that area.

And this time, there was a merperson plopped into the water fountain near the entrance too.

And of course, there are fairies galore. My girls always recognize Fay Royalty and are quick with a curtsy.

We have our favorite places to visit, we can't go without spending time in the Children's Realm and seeing the wizard.

As a matter of fact, it would be easy to spend the whole time just in this area for the shows, playground, and crafts. (all free)

We like the dancing too. Whether with the sprites around the maypole or with the royal family.

Where else can you sing at the top of your lungs to "What do you do with a drunken sailor" and dance a jig with Cinderella and her prince?

And be surrounded by pretty gypsies?

Or go for a camel ride?

We also met Rapunzel.

It was a bit surreal to be in Georgia with best friends, enjoying coffee on the wraparound porch of Suzanne's farm house that morning, then a few short hours later being surrounded by mermaids and princesses.

But, what a magical time!

Southern fun

friends, Travel

By Karla Nathan / October 26, 2015

A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to be included in a girl's weekend with this talented group down in Georgia.

Hope Wallace, Suzanne Allison, Lori Oles, Jenn Hayslip, and Andrea Singarella

We spent a day at a flea mkt, did some crafting, but mostly oohed and awed over Suzanne's restored 1800s farmhouse, sipped wine and enjoyed the company.

The farm is in such a scenic spot, every where you looked, there was something pretty too see, from the natural beauty around us to all of Suzanne's decorating details.

But the very best part?

Buddy time!

Suzanne is a spectacular hostess, and has the ideal home to host a gathering in. It is filled with sentimental family pieces and she has stories to tell about each one. I never get tired of her stories, each is better than the one before. And there seems to be hardly anything in her home that doesn't have a funny or sweet tale attached to it.

Which makes her warm and welcoming farmstead even more astonishing. It wasn't put together just with her decorating skills (which are impressive) but with her heart.

And on top of that, she is a great cook. She always has some tempting appetizer trays out before filling us up with a fancy dinner.

The outside of the house is beautiful too, from the barn she got married in last October with the old truck to pose with in front-

to the cows strolling around the pond across the street.

I should have gotten more shots of the house itself, wow, it is spectacular. This kitchen is a dream, with Suzanne's eye to detail showing in every bit of the room. But here is the only picture I took of it, sorry. I was having such a relaxing and fun time that I was focussed more on friends than on photos. But you can tell what a wonderful room this is, can't you? It is a place we all gathered around in to talk and bond and of course, snarf up those cheese trays Suzanne kept whipping up.

The craft room has 14 foot ceilings with the home's original beams. What an inspiring room to work in.

We rode around in the golf cart on the trails in the woods and visited her neighbor's land where we picked fresh figs.

I took this from the back of the golf cart as we drove by.

None of us knew what these flowers were, but what a fluffy pink they are!

Here is the journal that Hope made during our crafting time. She found the book at the flea the day before, it was meant to be.

Andrea and Lori worked on jewelry, Hope and Suzanne did some journaling, Jenn made her pretty, dainty wonders.

And I got started on some angel and sugar plum fairy prototypes. I'm always thrilled to have creative time on a getaway.

Seriously, why didn't I take more photos of this breathtaking home? I guess I was just having too much fun talking to my friends. That is a pretty good excuse, isn't it? I took this pic of the bathroom door from my bed, across the hall.

Thanks again, Suzanne. I can't express fully how much I enjoyed it all!

ps-I will be away from home for a bit, having a sister getaway in Florida. I'll be answering emails from my iPad, but if you order from the Boutique, I'll mail packages on Tuesday the 27th. Same with Etsy, unless you are buying a coloring page, those are a digital download that you will receive right away. I'll have fresh blog stories pre-posted while I'm away, so please still come by to visit!

Shopping (and playing) at Scheels in Kansas City

family, friends

By Karla Nathan / October 24, 2015

Do you have a Scheels in your area? Wow, what a store. It is the size of a shopping mall, and in the atrium, there is a ferris wheel.

Beth's husband is a manager there and invited us to the grand opening a while back. They went all out, with great food, entertainment, shopping discounts, and presents. I was so thrilled to be included!

Beth and I handed the camera to a passerby and asked her if she'd get a shot of us with the ferris wheel behind us. It wasn't until later in the evening when big shots started giving speeches that we realized we'd asked the owner's wife to be our photographer. (She was very gracious).

It reminded me of the time that I was in my vendor space at Silver Bella and asked Mary Engelbreit to take a photo of me with a friend. (She was also very gracious)

The next day at lunch, I saw the speaker and realized it was the kind lady who was patient enough to take a few pics of my friend and I in my booth, and wished I'd got a picture of Mary Englebreit shopping in my booth instead.

Sheels has a lot of photo ops for the kids.

For kids of all ages, that is.

It is a sporting goods store, covering any aspect of sport that you can think of, including a whole home decor department with a cabin type feel.

And a lot of wildlife to visit. Our girls enjoyed petting the bear while I picked out a summer clearance priced boogey board for the new boat. (less than half price)

The coolest part of the store? They blow up photos of their coworkers enjoying the sporting activities they love. That is Beth's husband, Jeff, below the photo of him at the top of some colossal mountain that he'd just rode his bike up to the peak of.

He is a very nice guy, if you see him there, say hi. I know for a fact that he keeps a pocketful of tokens to pass out so you can ride that ferris wheel for free.

ps- I will be away from home for a bit, having a sister getaway in Florida. I'll be answering emails from my iPad, but if you order from the Boutique, I'll mail packages on Tuesday the 27th. Same with Etsy, unless you are buying a coloring page, those are a digital download that you will receive right away. I'll have fresh blog stories pre-posted while I'm away, so please still come by to visit!

Painting a new chandelier to look old

how-to projects, Kitchen remodel, paintings, Tutorials

By Karla Nathan / October 22, 2015

In the past, I've shared how to paint a vintage, brass chandelier. It was the one I had hanging in my kitchen before this one. And I still use that technique when I want a full coverage for whatever I am painting.

But for this project, I wanted a different look. I was replacing two chandies in the kitchen with twin, new, dark copper colored fixtures from Home Depot.

Here is the picture from the box. When I ordered them, I thought I'd like to have the dark bronzey, coppery color as a contrast to my all white kitchen.

But not only did I decide that they were a little too dark, I thought they looked a little… cheap. After owning a heavy, old, solid brass chandelier, this paper thin metal one was a bit of a come down. I hoped layers of paint would give it some depth plus keep the contrast I wanted for the room.

I'd called the electrician to schedule getting the two lights hung up, just to find out that he had a cancellation that day and could be out that afternoon.

Ooops. Too soon! They weren't painted yet. I didn't want to miss the chance to get them up right away, so I looked around to see what I had to work with.

Now, you might remember that I have complained about Chalk Paint. Actually saying that I would never use it again.

Well, I've discovered that it has its uses here and there. I won't use it for large pieces of furniture due to expense, but I have learned that if you buy the small bottles at Michaels or Hobby Lobby with the 40% coupon, it is affordable for small projects.

It always needs sealed with wax or clear coat. I still dislike wax, but am happy with the results of adding a clear coat.

And for this project, I didn't have time to prime. So, I sponged on cream and white chalk paint.

While sponging the two colors together, I was careful to dab a small amount at a time so that the two colors didn't blend completely as I worked.

I left the crevices dark, not smooshing my sponge down into those areas. Chalk paint is a good choice for a project like this, since you don't need to prime first. If I'd had to prime, it would've been hard to leave the original color peeping through.

TIP- Being a perfectionist isn't helpful, being a messy painter and a bit slap happy with the paint is a plus on a project like this!

After that, I brushed on this water based wood stain that I had left over from painting my cabinets.

The stain is brushed on haphazardly into the dark areas and here and there on the sponged areas, and wiped off.

Then it was covered with a clear, water based. top coat.

By starting at the top of one, working my way through it, turning it as I painted to get every angle, then doing the same with the second one- the first was dry enough to glaze as I finished the second. Same thing with the top coat, the first was ready to seal by the time I finished glazing the second. I was able to get both sponge painted, glazed, and top coated, then set out in the sun to dry in under 2 hours.

And both were ready for the electrician when he arrived.

Don't forget to sponge paint the chain too! I'm considering whether or not to add some paint to the cord… It doesn't bother me that much like this. But I'm still thinking about it.

The results were just what I wanted, not as white as my old fixture, and with a hint of the copper showing under my muted white and cream. It is darker, but not starkly so.

The paint makes the light look more substantial and certainly not like it was just shipped from the factory.

Here is another before picture.

The light came with a lot of glass drops. Not crystals, I could tell the quality wasn't quite as high as the ones I'd had before.

So, I added a mix of the older ones in with the new ones. Including 3 deep colored, large ones.

Ahhhh, that's better!

The tubes that slide over the sockets were glaringly blah after redoing the rest of the piece, so I glued vintage wallpaper to them. I thought about sheet music, and might try that another time. It is simple to slide these off, peel off the paper and glue another type onto them instead.

It is honestly a relief to have brand new fixtures with no wiring worries up in the room. The older chandeliers had arms that no longer lit up, and didn't hold as many bulbs. So, when not all of them worked, the room wasn't very bright.

Each of these lamps holds 6 working bulbs. Very nice! And I can now re-wire the vintage fixtures for use elsewhere if I decide to. In the mean time, this was a quick, easy, and pretty affordable redo that still looks nice in my vintagey cottage.

Happy Anniversary Guncles!

guncles

By Karla Nathan / October 20, 2015

A year ago, I was attending a very special event, the wedding of two of my favorite people. I wanted to send them a special card to mark their occasion, but it might not make it in the mail in time (due to my own carelessness, sorry guys!!) , so I'm posting it today to say,

"HAPPY ANNIVERSARY RANDY AND KEVIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

This is the front of the card.

And the inside says this.

(in my not so good writing)

I found this old photo card with these two gentlemen on it, and cut out the heart shape, then colored the guys in the same tones Randy and Kevin wore for the ceremony.

FlNH 265

Kevin and Randy are much more handsome than the guys in the picture, aren't they?

I will be away from home for a bit, having a sister getaway in Florida. I'll be answering emails from my iPad, but if you order from the Boutique, I'll mail packages on Tuesday the 27th. Same with Etsy, unless you are buying a coloring page, those are a digital download that you will receive right away. I'll have fresh blog stories pre-posted while I'm away, so please still come by to visit!

Romantic Gothic Ghosts at the cottage, a spooky studio tour

Food and Drink, holiday decor, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / October 18, 2015

Having my home all spookied up has been fun. Maybe that is why I'm so into all of the witches and haunted house projects?

The haunting decor was set out for my Romantic Gothic Ghosts gathering earlier in the month. I have such a hectic October this year, with three trips and other fun things, that I almost didn't do much decorating.

But I'm glad I did, it has been inspiring for me. I don't think I've ever gotten into so much Halloween themed creating as I have this year. It has been one witch, haunted house, and banner after another.

Well, at least, not since Beth and I did the online zine with how tos and printables titled Romantic Gothic Ghosts back in 2009 or so. That was such fun to do and I just recently reread it. It has some good tips and is pretty cool. And still for sale, here, if you'd like to check it out too.

Oh, I've always enjoyed making witchy things, this pink witch is from a few years ago. But I don't think I've had quite as many to sell in the past. It has been rewarding to see how well they sell and to see that others like the witchy goods too.

At the craft day, after our main project, the ladies stayed late and I got them making banners too. here is Tami's, in progress.

This is the main project for the day, an apothecary jar filled with ghosts and witches.

I'm afraid I don't have any kits for this, but I do still have some little witchy girl kits, if you'd like to make a free standing witch of your own.

The other kits available are the "Book of Mysteries" journals.

Some of my decor for the party was pretty simple. I have this large, spring time mural with blue birds that was too cheerful for this season. So, I printed some bat and witch images and taped them over the birds. Here it is halfway done.

And here it is all batty. I probably should've added some cobwebs to the pink tree…

This was Sugarwings favorite bit of decorating. She is a big, Wizard of Oz fan, so loved this idea.

The tablescape was set up for the party, but the little girls liked it too, so I've left it up for the month. But without my Great Grandma Nellie's hand made table cloth underneath.

I'm a big believer in using the special things I own, not leaving them stashed away in drawers to save for another day. But I'm not stupid and I know that if I left it out for everyday, it would soon be a ketchupy mess.

I'll leave you with more photos from the day and of my studio.

Ghost party 027

Author name: Karla Nathan