Fun Friday - Fall Fest 2012

Fun Friday - Fall Fest 2012
Autumn is in full swing!  Since last week's Fun Friday was "Frightening Friday", today, I'm bringing you a jam-packed Fall Fest '12 edition.  Included in this post are two adorable and easy crafts - one for the kids, one for you, a super-cute and easy treat and ideas for home decor (I'll show you mine...)!  Grab a cup of pumpkin spice coffee, curl up with your favorite fleese blanket and read on!

Katie's Kraft Korner 

Nature Craft - Yarn Painting
This craft is quick, easy and very festive!  All you need can be easily found (probably have all items needed in the craft box in your closet already), if not, all items needed can be picked up at any Michael's Crafts or JoAnn Fabrics.  

Yarn Painting

You will need:

1. Leafs from your backyard
2. cardboard
3. scissors
4. glue
5. assorted colors of yarn
6. magnet, key chain ring, greetings card, basically whatever you want to turn your Yarn Leaf into

Trace the leafs onto the cardboard (Ben & I will be using cereal box cardboard), cut out cardboard leaf shapes.  Coat one side completely with glue (craft glue, hot glue or Elmer's glue all work fine).  Starting from the outside edges, working your way in, lay strips of colored yarn on top of glue.  Decorate them however you want.  After drying, use your imagination to create refrigerator magnets, hand-made greeting cards, personalized picture frames, even key chains (for key chains, after side 1 is dry, flip over & do the same thing, but attach the chain part under the yarn.  Hot glue is recommended for this particular idea).  I'll be making these with Ben real soon (hopefully this weekend) so stay tuned for pics in an upcoming post!

Maple leaf example

Another example

                                 

Holiday Home Decor - Pumpkin Poopie Paper
This idea comes from an old edition of Family Fun Magazine.  It's one of the cutest ideas I've seen!  This is a great way to disguise extra toilet paper rolls and at the same time, add a little Autumn cheer to the one room that often gets passed over when it comes to decorating for anything!  

You will need:

Easy as A,B,C!!

1. 22 - by 18-inch pieces of ORANGE fabric (fabric can be stripes, patterns, plaids)
2. Brown paper bag (for stem)
3. Green pipe cleaner
4. Green felt
5. Scissors
6. Glue (craft glue works best)

Putting the pumpkin together is easy as A,B,C!  Set each roll in the center of the fabric and tuck the edges into the top of cardboard tube; cut and roll brown bag into a stem shape, using glue to hold together; take green felt and cut out leaf shape and attach with pumpkin vine made from pipe cleaner.  Toss a few into a basket in the bathroom and I guarantee that everyone will want to use your water closet, just to see the pumpkin poopie paper!

Pumpkin Poopie Paper

Sweet Treats

Mini Pumpkins
This quick and easy snack is fall-festive, plus is something you and the kids can do together for some extra quality time!  After you complete the mini pumpkins, put them into a creative container - the back of a toy truck can be filled with them, a small-scale wheel barrow, a watering can, mason jars sealed with gingham ribbon in fall colors, the possibilities are pretty much endless!

Mini Pumpkins: Step-By-Step

You will need:

1. Bag of Circus Peanuts (marshmallow-y orange peanut-shaped candy)
2. Bag of green Gumdrops

For each pumpkin, cut 1 peanut in half, for the pumpkin stem, cut off sugar coating from gum drop and slice "stems" from gumdrop leftover.  Use the stem as glue to stick the two halves of the peanut together to form an orange ball with a green stem.  Roll the ball to make it round and to secure gumdrop glue.  Press very lightly; they can get pretty smushed up if you're rough with them.  To detail your pumpkins, use a toothpick to draw lines.  Load your harvest into any decorative container of your choosing!



Holiday Decor

Fall Style - Simple/Easy Decorating Tips & Ideas
Its easy to have a stylish home for the holidays, no matter what the season.  I've talked about time-saving tips and how to place things and re-arrange things, but tonight, I wanted to share a few pics of my home.  I get most of my decor at Dollar Store and Target, then I add my own flair to it!  I also love Goodwill and Dumpster Diving/Picking - you never know what you'll find!  Send me pics of your home dressed up for the holidays! 

Candy Corn dish turned into festive remote holder!

My mom MADE this wreath!!
(w/items she got @ Goodwill)!!

Great smelling candles w/Leaf candle holder
(candle holder found in garbage)

My Family Room - all decked out (Minnie's on the couch)!
(I purposely didn't include Halloween items in pics - FALL Fest)!!

I hope everyone liked my Fall Fest edition!  It was very time consuming (I guess if my other chores didn't constantly make my have to stop typing or importing photos or whatever it is I do on here for hours at a time), but very worth it!  I want your feedback, comments, pictures - whatever!  I didn't put my Halloween decor in the pics because this was strictly Autumn-themed.  I will be posting Halloween and my outdoor decor at a later date (I want the Jack-O-Lanterns in the pic & if we carve now, they'll be dead by the end of the month - Florida humidity ruins stuff like that very quickly).  Hope you all have an excellent weekend and don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Instagram, tell all your friends about my blog & keep reading it, emailing me, etc! Bye!!

Peace, Love & Light,
Katie