Thursday, October 24, 2013

Fun, Simple and Spooky Halloween Decorations

Halloween is such a fun time of year with all the fun costumes, spooky decorations, cheesy horror movies and candy! I always do some indoor decorating for the holiday, but this year, I really felt inspired to make the outside of the house look Halloween-o-rific as well. As with many of my creative ideas these days, I was inspired by something I stumbled across while perusing Pinterest, however, the original link simply had some photos of decor that an artist had done - no instructions. I decided to use their photos as a guide to get my project going. Here's the finished result. Spooky Fun!





Here's what you will need:
  • cardboard (I still had plenty of moving boxes left in the garage!)
  • black spray paint
  • colored tissue paper
  • utility knife/box cutter
  • tape
  • marker or pencil
  • dowel rods or other wooden sticks for support
  • some artistic ability or a template of your choice 


 How to make your delightfully scary Halloween window silhouettes:
  
1. Draw or trace your designs on the cardboard. I just free-handed it, and honestly it wasn't   that difficult, because the monster shapes are pretty basic. For the hands, I did trace my own arm/hand.



2. Cut out the shapes 
3. Spray paint with the black paint or you could use foam brushes and craft paint. I did a   couple of coats of spray paint with the cheap $1 cans of paint from Walmart. 
4. Tape colored tissue paper to the back side of the cut outs to make the eyes and other cut out areas.
5. Tape dowel rods or other support behind any areas that need it - for instance, my googly eyes needed it, and the little monster arms standing up also. You can find packs of these small rods at Walmart or the local craft store.
6. Prop your spooky new friends in the window and wait for the sun to go down! My hubby also suggested switching the light bulbs out with colored bulbs for an added effect, but we haven't tried it yet. Added bonus, the monsters even look cute during the day!!
** I used clear packing tape to put the hands in the window **





This was actually a really inexpensive and fun project! Get creative and have fun!

Friday, October 18, 2013

Sweet and Spicy Crock Pot Chili

The weather has turned chilly here this week, and I don't know about you, but for me that means it's time for plenty of baking (especially pumpkin flavored goodies) and CHILI! I love a good, hearty bowl of chili and some honey cornbread. Here's a super simple recipe! I make mine vegetarian, and honestly with the heartiness of all the beans in it the meat is not missed, but it would work just as well with some lean ground beef or ground turkey added in. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
  • 1 can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can Pinto Beans, undrained
  • 1 can Kidney Beans, undrained
  • 1 can Tomato Sauce
  • 1 can Petite Diced Tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 can Condensed Tomato Soup
  • 1 bag Frozen Sweet Yellow Corn (adds the "sweet")
  • 1 packet McCormick Chili Seasoning
  • 2 tsp Ground Cayenne Red Pepper (adds the "spicy" - adjust to your fav level of spicy)

Directions:

  1. Add all ingredients to your crock pot.
  2. Cook on Low 4-6 hours.
  3. Serve with your favorite toppings (I love sour cream, diced avocado and shredded cheddar) and some cornbread or tortilla chips.

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