My revised fall porch

This was my porch earlier today...
I love so much about it. The pumpkins...the make-shift chalkboard... & the hay bale that I store in the garage all year just to bring out during Sept-November for my fall decor. I think this may be the one thing my husband just doesn't get about me... :) I always add mums on one side but I just wasn't loving it this year. Reason number 1: it's too small (sometimes the thrifty side of me makes poor decorating choices) Reason number 2: the ugly black pot. Well I couldn't do anything about the size of the plant since I wasn't willing to buy another one (yet).

Then I had a lightbulb moment when I remembered the stash of burlap I had bought for another project... So here's my simple quick fix. It doesn't magically grow the plant but it does help me love it a little more than I did this morning.

More Canton goodies!

We're showing more goodies from Canton today! One of our friends Amanda found a great desk for $40 that she bought to put in her living room. Can you see it in the back of her trunk?


These photos were taken with her cell phone...but I think you can get the picture. Here's the before.



And here is the lovely after! She painted it black and went back and distressed it. She added a new knob she found at Canton too. It's amazing what a little paint can do to turn around a $40 desk?!


Here she has it in her living room with a cute red stool she also found at Canton. I think it's going to look really cute with some fun accessories up top.

Decoupaged Clothespins

If you have 5 seconds (literally, 5 seconds), grab some scrapbook paper and make your chip clips a little bit cuter. If you have another 5 seconds, add a button or an initial!

This card holder, which I picked up from Canton, & which happens to fit PERFECTLY between my desk & hutch, looks even better with my new clothespins. Can you tell I'm excited?? The quickest project EVER!

I was overzealous & decoupaged too many (an easy mistake), so the girls' art shutter got and upgrade too!

Even my chips in the panty are now adorned with colorful clothespins. But I'll save you the picture of my pantry!

My New "Old" Rocker

This rocker may be one of my favorite finds from our recent trip to Canton. When I spotted this rocker out in the "junking" section I immediately was drawn to it. Ever since we moved into our house I've wanted two rockers to sit out on the front porch. Once we finally painted the house it moved up on my priority list. Last year I spotted a great looking rocker for sale at a home improvement store... for $88. I was willing to shell out the money for two of them but decided to wait until we painted. Imagine my delight when the price for this one was $25. I talked him down to $20 (I'm sure some of you could have gotten him lower...but I'm just beginning to master my negotiating skills....so I am proud of the $5 savings!). It was in great structural shape and I could tell it had even been "fixed" with screws and wood glue. It just needed a good coat of paint.

Here it is after a couple of coats of leftover paint (sorry for the sunlight in the picture...I'm impatient and the picture had to be taken RIGHT THEN!). Maybe on my next Canton or Round Top trip I'll find a suitable mate for it. For now my wicker rocker will work just fine.

I just need to get a new throw pillow for the wicker rocker to add some color and soften the look. Waiting for some good sales... :)

Quick Change {pumpkins}

Have you noticed that white is the new orange for pumpkins??

So I recently spray painted my plasticy-looking pumpkins!

And hand painted a "W" on one with brown paint that I had from another project.

What do you think??

Are you into white pumpkins??

{Recipe} Crockpot Potato Soup

A friend of mine shared this recipe at an exchange we had last year. It comes from Cindy Buban's My Three Best Recipes.

5 cups shredded frozen hash browns (1 bag)
1 cup onion, chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup cream of chicken
1 cup cream of mushroom
2 cups milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Separate hash browns into crockpot (sometimes they are stuck together from being frozen). Add chopped onion. Combine remaining ingredients and pour into crockpot. Add 1 cup water and stir well. Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours. Add more water if needed. Top with cheese and bacon bits and serve.

Thanks for sharing, Lyndsey!! Our family loved this! Perfect for the fall evenings we are having now.

Linking here:
Someday Crafts
A Silly Little Sparrow
Keeping it Simple

Spotlight Sunday {Lindsay}

Here are a few new things I've found blog-hopping that I am really excited to share with y'all!! I am constantly amazed at your creativity and wish I had an ounce of it. Seriously... any cute thing I've ever done has probably been copied by someone like you!

Is this not one of the cutest little pillows you've ever seen? A friend of mine recently started a business Monkey See Monkey Do Designs making these and some other cute, cute things. You've got to check her out!

I am loving this adorable wreath Julie from Crae's Creations put together. What a great alternative to the typical fall foliage type wreath. I want one! And...how great is it that Julie has given us a tutorial? Check it out to make one for yourself.

Melanie at Oops! Redone transformed a great armoire with a fun color. She gives me hope for an upcoming furniture re-do I will be attempting. I'm still on the lookout for my perfect color...

I love the simplistic idea Jenn had over at Redberry Barn. She framed a cute napkin! Why don't I think of these cute ideas....seriously.