Karla's Cottage

My year of embracing orange and a redo-rescue

For the first autumn of my adult life, I’ve been drawn to fall colors.  It kind of coincides with my attraction to the mix of warm woods that I’ve now blended in my house along with the existing whites and creams.

 For decades if was just the whites.  But I sure am enjoying the wood textures we have added.  Also the dark leather chairs by the stone hearth.

Did it start with this dining table?  Maybe.  I’ve added quite a few touches of wood around our house since.

The hutch is painted white, but has a natural top.  This has been my new, go to move.  There are a few pieces with this paint on the bottom, wood stain on the top look in the last few years.

But orange?  That is brand new for me.  And I like the pops of brightness that color brings to the season.

For a while now, I have loved red accents on a white background at Christmas.  Having a neutral background means  that I can switch things up lot lot with just a few changes of color splashed around the room.

This over blown monstrosity was at a garage sale for one dollar, and typically, I’d have walked right by it.  Or paused to wonder how the basket would look spray painted white (probably very nice, filled with roses).

It is actually a very nice shape and looked good with a pot of mums as is.

Instead, I decided to accept the orange and see what I could do with it.

It had a lot of big, velvet pumpkins inside, two I added to the urns in the top pic.  The rest I set aside along with about 50% of the crazy, over the top amount amount of leaves and berries and bows.

The abundance was pared down to a more reasonable amount in the basket, and I still have a lifetime supply of leaf and berry picks to use for something else.  

So that makes three more palatable arrangements and a leftover bag of supplies for $1, plus the 50 cents each I paid for the urns at the same garage sale.  

Plus, plenty of stems leftover to fill this caldron (also from a garage sale).

All filled with my new enjoyment of autumn tones.  I won’t be changing over my entire decor to pumpkin colors, but I am liking the hints and peeks of them I have scattered around.

 

 

Under a magic spell

I really, really, really loved making things for Good Juju for Halloween!

I have collages, dolls, witchy hats, jewelry, mushrooms, ballerina bats (yes, that’s right, ballerina bat skeletons),  signs, painted pumpkins, and my possibly fave- magic potion bottles.

For years, I have been tossing any vintage items I find that seem fitting for this season, into a drawer.  It was quite full of tempting treats to turn into my fun creations.

I found it so inspiring to have an eclectic mix of ephemera and goodies to dig through.

No two came out the same, since I was working with so many originals bits of vintagey goodness.  I had some photos that I’d copied, but the rest is all aged.

While I was at it, I whipped up a few hand made pumpkins too.

Here are some used as bottle toppers.

I went overboard.

A bit.  

As I do.

There is probably enough inventory for next year too.  I should add some to my online shop, but I will be teaching at Jenn’s fantastic event in Charleston mid October, so might not have time to get any listed in time for Halloween. 

Now it is time to halt my spooky endeavors and switch to Christmas.

Which isn’t a problem, I adore creating sparkling pretties for that holiday too.  

It is hard to put away all of the supplies for October, and to stop myself from making way, way, too much of this stuff.  I’ve been on a roll.

Knowing me, I will be every bit as much obsessed with  as happy to  make things for the next holiday. 

I’ve been saving up Christmas ephemera and supplies too.  I have a feeling that crafting with those is  going to be taking over my life soon.

I’m excited just thinking about it!

And it is extra nice to have a reason to make things, after quarantine and Ryan’s death.  I hadn’t had much inclination to create in volume like this.

Hidden Hearts

I have always enjoyed finding shapes in nature.  Especially hearts.  Or fairy wings.  
Typically, I take a photo of the heart and leave it, but some I pocket, like this one from the dog park.  


They have taken on even more meaning since we lost Ry.  He used to be enthusiastic about the ones I’d see when out on our walks together.  I can hear his voice every time I find one now.

 “That’s so cool, Mom!”

So this broken heart really stood out and caught my eye. It shows how I’ve felt since Ryan left.  Still holding it together, but forever broken.

And lookee here at this one!  On Molly’s hip.  She’d had an ouchie and as it healed, the hair grew back as more golden retriever hair than poodle/doodle hair.  And a darker color too. 

“That’s so cool!”

Queenie

If you are squeamish, you shouldn’t look at these pictures.  I’ll tell the story, then leave a gap and have pics at the end.

Poor Queenie, the other chickens pecked her head raw after her foot was injured and she was weak.   I named her that because they messed up the crown of her head, and also in honor of the passing of Queen Elizabeth.

We were babysitting the neighbors flock while they were away.  This young chicken got her foot stuck in the fence and hurt it.  Rich got her down and put her back in with the others after contacting her family.  But wanted to put her out of her misery, he did not think she would make it.

The next day, she was discovered with the horrible wounds from hen pecks, and he brought her home, made a special pen for her.   She was hand fed, and pampered.  Her poor leg was swollen three times it’s normal size and her head was raw.  Rich, again thought she might need to be euthanized.  But I thought that her eyes were bright and inquisitive, and she seemed happy for attention.

Then, a door was left ajar, I think it might’ve been me.  Sugar got out, knocked over the pen and ran away with Queenie.  The poor bird was terrified and my husband was crushed. He cares so deeply for our pets, and any small creatures he finds around here.  He and Sugarwings had a big adventure with a box turtle named Sonny just the other day, and they still talk about that rescued turtle like he was part of the family.

Once again, I looked into Queenie’s eyes.  They still seemed bright and friendly, even though her body was limp.  There was no blood on her, just a lot of dog slobber and a few missing feathers.  Rich felt little hope for her after pulling her out of the dog’s mouth, but he set her special pen back up and he caught her a few grasshoppers.  She has an appetite, and he has been cutting up pork chops, fresh veggies and other treats for her, which she seems to like.

I think she will make it.  Our friends do not want her back, but I don’t know if our flock will accept her either, she might need to be someone’s single chicken as a pet.  Other hens always seem to bully the younger, weaker girls.  Until her head heals and re-feathers itself, and she can walk again, we will keep her safe and segregated.  

I think she is a lovely bird, with her jet black feathers and sparkling, black eyes.  All of our other ladies have orange or yellow eyes, these shiny, black ones are lovely.  And she seems to like us.  Fingers crossed that this sweet little gal does okay!

 

See what I mean?  What a pretty face she has! Even with her injuries, she is a very, pretty chicken.

 

Halloween Jewels

For Halloween, I went all out on the theming for my booth at Good Juju.  Including some necklaces I made.

Lots of them!

Most are just kinda themed for the spooky season, but would be fine all year, but some are full on ghostly or witchy.

See what I mean?  Very nice as a moody piece to wear with a black dress in October, but still pretty for the rest of the calendar.

A nice accent to wear for for Halloween.

For this season, I planned to have enough of this type of merchandise for the September and October sales weekends.

Oh, and if you need the perfect dress to wear with this jewelry, I have that too.

I’d never have had the audacity to paint blood splatters onto a Victorian silk dress in such beautiful condition myself.  But I was thrilled to see that someone else did and I snapped it up to add some atmosphere to my space. It’s pretty cool, I kinda want to wear it to the annual zombie walk here in Lawrence.

Farewell to Joan

Grandma Joan has left for her final, big trip.  She had a love of travel, nicknaming herself The Gypsy.  After a life time of hard work (this tiny person was a juvenile probation office on the rough side of Sioux City) and showing love to a houseful of kids who desperately needed her care, she spent as much of her retirement as she could on the road.

Joan would zig zag across the country, going to stay and visit with all of her far flung family.  Terry would take her on exciting trips to Alaska, Hawaii, and on a Mississippi River boat including Joan’s sisters too.  No matter who she was with, she never ran out of conversations and loved to tell stories.  


She always had a smile a listening ear for all of us.  This woman was an ideal grandma, never forgetting a birthday, holiday, and never turning down a request go to the playground with grandkids.

Joan walked miles every day and loved to dance, especially at family get togethers when a polka was played.

Most of all, she was kind.  That teeny, little person had a giant heart.  When I joined her family with my two rambunctious boys, she took them under her wing and they became her family right away, no matter how much of a handful they were.  She made all three of us feel like we belonged and she spent endless hours at playgrounds, bouncing on her tippy toes in the pool, and reading books to them.  She took them to Sunday School and out for donuts on a stick afterwards years before I married her son.
My sons loved her and it gives me comfort to know Ryan is with her now someplace together, on her last journey.