Pumpkin Lanterns

I wanted to make hanging lanterns for our big tree in the backyard, and originally I thought of using mason jars.  The more I thought about it though, the more I realized that I wanted to make the lanterns be jack o lanterns that were hanging in the trees to be a festive addition to the party.  Because I knew I would be painting the jars, I was a little hesitant to use any of the nice Kerr and Ball mason jars that we had from the wedding (besides most of them are getting used for another project...).  Then I realized how many glass jars I had been saving to use in my craft room as storage for craft supplies, and knew that they could be put to perfect use for our Halloween party.

The project supply list is short and sweet:

-Glass jars (I used empty salsa, spaghetti sauce, and pickle jars)

-Orange acrylic paint

-Black permanent marker

-Wire if you want to hang them

Start by peeling off all of the jar labels and giving them a good clean.

Apply paint to the inside of the jar around the top.

Use a paint brush to spread the paint around the inside of the jar.  I tried using a brush full of paint and then painting the jar, but found the method of applying paint first to be easier.  I also found that tipping the jar upside down helped to reach the hard to get spots on right below the top of the jar.

The nice part of painting the inside is that there is no wait time between painting and drawing on the face ;)  Use a permanent marker and create spooky, scary, or happy faces for your pumpkin lanterns.  And if you run out of ideas search the internet for Jack o Lanterns and get inspiration from the faces others have cut out!

Here is my crew of pumpkin lanterns.  I love that there are different shapes and sizes and the unique look each has from the way the paint dried, the amount of paint used, and the different  faces they all have :)  I am really excited to see them lit up for the party of Friday!

Are you up to any fun holiday crafts right now?

Mirror re-do

With my job I travel a lot and must get creative with ways to spend my lunch time in different towns.  One of my favorite places to go in Branson is TJMaxx.  They often have a better selection than the one in Springfield, and they have a really good clearance area.  This shopping trip I was looking to see if I could find some cute fall decor (which I found) and stumbled upon a fantastic mirror that I knew I had to have.  First the cute fall decorations just because I love them :)

And now on to the mirror.  It started its life like this:

I looked past its hot pink frame thanks to its $15 price tag and decided that I could make it function in our master bedroom.  I bought a can of primer and a can of sunshine yellow spray paint for the re-do.  The primer was a must with the frame being a very bright hot pink :)

I was so excited to get the mirror up and on the wall that I decided to paint it right after I got home, which meant that it was dark outside so sorry about the dark pictures to come ;)

It took about 4 coats of primer and 3 coats of color to cover the hot pink, but the finished project is amazing in my opinion :)

I was squealing with excitement when it went up on the wall!  Living in a rental presents that challenge of sterile, white walls that you can't do anything with.  I am always looking for fun ways to bring bright colors to our walls and this mirror definitely did it in our master bedroom :)  

See you tomorrow for a Friday Favorites post!