An Apple A Day Keeps The Decorating Blues Away

Ahhhh, ain't it the truth. I really get excited about decorating with fruits and vegetables. As summer draws to an end and apples are so beautiful and the really interesting vegis are out of the fields and so lovingly displayed on our grocery shelves....I begin to look for decorating inspiration in the isles of our produce department. And don't you know that I will be a happy gal when we trot on down the lane to a nearby pumpkin patch.....yep, happy camper am I when that day comes. All of the wonderful squash and corn and gourds and, and, and apples! Lots and lots of apples. Apples love...can you feel it?

In the weeks to come I will share some of my delight in decorating with apples and vegis...but for now...I'll give you just a sample of what I am talking about.

Aren't they pur~dy?

Place apples in a cutie~pie bowl on the bathroom sink...

instant decorating unexpected~ness!

So fresh and yummy...just asking to be made into a pie~ola!

How 'bout pears in a jar...pear are BFFs with apples...don't ya know...

I have shown this before...but it is worth repeating...I love putting

apples around the base of my pots...and one day, in the near future, these

apples with change to mini pumpkins and gourds....Magic!

Have a wonderful week...I promise to chat more this week now that the insane pace of my volunteering is slowing down a bit...or is it....I don't know...I am too busy to tell.

Smiles ~ Ramona

A Rusty ~O~ Paint Chippin' Ladder For Pots And Such

I heart me a good ladder and there are many uses for those ladders that I heart. But of all the ladders that I have heart~ed the one that I heart the most is the one that hangs over our ol' noodles as a pot and basket rack. It is probably one of my most favorite things in our home. It was the first hokey~pokey decorating do~dad that my husband encouraged me to do....it is right up there with the straw on our dinning room walls and the gigantic rooster in that there dining room. It takes a special kind of dude to put up with my array of decorating mischief....cha, cha, cha!

It is rusty and chippy and warped and outdoors~y and I heart it big time...

It holds baskets and pots and this and that and the other things...

And...if you are wondering...I'm not gonna lie to you, it is a pain in the back~side to clean...

And...yep, I use everything on that o~rack~of~ladder...

Ahhhhh....ladder~love right here in my kitchen...

now excuse me while I go cook up some trouble and

I know just where to find a pot or two.

Smiles ~ Ramona

Denim Jacket Fall Festooned~ment Tutorial

I am a denim jacket lovin' gal...and from time to time and from season to season I like to embellish my bad boy denim jackets~o~love with this and that and the other thing that any season has to offer.

And so this late summer eve I offer to you a seasonal denim jacket ornamentation tutorial.

Please enjoy...and now I am off to get my tongue~out~of~my~cheek.

You can paint denim...just add textile medium to your acrylic paint....

You may have noted that this is an outdated, over~faded, funky~o~rama denim

jacket from way back~in~the~day...yeah....denim love...can you feel it?

Glean some leaves and a cotton hankie for harvest~y fun...

A mossy branch from a sleeping tree...and of course since the tree

is sleeping {shhhhhh...} all of the leaves have fallen...so check out this cleaver idea...

...simply clip that ol' leaf to that ol' mossy branch...instant foliage...

And no denim jacket is complete without a birdhouse peeking out of your pocket...

And no tutorial compiled by me would be complete without a rooster...

Consider the charm to be had with a pine cone corsage...

...and in a pinch, you could grate it onto your buttered toast...

Finally, a bouquet of sharpened pencils....yep, it's a great movie line...

So there you have it...I hope that this has sparked your creative denim juices...I think that Mr. Strauss would be proud.

Happy late summer all....

Smiles ~ Ramona

Delicious Autumn!

Delicious autumn!

My very soul is

wedded to it, and if I were a

bird I would fly about the

Earth seeking the

successive autumns.

~George Eliot~

Ahhhhh....ain't it the truth? I have been flying around successive blogs that are featuring Fall Nesting delights. The fun that was sparked earlier this week by Melissa over at The Inspired Room continues....oh, and what fun we have all had...and if there is fun to be had...then...I am all over that and that is all I have to say about that!

Well maybe not.....

Please enjoy my gigantic obsession with pine cones, pumpkins and late summer sunrises {or the promise of fall sunrises...if you will}...I must confess that I am obsessed and oh so blessed....AMEN!

Oh giant pumpkin, Batman....didn't grow it, just love to stow it ~ under the sideboard...

Sweet~pie chairs and I d'clare how did that get on that chair?

Now, how'd that get up there? Pumpkin fairies!

I heart painting pumpkins...

Yep, I do....

I am gonna glean that cone o' pine for my soup...

Look~ie here....a pot for some soup love...

Soup du jour....Cream of cone...

With a side of fresh baked bread....a la frozen dough....

Sunrise over Mt. Hood, Oregon....

Better tune~up my ol' rake....those leave are a gonna fall....

Cheers to Melissa at The Inspired Room for being such a delightful ring leader....can you imagine if we all went to a yard sale together.....

Smiles ~ Ramona

Nesting ~ Thy Name Is Delight

"Let me be glad

the kettle sings,

Let me be glad

for little things"

~Edna Jacques

We are moving into a gentle time of year....it almost feels like we are being lovingly rocked in the cradle of nature as trees and such slowly prepare to slumber. All the while the bright colors of spring and summer quietly change to mellow, soothing shades of gold and dusty red and chocolate brown...and I realized that this season of fall is so beloved because it is really all of the simple things in life that comfort and make us feel glad and autumn's cup over~flow~ith with so many simple and little things that make my heart sing.

So what is a hyper~activated gal like me to do? Nest! Yep, nest, I say, nest til the cows come home, nest til that cow jumps over the moon and by all means, nest til you just can't nest anymore....and then...rest and nest some more.

All of this talk of nesting deserves a week of it's own...so wonderful Melissa Michaels of The Inspired Room blog~extraordinaire is hosting a Fall Nesting Week....be still my heart!

So for your consideration I offer a virtual mug of hot chocolate...topped with Fall Nesting tid~bits that I am feathering my ol' nest~o~rama with this season. Be sure to fly on back to the momma of all nests at The Inspired Room for more nesting joy....and all the while be glad for the little things in life.

Ahhhh....ain't it the truth...

Yep, it is...

Pumpkin love...

And...the love continues...

And...you can still make a pie...if ya wanna....

Magnolia leaves and acorn squash....

My most favorite~est thing....

Ta~ta for now!

Smiles ~ Ramona