Ready, set, haunt: a Halloween dollhouse transformation

I recently decided to turn my dollhouse into a haunted dollhouse, because I love Halloween! It was as if the universe read my mind, because I’ve recently  found a ton of things at the Goodwill Outlet that enabled this transformation. There’s lots more work to do, but thankfully it is a project I started early enough this time around.

I found a plethora of fabrics and materials that will help me transform my dollhouse for Halloween. Paying by the pound at the Goodwill outlet meant that I spent less than $20 for all the supplies shown above.

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Above: The finished products…so far.  I love how the bed came out…and I love, love the updated couch…made from a purse (see before and after below). I had most of the furniture already, but most of it was broken or in otherwise in pretty bad shape. A fresh coat of paint and everything is looking pretty spooktacular!

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Another before and after…showing the difference a simple paint job can make.  A gaudy rocking horse is transformed into a plaything fit for a baby witch!

Christmas in July

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Above: I’m always on the lookout for fun Christmas things that I can use to make ornaments or other decorative displays.

Below: A fun set of vintage games and playthings  (including some toy horses…I never pass up a good looking horse). My husband and I were especially curious about the “Easy Money” game board (sadly, I didn’t find any of the pieces to go along with it, but it looks ). Apparently this is the Milton-Bradley version of a game that bears a lot of similarities to Parker Brother’s Monopoly.  Here’s more info about the game and it’s history: http://games.cdbpdx.com/EasyMoney/EMTM35.html – this board appears to be from the 50s or 60s.

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Above: I found some great buttons and a vintage singer device that turned out to be a button-hole making machine. I haven’t figured out how to use it yet, but look forward to giving it a try.

Below: I found two vintage hats and a parasol which I’m looking forward to using during an upcoming commemorative march for the centennial of the women’s suffrage movement. They look love with bird print and other fun floral finds.

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Thrifty-doodle-dandy

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A tea time setting that’s ready for the fourth of July.

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Vintage Dominos, an oversized card deck, and a vintage puzzle game called High-Q were all goodwill finds. I was thrilled that he High-Q game had all the pieces, because they were all spread out in a bin. I dropped them a few times on my quest to find them all, so it was not my finest day, but ended up being a great find nonetheless.

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Vintage linens in red, white and blue add a patriotic punch to this tea setting.

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I found this adorable depression glass sugar and creamer set at the Shadeland GW Outlet in Indy. I was on the fence about the creamer, until I found its pair. A set is always a lot more enticing than a solo.

Start your engines!

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Growing up, the month of May in Indianapolis was all about one thing: The Indianapolis 500! The lack of a race today was another stark reminder that things aren’t as they should be…a reminder of the new normal with face masks and social distancing, but sadly, not the greatest spectacle in racing. I’ve been collecting Indy 500 souvenirs all year long so I was ready to celebrate…but it just didn’t seem right without a race.  So I challenged my friends to a 5 mile stationary bike ride…and am proud to say that I’m the inaugural champion* of the Indy 5..  (*full disclosure: nobody else decided to race me…but I’m still counting it as a  win). I celebrated in festive 500 style with a thrifted wreath and half pint of milk (just kidding: its wine!).

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A great birthday with some prickly putt putt

 

When you turn ten you have to do it in style, especially if you can’t have all your friends over for a big party because of a pandemic.  …So that’s what we did! With the help of my husband we recycled some stage props into a cactus-themed putt putt course that I set up in my nieces yard. Happy birthday Evie!

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Hippity Hoppity!

Happy Easter! Here was one of my takes on a socially distant photo egg hunt for family members far, far away.

 

And here’s another take on a socially distant egg hunt I set up a little closer to home.  The scanable eggs contained Easter jokes and riddles and I hid them throughout my neighborhood. The website with the instructions and a page to print off your own egg hunt is here: https://jenni929.wixsite.com/egghunt.

A little Easter in the air…

I have a large collection of tea cups….so I’ve been trying to set up a different tea time tablescape every month. The original plan was to invite someone over to enjoy a cup of tea with me, but the corornavirus put a damper on that plan.  I’ve persisted with the decorating and tea drinking nonetheless.