fall decor

 [I decided to get creative and paint something for our mantle that would pull the living room together]

 

[One of the many sparkly skulls that serve as some glam yet spooky Halloween decor]

 [Fun matchbooks from the local folk art gallery and West Elm]

 [A beautiful, vintage book my gorgeous friend, Eleni, gave me for my Birthday]

 [More glittery skulls take center stage on the dining room table for October]

[Another sparkly skull to decorate the house for Halloween]

Here are a few changes I've made to the house to freshen things up and bring in the new season.  

I love decorating for the holidays, and Halloween is no exception.  Glittery black skulls (I got mine at Kirklands and Target) are a simple and chic way to make your home a bit more spooky.  Also, the city I live in is big on Halloween, so I'm looking forward to picking up a few more eerie accessories from the local folk art gallery this week - I'll keep you updated.

I'm also glad I finally sat down and busted out my painting supplies to do something for the mantle above the fireplace.  The structure and contrast of the paintings really tie the room together with all the random books and chotchkies we have lying around.  Painting also served as a nice, therapeutic experience.. There's something so relaxing about putting on a great album and completely immersing yourself into something.  I really need to do that more often.

xx

A

The Birds

So here is a lovely photo of my amazing/crazy parents, D, and myself dressed up for a Halloween party in South Tampa on Saturday night.  If you couldn't tell, we tried to channel our inner Tippi Hedrin and Rod Taylor and be the victims of the crazy birds of Bodega Bay, California.  Our costumes were a huge hit, and we had so much fun with the fake blood.  It was a super easy costume to pull off as well - just grab a fitted cardigan (huge for this fall - just look at Louis Vuitton!) and a pencil skirt, a few crows from Michael's (like these), and some fake blood from your local costume shop - and voilà!  

[homemade headband.  free people sparkle cardigan.  h&m tank.  f21 faux leather skirt.  top shop socks.  steve madden booties.]

Fortunately, my Halloween celebration didn't end there.  We had an amazingly relaxing Sunday night drinking great wine while giving out yummy chocolates to the adorable trick or treaters.  I decided to wear a more spooky (less gory) all black ensemble.  I thought the combination of the leather skirt, the over the knee socks, and the sparkly sweater was a lot of fun, and the kids loved the glittery crow.
I hope all of you had a smashing Halloween, and I'd love to see some of your costume from the weekend!

xx

A

glitter/goth

Halloween is one of my favorite Holidays, so decorating my house with lots of eerie knick knacks makes me one happy girl.  I touched on Halloween decor earlier, but I found even more items recently; I bought the large black skull at Target, the raven at Michael's, and the small skulls and the silver skull at Kirklands.  I'm actually kind of bummed that Halloween is only a few days away.. I might just have to keep the decorations up for a little bit longer.

xx

A

halloween inspirations

Contrary to popular belief, there are some really chic ways to decorate for Halloween.  I was really inspired by a recent post on Rumi Neely's blog about a visit to a New Zealand boutique.  The Halloween accents there were so stylishly obscure that I could leave them hanging around my house year round.  I will be purchasing some similar spooky accessories here and here.  For even more Halloween inspiration, check out Pottery Barn's Halloween 2010 collection.  It definitely evokes the look I'm drawn to for October.. Something reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven."

xx

A