Do you Halloween ?

I know it should say do you celebrate Halloween but to me it is do we do Halloween?   Well we use to do Halloween.   Costumes, tons of Fall/Halloween decorations and the "whole nine yards".  I even dressed up as a Clown when I had my Halloween special, I didn't realize some kiddies were terrified of clowns,  I had to do a lot of talking fast and bribing to get them in a happy mood.  When I had my photography business I would offer a free Halloween package of photographs of the little people in their costumes.  In exchange they were to bring a new and I had to say NEW and not used toy.  Then I would donate them to the Optimist club  and their Toy Drive.  It was always so cute, all the costumes and such imaginations my Mom's would have with the costumes.  When the children would bring in the toys they were so excited to donate the toys to other children.  I would have a giant stack of toys and was a win win for all involved.   The toys, the free photographs and my heart felt so good during that time. 

I suppose I should look up Halloween and it's history but I am lazy today so one year I will do this.  How does that sound?  The weather is wonderful for here in the 80's.  Perfect weather  for the trick or treaters.    I remember in particular one year it was cold and windy and raining but I had my candy by the door to give out just in case any came by to say TRICK OR TREAT and lots of giggles.   A few came to the door and then I heard a tiny voice saying trick or treat.  She might have been 5 ish.  Well I thought this little goblin will be happy and can go home .   I told her, with her Daddy beside her, to open her bag big and I emptied all and I mean all of the candy into her bad.  She just giggled so big.   I loved it.   So then they could go home with a full bag. 

We had lots of fun memories of this Holiday.   So now we turn out our porch light, a  polite way to say no candy here and just be scrooges I guess   This is my only decoration for Halloween.  A witch we bought one time in Branson Mo. She is kind of piggy backing on our Fall wreath.  We did have to do a little surgery on her like gluing her hat on but she did survive it.   

  

I just finished a little Annette project, yes something for me.   I have this picture of both "Grands" and wanted to put it in my art room  AKA a room that you have to be strong to come into.  It is very full.  No Really !!! It is full.   I could use the basement but nope I couldn't be close to Mr. Graves while we watch the same TV Program.   I am just a few steps away.  I mean he might see something wonderful on the TV and I miss it with my back to mine.  I guess I use my "Mother eyes" and watch while in the Art room.  We do have eyes in the back of our head don't we? 

 

                                    I created this on canvas and just kept adding things to it.  

 Now I have just finished a giant project of painting.   Lots of time on the ladder as well as not.   To me Mr. Graves did the hardest part of the project.  He took all of the doors off the cabinets and took the drawers out.   Then he put it all back together.   I started in the back garage with my painting project.  We will call it Operation White.  OW.   I prepped all the doors front and back and the drawer fronts.   I used special cabinet paint and some wonder  liquid called flotrol   Oh my maked the paint go on like silk.  The paint was drying on the doors before I finished one coat.   Mr. G said you know it is 109 in here don't you?  Well we moved every thing to the basement.  Great, it was a large clean area and cool with the vented air.  I had it made in the shade.  Welllllllllll, I guess going up and down the stairs played it's toll on my knee. So Mr.G moved everything up top to the dining area.  The new work area for me.   So after a couple of weeks I was back to painting.  I had to stagger my ladder climbing to only a couple of days a week, the knee you know.   I love to paint and now will show you the before and after of them.  I also did the Master Bath white also.  The other bathrooms and utility room sported white cabinets but now we all are in harmony.  I am not finished with what we are doing with the MB but soon that project will be finished.     I did over 353 coats of paint, counting several coats on each surface.  Some got 3 coats and some got 5 coats.  I don't like thick coats and it pays off.  I was proud of it and a painter accidentally came by, wrong address.  We get that a lot out here and he looked at the cabinet fronts on the work area and said who is doing this?  I said I am and he looked again at them and said I can't do this good.  So you don't think I was a happy camper?

We have a  very open concept design in our home, I love it.  I can be part of the world while playing in the kitchen.   In the house before this one we had a giant kitchen and I didn't like that so this one is perfect for us.  

 

                            Brown cabinets are just not our thing.   I want some life in here. 

 

 

 Here you go nice and crisp white we love the cabinets. The paintings of the back splash  have lots of color and personality also.  I think I showed you Ellie a few posts back.  I repainted the turquoise with a black glaze on it and passed the bar stools down to be reused for years to come.  We didn't use them at all.   I did try no plants etc on the top of the cabinets for a while but nope had to have some pretties up there .  So there you go it just sings now and we are quite happy with it.  We had added the pendant lights a couple of years ago and I painted the little caps that go up to the ceiling to match the finish on the chains so it is good to go.   Thinking about new granite but just on hold for now with that idea.  This top doesn't bother us right now. 

Well there you go on what we have been up to lately.   Thank you for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world. 

                                                                  XOXOXO

                                                                 ANNETTE

 

Time for a Redraw of the Give A Way

Hello dear hearts, well it is Fall and have been " work a rella" lately my word for working like Cinderella.  I do make up my words and titles sometimes.   I just wanted to post this now.  Several months ago like March,  I had a give a way and drew a Karen and a Talking Horse Arts as the winners.   I did knot know them or have their address.  Sooooo after several months of begging for the address I am just going to have a redraw.   Congratulations Denise Shortway and Lynn Novay you are winners and thank you for commenting and following the blog.  

Now off to my Bunny trails of visiting with you.  I have been doing Cq of course, what a wonderful way to watch Baseball games of our beloved Texas Rangers and just spending time with hubby with the other ball games.   I do admit though when football is on sometimes I wander into my ART room and play with my paintings.  We won't tell him that is what I do though.   Our secret.

First I better show you the October block of Alice in Wonderland.   Right?

 

Here she is, my favorite part may be the little white rabbit and a friend sent me the door knob and key.   I had to find a way to add it to this mad house of colors and doings on the block.   I think I have 18 pages of these, 13 I did and then 5 that other artist's did from all over in a Round Robin I did.  I can't wait to show you the finished book .   I am going to use the front outside cover with the wonderful Dodo bird my friend Kathleen Klein made for me and of course I added pretties on it.   I am from Texas you  know and we do like bling.  Or at least this Texas gal does.   

Course you know I am not really really from Texas but did get here as quick as I could.   Like when I was 8 so that counts and I talk like a West Texan and proud of it.   

 

I do have to share one of the photographs I took forever ago.  These little girls are probably all grown and married.   I did enhance it big time with Photoshop and Painter but still a photograph under there.  I was so lucky to have clients that just let me play and do what I wanted to do and just create.  I did have a nice selection of clothing, hats and just general pretties and we did have this wonderful old fashioned porch built just for photography.  I did have fun with it and used it sooooooooo many ways.      In fact it all looked so real one of my wonderful clients came back to the door of the porch and knocked and knocked on the door.   Actually it was a big black oval I painted and then Danny, the one who built it for me, put the screen door over it.  I did feel bad when she called and told me I wasn't home for her appointment.   She did live out of town and luckily was still in town.  She came back and I did give her a free camera session for the mix up.   So the porch and all looked pretty real.

I did have to add a little fall splash here and here is ours for this year.   I think I change every year.  

 

                                         A close up of the banner, I did make it this year.  

 

I am adding a close up of each banner flag aka cardboard and paper.  I just used what I had  

I happened to have a little stick thingie with seeds etc hanging from it so that went well with the A.

 And lo and behold I had the word FALL in sticks and wire.  I would have spelt out Autumn but I only had 4 banners.   Ok it was confession time I guess.

Well dear hearts, this is short but will have the next post, soon, very soon with pics of what I have been doing.   

Thanks for stopping by and seeing what is going on in my world.  

                                                               XOOXXO

                                                                Annette