Our Couples Halloween Party

We hosted a Halloween party for the first time this year. That means we had to start from scratch with decorations. And now I think we will probably be hosting from now on...now that we've got the goods.

 This part was the most fun for me. I used a sparkly red decorators gel and just squeezed it out of the tube onto the rims. Let it dry and you can pour your drink over it without it smearing. I decorated the inside of the glasses, but the outside of the punch bowl. This stuff is sticky so I only did half of the glasses so guests wouldn't end up eating it.

This is my favorite section of our halloween party! We used cheesecloth dyed in tea to make my jewelry mannequin a mummy. And these cobwebs are fantastic. They are really improved upon them since I was a kid. This is just one long continuous piece. The chandelier I got from hobby lobby for everyday decor in the bedroom. And the branches are part of our winter decor.

 I found this snowman's tophat at Michael's and was inspired to give our pumpkin a dashing makeover. Just paint.

Got this little tree uber-discounted at Michael's.

We had to kind of decorate two rooms. Here's our mantle. These candlesticks I got from Pottery Barn years ago on clearance from their Halloween section. I still love them.

This mummy was inspired by a recipe in Phyllis Hoffman Celebrate which I found on Hostess with the Mostess. I used my own recipe creation for this using cream cheese, goat cheese and spinach. It was better than I thought it would be for a made-up recipe! It was great!

How to make your own holiday gift basket

Yesterday my dad had shoulder surgery. It went great, he's fine! I talked to him last night and he was surprisingly alert and surprisingly not drugged out. Since he's going to be out of work for 6 weeks and probably incredibly bored, I decided to get him a gift basket. However, he's also diabetic. And it is hard to find a gift basket that won't put you in a sugar coma as it is. 

So, I took on the daunting task of making one myself. And it was incredibly fun! The great part about it was being able to fill it with sugar-free treats and savories AND crossword puzzles AND a little something for the pups.


First, I bought the contents at Target and Barnes & Noble. I bought sugar-free candies and cookies, Hickory Farms gift pack (with sausage, cheese and crackers), nuts, doggie toys, crossword puzzle book and a magazine. Then, I took a trip to Michael's to buy everything ON SALE! I bought the basket (50% off), the treat containers, ribbon, bows, a silly ornament and a floral pick

Yes, this is for a man, muhaha! But, I didn't really care. It's probably one of the few times in my life I will actually make a gift basket so I went all out and had fun with it. The down side? It cost $23 to ship. Wah wah waaaaaaah.