// Autumn Front Porch Makeover

For September's Michaels Makers challenge half of us were tasked with doing something fun with the variety of craft pumpkins found in Michaels. There are so many awesome projects out there - from painting them, to carving, bedazzling, and wrapping them in fabric. I kept mine super simple - using them as decor, as is. I love how they look real, but you don't have to worry about them getting all rotten and gross after a while. I can save these year after year and do all sorts of fun and different things with them if I'm feeling it. The traditional orange ones are great, but I really love the cream pumpkins personally. And I can't forget that little green guy! I thought this challenge would be the perfect time to give my front porch a little refresh. 

I scored these white (plastic) adirondack chairs on end-of-summer clearance ($10!) to replace the wicker set I had for a while. Enid liked to use my wicker chairs as a scratching post, so they were totally tattered and scraggly. While these plastic alternatives aren't really anything special, they can withstand my big ol 60+ pound bulldog lounging in them and I appreciate that because it's literally her favorite thing to do - to just lay on the front porch, in her chair, nipping at any bees that fly near her. It's precious really. They don't really have that "homey" feeling though, so I tossed a couple throw pillows on them to spruce 'em up. I used two of the wooden crates from Michaels to create a little side table of sorts, and I decorated with this adorable mini wagon (!!!), mini pumpkins, some Autumn florals, and a little Welcome pumpkin, too. I snagged this wreath for half-off and had it on my front door at first, but I really love the way it looks centered on my front windows. I feel like it brings it all together. 

The other side of my front porch has an old rickety step ladder that I used to stagger my mums, and two straw bales from Michaels, too. And the cutest little scarecrow guy! Linden gets such a hoot out of this scarecrow. The step-side of my porch has a couple more mums (I LOVE FLOWERS!) and two more scarecrows ($6 each!), along with a darling old pickup truck Welcome sign. Two welcome signs aren't too many, right? I just want to be friendly here! haha It makes me so happy to come home and see the festive state of my porch, and it's even more enjoyable when I get to sit out there and drink my morning coffee while Linden rides his bike or jeep. There's just a sense of warmth and happiness that comes along with seasonal decorating, I think. Of course Toby is already begging to decorate for Halloween, so we'll see how long these little Autumn ditties last! 

We don't do a lot of holiday decorating really, mainly because we had always moved every year, but now we've been in this house for almost 5 years (!!!) so I feel a little more comfortable acquiring seasonal pieces that need to be put away and stored for the remainder of the year. We've never decorated for Halloween before, so I think that will be a fun challenge for us all to tackle together. I might pick up a few more of these craft pumpkins from Michaels and then paint them for Halloween... Now I have about seventeen fun ideas running through my head. One at a time, KB!

Whether you want to jazz up a pumpkin with crystals and jewels, paint and glitter, scary faces or gilded foil, Michaels has pretty much any size and shape you might need. They even have teal pumpkins in case you want to showcase that you have non-food treats available - a great way to be inclusive to those children with special dietary restrictions. Halloween can be a tricky time for families managing food allergies, so if you hand out treats on October 31st, consider grabbing a bag of party favors, or whipping up some awesome slime cups, to give out! Check out more about The Teal Pumpkin Project if you haven't heard of it! And be sure to swing by Michaels - online or in store - to check out some of the other great projects.

xo KB