Porch Ceiling Decor

I got inspired by seeing this done in Clyde's and at a retail store in Old Town, so I took a walk around my neighborhood and gathered all the down branches that I could find. I interlaced a criss-crossing wire (wreath or floral wire) on either side of the ceiling of my balcony, then I guided the branches above them, so that they rest on top of the wire. I then interlaced the branches with white Christmas lights. Here is the result. I am not totally done with it yet, as there are a few extra touches that I have not done yet, but here is the general idea. I think that it is gorgeous!

Shots of the New Pad.

So here are some random photos of the new apartment. We are settled in nicely, and every day it is feeling a little more like home. It is taking Buddha a little bit of time to adjust, but he will roll with it and keep barking, as he always does.
First off here we have the breakfast nook in the kitchen.
Black and White plus a hint of Yellow = French Provincial. Martha taught me that.














My bedroom.














































Buddha enjoying dinner next to the fireplace.























And the balcony.
xoxoxo
SGS

A Haunting

My Halloween haunting of my house thus far has been heavily spider themed, and I am not quite sure why...I guess you portray in your decoration the things that scare you the most. hmmm..
Anyways, I wanted to give you all a sneak peak into my decorations SO FAR...














Here is the big Mama spider out front.
















Here is Junior, who is ready to pounce on you from the bush next to the sidewalk!
















Here is the hall out front...











Here is the pumpkin and candelabra out front...


















And the new tee shirt that I made last night! I took a plain white tee shirt that I had, dyed it with RIT dye, then printed out this picture on Iron Transfer paper, and Voila...my own "Tarantula" tee shirt!!!
I am now officially the biggest geek of all!
ore to come...HAPPY HAUNTING!

August Candle News and Pricing Changes News!!

Due to popular demand and inquiry, my August design and scent will be the special design that I did back in the Spring, The beach themed candle. For those of you who don't recall, I took a picture of the beach while vacationing there this past winter, then crafted a candle design to match the picture exactly. The scents in the candle are Sun and Sand, Ocean Water, Ocean Breeze, and Midnight Beach. When you look at the candle, you glimpse what looks like an actual photo of the beach. I thought that this design was appropriate to the month of August, when everyone crams in one last beach trip before September begins and everyone goes back to school.
So bring the beach into your home for the last month of the summer by ordering your candles today at CANDLES BY STEPHEN.
The pricing has changed for candle orders, effective with the August candle orders.
I hate to raise prices, but along with everything else, the prices of my supplies have gone up in the past 5 months, and it is simply not cost effective for me to keep the candles at the old prices. Also, July will be the last month that you will be able to purchase a one year candle subscription. Effective August 1st, no more subscriptions will be sold. Current subscribers will be able to finish out their current subscriptions, and the price hike will not be reflected in either their current subscriptions, nor any others ordered before August 1st. I regret cancelling the subscription packages, but again, cost effectiveness is forcing my hand. So after August 1st, you may only order single orders or my package orders for the month.

NEW PRICING IS AS FOLLOWS:
PRICING
The Star Pillar - ($10.00) - This candle measures 4&1/2 inches tall and is 3&3/4 inches wide. This candle burns for over 40 hours, but we recommend that it remain lit for only 2-3 hour increments at one time.




The Oval Pillar - ($8.75) - This candle measures 4 inches tall. This candle burns for over 40 hours, but we recommend that it remain lit for only 2-3 hour increments at one time.

The Votives (6 Votives = $10.00) These candles measure 2 inches tall and 1 1/2 inches wide. These candles burn for about 3 hours by themselves, and about 7 hours in a glass votive jar.

6 Tarts or Floating Candles = $10.00

PACKAGES
1 Star Pillar with 2 Votives = $13.50
1 Oval Pillar with 2 Votives = $12.25
Deluxe Basket, with 1 Star Pillar, 1 Oval Pillar and 6 Votives = $24.75

That being said, pre-orders for individual AUGUST BEACH CANDLES begins today, so pre-order them at the new prices above at the CANDLE website. Also, the July Candles are still available at the former prices.
www.candlesbystephen.blogspot.com

Let's make an arrangement...

Just wanted to share these pictures...
I made these flower arrangements out of flowers found in my front and back yard. They are made up of Queen Anne’s lace, Yellow Primrose, Clematis, and backed by some Aucuba leaves.











These are made up of largely the same plants, Queen Anne’s lace, Yellow Primrose, Clematis,Aucuba leaves, but added is one single Hydrangea bloom.








This is an arrangement I did in a water bowl, with Peonies. I used their leaves to cover the other surfaces of the water that the blooms did not cover to give it a swampy or lily pad like look. I anchored the blooms in place by using riverbed pebbles in the bottom of the bowl.
I did these on a day when I was cleaning up the house and thought "Wouldn't it be nice to have some fresh flowers in here?"..but with prices of things what they are, did not dream of buying flowers. So I took a look around my yard and trimmed these. And the satisfaction of having done it myself made it all much better than anything that I could have bought.
:)
Oh, and PS...our computer is still being repaired, so my blogging and e-mail hours are only during my office hours at work still. *sigh*