30 Free Halloween Fonts

Have I mentioned that I am a Font Junky? It's a real thing. Ask the memory on my computer - totally crammed with the burden of storing my insane number of fonts.

I love paper. Just paper - all kinds. My sister and I used to play office when we were kids. We just couldn't get enough of scrap paper, old computer paper {remember the green and white striped printer paper with the holes on the sides?}, carbon copy paper! Oh my, it was just too much fun for 2 little girls to handle. :)

Not surprisingly, when I grew up I started my own invitation and stationery business. Custom printing was my forte. I had experience in word processing AND fine arts {and many other very random things}. It came naturally, and so did my love of typeface. I collected fonts like I collect vintage goodies. I followed typeface blogs back when I didn't know they were called blogs. I think I thought it was a newsletter. :)

Anywho... I closed my business about 2 years ago to focus on my job as mommy. My daughter was about 1-1/2 years old and crazy into everything. She wasn't like my son, who would be content to play with Thomas trains for eons. She flitted from one dangerous thing to another. To be privy to her brainwaves would be mind boggling to me. SO BUSY, I tell you! She needed more than constant supervision, she needed a full time bodyguard.

Closing my business was not an easy decision, as it was one of my babies, too. But I didn't want to compromise my family for my business. And it was nearly impossible to slow it down and make any profit at all. 

So, 2 years have gone by, and my love affair with paper and FONTS lives on. I have compiled 30 FREE Halloween fonts here for your viewing pleasure. :)

You've probably seen some before, but hopefully I threw in a couple new ones for you. I tried to include a good variety of classic Halloween, kid-friendly and downright creepy fonts. I also included a dingbat font at the bottom because, well, look at it! It's scary cute!

You can find the majority of these available for download at DaFont.com. It is a wonderful free font site. I have used it for years. If you need help finding or downloading fonts, just email me and I'll see what I can do.

A Charming Font, A Lolita Scorned, Blackwood Castle, Bleeding Cowboys, Black Widow, Bleeding Freaks, Buffied, Creature, Dracula, Dread, Endor, Fiddums Family, Frankendork [outline], Frankie, Ghoulish, Haunt, Haunting Attraction, Horror Hotel, JI Pumpkins, Jack Lantern, KR Along Came a Spider, Kreepy Krawly, Trinigan {Nightmare Before Christmas}, Nightmare, October Crow, Sanctuary, Sketch Bones, Spinstee, Zombie H {the H is Holocaust, but I'm not a fan of that name}, MTF Sweet Halloween Dings

I will most likely be adding some Halloween printable freebies on here soon, too! So check back or follow along if you like. If you create anything with one of these, please share. I'd love to see it!

*Yes, I realize that this really has nothing to do with vintage, but like Shrek, I am like an onion - many layers. It's been on repeat in the car lately. :)

Sometimes I link up with the following fabulous linky parties: The 36th Avenue, A Ruffled Nest, At the Picket Fence, Be Different Act Normal,Between Naps on the Porch, Beyond the Picket Fence, Blissful & Domestic, Bowdabra Blog, Cheerios and Lattes, The Chicken Chick, Coastal Charm, Common Ground, Country Momma Cooks, Crystal & Co (The Mommy Club), The Dedicated House, DIY Show Off, Elizabeth & Co., Embracing Change, Faded Charm, Family Every After, The Farmhouse Porch, Finding Fabulous, Fine Craft Guild, Fireflies and Jellybeans, Free Pretty Things!, French Country Cottage, Fresh Eggs Daily, Ginger Snap Crafts, Happy Hour Projects, High Heels and Grills, Home stories AtoZ, House of Hepworths, Hubby Made Me, I Heart Naptime, Lil' Luna, Ladybird Ln, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Little Becky Homecky, Mandatory Mooch, Milk & Cuddles, Mod Vintage Life, My Repurposed Life, My Romantic Home, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nap Time Crafters, Nifty Thrifty Things, Not Just a Housewife, One More Time, Project Inspire, Primp Your Stuff, Redoux, Rooted in Thyme, Savvy Southern Style, Shabby Art Boutique, Simple Home Life, Six Sisters' Stuff, Skip to My Lou, Someday Crafts, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Stuff and Nonsense, Tatertots and Jello, Thirty Handmade Days, Tip Junkie, Twigg Studios, Uncommon Designs, Under the Table & Dreaming, The Vintage Farmhouse, ...

Easy Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

This is a quicky post about a quicky breakfast. I've been crazy busy with the kids starting their sports and had a bad bought of vertigo earlier this week. {NOT fun} So I haven't had a new post in a while.

But first, I wanted to say THANK YOU! I am so thrilled with the wonderful response to my little DIY Pumpkin Patch post! I was emailing the lovely and talented Claire at a little something in the meantime last week about how it so fun when someone else likes something you've created. It makes our efforts seem validated, because truthfully, my family doesn't even notice the little things I do. They have become "normal". To wake up the day before school and see that mom created a whole vignette, printable, chalkboard design, etc. Totally normal everyday stuff to my kids. :)

So, the blogging community enjoys my creativity more than my family. And I'll take it! I get why it is called a community. :) Thank you, everyone, for your sweet comments!

And if you liked my pumpkins, hop over to Claire's blog. She just posted about paint chip pumpkins... um, can you say So Stinkin' Cute {and clever}. Major inspiration - and even better, she tells you how to store them flat for next year!

On to my ridiculously simple recipe:

Easy Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

Easy Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

Ingredients:

• crescent roll dough {I used reduced fat}
• butter or margarine
• cinnamon sugar {or cinnamon & sugar}

this photo was just too boring, had to add some PW action

Note: I got this cinnamon sugar grinder at Trader Joe's and I love it! It gives you nice coarse pieces of sugar.

1: Melt butter in microwave. I used half a stick for two tubes of crescent rolls.

2: Roll out crescent dough. I recommend a jelly roll pan or something with sides to catch any melty goodness. 

Tip: I found after the first batch that separating them before adding butter  makes it easier to roll. The butter was sticking them together and made it a little gooey.

3: Spread melted butter onto the crescent dough.

4: Add generous amounts of cinnamon and sugar until the dough is mostly coated. Below was before I finished - add more :)

5: Roll those bad boys up. Brush with butter again and sprinkle more cinnamon sugar on top.

6: Bake per package instructions. Mine took about 10 minutes at 350 degrees. 

I sliced up some Gala apples to go with them. Probably could have put them IN the crescents, but then my son would never have come back in the kitchen.

Here is a closeup of the crystallized sugar on top. MMMMMmmmmmm...

And just for kicks and to keep it real... here is my daughter's actual meal :)

Super simple, and really scrumptious! I'll be back soon with some vintage goodness!

Sometimes I link up with the following fabulous linky parties: The 36th Avenue, A Ruffled Nest, At the Picket Fence, Be Different Act Normal, Between Naps of the Porch, Beyond the Picket Fence, Blissful & Domestic, Bowdabra Blog, Cheerios and Lattes, Coastal Charm, Common Ground, Country Momma Cooks, Crystal & Co (The Mommy Club), The Dedicated House, DIY Show Off, Elizabeth & Co.,Embracing Change, Faded Charm, Family Every After, The Farmhouse Porch, Finding Fabulous, Fine Craft Guild, Fireflies and Jellybeans, Free Pretty Things!, French Country Cottage, Ginger Snap Crafts,High Heels and Grills, Home stories AtoZ, House of Hepworths, I Heart Naptime, Lil' Luna, Ladybird Ln, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Little Becky Homecky, Mandatory Mooch, Milk & Cuddles, Mod Vintage Life, My Repurposed Life, My Romantic Home, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nap Time Crafters, The Nature of Grace, Nifty Thrifty Things, Not Just a Housewife, One More Time, Primp Your Stuff, Redoux, Savvy Southern Style, Shabby Art Boutique, Simple Home Life, Six Sisters' Stuff, Skip to My Lou, Someday Crafts, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Stone Gable, Tatertots and Jello, Thirty Handmade Days, Tip Junkie, Twigg Studios, Uncommon Designs, Under the Table & Dreaming, The Vintage Farmhouse, ...

oh... hello fall

I have wanted to try a few handmade pumpkins for fall. So, I decided to do whatever I had on hand - all in one naptime. I am hoping to make a few more this week. Possibly a different color scheme for a different room.

I bought decorated store bought orange pumpkins last year on 75% off. So about a quarter a piece. I spray painted some white before decorating them.

I made 2 different burlap pumpkins. The larger pumpkin has a tighter weave. This one is actually a plastic ball (like the ball pit kind) wrapped in a little polyfil and then covered in burlap. The smaller burlap pumpkin has no filler. It is just a puffy empty sack sewn together at the top and bottom. It is from a wide roll of burlap ribbon. 

burlap pumpkin wrapped in twine with tag

I added a wooden tag to the larger one that said, "oh... hello fall" in a coordinating ink color.

Some of the painted pumpkins have jute or twine around them for depth. For the littlest 2 white pumpkins, I wrapped their plastic stems in jute.

The remainder of the pumpkins have real pumpkin stems. They are hot-glued on to each pumpkin. I saved them after last years pumpkins were getting thrown out. My husband thought I was Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. :)

But I have a vision! It just might take me 10 months to get around to accomplishing it.

The other littlest pumpkin in wrapped in twine and then I wrapped it around the pumpkin vertically as well to add definition, because once wrapped, the little pumpkin lost its shape.

I wrapped a medium plastic pumpkin in linen ribbon and then added the twine for definition again.

Also, during the same naptime, I decided to roast my acorns I had picked last week from my neighbor's driveway. Shhhh.... But really, will they miss them? They were just going to drive on them and smash them to smithereens.

When I was looking for something to put a couple in, I realized the my little Chevrolet truck was the PERFECT shade of aqua to compliment the pumpkins. So stinkin' cute!

If you want to try this, just set your oven to 175 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. It is recommended to crack the stove door to let moisture escape. I have seen online that you can bake them anywhere from 20 minutes to all day. I did it for about 3 hours, since I had them sitting in a bag for a week. I wanted to make sure to dry out any moisture and/or critters. {eeeeewwww}

I wanted lots of different textures. I think I'm happy so far. Next, I want to make some out of velvet. I might add some glitter or epsom salt to the plain white pumpkins to add a little more character.

Have you made any new fall decorations? Share with me - I need some more inspiration. :)

Sometimes I link up with the following fabulous linky parties: The 36th Avenue, A Ruffled Nest, At the Picket Fence, Be Different Act Normal, Between Naps of the Porch, Beyond the Picket Fence, Blissful & Domestic, Bowdabra Blog, Cheerios and Lattes, Coastal Charm, Common Ground, Country Momma Cooks, Crystal & Co (The Mommy Club), The Dedicated House, DIY Show Off, Elizabeth & Co., Embracing Change, Faded Charm, Family Every After, The Farmhouse Porch, Finding Fabulous, Fine Craft Guild, Fireflies and Jellybeans, Free Pretty Things!, French Country Cottage, Ginger Snap Crafts, High Heels and Grills, Home stories AtoZ, House of Hepworths, I Heart Naptime, Lil' Luna, Ladybird Ln, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Little Becky Homecky, Mandatory Mooch, Milk & Cuddles, Mod Vintage Life, My Repurposed Life, My Romantic Home, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nap Time Crafters, The Nature of Grace, Nifty Thrifty Things, Not Just a Housewife, One More Time, Primp Your Stuff, Redoux, Savvy Southern Style, Shabby Art Boutique, Simple Home Life, Six Sisters' Stuff, Skip to My Lou, Someday Crafts, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Stone Gable, Tatertots and Jello, Thirty Handmade Days, Tip Junkie, Twigg Studios, Uncommon Designs, Under the Table & Dreaming, The Vintage Farmhouse, ...

  

Clueless

via

Yep, that's me...

I have thought this whole time I have been blogging, that when I replied to a comment on a post here on my blog the person I replied to actually received the reply via email or blogger or something. Grrrrrr...

Well, really, it's only been a few months. But still.

Why does it show that you can reply to a comment, but the person doesn't receive the reply?

Help me out here ladies {and gents, if you exist in my blogosphere}. Am I doing something wrong?

And please, if you follow me or have ever left a comment, please please please, know that I have made efforts to reply to every single one! I just did it wrong apparently.

From now on, I think I will reply directly to the person's email instead - unless they are the famous "noreply-comment" - then it's blog reply time.

P.S. Sadly, "blogosphere" is already in spellcheck? Really?

DIY Grain Sack Photo Frame

I had seen some photo frames in Pottery Barn's catalog a while back. They were a bit pricey, and I thought I would wait for them to go on sale. Well, they did, and I missed it. They are sold out. So, I decided to make my own. I learned a lot making the first one, and will probably do it a little differently if I make more.

The list of items I used to make my own DIY Grain Sack Frame:

• frame {clearance for $1}
• dropcloth {for my faux grain sack fabric}
• scissors
• craft paint
• small paintbrush
• tape
• ruler
• self-healing mat
• craft knife
• cotton batting 
• quick dry tacky glue
• stapler

Gosh, this list looks long, but really, I had everything on hand.

You'll want to pick your frame first. I have several out-dated, damaged, clearance or dollar store frames that I keep around just for the random photo frame inspiration. 

Here is the original inspiration for my DIY, but I decided I wanted to change up the stripes a bit:

via Pinterest (from Pottery Barn)

You can use any fabric you chose. I decided to use a drop cloth I had tucked away. Osnaburg is a good and inexpensive choice. Or if you're really lucky, you have some actual old grain sacks lying around. If that is the case, I'm jealous, you can skip the painting steps.

I cut the dropcloth fit the dimensions of the frame plus about 4 inches extra on each side. I chose a piece with some obvious flaws/nubby areas. 

Next, I taped off my lines. Sorry, no photos. But I used standard tape, not even painter's tape. {Too lazy busy to find it.} You can do just the 2 skinny lines like the original Pottery Barn style, or just one thick stripe. I chose 2 skinny with 1 thick stripe in the middle.

I mixed my blue craft paint with a little black to make it in between royal blue and navy. Then I painted away between the tape. {Tip: put something underneath your fabric, so the paint won't bleed through. Seems obvious, but I anyone can forget that detail.}

Set it aside to dry completely. Yeah, like any of us have that kind of patience. Ha! But seriously, the next step is with the frame and batting, so you really can set the painted fabric aside to dry. :)

I cut skinny strips from my cotton batting because I wanted to fill in the bevel in my frame. {Looking at it now, I wish I had actually done 2 of these layers.} I just used my quick dry tacky glue and placed them on the frame.

Then I added thicker pieces on top, again gluing them onto the current layer of batting and the outer part of the frame. I over-cut the thickness for overhang to cause a soft outer edge, but kept the inner edge close when gluing. {You need the glass, photo, and backer to still fit once you wrap it.} I cut my corners on an angle to not cause too much overlap and lumpy spots on the frame.

Then I flipped it over onto the dry {wink, wink}, painted fabric. I tried to straighten it as much as possible and line it up where I wanted the finished lines to be.

I added my glue to the back of the frame and proceeded to wrap the outer edges over. I was not very aggressive about pulling the fabric too tight - just straight.

After wrapping 3 sides, I decided to cut the fabric on an angle at the corners. I did not cut all the way to the outer edge though.

Then I stapled the edges down for good measure, continuing to straighten and pull just a little.

I trimmed off all the excess fabric from the outer edges and did my best to tuck in the 4 corners to look flat, but covered. I added more staples as necessary.

Then I laid the piece down on my self-healing mat and used my exacto knife to cut an X in the center. Again, getting close to the corners, but not too close. 

Then I added glue to the inner ledge of the frame and stapled it down. I continued to press the fabric onto the glued areas, and then put the glass inside to flatten and help the fabric adhere to the frame.

I removed the staples on the four points shown above once the glue dried. Then I trimmed this excess fabric with the exacto knife. {Note: Every frame is a little different in its width, depth, and how the glass and backer are incorporated. For this particular frame, the fabric needed to be as short as possible, but long enough the wrap around to the inside.

I completed this frame on September 11. The date was heavy on my mind, and that is why I changed my frame - because I changed what I wanted inside the frame.

I found this printable around 4th of July by A Little Crafting, and I tweaked it a bit. I made the colors more muted (vs. the 4th) because I feel somber in remembrance of this day - and the days, weeks, months, and even years that followed.

It reminds me to feel blessed. The little things tend to disappear and I realize how lucky I am.

Sometimes I link up with the following fabulous linky parties: The 36th Avenue, A Ruffled Nest, At the Picket Fence, Be Different Act Normal,Beyond the Picket Fence, Blissful & Domestic, Bowdabra Blog, Cheerios and Lattes, Coastal Charm, Common Ground, Country Momma Cooks, Crystal & Co (The Mommy Club), The Dedicated House, DIY Show Off, Elizabeth & Co., Faded Charm, Family Every After, The Farmhouse Porch, Finding Fabulous, Fireflies and Jellybeans, Free Pretty Things!, French Country Cottage, Ginger Snap Crafts, Home stories AtoZ, House of Hepworths, I Heart Naptime, Lil' Luna, Ladybird Ln, Little Becky Homecky, Mandatory Mooch, Milk & Cuddles, Mod Vintage Life, My Repurposed Life, My Romantic Home, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nap Time Crafters, The Nature of Grace, Nifty Thrifty Things, Not Just a Housewife, One More Time, Primp Your Stuff, Redoux, Shabby Art Boutique, Simple Home Life, Six Sisters' Stuff, Someday Crafts, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Tatertots and Jello, Thirty Handmade Days, Twigg Studios, Uncommon Designs, Under the Table & Dreaming, The Vintage Farmhouse, ...

The Versatile Blogger...

 The Versatile Blogger Award
              

I received the Versatile Blogger Award from my old friend, Laura at Pruning Princesses. No, she is not old - our friendship is old. Which is rare for me. I have moved a lot since middle school - before facebook, cell phones, etc. It took a lot of effort to keep in touch back then. So, Laura happens to be one of the ONLY people on Earth that has known me for a long time, aside from family. 

So, I would like to give a huge shout out and thank you to Laura for not only this award, but for putting up with knowing me for so long. :)

If you have children, check out her lovely blog. It does not apply just to princesses. You will no doubt find so much inspiration for raising kids in this crazy world we now live.

Here are the rules for the Versatile Blogger Award: 

1. Add the award to your blog. 2. Thank the person who presented it to you. 3. List seven random facts about yourself. 4. List the rules. 5. Pass the award onto seven other bloggers. 6. Inform each blogger they have won by posting a comment on their blog.

7 Random Facts about Me:

1. I love my children like crazy, but they drive me totally and utterly crazy. It is funny how you can love someone SO much, it feels like your heart is beating outside your body- living inside them. And yet, they make me certifiably insane. Until they smile. Then it's all warm fuzzies, cup runneth over feelings. Until they do something besides smile.

2. I am addicted to Pinterest, paint chips, coffee, fonts, thrifting, unfinished projects, Storage Wars {I don't care if it's fake; it's a really good show!}, hmmm.... I'm sure there are more, OH, yup - ice cream. Definitely ice cream. They're all legal, but that might be the problem.

3. I have only had one mani/pedi and massage in my life. For my wedding. 10 years ago! I paint my own toenails and they look like it, indeed. Boo! That's one of those items on my, "One of these days..." list that probably won't happen until my youngest goes to college. She's 3.

4. I'm a cancer survivor. I was diagnosed with an aggressive thyroid cancer at 24 years old. Thankfully, thyroid cancer is one of the easiest treated cancers. Unthankfully, my tumor was growing at a rapid rate and almost entered my veins. Pretty scary stuff at the time. I am now 12 years cancer free! Woohoo! It has not been all smooth sailing, but I feel pretty lucky. Sad admission: until my diagnosis, I had NO idea where the thyroid was in the body. Freshman Health class failed me. 

5. I am a Hockey Mom. First it was soccer, now it is hockey full speed ahead. I had no idea how much I would love watching my son play hockey. I tell myself before every game that I will NOT scream and shout like a crazy person. But it is seemingly completely out of my control. Even if I am losing my voice and on antibiotics, I cannot help myself. I do not, however, yell at the referees or the other parents like some whacko's do. Although, I have been tempted to bring my own whistle since most refs don't remember to use theirs. :) What? What'd I say?

6. I love to think that one of these days I will have time to accomplish all my pins on Pinterest. :) Silly girl. If you are a conspiring pinner, you can see my pins and follow me here.

7. I am trying to ween myself from technology. So I started a blog. Hmmmm....I will never admit to being 100% sane. In fact, I am often saying to my husband, "I have more issues than Vogue." Don't remember where that quote is from.

These do seem mostly trivial and random. I could actually keep going and going, and they would all still be random and trivial. :)

I would like to award the following bloggers for inspiring me, and I would also like you to visit and even follow if they inspire you! I have also specifically chosen mostly blogs that have less than 100 followers - in hopes of helping my fellow bloggers increase their number of readers! :)

1. Chirping with Excitement
2. I Heart Pears
3. Fancy Seeing You Here
4. Barn Chic Antiques
5. Life on Peanut Layne
6. Once Upon My Life
7. The Scrapbooking Housewife

If you visit, let them know I sent you!