Encouraged by my autumn loving husband I am trying to embrace the season. I've added a few autumnal touches around the house.
He's not a lover of the velvet pumpkins, but I adore them.
I was going to originally title this post "Autumn, I can do that"...but I realize I'm really not all that good at it so I shouldn't boast. My touches are minimal. I bought 3 (3!!!) gourds. Here's one along with some seed pods of a Liriodendron tulipifera. What I really want you to notice in this photo is the amazing graphic representation of a Fouquieria splendens. I bought it at Flora Grubb and it's the work of John Bell.
Here are the other two gourds, and tucked into the front of the white vase is the hair comb (still looking good!) I wore during the opening night of the 2014 Portland Garden Bloggers Fling (you had to be there for that to make any sense).
Okay now we're getting serious about the holiday, a vintage paper Halloween mask. A couple of years back I went up to Seattle the weekend before Halloween, I came home to discover a pair of vintage masks Andrew had found while out doing some early Christmas shopping.
This one (temporarily) hangs over a sconce in our hallway. The best part is after-dark it can be seen glowing from out on the street. Passers-by might be left wonder about the masked man...
This is the other mask...
Those Craspedia globosa have been going strong for months.
The pumpkin moves back and forth...
We don't have any outdoor decor this year, I never got around to buying a pumpkin or three. As glimpsed yesterday our neighbor's Rhus typhina 'Tiger Eyes' is stunning this time of year, it's orange tint makes a festive view from our living room window. I frequently consider adding one to our garden, but then I remember, I don't have to!
In another neighbor's front garden.
Lila paused and I thought she saw the skeleton. No, it was the cat. I appreciate the understated touch. No big blow up pumpkins, spiders or witches. Just a skeleton hanging out in the ginkgo...
Whatever and however you might celebrate the season, and the holiday, I hope you're making the most of it. I leave you with a scene from the fun Disney short from 1929: "Silly Symphony "The Skeleton Dance" something Andrew grew up with that he recently shared with me (click on the title to watch)...
All material © 2009-2014 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
Happy Halloween! I love all your seasonal touches. Yes, even the velvet pumpkins.
ReplyDeleteThanks Alison, hope you had a good one. Do you guys get many trick-or-treaters?
DeleteHello Loree!
ReplyDeleteHappy Halloween!
We have carved out a couple of pumpkins in readiness for this evening and now my wife and eldest are making up some bags of sweets to give out.
Big one said that she was too old for Halloween this year, but she has now agreed to take our her little sister and her friend Hanako. Hanako is half Japanese and half Scottish and moved here in the summer, Claudia gets on with her like a house on fire. In fact, Claudia is now around at Hanako's for a Halloween party. Big one took her around and offered to take the two of them out this evening, Hanako's Mum said what about the other children who were t the house, Big One agreed and now has a further 8 Japanese weans to take out with her!
"bags" of sweets? Your house must be pretty popular! Hope you and your family had a fun night.
Deletevelvet pumpkins rock!
ReplyDeleteThank you Tamara, you have excellent taste.
DeleteI love all the autumn touches, Loree. I need to try my skeleton in a tree next year - I usually settle for the dining room chandelier. Happy Halloween!
ReplyDeleteHe looks so comfortable there in the tree, I just love it!
DeleteHappy Halloween! After a very dry fall, today of all days is the first day it's really raining. As much as I'm loving that unaccustomed gift from the sky, I hope it'll let up abit for a the trick or treaters.
ReplyDeleteHopefully the ghouls and goblins enjoyed the rain if it fell, as a kid I don't think it occurred to me that getting my costume wet was a bad thing.
DeleteWow, you have made lots of effort and it all looks fantastic - except for the vintage mask, which genuinely scares me (easily scared, that's me ... any Vampire film will do it !!) I have grown 2 pumpkins from seed which my daughter has made into lanterns for my grad daughter, but that is a growing thing, rather than a 'making a genuine effort' thing!!
ReplyDeleteOh Jane you're being very kind. My efforts were minimal, growing pumpkins from seed sounds like much more of an accomplishment!
DeleteEverything looks good, but those "vintage masks" are extremely racist, and I would not display them and would be offended if I encountered them in a home or in a public place.
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting Cora, I did not consider them to be racist nor did I intend to offend.
DeletePretty good bragging rights, if you ask me. We never get any trick or treaters out here, so our scary decor has fallen off precipitously. I like your more elegant approach.
ReplyDeleteMaybe next year we'll have to come trick or treat at your house, just to keep you on your toes! We got a record turnout last night, way more than normal. In fact one of our neighbors (after asking if we had extra) had to make a run to the store to get more candy.
DeleteNow that WOULD be fun! Given a little advance notice we would pull out all the stops.
DeleteVery stylish interior touches Loree! Like the ones you see on home interiors magazines :) Happy Halloween to you, Andrew, and Lila :)
ReplyDeleteAnd to you both! (oh and Knickers and Twinkles too!)
DeleteI've never heard of velvet pumpkins, and now that I've seen one... do they come beanbag chair sized? They look so comfy!
ReplyDeleteBTW, I think if I posted "here's something from 1929 that my wife grew up with..." punches to the head and body would follow. :)
I think you're on to something...velvet pumpkin bean bag chairs. You could get rich!
DeleteAndrew looks pretty good for his age, don't you think?
I remember that cartoon! I'd say you're a pro! Minimilist decorations and designs are the best. Well done!
ReplyDeleteThank you PP!
DeleteYour velvet pumpkins are gorgeous! Love all of your seasonal touches!
ReplyDeleteI was going to go buy a couple more this year (I've had these for several) but haven't gotten around to it yet. The nice thing is they can stick around until Thanksgiving!
DeleteI like those velvet pumpkins a lot! and I love your pictures on the wall...no wonder you are a truly plant lover!
ReplyDeleteAnd tillandsias are displayed masterfully.
Thank you Lisa, I'm lucky that Andrew enjoys the plant pictures too!
DeleteNice decor. Understated is better. Another velvet pumpkin lover here.
ReplyDeleteMy Halloween decor I am afraid was so understated it didn't exist.
I need to go into the velvet pumpkin selling business!
DeleteYour decorations are very tasteful as usual. I love the velvet pumpkins, too. That clip was great. So quirky!
ReplyDeleteOld school and quirky, two of my favorite things.
DeleteOur one holiday concession was moving our painted wooden Balinese flying bat to the front of the house -- where it will probably remain until next Halloween! Did no one get a photo of you in that hair comb? Would love to see one...
ReplyDeleteThere is one, but I look like I'm giving someone the evil eye (something I so rarely do (ha!)).
DeleteI am not a fan of Halloween or fall so no decorating for me. I do like the skeleton in the Ginkgo though. That's pretty cool.
ReplyDeleteYour much more Halloweenish than I am. I told my students if they trick or treated at my house, I'd give them a test. I think the pumpkins are fab.
ReplyDeleteOoh, I like that John Bell print. My sister gave me his "Specimen 16", a stylized agave, for my birthday, but she got it from Potted.
ReplyDeleteHe's good isn't he? I'll be visiting Potted soon and hope so see more there. I can't wait!
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