DIY Super Easy Sparkly Pumpkins

I love anything sparkly, so naturally, I had to make my pumpkins shine too!  Honestly, it probably took me less time to create these pumpkins than it did to upload the pictures and post this.  (It took me under an hour to create the pumpkins.)  I discovered these ivory pumpkins and gourds at a local pumpkin patch.  I then bought some glue specifically designed for glitter (with an attached brush) and a big container of silver sparkles from A.C. Moore.  I know the pumpkins probably won't keep, but I'm hoping the sparkly gourds will keep until Thanksgiving!

I saw a picture of a polka dot pumpkin on Pinterest and I fell in love with the idea.  One problem...I am not good at creating perfectly round circles.  How did I make them on this polka dot pumpkin?  With the help of something we have a lot of...old wine corks :)  I painted the bottom of the wine corks with the glue and then applied the corks to the pumpkin.  I sprinkled glitter on the circles and voila!  I did make several mistakes, so I had a wet paper towel handy to wipe excess glue off quickly.  I applied glue to the natural lines on the small pumpkins below to create the "striped" effect you see.  The striped pumpkins and gourds are my favorite!

Newspaper is a must if you do this project!  (Actually a large garbage bag might work better so you can fold it in on itself after and collect all the glitter.)  I glittered these pumpkins on my deck.  After I cleaned up, my daughter said, "Uh oh!" because I left quite a bit of glitter behind.  I will admit, I am not the neatest person when I do a craft project but I have a lot of fun!  If you make these, I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

The HomeGoods Happy Fan Contest

Aside from clothing and accessories, I absolutely love finding beautiful, fun items for my home.  I've been a longtime HomeGoods shopper and many of my favorite items are from Homegoods.  I saw the company's Happy Fan contest on its Facebook page and figured I'd give it a try.  I took a selfie with Charlotte's beautiful pink floral tee pee and pink piano from Homegoods along with several flags I created for her first birthday.  To my surprise - I won for the month of September.  

To say HomeGoods treats its Happy Fans like royalty is an understatement :)  Over this month, I will receive a shopping spree, two big packages of items hand-selected to fit my style and a floral arrangement.  Here's a few of the items I received in the mail last week.  I'll post more tomorrow on what was in my first box.   Charlotte and I were beyond excited to rip it open!   Thank you, HomeGoods for making me feel so special!

Pink Products that Make a Difference

In honor of our new Woman of Style & Inspiration, Shanna Clarke-Pinet, and all of the other strong women & men fighting breast cancer, I am doing a post each day this week to bring awareness to breast cancer research.  We MUST find a cure!  

Every October, you see lots of pink products.  But I always wonder, which companies actually donate money to help with research?  And which companies donate all of the retail price and/or net proceeds?  I found a few that donate 100 percent of the retail price and/or net proceeds. Read below for more about these products & companies.  One of these companies has donated more than $12 million to breast cancer research since 1994!





1.  Estee Lauder Modern Muse Solid Perfume Compact:  Estee Lauder says it will donate 100 percent of the retail price to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.   According to the foundation, Estee Lauder has donated more than $12 million since it became a partner with BCRF in 1994.  Amazing!!  The cost of the perfume compact is $49.50.  

2.  Stella & Dot Strength Bracelet:  Stella & Dot says 100 percent of the net proceeds through October benefit the Noreen Fraser Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising  funds for women's cancer research and creating awareness of the importance of early detection. The bracelet is $39.

3.  Philosophy Shower for the Cure:  Philosophy says it donates 100 percent of the net proceeds from the sale of this product to the Women's Cancer Research Fund.  It costs $20.

4.  Evelyn Lauder Dream Pin:  This pin was created to honor Evelyn Lauder's dream of eradicating breast cancer in our lifetime.  This elegant pin helps you to show your support and raise awareness.  Estee Lauder will donate 20 percent of the purchase price of $12.50 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation through June of 2015.