Pumpkin Spice Smoothie Bowl | Healthy Halloween Treat

I have one more pumpkin-flavored smoothie bowl for the Halloween season!  (But this pumpkin spice smoothie bowl will actually make a delicious breakfast all fall long).  Because I recently decided to do the Whole 30, which doesn't allow smoothies, this particular smoothie bowl was enjoyed by Hubby - I was so jealous!  It's such a delicious treat and a fun way to get into the Halloween spirit today (without downing a bag of mini peanut butter cups).

For the smoothie bowl, I mixed a cup of pureed pumpkin, a cup of unsweetened almond milk, 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice, 1 scoop of vanilla protein powder and half a frozen banana - add a splash more milk or frozen banana to control the consistency.  Pour into a bowl, pop into the freezer to firm up a bit while you chop up a peeled dragon fruit - love that black and white center - and then remove the smoothie bowl and dress with blackberries and the peeled dragonfruit.  I also sprinkled on some unsweetened shredded coconut and chia seeds for even more contrast and texture.

A Pyrex bowl in turquoise Butterprint is a must, I'm afraid - it has the perfect autumnal design and turquoise just makes food taste better.  That's a scientific fact - you can Google it ;)  

Bonus points for also wearing the matching t-shirt.  On the topic of setting the mood for Halloween, take a peek at this adorable black cat tea towel - so cute for Halloween and beyond.

I've said it before, but I just love the prettiness of smoothie bowls - it's such a lovely way to start the day!  Plus you can add any frozen fruits/veggies you wish - this is a great way to hide some carrots or spinach.  The latter might ruin the bright orange hue, but I often use smoothies for sneaking in some extra vegetables.



Well, I think that's probably my last smoothie or smoothie bowl recipe until spring!  Although we typically love smoothies and smoothie bowls all year long, this year they're predicting a winter with TONS of snow, so I think it's time for me to start sharing some warm and cozy foods to enjoy, curled up by a fire.  Time to get my Hygge on and create an equally beautiful, toasty warm breakfast...any ideas?

Have a Happy Halloween, everyone!

P.S. Click here for my pretty blue and orange layered smoothie bowl - an equally Halloweeny healthy treat! 

No Carve Marbled Pumpkins in Shimmery Teal | Minimalist + Modern Halloween Decor

It must be the lake's influence on me, because since moving to the shores of Superior I have really been gravitating toward designs with an organic vibe.  Ice dyeing, watercolor, dip dyeing - give me anything that calls to mind swirling water and waves. 
 
I had pinned a couple of marbled fabric ideas and was promptly inundated with DIY marbled pumpkins in my Pinterest feed - like these indigo ones, these pretty pastel ones, these densely marbled ones, these brightly colored ones, these blue/green preppy ones, and these super saturated ones (from way back in 2013)!  I couldn't get marbling off my mind, so I decided to make some marbled pumpkins of my own this year.

I loved the sparkly turquoise pumpkins I made last year - especially my last minute Pyrex-inspired pumpkin - but I have to admit that I also really loved the look of plain white mini pumpkins.  I actually hesitated before painting them turquoise, because they're just so cute.  This year I wanted to try something that was really subtle and celebrate the natural look of those cuties.  But of I couldn't find nice mini pumpkins of the fresh variety this year, so I took a chance on some faux ones from Amazon.  When they arrived, the green stems looked a little too faux and the beige color was a bit off so I just sprayed them all a crisp white and I love how they look.  It turns out that I don't really discriminate between real or faux pumpkins, I just love the look of a mini white pumpkin.  Plus the white helps my marbling really pop, while still keeping the overall look pretty minimal.  And I don't have to watch these beauties slowly rot!

Supplies:

• White pumpkins (real or faux - here's the link to mine)
• White spray paint (optional - find something designed for plastic)
• Nail polish (something inexpensive, I used half a bottle for six pumpkins)
• Plastic container (disposable)
• Toothpick
• Lukewarm water
• Twist ties  

How to Marble a Pumpkin: 

The first thing I did was spray paint my pumpkins white and then I let them dry overnight. 

Before marbling, I attached little twist ties to the stems so I could hang them to dry without touching them.  Actually doing the marbling was so easy, and only took a few minutes!

I grabbed my plastic dish and filled it with lukewarm water.  Then I just added a few drops of nail polish (I found my OPI Emerald Empowered bottle at the buck store!), swirled it with my toothpick and dunked the pumpkin quickly!  In and out, in one swift motion.  Then I hung my pumpkins to dry but the nail polish dried in minutes.  I gently wiped off any excess water with a paper towel.

So easy!  Such a perfect last minute, no carve pumpkin decorating idea because if you skip painting the pumpkin, these can literally be ready in five minutes. 

I liked the look of a half-dipped, marbled pumpkin but I did experiment with dipping from both ends - and also painting the stem the same color as the marbling. 

But in the end, simple won out and I favored my five little marbled pumpkins with their minimal vibe.  I love that little pop of swirly blue - they look perfect lined up on my kitchen window sill.

Have you tried marbling anything?  Have you decorated any pumpkins yet? 

I always wait until fall, if I can, because it just doesn't feel right until the leaves change color.  As a DIY blogger, I'm supposed to be doing this in the summer, but as someone who lives for summer, I can't bring myself to think about fall (or winter!) until well into October....

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Pyrex Inspired Painted Pumpkin

Happy Halloween!

This weekend was suitably foggy and eerie for a Halloween weekend, so I got cozy inside.  I've already sold some of my beaded Christmas spiders so I really need to get cracking and make some more, but first I had to make one last Halloween craft: turquoise painted pumpkins, inspired by my favorite vintage Pyrex pattern, Blowing Leaves.

After painting a series of pumpkins turquoise for my easy turquoise rhinestone pumpkins, I started dreaming about a Pyrex-inspired painted pumpkin.  I eyed up my turquoise Pyrex collection and plucked the Blowing Leaves casserole from the top shelf. 

Using the Craft Smart Paint Pen (found at Michael's - this one is similar), I just freehand drew the design of mod leaves.  It is TRICKY to draw on a pumpkin because it's round and lumpy, and my design is admittedly a little wonky, but it turned out so adorably cute I wanted to share.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Halloween!  If you're craving a sweet treat but can't stomach any more candy, I highly recommend baking up a batch of these easy chocolate raspberry hand pies tonight.

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Turquoise DIY No Carve Pumpkins with Black and White Rhinestone Sparkles

I have to admit that Halloween is not really my jam.  I don't love orange and black as a color combo, cheap Halloween costumes have a weird smell that makes me nauseous, and, as a child-free woman, an evening when children are invited to scream at my door and demand my candy is, quite frankly, more terrifying than A Nightmare on Elm Street...

This year, though, my mission is to really embrace Fall and when I spotted a bag of miniature pumpkins at the grocery store, I decided that maybe a little no carve pumpkin decorating might help me feel more festive.

It worked!

I am no longer the Scrooge of Halloween - look at my adorable DIY turquoise rhinestone pumpkins:

Of course I painted them turquoise first - that's literally how you can get me to do anything.

Supplies:

• Mini pumpkins (real or fake!)
• Acrylic or craft paints
• Small paint brushes
• Stick on rhinestones

A package of dollar store stick-on gems (here's a similar pack on Amazon) in spoooookkkkyy black and silver added a little bit of sparkle - although I think these pumpkins look adorable in every state:  plain, turquoise, be-sparkled.  They're mini pumpkins!  Yeah, I can get on board with this.     

I also made this little "evening sky" pumpkin with a deep blue paint and a smattering of silver stick-on rhinestones:

Because these rhinestones actually come in strips, I also whipped up this pale blue mini pumpkin with black and white stripes:

Once I started bedazzling my pumpkins, it was difficult to stop.  I actually really got into the spirit of things and almost bedazzled the gourds I bought for dinner (I sneak them into a chili recipe).

As I was making these, I kept thinking they would be such a great craft to make with kids because, although they're super easy and don't require any artistic talent, applying those teeny tiny rhinestones did challenge my fine motor skills!  I think you could keep a medium-sized child (too big to eat the rhinestones) busy with this for quite some time. 



See the transformation in me?  Look at me thinking about the children!  Maybe this year I won't eat the best Halloween candy and leave them with the dredges.     

For more modern and colorful Halloween and Fall decor ideas, check out my new Pinterest board dedicated to Fall holidays!

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