Upcycling Fall Florals 🍂

After taking apart a free fake plant for the Gothic Litter Box Planter Disguise, the rest of it was looking pretty ugly. Thrift florals in the Halloween closet also seemed sad, but now's time for autumn moods and morose arrangements! Orange picks from my latest Mini Thrift Haul Video were added to the black and red roses and black leaves I usually put out for Halloween – an easy combination of fall colors in a old red vase. It's a lightweight display that would look nice on my piano, but feline curiosity would make that a problem! This ensemble looks sophisticated and ironically bright thanks to the fall coloring.

The white light up branches and cotton stems from my thrift trips, however, inspired a study in contrast. More picks, thrift leaves, and the leftovers from my free plant were to be Painted Black of course. These by hand acrylics took a little time and detail, but the free grass stems were the real pain! Dipping them directly into the black paint made them clump together, spray painting them made them all stick out too much, and you can still see a touch of green if you really look. Although I cut stray strands and the gnarly straggly matches the black and white barren contrast, it looked a little crappy! Fortunately, filling in the pot with more curly cue orange stems and dollar store moss from the supply stash helped bring the look together.

Of course, the more I stared at it, this arrangement looked too barren. I was tempted to buy more florals, but instead spray painted the remaining vine used for the Pumpkin Car Makeover. This was one stalk that had been dangling among my Cardboard Tombstones, so I separated the stems with wire cutters, varying the leaves and length before black touch ups. I stuck these vine clips to spill over the vase and fill in some faux growth behind my thrift magnolia. These cheap, found florals have now been put to use as some gothic organics and autumn art – and the cats have swatted at it already!

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Yet More Kbatz Krafts:

How to Make Stuffed Pumpkins

Pumpkin Ottomans

Using Halloween Scene Setters Everyday

How not to Make Mystical Orbs

Cardboard Stained Glass Window

DIY Gothic Lantern

DIY Cardboard Coffin

I Painted My Sneakers Black (As you do!)

 

I needed a new pair of kicks – my high arch ice skater's feet demand more than my current decade old knock off sneakers. Instead of browsing until I found something I liked, I spotted these kind of ugly but kind of cute wedge sneakers at Aldis, of all places, marked down to $3.50 clearance! I have other wedge mary janes that are cute and supportive, and these are indeed comfortable, but the glaring white tread gives away that this some kind of goofy combo kick. I wouldn't experiment with expensive shoes where I paid for the look and color I want, but could these soles be painted black for that classy wedge ankle boot cheat?

According to that expert The Internet, acrylics are actually the way to go when you want to decorate shoes, and I certainly have black paint on hand! After three coats and a few days drying, I covered the upper shoe in paper before a final coat of spray clear sealant. Naturally, they will probably scuff, chip, or peel. However, for a bottom dollar casual comfort shoe disguised as something fancy, touch ups are fine. I had gotten the clear spray paint meant for fabrics and paper to use on my Cardboard Tombstones, but it actually smells like nail polish, making me wonder if black or clear polish will work in a pinch. The ruse works quite well, so we'll see how long the shoes themselves actually last!

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