OK, I guess your absence is excused. :) Everything you've put your talented hands to is just terrific! I certainly hope the fireplace and the many snowflakes have been stored lovingly away so they may be hauled out in all the years to come. Loving efforts like your's (!) are the basis of "traditions". I do so hope the fact is not "lost" on people who, too often, look only to the "goal" immediately in front of them... I could have sent you cat and dog hair in quantities certain to cover a child's mask in no time flat. (Unlike Cynthia, ;) ). Babs., you would have really like Mum a lot. She was always "into" something... (consequently, so were my brother and I). Papier mache, stripping furniture, painting something, sewing, hooking rugs or braiding them... . Our Halloween costumes were wonderful... but we were required to be something SCAREY... no princesses allowed. I see you've used your time profitably and JUDICIOUSLY. I'm not in the least surprised! and am delighted with your photo essay.

What about some Nawlins jazz music? Walmart also has a wide variety of decor including masks, beads, napkins, cups, tinsel, hats, ties, etc. I also just made two signs on my color printer that I will frame to use as decor. One of them is the Irish Blessing. (I think that is what it is called.) The other is a saying about luck. I just added some free clip art and printed. I am off in the morning to find frames for them. I did one in the full size sheet that I will put in an 8X10 frame and the other is for a 5X7 frame that I turned sideways. You could even make a Mardi Gras booklet with information and unusual facts or ideas. Be sure to take pics and share with us. I am having a small group for a MG party, but I am not sure about the food. I know that I will have a King Cake, but I have never made gumbo or dirty rice. I plan to look at Sam's tomorrow for some gumbo. We went skiing several years ago and the one in charge of planning food for the trip bought some frozen gumbo from there that was good. Oh, yeah, do you have a year round tree? This is one of the easiest things to decorate. I didn't even use any ornaments, just some Mardi Gras tinsel that has masks made on it. It is purple, green and gold. I added three cardboard glitter masks to the top as a topper. In my entry way I used a large glass vase and filled it partially with purple, gold, and green shiny ornament balls---actually I think they were a garland at one time. I picked them up for 50 cents at GW in a ziplock baggie. Then I arranged a few beads to look like they are hanging out of the top of it. I used a couple of dark purple napkins to make a sort of skirt around the bottom of the vase and scattered a few more glitter masks on top of the washstand. Have fun!

Very Nice Teri I did this today Sue :) Here is a link that might be useful: Tutorial

Glad to know others are up at the crack of dawn. No wonder you get so much done, Slow. The tray is a $2 thing from an antigue mall. The sunflowers come from a vase I picked up at a yardsale for .50. When my oldest son's girlfriend was here she admired the vase and seemed appalled when I told her my plan was to bust it up. I am thinking of giving her the tray for Christmas. Still have some flowers left that I want to use on a box. I wanted to experiment with the glitter in the grout. The glitter looks like pieces of sea salt. It's supposed to be antique white grout-looks very blah on these pieces to me. Don't think it added much. The pumpkins were another experiment with thinset and styrofoam. By the last tree I just quit thinsetting altogether-styrofoam only. Hope to get the white glitter grout and do the trees today. That star got raves and I sold it for a ridiculous amount of money (to me anyway)for what I put in it. I have another I want to do in red/white/blue. The pitcher I did in red with gray grout also sold for more than I ever thought it should. I didn't argue about price, just smiled and took the money. I am quite proud of the flamingo. Still not sure if it's a christmas gift or not...maybe I'll just keep it!