A Marvelous Mess and a Walk in the Field!

Went out in my family's field to search for Monarch Caterpillars in the milkweed.

Two years ago we found some and raised them in our home until they cocooned and finally awoke in a brand new state of being. Such a beautiful transition to watch.

Last year, the field we usually find our caterpillars in was hayed late in the season, and the milkweed that usually hosts our friends were mowed down. This year the milkweed was up.....but the caterpillars were nowhere in sight. 

This is milkweed, by the way:

I found a lot of snails on the milkweed. Usually, the caterpillars will eat a lot of the milkweeds leaves, and that's how you can tell that they've been there. This years the snails were eating the leaves:

I got some nice photo's of the walk however. I love fields. 

The farm owned by my family has some lovely and loud geese to laugh at:

 And, pigs to smell from quite a distance away:

I hope you all enjoyed some time outside in nature today. 

It was a lovely day for it in the Northeast. 

.....

We had some great projects linked up to the party last week!

Here was my fave:

Perfectly Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies from Back for Seconds.
Pinning it! You should pin it too. Yum!

Now, on to the party!!

Make An Autumn Fall Wreath

I made this Autumn/Fall wreath from gathered materials in the woods and fields around my house and from some supplies from the dollar store, Michaels, and a yard sale. 

It's a fun, eye catching piece.....it really makes you want to look closer to see what's on it. And, best of all it really reminds me of the time of year we're in and what I love about Autumn. 

Want to make one?

Here's how I did it. 

You'll need:

Wreath base (styrofoam or wicker-yard sale find)

Spanish Moss (Dollar Store)

Brown  Grasses (Dollar Store

Hot glue and glue sticks

Feathers (reduced price at Michaels and in also in the woods)

Leather Flower Embellishment (Michaels)

Green Moss- Gathered 

Pinecones- Gathered

Acorns- Gathered

Birch Bark- Gathered

Shell- Gathered

Muslin piece

 - Pull out that spanish moss. It will stay in a bunch; try to elongate the bunch without breaking it too much (this stuff is messy) and then hot glue a small section of your wreath and place the moss on. Then repeat that process over and over again. And over again.

 -Once your wreath is covered with the spanish moss, flip it over and hot glue some of the loose pieces to the back of the wreath to help it all hold together. 

-Now, you can start adding your bought and gathered decorations. I places the grasses around the arc of the wreath, hot glueing all the ends together and into place, then glueing at a spot in the middle of the grasses, and then again at the end. The base of the grasses was then covered with a layer of feathers, and then the leather embellishment was added on top of the base of the feather to cover an spots where the hot glue might come through. I also used the green moss to fill in some space on the wreath where the grasses arched out, and I used it on the opposite side of the wreath as well. 

-Add what you like, where you like it.....but test it out first without glueing it down. Step back from your wreath to get a good sense of the balance of the piece. 

 I got a chance to use the osprey feather I found a few weeks ago!

 -Acorns look really great, and are in abundance right now in the woods!!

I live near some brackish water and there are always mussel and clam shells nearby. 

 I collected the green moss from fir trees near the water, like these above.

I think the leather adds some fun texture to the wreath (even if the leather isn't real). 

Someone else likes my wreath too. 

You can find this kitty (and many other funky creations made by me) here.

I shared this post at all of the parties listed on my "parties" page above and at the following parties:
Between Naps on the Porch
Link Party Palooza
Monday Funday

A Marvelous Mess

Welcome to the 

party!

And I hope you're happier than Chloe. 

The post I'm going to feature on my sidebar for a week is...

Notebook Handbag from Jelly Fish Jelly

A great idea!!

Thanks to you all for linking up to my party! If I featured you, don't forget to grab a button from the sidebar!!

Now, on to the party!!