Weekly Roundup

I put out some Halloween decor yesterday. I first made the bats in 2017 and I’ve been using them every year since. I cut the shapes out of foam and attach them with double-sided foam tape. It does the trick but I felt like it was time to add another element. In an effort to not spend more than an hour on the project and not buy anything, I decided to make trash ghosts. Those weird little things are just balls of plastic with more plastic for their ghostly limps. I got some mixed reviews on Instagram stories, but I like ‘em!

If you wanna see amazing Halloween decor that took more than an hour and pieces of plastic, check this out. These full-size ghosts are made of plaster and drop cloths and I love their simplicity and spookiness. The full DIY is in their highlights.

These “moldy” fruit gemstone sculptures are gorgeous and so thoughtful. I promise it’s prettier than it sounds.

I mentioned a few weeks back that I’m trying to find Halloween candies that are ethically made. Season 2 of the show Rotten spends an episode talking about the slaves behind the chocolate industry and it’s tragic. Here are some chocolate options for Halloween that are ethically-made: Tony’s, Theo’s, Alter Eco. I linked to their smallest bars because I simply can’t afford to give out big candy bars to the 800+ kids that come each year, but you can shop around for full-size chocolate if you want to be the most desired house on the block. If you want to look through which chocolate companies are ethical and which ones are not, click those links.

I listened to a few great podcasts this week! This interview with a pumpkin expert was so charming. This one on loneliness and masculinity was so sad. This one on the history of architecture and mental illness was interesting. And this interview with California’s first Surgeon General talking about childhood trauma was eyeopening.

Sometimes I want to get rid of all of my things and pare down my decor. Then other times I want to hang citrus wallpaper and paint my trim purple.

I mentioned a few weeks back that I ordered this bra and as promised, I’m reporting back to say I like it! It’s the closest thing to not wearing a bra but still wearing a bra. So if you’re into being super comfortable, I recommend it!

For Halloween every year we put our speaker out the front window and play spooky songs. We avoid just scary noises and sounds, rather favoring actual music that has the eerie vibes. Feel free to use my Halloween playlist for a spooky party or for trick-or-treaters to enjoy.

Find three hobbies. Can home renovation count as all three?

Did you see the three pieces of artwork I framed in Instagram Stories this week? Here’s one and I’m obsessed with the artwork and the frame. Need something framed? Use code thegoldhive15 for 15% off your first Framebridge order.

I’ll have to set my jealousy aside when I enjoy the future renovations at Emily’s new cabin! But seriously. What do I need to do to get myself a nearby cabin in the woods with lots of land on a lake?! (It seriously doesn’t exist)

News came out this week about Google making financial contributions to some of the most notorious climate deniers. Now is probably a good time to tell you about the search engine I use instead of Google. Ecosia uses its profits from ads to plant trees - really! You can set it to your default search engine and plant trees while searching for all of the weird things we research on the internet.

Happy Friday!