My sister is an amazing second hand shopper. She finds the most unique and valuable items. She has an eye for it and great instincts and she often brings me home very cool thrift store treasures.

So I was not at all surprised when, last year, she presented me with this Christmas craft book that she picked up for a buck.

Debbie Mumm's 12 Days Of Christmas.

Fabulous.

My mom passed in January.

She'd been sick for a long time and while her passing was not at all unexpected, it was still jarring.

As death most often is.

Decorate your home for pennies this fall, with these ten fabulous home decor crafts. 

Oh fall. While it certainly isn't my favorite season, being the devout summer girl that I am, I do love the extra time for crafting and decorating I suddenly have, as I'm forced indoors.

There's something about all those jewel tones that get my creative juices flowing. I think I do my best work in fall. 

And I certainly do a lot of it. 

Grab an inexpensive plastic Adirondack chair from the local hardware store and give it an elegant makeover with black spray paint for your shaded garden or patio area.

This weekend, I was having brunch at my friend Liz's house. It was a beautiful late September day at the beach so we ventured outside for a bit to her elegant patio area.

Nestled into the hillside, overlooking the water, Liz created a fabulous sitting area, complete with a fire pit and four very stylish black Adirondack chairs. I was immediately smitten.

But not at all shocked.

Growing up, if you had told me that I'd live in a house filled with braided rugs, I would've laughed and said no way. Too old fashioned. 

Ironically, as an adult, my tastes and needs have changed and I've become the queen of braided rugs. One became two, two became four and now I think I have multiples in just about every room. 

I recently reorganized my kitchen pantry as part of my fall cleaning routine. It wasn't a fanfare filled activity. It didn't require hours of my time or any great skill. I didn't call my family over to witness the result of my hours of toil, because, honestly, there wasn't any.

I simply cleaned out the pantry, the same way my mom did every so often when I was growing up, the same way I do now whenever it needs.

The same way most people do, when their food stash gets unruly.

Turn an old cookie sheet into a brand new home decor accessory with a little paint.

You may have heard me mention from time to time that I do not like to cook. Decorate the kitchen? Bring it on. Make food in it? Um...no. So it probably makes perfect sense that I don't own a lot of fancy kitchen tools or pots and pans. 

As a matter of fact, I pick up many of my supplies at the grocery store.

Like my cookie sheets. Good Cook...which I'm certainly not.

I bought at glass cutting board at the thrift store and gave it a crafty makeover for fall.

So last night I was crafting at 1:00 am again. I was working in the kitchen, balancing a glass cutting board on my lap, decoupaging with a foam brush...and trying not to get it on my pjs.

I used to think I crafted this way because my kids were small and there wasn't any other time during the day to get it done.

But now that they're in college that explanation doesn't really hold water. Nope. Turns out, I'm just crazy.

And a night owl.

Kindness isn't measured by the dollar, it's the thought that counts.

This week, as summer begins to wind down, our Ten on The Tenth posts resume. Our focus is Random Acts of Kindness for Under $10. 

I have to admit that when the topic came up, I thought it was truly worthwhile, but life's been a bit busy around here lately and I just wasn't sure if I'd have time to come up with a crafty and creative way to be kind for under ten bucks. 

So I declined.