Welcome to the 194th Metamorphosis Monday! So, tell me! How was your weekend? It was really pretty here in Georgia, perfect fall weather. I’ve been finishing up some last-minute decorating on my porch…I’ll be sharing that soon.
A few days ago for Tablescape Thursday, I shared a fun Halloween inspired table setting with a crow tree centerpiece.
For Metamorphosis Monday I’m sharing the details of how this centerpiece is made, in case you would like to make one, too.
I started by gathering some fallen branches from the yard. I have a River Birch in my front yard that continually drops branches, much to my dismay, but it did come in handy for this project.
I was inspired by the white Aspen branches currently for sale at Pottery Barn. (photo below from Pottery Barn online)
I started to spray the branches with white spray paint but I wanted to have a little more control over how white the branches turned out. I didn’t want them to be too stark, preferred a softer white with even a bit of the branch showing through. I painted the branches using a sponge brush and occasionally I wiped a little back off to make it a softer white color. The paint was some I had left over from making a wood flag for the 4th of July. I added a small amount of water to the paint to keep it from being too, too white.
I sprayed a glass pickle jar with Krylon’s Glass Frosting spray, the same spray I used to make the Halloween lantern shown below. (You’ll find the tutorial for the lantern in this post: Make a Frosted Halloween Lantern)
Instead of making a silhouette design on the glass jar as I had for the lantern, this time I just sprayed the whole outside of the jar since I didn’t want to be able to see through it. Once the jar was dry, I added a small amount of kitty littler in the bottom.
I stuck the branches down into the jar and using a small measuring cup, I continued adding more kitty litter until the litter was near the top. As I added the litter, I occasionally re-positioned the branches, arranging them to create a nice tree-shaped centerpiece.
You can see in this picture how the jar looked after it was fully painted on the outside with the frosting spray. Initially, I had just planned to spray the jar with the frosting spray to hide the ends of the branches (and litter) from view, but once I had it inside the larger birdie container, I still didn’t like the way it looked. So I decided the do something a little different…more on that in a sec.
The birdie silhouette container is one I found on sale in Marshall’s several months ago. I thought it might come in handy for Halloween but wasn’t sure exactly how I’d use it when I first purchased it. I had no idea I’d be creating a crow tree. Sometimes things just work out…amazing when that happens!
Once I had the branches surrounded by kitty litter, they were nice and stable and stayed right where I had them. Next, I began attaching dollar store crows to the branches. The crows were small and the perfect size for the tree. They had tiny wires coming out of their feet making it easy to attach them to the branches.
I had a couple of crows that kept falling over, so I used a pinch of museum wax behind their feet to hold them in place. You may remember when I used museum wax previously in this post: Museum Wax to the Rescue.
I purchased some glittery, black, leaf-garland from Michael’s and pulled the leaves loose from the center strand to which they were attached. I didn’t intentionally buy garland with glitter…that was just all they had in the location I was in. It added a little sparkle to the centerpiece.
The River Birch branches have lots and lots of little nubs/buds all over them.
When I pulled the leaves off the plastic center strand, there was a small hole where the leaf stem had attached to the center strand. I used that hole to attach the leaves to my branches. The hole fit right over the nubs/buds on the River Birch branches. Pretty cool how that worked! It made attaching the leaves really easy. If the branches you use do not have little buds/nubs all over them, or if your leaf stems don’t have little rings/holes like mine did, you may need to attach your leaves with a drop of hot glue. I’m sure that would work well, too.
Attaching the crows and the leaves went very quickly and was fun! I also attached a few of the open-winged crows I found at Michael’s. They were a little bigger but looked great on the tree.
I still wasn’t too happy with how the jar looked inside the birdie silhouette container. I wanted to hide it and I knew I needed to use something that would show off the silhouette design on the container.
So, I took some of the faux spider web “stuff” and stretched it out to make it fluffy. Then I tucked it down inside between the frosted jar and the outside of the birdie container. This part was sort of challenging because the spider web stuff kept sticking to every tiny rough spot on my hands. Arrgggg…about drove me nuts! I eventually took a fork from the table and used it to sort of poke it down in there. Frankly, I could have done a better job.
Tip: I discovered as I worked, the more you pull the spider web stuff apart, the better it looks. So if you do make one of these, stretch the spider web stuff out really thin before you tuck it down inside or attach it to the tree.
I also stretched the spider web upward, attaching it to the little nubs sticking out on the lower part of the branches. Again, it probably would look even better/more realistic if it was stretched out a bit thinner. I didn’t do this, but you could add a bit of spider web to the branches higher up in the tree for an even spookier looking tree. If you do, just be super careful to not break the branches as you’re tugging on them. The thinner you spread the web stuff, the better.
An open-winged crow perched on the edge of the vase adds a fun touch. I scattered a few of the left over garland leaves around on the table at the base of the tree.
So that’s it! This was really a fun, easy, inexpensive decoration to make! If you have any questions, just let me know and I’ll be happy to answer. View this tablescape in full here: Halloween Tablescape with a Crow Tree Centerpiece
Looking forward to the wonderful “Before and “Afters” for this Metamorphosis Monday!
Metamorphosis Monday:
If you are participating in Metamorphosis Monday you will need to link up the “permalink” to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on your post name, then just copy and paste the address that shows up in the address bar at the top of your blog, into the “url” box for InLinkz.
In order to link up, you’ll need to include a link in your MM post back to the party.
If you’d like to include the MM button in your post, just copy and paste the Met Monday button to your computer and unload it as you do your other photos to your post. Or, click on the “Other” category at the top of the blog and on Metamorphosis Monday. You’ll find the html code for the button there.
PLEASE DO NOT type in all caps…it spreads the links waaaay out.
PLEASE DO link up Before and After posts that are home, gardening, crafting, painting, sewing, cooking, DIY related. Do not link up if you’re doing so to promote a website or product.
PLEASE DO be respectful of the BNOTP readers, visitors and those who participate in Met Monday by not linking posts inappropriate for the party.
Let’s try something fun today! Please visit the person who linked before you and after you…that way everyone will get some visits. Hope you’ll visit more, of course.
Very creative and fun to see! Jane
Susan, that table is too cute.
Thanks for hosting the Party…. I am so inspired by all the links.
I can’t believe what you’re going through to get your comments back! I can relate – when I moved to WP, I lost every single picture (and comment) for 100 posts! I am still adding pics back but I just can’t imagine doing the comments. Good for you – slowly and surely you’ll be done soon!
I am in love with this centerpiece – in fact, I’m crowing about it and pinning it!
Kelly
Thanks, Kelly and thanks for pinning it! That’s awful what happened when you moved! 🙁 I know you were upset. It has to take a long time to replace all those pics. I didn’t lose any pic but I did have several that were badly skewed and looked weird because my pics were larger on the Blogger blog than the space allows at WordPress. It’s definitely worth it to me to restore the comments because they add so much to each post. Sometimes they are the best part of a post. 🙂 I figure if I just do a few each week, as I have time, eventually they will all be whole again. Just won’t happen overnight.
This is a great Halloween centerpiece, Susan — I love it!! I haven’t seen anything like this; it’s very creative and you did a great job! 😀
Have a wonderful day!
Denise
I love this, Susan. The way you arranged the vases and camouflaged with the cotton is perfect!!
The black crows and leaves are fabulous. I’ve been wanting to spray paint some branches but haven’t gotten around to it. You went all out and it turned out so fun! Thanks so much for having us all over to party! It’s always so much fun.
Liz
Your tablescapes always impress me. Just lovely!
Fun Halloween table, Susan! I love your blog banner for the season, too. Thanks for hosting!
Thanks so much for hosting again this week. Love the arrangement. I just started my decorating for Halloween. Guess I am running a bit late this year!
The crow branches are really fun, Susan! I have sooo many of those little guys, this would be a great decoration for my dining room buffet. Thanks for a great idea, and thank you for hosting!
Cheers, Andrea
Susan,your Crow tree way better than Pottery Barn’s to me!!
Thanks for sharing,I was wondering how you got the leaves on,when I saw it the other day on Tablescape Thursday,my first thought was hot glue gun,this is soooooo much better.
It’s like those River Birch branches were made for crafting, Jo. 😉
Your Halloween porch looks fabulous! I love the use of black, white and silver! Your crow tree is wonderful! Thanks you for sharing how you made this. It’s such a great idea! Thank you for hosting another great link party!
Thanks for hosting a great party! I love joining in on the fun!
Leslie
House on the Way
Thanks for hosting MM. I love your Crow Tree Centerpiece. Very spooky. Have a great week!
Blessings,
Nici
great tutorial on the crow tree! we have plenty of branches we could use!
I really like your crow centerpiece, I haven’t seen one like yours before. Thanks for hosting! 🙂
Susan,
Thank you for sharing, I just may be able to do that !!
Where in the world do you store all your wonderful dishes and decorating items??!!! Lucky you!
Have a great day!
Paula
Paula, just the cupboards in the kitchen, laundry room and a few china cabinets. Click on the FAQ at the top right sidebar where I go into a bit more detail/explanation. Oh, and check out the dish closet I made from a never-used coat closet: https://betweennapsontheporch.net/a-few-changes-to-my-china-closet-welcome-to-the-35th-metamorphosis-monday/
Thanks for the great party, Happy Monday!
Thanks so much for hosting! I love reading how you came up with the crow tree…it is fun watching the creative process unfold. I work in a similar manner, figuring it out and problem solving as I go. It looks great!
Thanks! I was stumped for a bit on how to hide that ugly ole jar. Thank goodness for spider web stuff. lol
Your tree turned out great! Love the black leaves and the vase! …Thanks for hosting! 🙂
I love the centerpiece!!….You are so very creative….perfect Halloween decor!….Thanks for hosting Susan!
Wow that centerpiece is amzing! I’m sharing thanks for hosting! Traci
Thanks, Traci!
Hi Susan! I love your Halloween tablescape…very festive. Thanks for hosting!
That takes a lot of dedication and time to replace all those blog comments. I’m so sorry you lost them all in the first place.. just not fun!
Thanks a bunch for hosting and sharing your fabulously spooky centerpiece 🙂 Happy Monday.
The tree is truly amazing, Susan! I will try it with my grands, even if it doesn’t come out to great. I’m here with them and I also forgot my camera! Horroble things happen to me all the time and I’m not computersavvy like you Susan, still.. what a drag!!!
Thank you for hosting one more terrific MM. I can’t wait to visit and see all those fabulous posts!! Have a wonderful week, sweet lady.
FABBY
Thank you for hosting. Wishing you a beautiful week! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse
Hi Susan, Love your spooky centerpiece. The faux spider web material looks really good inside the jar. I also have a river birch that drops branches and twigs all the time. I have used them as plant stakes all over my garden and for decorating. Cutting several branches out this weekend I thought about saving them to make a waddle fence but put threw them out instead. I bet I regret doing that. I spend hours on the computer this weekend also creating a website for the garden club I belong to. I’m no geek so it took lots of trail and error to get it near completion. I’ve still got a way to go. Therefore, I really appreciate all the time you took to get those much loved comments where they belong. Knowing they were not in the right place would have bothered me also. Love you blog…thanks for sharing. Vikki in Virginia
oops…waddle should have been wattle.
OMG, I love the crow tree, so very pretty! Thanks for hosting such a wonderful party!
Une belle table créative… L’idée des corbeaux est fantastique…
Gros bisous
Fun to see the deconstruction of your centerpiece. Very creative and festive!
Crows….I’m not a fan…but of course being chased by a crow when riding one’s bike so fast one might have had a heart attack just might be why! LOL! I appreciate the back story on how you put this all together. Thanks for the ah ha! moments (mine) and tutorial,
How nice of Max to share his litter! lol Good that it has so many uses. Love the tree! My project uses those crows, too. Thanks for hosting!…hugs…Debbie
What a great tutorial! Thanks for sharing and for the great party every week. I want to switch over to word press, but I’m a small enough blog, maybe I should just start a new one?
Thanks for hosting this weeks party! Hugs, Penny
Susan, you know me, I love those crows! The table is incredible.
Leslie (aka Gwen Moss blog)
Hi, Susan,
I’m sorry you’re having trouble with comments that have been missing.
I know it’s cold comfort, but as you surely know: Every cloud has a silver lining…
Thank goodness your patience is applaudable! 🙂
Good luck, my friend!
P.S. Susan, you already know I LOOVE your table, so I will not repeat that I LOOVE it, okay? … Oops … 😉
~Hugs to you~
Cecilia
Susan what a cute centerpiece! And so easy too!
Thank you for hosting!
xx
Anne
Lovely! I appreciate the details – the trial and error, and successes – that you so willingly provide. I think the resulting table display is great! The black and white theme is really a neat take on the usual colors, and I like especially like that!
The tree looks great! Love the sparkly leaves. I so know what you mean about the spider webbing! My daughter kept telling me to keep stretching it out really thin as I decorated the house and you know what? She was right!
Oh my goodness… how cute is this?! I may have to make something like this for my front porch (thinking a tall vase with tall branches…) SO cute!
Love your crow centerpiece Susan!! Gosh I didn’t see any of those great looking crows at our dollar store- will have to look again.
Thanks, Mary! They were almost out of them in my store when I found them a week or so ago.
I know you have a jillion comments on here but I’m going to add mine anyway. I think anyone that would spend that amount of time transferring comments over to her new blog, is an all right person in my book!! Since I’m a blogger I know how much time it takes to do ANYTHING on the blog – headers, posts, etc. not to mention figuring out how to do things. So, I just want to thank you for doing that. I love CROWS! So NOW I have to make a crow tree, too. 🙂 Thanks .. Linda
Awww, thanks Linda! You are a love! It’s taking forever but I’ll keep at it! 🙂
While driving home this evening I noticed the Griswolds have moved in on the next street over. I thought people just did a tablescape or decorated their front door.I did not know people decorated their whole house with orange lights for Halloween. If they were not orange I would have thought Christmas was coming early. If I had a better camera I would send you a photo. I have never seen anything like this. This will be the first house the kids will go to for trick or treat night.
Madonna, there’s a house a couple of miles from me that used to decorate for Halloween so extensively, crowds come from all around to see it. I wish I had taken pics of it…I think they have moved now. You gotta love folks that do that because everyone gets to enjoy it. 🙂 I love to see someone have that much passion for life and fun! Wonder if they’ll do the same thing for Christmas.
Hi Susan: Wow–that’s a lot of work to restore those comments–very kind of you to do that for readers! I love the crow tree you created–I just love those Dollar Store crows, and used them in my autumn decorating this year, too. Your tablescapes are always tremendous, and they inspire me a great deal! Happy rest of your week, and continue to enjoy your lovely weather.
The crow tree is FANTASTIC! Thanks so much for hosting! Life to the full, Melissa
Oh, my word, all that work to restore your missing comments. I would not have an inkling how to do that, nor the patience. It is just great that you are willing to put so much effort into keeping your comments, makes me feel appreciated. Love, love, love your tree and tablescape.
Good, because you are appreciated! 🙂
Hi Susan! I absolutely love the crow tree! What a perfect use for your dollar store treasures. Coming by a bit late for the party, but I didn’t want to miss out on all of the fun. Have a wonderful week! ~Mary
Thanks, Mary! You’re not late…you’re right on time. 🙂
Thank you so much for this wonderful tutorial, Susan. Please know how much I enjoy your generosity and indefatiguable toil behind the scenes when you host parties, share your home projects, or give tutorials. You have a wonderful site!
I just love your porch! The halloween decorations are wonderful. I haven’t decorated for Halloween in years, I just do fall decor now. But this makes me want to drag the stuff and and decorate again. I linked up to your party, I just now started my blog and started with The Nester’s 31 day challenge. So far, so good. Following your blog now that I have found it!
Thanks so much Dawn! Welcome to Blogland…you’re going to have so much fun and meet some awesome folks! 🙂
Oh, I love your Crow Tree, Susan! I do not need another single Fall/Halloween decor item, but that tree is so enticing…lol! Thanks for sharing and for hosting.
My River Birch tree thanks you! I threaten to cut it down every year! My hubby says I have a “love/hate relationship” with them. I do love the filtered shade but why oh why do they have to drop so many limbs and leaves! lol
Susan, I realize this is an older post but wanted to comment on making the branches white. Spray painting them white never got the look we were trying to copy. Finally, someone said they roll them in Plaster of Paris in a big tray.
Ohhhh, thanks for that tip, Myrna! I need to remember that in case I ever do something similar again. 🙂