Two.

Two kinda big deals today.

1) Living Small turns Two.

2) This marks my first post in Two months.

Twos, like toadstools, like diys, like ecoliving, are Small. Twos turn to threes. Here’s hoping Living Small makes it to three. And that posts return sooner than March.

Thanks for Two years, Smallers. Thanks for hangin’.

Toadstools are Small.

And they grow in my courtyard. Take a look:

It turns out that these are fly Amanitae, which = psychoactive and potentially poisonous. So, probably won’t be eating those. However, my Sweetie and I noticed a load of other mushrooms a-sprouting around the yard, not all of them spotty. What’s more, last weekend, I saw our neighbor and his main squeeze trolling the grass like truffle pigs and snapping up toadies left and right.

If that’s not living Small, I don’t know what is. Foraging in the backyard for foodstuffs? Totally fly! Any recommendations for ID’ing these funky fungi?

Day of the DIY: Red Riding Hood + Wolf

Okay, okay, so Halloween was yesterday, but I nevertheless wanted to share our DIY get-ups.

The best part: We sourced almost everything from our own closet (I’m not kidding; I do own a vermillion crinoline), and handmade the rest — riding hood, wolf mask, tail — out of craft store supplies.

Did you dress up? Did you DIY? Let’s see it.

I’m JACK, the Pumpkin King!

Here is a list of things that get me high on Halloween:

1. Costumes. Duh. Homemade ones are the best, like when my mom made that cranberry-colored velvet dress and pink faux fur stole so I could be a Rich Lady in first grade. High five, Mom! What’s your fave costume, now or gone?
2. Candy pumpkins. I like to pretend I’m the giant from The Brave Little Tailor, who picks up a horsecart-ful of pumpkins and dumps them in his mouth. Remember that?
3. Thriller. Word, MJ. I will dance like that herd of zombies, maybe in my next life.
4. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. The wisdom of The Brown: “Never jump into a pile of leaves with a wet sucker.”
5. Jack-o’-lanterns. For more, see Figs. 1 & 2.

Despite the non-Smallishness of buying a farm-fed squash raised especially for slicing, Mr. LS and I hosted a carving festival with a few friends, some butternut squash & pear soup + hand-twisted soft pretzels (yes, I married an incredible man-chef), and some pumpkin cookies from my friend Jill.

But, in the spirit of Small living, both the man-chef and I tried to recycle pieces of our pumpkins as artistic additions to our jackies.

Fig. 1: Mister’s Devil.

Fig. 2: My Dead Prom Queen.

In both cases, we reused the mouth cutouts as embellishments, affixed with toothpicks: Mister chopped his in half for horns; I flipped and fastened mine for a clever little crown.

Tell me about your Great Pumpkins. Classic? Unconventional? Kooky?

Etsy Love: comfy, cozy, acorn, apple

Fall has fallen, oh yes, with rain and red leaves. And with fall comes wool (not mothy wool; good, warm, snuggly wool), and with wool comes Etsy. Two new Etsy loves, from me to you.

Needle felted acorns for scattering at Small House, by truLuxe:

And this crocheted apple cozy for keeping my Galas bruise-free, from Unravel Me: