One gal's trash is another gal's treasure!

FALL is in the air.... I love, love, love this time of the year! snagged some great deals at Garage Sales, Thrift Stores and the Dollar Stores this weekend to help with my fall decorating... Check out these finds:

Look at this beautiful silver acorn platter I found for just $3 at a local Thrift Store! It's really heavy... Looked brand new... still in the box!

Got this little tin bucket for just .50 cents at the same Thrift Store.... added a little vinyl birdy and some fall leaves from Dollar Tree.... Love it!!!

Love this basket!!! Just $1 at the Thrift Store.... Got the pumpkins in the produce dept at Wal-Mart - The Faux Corn was part of my fall decor from last year.

This is a shot of a little side table on my back porch.... The Vase has been there since the summer but i tucked in a few orange and yellow flowers for some Fall color, got that cute little Scarecrow fella at a garage sale for .50 cents... added a few of my faux pumpkins from last year's decor.... that iron dish of the birdy on the leaf was already there from the summer, but it came from Hobby Lobby.

 Lined my front porch steps with some faux pumpkins .... had a few of these from last year... strung a leaf garland from Dollar Tree along the pumpkins for a little splash of color. You can see my little $1 scarecrow pick in the background. 

 These fall planters were a spur of the moment purchase... wasnt even looking for them. I couldnt believe Wal-mart's garden center had these beauties!!! And for just $15... What a DEAL!!! Got one for each side of my front steps!! They are HUGE!!!! Had to get a separate shopping cart just for these 2 babies!

 Ok... funny story about this lantern... it's BIG and HEAVY... got it about 9 years ago and made a christmas arrangement with it... got tired of the christmas arrangement and it lived in my basement for years!!! Put it in my garage sale last year and it didnt sell.... Then when I had my garage sale this year, I told my daughter to pluck the christmas decor off of it and maybe it will sell this time. When she cleared it off, it made me think of those cool lanterns you see in Pottery Barn and a lightbulb went off in my head! So I added a piece of foam in the base, stabbed a few sprigs of leaves and flowers (from dollar tree) and finished it off with a plump little faux pumpkin from Hobby Lobby. Now it's my fall centerpiece on my dining room table!

 BIG SCORE!!!  It's not really meant for Fall decorating, but check out this wonderful Bakers Rack I got at a garage sale for just $25. I couldnt believe they only wanted $25... I kept checking it out trying to find something wrong with it. Too good to be true... I had no idea where I would put it, and Im not sure if I will alter the color of the wood and the metal, but for now.... I'm slowly adding stuff to it to make it fit in with my breakfast room! (pardon my walls... we are in the process of adding beadboard paneling below the chair rail)

 Here's a quick shot of my back porch... Im sure I will add more as the cooler weather rolls in... but for now... it's got a "fall" feeling to it! (that stain in the top left corner of the rug is from where my husband sat the ice cream maker a few months ago... I have no idea why it stained... it was just Ice and Rock Salt. Any suggestions on coloring outdoor rugs?)

 Glass candle holder from Dollar Tree, Candle from Dollar Tree and acorns ($3 per pack) from Wal-mart. The wooden bowl was .50 cents at a garage sale... great for holding fresh fruit.

BONUS: If you love pumpkin... you gotta try these Fat Free Pumpkin Muffins... OMG... The do NOT taste fat free... they are SO moist and sweet! However... I added a cream cheese frosting dollop in the center of each one, so they aren't as guilt-free as they could be... my next batch i think I will just do a quick dusting of powdered sugar over the top of each...but they are super yummy without any topping at all! I'll attach the recipe below!

Fat Free Pumpkin Muffins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tins with liners. Spray liners with non-stick spray.

Mix the following ingredients by hand in large bowl.

1 box of Angel Food Cake Mix

1 (15 oz) can of Pumpkin

3 teaspoons of Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 cup of water

The batter will be very fluffy. Spoon into muffin liners and bake for 15-18 minutes. Makes 24 muffins.