Is it over?!

Not only is October (and Halloween) over we already solidly in November! Where has the time gone? I am going to say that I have been having so much fun that the time has just flown by...Mostly true! I did get a few Halloween projects done this year, including two costumes.

One was for my sister. She wanted a pikachu costume. I forbade her from buying one!

We headed to the thrift store and found an adorable yellow dress. I made a tail and some stripes and a set of ears.

 For the ears I covered a headband and stuffed the ears with polyfil and some lightweight wire to give them a bit of bend.

The tail is a styrofoam base covered in fabric (all sewing- no glue!) The base of the tail is sewn to the dress and then a small loop of string was attached to the top of the tail and then looped onto the button at the top back of the dress to make the tail stand up.

The stripes are dark brown felt sewn to the dress. The upper stripe covered some of the zipper so it is only half sewn on and the other half I attached 3 velcro bits so you can still unzip the dress.

Some major blush on the cheeks and she was the cutest pokemon at the party. (Ok she was the ONLY pokemon at the party...but still!)


I also made a squirrel costume for my girl Squirrely Q. I had her buy a hoodie that she liked and I added ears and a tail. She loves it so much she still wears it around. I didn't get a picture of it but I also bought a small glitter acorn from the craft store and added a loop of fabric to it so she could wear it around her wrist or safety pin it to herself so she wouldn't lose it!

Hope everyone had a safe and happy Halloween and now onto the holiday season! WOOO HOOOO!

Halloween Roller Derby

Halloween AND Roller Derby? Be still my heart! Two of my favorite things in one. Our team is headed to their very FIRST away bout and we are getting pretty excited!  If you are going to be in the area check it out. H

Happy Haunting! And Rolling...

I Heart: Pattern Sales!!!!

Another pattern sale! How can I resist? Patterns that are $17.95 on sale for 99 cents!!!! Be still my heart. Now though I really do need to get a box for all of my patterns because I am beginning to forget which ones I already have. I think that means I need to start sewing! This time it was all costume patterns. They are my favorites and I was shopping with other people who didn't want to spend another hour at the store as I pour over the pattern books!

And yes- that pattern on top is CLEARLY a 'Snow White and the Huntsman' pattern. That is a movie I did not like AT ALL which was disappointing because I love Snow White stories. Anyways the outfit is so darn cute that I couldn't resist getting the pattern. I also just sort of love the patterns that come out for the movies that were released this year. Maybe I can use it for the Oscar party next year.

Now for the good part: Drumroll Please!!!!!

Cost: $102.70
On sale for:  $6.38!!!!!
Savings of: $96.32

Boom. Happy Haunting! (And sewing!)

Harvest Moon Festival: Fall Floral Crown DIY

I helped out at the History Center's Harvest Moon Festival this weekend and we were encouraged to dress up so of course I jumped on it! I originally wanted to be sort of a fall/fairy queen type but I started to run out of time to get together an elaborate costume. This is a lesson that I have learned over and over and I really need to take it to heart: USE WHAT YOU HAVE. Sometimes I get so obsessesed with creating a new costume that I forget that I already probably have stuff in my closet and craft room that would work.  I did really want to make a fall floral crown  after being inspired by all the tutorials and things I have recently seen.




A trip to Michaels provided some lovely fake fall items on sale I got this whole bunch for less than $5! My job at the festival was helping out at the pumpking painting station so I wanted to make sure I had at least one pumpkin involved.

 

First: I simply unwrapped the small circle of leaves and beads. I was hoping to use this as a base. Lo and Behold! It was a perfect shape and size. I would probably wear this by itself it is so pretty.

2nd: I just started pulling apart elements from my other 'sprigs' and winding and twisting them into the base crown. In a couple spots I used brown twist ties to secure the items together. The whole project took less than 10 minutes! And since there was no glue involved I can take this apart to either source for other craft projects or to mix up this look. Win! Mine sat on my head just like a head band but if you added ribbon to each end you could tie it and adjust the side a bit for the kids in your life! (Just make sure they are old enough not to try and eat it- there are some small bits!)

The rest of my costume ended up being a combination of a few different costumes I had and some regular clothes. It was supposed to be a bit like a victorian looking witch. One girl described me as a 'Fall queen' and said that I was 'very pretty and you have the perfect color hair." She might have been my favorite! It was a little chilly and of course I forgot my camera but here are the little pumpkins I painted!

Happy Haunting!!!

Slowly but surely...

Slowly, steadily things are becoming Halloweeny. Fall colors are already at their peak here and the weather has gotten rather brisk. Today I need to face the chilly to get some outdoor decorating done. One of my favorite things to do for Halloween? Use the pumpkin leaf bags. We always used these when I was a kid so it brings me back and it is both fun and functional!

Happy Haunting!

Harry Potter Crafts

Trying to do a bit of cleanup today around the house...no I haven't moved yet and it looks as though the snow is going to beat me. Oh well, it will get figured out! I wanted to share a few 'before' shots for you today with the Harry Potter crafts I did for the party the other day.

Also this is all evidence that you can do some really cool things with little to no money. Work with what you have, be creative and have fun with it!

 First up: Wands! The party was supposed to be BYOW (Bring your own wand) but being the nerd that I am I decided to make some after finding a super cool tutorial online. Sticks from the yard plus hot glue and paint that I already had= the most awesome Harry Potter wands ever! They seriously rivaled the one 'real wand' from Harry Potter World.  Cost: $0

While google-ing  'Harry Potter Parties' I found lots of kids parties. Go figure. But an idea I did really like was the platform 9 3/4 bit. So I went to a fabric store and found this in the remnant bin.

Tip- don't try to paint straight lines on grass! Dumb idea...I moved to some concrete to get the job done. I had to bust out one of those little knee saver pads to work on this project but it was worth it.

 I used a board in my garage to make the horizontal lines. I poured out a TON of paint...you actually don't need very much at all. To make the 'bricks' I found a smaller board about the right size and just staggered the bricks.

At the party it was taped right to the door so when guests entered the party they had to 'go through it'. Project cost: $3

 Of course I needed a sign for platform 9 3/4 ! Some people would say I am a hoarder..but I say I am useful. I rummaged around the garage again and found these old cabinet doors from when our kitchen was redone years ago. These have come in handy in many a craft project! I busted out a drill and put two small holes in the 'upper' corners to hang it from.

Then I busted out some red spray paint I already had and gave it a coat front and back. I traced a plate to get the circle and free handed the lettering and numbers (sketched it out a bit in pencil first). All the paint I already had and then We just used some cord I had to string it up. It looked pretty cool lit by the outdoor light as guests arrived. Project cost: $0

 For my Bellatrix costume I had this black costume-y 'basic' shift in my costume closet. I first cut the sleeves off and then 'sewed' them back on with a thick black cord. It was a bit skinny towards the  bottom so I slit up the sides to the hips, layered it over a black poofy prom dress and then used my mock black corset I made for the cemetery walk and layered that on top. I also added some gold paint swirls to the shift around the neckline and on the sleeves.  I don't have a good 'after' shot but for no money it was a pretty sweet costume. Costume cost: $0

 The day of we were still crafting, decorating, and cooking like mad. The birthday girl was going as Hermione and wanted a time turner. She is holding it in this picture. The hourglass is two mini bottles filled with a bit of salt and hot glued shut. Then we found two craft frames (the little plastic kind for needlework) so I hot glued those back to back and then built up some hot glue to put the hourglass. Once it set up I painted the glue with a bit of gold paint so it gave it a little shimmer and didn't look so much like glue! Found an old vintage chain in my jewelry making box and done! Might be my favorite craft of the day because it came together really randomly just grabbing things from around my craft room. Cost: $0!

A Very Haunted Harry Potter Birthday Party

It was a lot of work and we were scrambling at the end a bit but the party came together rather nicely and was a SUPER GOOD TIME. Probably the best 'Halloween Saturday' (as I like to call it) in quite a long time. I just can't help imagining what I could do with more time and money!

 Cauldron cakes, licorice wands, Bertie Bott's every flavored beans, and dips, chips, and other goodies.

 The Three Broomsticks

 Butterbeer!

 Group shot (thanks to Muggle camera woman Miranda)

 Fluffy

 Doby the house elf

 Time turner!

 Ron

 Hermione

 Dolores Umbridge

 Trelawney

 Harry Potter

 Professor McGonagall

 Trelawney (less unhinged)

The birthday kids. Hahahahahaa. I love this picture! I will write another post and go into some of the crafty details in a different post. But for now I wish you a good nights rest before All Hallows Eve.

Happy Haunting!

Nerding out

The day is being spent making up treat bags, starting costumes, and working on some pretty nerdy Harry Potter related crafts. In the meantime I leave you with something that made my little nerd heart sing.

Wes Anderson Meets Scream

Flashback Halloween: The Ghost and the Devil

Not just a ghost. I emphasized the eyes and the mouth, added black and glow in the dark spiders, and made sure that the bottom edge was good and roughed up. Once my little sister got into the costume game I was no longer going to be the most adorable.

ONE WEEK UNTIL HALLOWEEN!!!!

Hey there gals and ghouls, the real countdown begins! One week from today is Halloween! Saturday I am helping with the nerd-fest known as the Harry Potter themed bday/Halloween party and as such I am going to be sharing Harry Potter posts all week.

Here is a little something to get you warmed up. Which house are you?

Change of plans

Sometimes change is a good thing. My friends were planning on having a co-bday party/Halloween party and having it literary themed. Everyone was supposed to come as a favorite character from literature. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and directionless at the same time. Then an unexpected twist. Both of the co-hosts were considering going as Harry Potter characters and so they decided it would be even more fun to just have a giant Harry Potter themed party! Still bookish but it gave me the specificity that I needed to really make this party work. Now the ideas are flying on decorations, food, etc. AND my costume is now a no brainer. I am going to be Bellatrix Lestrange.

 

Done. 

More Halloween Shopping

Hit a couple of stores up yesterday. Fabric store was having a pattern sale!!!!!!

 I picked up these beauties for 99 cents each!!!!! If I had bought all these patterns at full price my bill would have come to $142.60! That is insane. Which is why I always stock up.

 Also picked up some Halloween school type items. I am making little gift bags for my friend's first grade class.

Then I hit up a thrift store and got all these beauties for $1! I have a weird fascination with old photo books. The others were just cool. The gray book underneath is probably going to be sacrificed for bday party decorations. My friends are having a literary themed bday party next week that I am helping with. Everyone is supposed to come dressed as their favorite literary character. Cool idea but it is harder than it seems right now I am between:

Dorian Gray
Sherlock Holmes
Jane Eyre
Crazy wife from Jane Eyre
Nancy Drew
or Mary from The Secret Garden

Also have a couple more 'kid books' ideas like going as a giant palm tree and being 'Chika chika Boom boom' or a giant red mitten with beanie babies spilling out of it and being 'The Mitten'.

Costume Thoughts: Men in Costume

As Halloween is fast approaching I wanted to say a little something about costumes...but as I started thinking about it I found out that I have quite a bit on my mind about costumes this year so we are going to break it down a bit.

First Up: Men in Costume

It is a fact of life that if I ever get married it will be to a man who loves Halloween. Heck there may be a Halloween themed wedding...but seriously a good costume on a guy can go a long way to winning a pretty witch's heart.

1. Handmade is always best. It shows that you care. It shows that you put time and effort into it. Re-using your comic-con costume is ok. Wearing the SAME handmade Halloween costume three years in a row with no alterations is not ok.

Nerd alert! And yet I want to know who is in that costume...

2. Pick something fun. You may have slaved over that scary-ass clown costume for weeks and added more fake blood than you know what to do with but no one is going to want to hang out with you. The best you are going to get is passerbys wanting a picture before they run away in terror.

Those lovely ladies are not going to be sticking around for long. 'Burger King' in the background is kind of clever though.

3. When in doubt go overboard. Nobody liked the Steve Jobs zombies at this year's ZPC. Why? First it was a bit 'too soon' and second it took NO EFFORT. A turtleneck and some fake blood does not a costume make. Boo. If you are worried that no one else is going to be as 'in costume' as you are going to be you either are going to the wrong parties or have lame friends or both. Change accordingly to fit with your super sweet costume.

Extra points for group costumes

Bonus: Really looking to win some hearts? Go obscure. Do movie characters. Do quirky characters no one is expecting. If you are going for a well known/common costume you best make sure you do it BETTER than anyone else. Here are just a few characters/costumes that if some guy was wearing I would probably fall in love with them.

 Michael Fassbender in XMen First Class. Actually if you can convey Michael Fassbender anything to me you win.

Looking for a super easy costume that I would accept and LOVE? Look to the movie Drive

White satin jacket (with gold scorpion on the back=extra points), driving gloves, aviators, toothpick. Done.

 Anyone from Boardwalk Empire. Think 3 piece suits. Include great details like a red carnation in the lapel, slick hair, etc. Extra points? Go as Harrow from the show. Love.

Edward Scissorhands. Once again...LOVE. This gets extra points for have 'The Inventor' as a sidekick (read wingman).

I could go on. Bottom line: Have fun with your costume!

Happy Haunting!