So I was thinking my big October project could be a card a day. Except maybe not every day, because I have many other things to blog about. Then, each day I could send a card to some random spooky friend in my address book. That’s right, I know where you live. Well, some of you. I figure I have a head start, because like the witch card, this is a set of four.
Yup, I think that’s a good plan.
Here’s the first make of the season. It’s a set of four note cards, blank inside, with custom envelopes. I haven’t figured out how I’m giving things away this year, because I’m not sure how much I’ll do…
…which leads me to the why: I hurt my punchin’ arm. It started a couple years ago, and I thought it was amongst the usual aches of aging. I tried lots of stuff to treat it, most recently adding special exercises to my usual workout. And if it were just me getting old, well, that should have been more effective. Yes, I have an appointment with a highly recommended doc. So highly recommended that I can’t get in until November.
Painting, drawing, sculpting, carving–almost everything I like to do–is what makes it flare. So I’m limiting those activities to stuff I absolutely must get done. What I can do is stamp and glue and use my paper trimmer. I can even use my sewing machine. I can probably do other stuff I haven’t thought of yet. So this year, it’s paper crafts, fabric, and other assemblage-type things. I shall have to use my imagination, but I’m pretty good at that.
I should have posted this last week–haven’t been on the computer much.
I don’t join a lot of swaps. In fact, it’s usually one per year. This year, I was invited to a private swap by a friend, and I couldn’t resist.
Thing is, when I’m in a swap, I get focused on making the thing I’m going to send, and I often forget that I will also receive something. So when my loot comes, it’s a lovely surprise. This one was especially wonderful:
Yes, it was a “secret pal” type swap, but my partner was easy to find–Mari Mortem made many wonderful things. And if you go over there right now, the first couple posts are about her process.
I’d been planning to make a spooky purse–something small and cross-body. I never mentioned it anywhere, I swear! And yet, Mari sent this wonderful thing. It’s perfect, and I’ve started using it already. Also pictured is a lovely pair of leather bat wings. They are meant for boots, but I don’t have any (yet–I’ve been looking!). They are, however, the perfect size for a beardie costume, so I’ll be figuring out a mostly-non-annoying attachment so I can put them on the girls for Halloween pictures.
She also made a tiny pumpkin phone charm from polyclay. He’s delightfully spooky.
The last of the handmade items: a really darling watercolor. I love the kitty–I can’t photograph it well enough so you can tell how nice it is in person.
There was also all sorts of other doo-dads–a bandanna, stickers, a cool box, a card, and more! What a joy it was to open. Thank you so much, Mari!
Stiltbeast does a very cool transformation of a cheap medicine cabinet, and it looks like something anyone could do.
Another great tute from Stiltbeast.
It is exactly three months until The Big Day. I have been in the mood to make spooky stuff for several weeks already, but made my first official project of The Season today.
I have been obsessed with fabric lately, wanting to make art quilts and pillows and things. Problem is, I’m not a great tailor. In fact, I’m a pretty terrible one. I stick with either very simple things, or artsy things where my ineptitude is a feature.
So here is a lovely Halloween pillow. Mistakes were made. I neglected to look up how to prevent lumps before I sewed it shut. And that sewing shut looks a bit like a drunken surgeon performed an appendectomy. Still, I think it’s pretty, and it’s a good size to test shams on. Because shams cannot be lumpen, and need not be sewed shut by hand.
Happy beginning of Halloween, everyone!
Devil Skull: Archangel Fury
Devil Skull: Archangel Fury
Kate Heyhoe makes hollow sugar skulls and fills them with panoramic scenes.
Medusa
Medusa
She has a 30-step process, molding the sugar skulls herself. Most of the outside decoration is sugar-based, but these skulls are not edible! They are sealed to be long-lasting works of art.
Lost at Sea
Lost at Sea
She also makes adorable mini-skulls.
Bat Memo Holders
Papel Picado
Her Etsy Shop is empty, but you can request special orders. Prices range from $15 – $500, depending on size and complexity.
Today, I am looking around for local haunts and displays, and planning my excursions. I get excited throughout Spook Season, but planning my haunt schedule gets me especially giddy.
Last year I visited The Haunted Ranch and Cemeterror (which is taking a break for 2014). On slate for this year:
Skipped Frightmares last year because their website says they’re “extreme.” This year I watched the news footage, and they look like a very good, but normal, haunt. I admit I have absolutely no interest in attending an extreme haunt. I go more for the art than to be scared, though I don’t object to a good jump. If you can get one out of me, congratulations. But touching and crap? No way. Don’t gimme no lines, and keep yo hands to yo self. Just to be sure, I posted a question on their facebook page.
Aside: speaking of facebook pages, Spooky Moon now has one. It’s where I post all the stuff I see every day that doesn’t fit here, for one reason or another. So, yes, it’s different content, not just repeating what I put on the site. Go, my minions, and like!
So is Frightmares number one on my list? Nope.
I really wanted to get out to Hellview Cemetery in St. Petersburg last year, but didn’t make it, so they are first on my list this year. Home haunts always have priority with me. I love the ingenuity and devotion. Home haunters are driven to build wonderful things and share them with their community. It’s an obsession of which I whole-heartedly approve.
I have a favorite restaurant in Punta Gorda, so if we get the chance, it would be fun to drive down for a meal and a Haunting on the Harbor.
Other possibilities:
NoRemorse cemetery doesn’t have a website, but here are some pics from 2011 on Photobucket. No word if they are active this year, but I may have a look-see while I’m in St. Pete.
I love a haunted trail, and Oscar Scherer park is hosting two, plus other activities this year.
The Boofest at Lakewood Ranch looks too fun, and it’s close by.
Sarasota Pumpkin Festival might be worth a peek.
Most years, I plan to hit four or five events, and end up hitting two. Will my average be better this year? Stay tuned!
photo by Shane Gorski
Bekku
My Secret Pumpkin this year is crazy about cats (but not a crazy cat lady). I mulled for months over what to make her. I thought about doing a doll, but I’d never done one, and I knew the learning curve would be steep. Finally, I decided to go for it, even though I’d only sculpted two faces, ever, and had never sculpted a body.
Bits and pieces
I decided she would be called Bekku, the word in Kannada for “cat.” She would be a Guardian Demon.
I envisioned an Abyssinian with faceted red crystals for eyes. The biggest stumbling block: the dress. Because man, do I ever not sew. I mulled that for ages, finally realizing I could bead her dress! Yeah, okay, I’ve only dabbled in beading (though I have a whole lot of beads!), but I still thought it would be easier on my nerves than trying to sew.
Abyssinian Face
I had this polyclay mold for a fairy, and thought I’d use that for the body. So, here’s the thing about those cheapo polyclay molds. They only get you a rough shape. I ended up using them to get things approximately the right size, and that’s it. Next time, I won’t even bother.
Ready to bake
Stuff I learned:
I’m sure I’ll find better, faster ways to do things in the future. I managed to stretch her staff-holding hand in the process of baking, so I was going to have to deal with that later, but everything else went well.
I had all these beads I was trying for the staff, and nothing made me happy until I found a 50 cent necklace at a garage sale. Behold, a power crystal! I used a Dremel to carve tiny letters into a chopstick (not telling you what they say, that’s for Myra to figure out), filled them with red ink, and put a layer of Rub ‘n’ Buff over the top. The rest of the staff got stained, and I cut down some nice brass jump rings for accents. Much gluing and waiting ensued.
Staff
Next, it was time to stop avoiding the paint job. Boy, acrylic paint dries instantly on polyclay. I could have added extender, but I was okay with the zero wait time. I surprised myself by not painting over the eyes. Go me!
Painting
Finally, the dress. I’d been dying to play with my loom, and this was my opportunity. I drew out my pattern. Customizable graph paper helped a ton! I wove the beaded fabric in gold, red, and black delicas. I was seeing a two-piece thing, with the sides completely open.
Starting the skirt
Almost done!
I finished the front skirt, and discovered the loom, a Beadalon Jewel Loom, had broken. Alrighty then, new loom it is. Didn’t like the second one much, either. Who puts bendable warp rods on a loom? But that’s fixable, and I made it through the back skirt. Attached some square stitch to make the front and back halters, and good to go.
Front and back, finished
Last touches to the costume–a little belt with a cat charm, and earrings.
Finally, the stand. Of course I didn’t have a drill bit that was small enough to fit what I was using as a support rod, which may or may not have been a BBQ skewer, so I put a little washi tape at the bottom of the rod. A light coat of black paint on the stand finished things up. At a guess, I’d say 80 hours work, but a lot of that was my sheer inexperience.
Front and back, nekkid
Front and back, dressed
I packed her in blocks of foam with cut-outs, and the PO put on a fragile sticker. They still managed to break her arm. DEMON ABUSE. GAH. But she’s gluable.
My favorite part:
Lookit those feeties!
So now all I want to do is make dolls. I already have an idea for the next one. Stay tuned.
From the Davis Graveyard booth
Yes, the move to Florida is getting close, but the West Coast Haunters Convention was finally in Portland, and there was no way I was missing it.
13th Door brought a friend
I went on Saturday. Sadly, I missed a couple classes on Friday that I would have loved, but time is what it is. I ended up taking a class on Zombie Skin. The class was great fun, but I wasn’t impressed with the durability of the product. I left a good swatch of the stuff on my arm, and it was peeling off badly in less than 30 minutes. Next I went to a class on facade design. Grr. The guy googled “spooky house” and made a PowerPoint presentation out of it. I wish I’d walked out of that one earlier, but I did get to see 15 minutes of Alex Hansen using his stencils. And do click on that link, because iStencils is amaaaazing. Last class was scenic painting, and that was just stuffed with information. I learned tons.
Had a great time wandering the vendors. Wish it had been four times bigger! I got to sit and have a horrible burn applied to my hand (sorry, pics were blurry), and I got to play with an airbrush for the first time. That could be addicting.
I think the best thing I got out of my visit, besides the t-shirt, was the stencil link. I’ll be using that a lot.
A teddy even I could love
