Easy DIY Costumes

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Source: FoundWalls

I’m Angela Johnson, a keen collector of craft supplies and belt buckles. I spend a lot of time tending to my huge organic garden, walking my dog and writing about my addiction to crafting for hairbowcenter.com.

Halloween is almost here! I can’t believe it! As my favorite holiday ever, I find myself at the height of my giddy excitement as we get nearer to All Hallows’ Eve. I like to go all out with decorations, parties and costumes. Here are a few simple tips for even the most craft-challenged of observers. (more…)

Nightmare Before Christmas Project Part 2: The Rest of it

Jack Skellington Good morning my beautiful Minions! Today we finish the Nightmare Before Christmas project we started a couple of weeks ago. As you know, this year marks the 20th anniversary of Jack Skellington and his friends and I thought a Nightmare themed yard haunt was apropos.  Come with me as I show you how I made Jack, Sally, and Zero.

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Nightmare Before Christmas Yard Decoration Project Part 1: Sally

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Happy Labor Day everyone. Recently I spoke of a ginormous project I had undertaken and how it was taking up more time than expected. What it will eventually be is several large plywood cutouts of various characters from The Nightmare Before Christmas. So, rather than wait however long it’s going to take until this project is complete, I’m just going to show you each character as I complete it. The first of these is Sally the rag doll.

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Interview with Heather Gleason: My Eclectic Mind

scarydad.com

I’ve probably mentioned before that it’s really hot where I live. Halloween, outside of the regular fun it brings, also means that we can go outside and play again. It’s the harvest and the promise of holidays, cold air, wood smoke, and festivals. It’s not just a day or a month; it’s a feeling. Unfortunately, that feeling is seasonal and, for me anyway, gone all too quickly.

So, I spend my time looking for things that keep that feeling alive. I scour the internet looking for stuff that truly defines the meaning and the spirit of my favorite time of year. A while back I was doing some scouring and I came across an artist who captures both the meaning and the spirit perfectly. When I saw Heather Gleason’s art I immediately felt a cool northerly breeze and caught the scent of caramel and cinnamon and burning leaves…

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Interview: Chris from Austin Hot Mods

Hello there my good and faithful Minions! I hope all is well.

Today we are going to do something just a little different. As some of you know I spent many a magical night on stage as a founding member of the costumed super group Thunderpants here in Houston. Although I no longer play out anymore, I still enjoy a good jam session from time to time.

Scarecrow Pic

Well, a friend of mine recently started a side business modifying foot pedals for guitar players at an affordable price. And though his interests are not exactly horror-themed, he is a fellow maker and I think what he’s doing is really cool. So over the weekend I sat down with Chris from Austin Hot Mods to see what this whole thing is about.

And with that, please welcome Chris from Austin Hot Mods.

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Guest Interview: Amber from Southern Gothica

SouthernGothica
SouthernGothica

Tonight we have a guest post from Victoria over at The Autodidact in the Attic. Victoria likes all kinds of really cool stuff and she scours the internet for said cool stuff and talks about it on her site. When you’re done reading this post and buying dolls from Amber, click the links above and below and check it out.

So, without further ado, here’s the interview with Amber at Southern Gothica by V. L. Craven:

There are loads of talented gothy-types out there, but occasionally, you come across someone who’s extra-talented and a little extra-gothy, as well. Amber, who runs Southern Gothica on Etsy, is one such person. She hand-sews 10″ rag dolls of all of your favourite characters–from classics like Frankenstein’s Bride and the Mummy to sure-to-please goths like bats, Wednesday Addams & Eddie Munster to pop icons like Eric Draven from The Crow, the members of Dethklok and Severus Snape. As soon as I came across her shop I had to contact this person and request an interview. Happily, she agreed to answer some questions:

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Great White Hot Rod (Part 1)

White Shark

A while back I began making little animal cars for Spawn. People seem to like them so I’ve decided to make a few and post them on Etsy for sale. They’re not ready yet but I will certainly tell you when you can buy one. In the meantime I thought you might be interested to see what goes into making a simple wooden toy.

I begin by creating a template. I sketch a few versions and go with my favorite. Then I make a couple copies in case something happens to the original, and cut him out.

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Make Realistic & Functional Hands for your Haunts!

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Good evening my beloved Minions! I trust you are well. I have returned from my vacation in the most haunted city in America to bring you a happy and refreshed Scarydad who is brimming with ideas and upcoming projects. We’re already past the halfway point to Halloween! Time to get back to work!!!

So tonight I’m going to show you how I make hands for my various creatures. The tutorial is a basic human hand but the technique can be used to make virtually any size hands for any type of monster, so let’s get creative…

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