Extreme Halloween Donates 3,101 Meals to Needy Families in South Florida

Right before the Thanksgiving weekend, Extreme Halloween Network announced a Black Friday/Cyber Monday Promotion. Many shoppers took advantage of the sales, and Extreme Halloween Network was able to raise over $500 for the Daily Bread Food Bank, which equals to approximately 3,101 meals to needy families in South Florida.

A big thanks to all the shoppers that participated in the event!

Holly Berry

Something to crow about. Stay tuned...

Glitter and Grunge December Posts

I have some fun, new, one-of-a-kind holiday decorations going on sale this Saturday, Dec 1st on the Glitter and Grunge site. Hop on over and check them out. You can see more photos and details by clicking on the Available on Glitter and Grunge, link at the top right hand side of this blog below On Sale Now. But remember, you have to wait until Saturday!

10 Things to Do with All that Halloween Candy

According to an article at parenthood.com, here are 10 things to do with all that Halloween candy:

Every family has its own methods of getting through the post-Halloween mounds of joy. Some let their kids gorge themselves for a day or two. Others dole it out a little at a time. Some parents even ban the candy bars altogether. For some nutritionists (and dentists!), Halloween candy is downright scary.

Whatever candy camp your family falls in –– there’s more to do with candy than eat it. If your Halloween candy is still sticking around, check out these ideas of what to do with leftovers:

1. Recycle it. Practice instant recycling. Screen the candy your kids bring home. After throwing away any unwrapped goodies, take out any candy your children don’t like or you don’t want them to have and then send that candy back out the door with other trick-or-treaters.

2. Freeze it. Put the chocolate bars right in the freezer to save them for later. Frozen chocolate takes longer to eat, so children can’t wolf it down so quickly.

3. Bake it. You don’t have to freeze the candy to keep it fresh. Kept in an airtight container, it will last long after Halloween. Later, you can bake surprise cupcakes. Push a soft candy into the middle of the batter in each cup before baking. Decorate the icing with more candies. You can also substitute bits of chocolate bars in your favorite chocolate-chip cookie recipe.

4. Melt it. Save chocolate to bring a taste of summer into your home long after you’ve put away the sunscreen. Melt chocolate for s’mores any time of year. Place a chocolate bar and a marshmallow between two graham crackers on top of a paper towel. Microwave for about 20 seconds.

5. Stuff it. Gather the leftover goodies and stuff them into a (homemade or store-bought) piñata. Crack the piñata open at Christmas or wait until your child’s birthday.

6. Create it. Professional artists create sculptures from candy, why not kids? Make mosaics with hard candy. Cover sturdy cardboard with wax paper, aluminum foil or paper. Then instead of tiles, use candy to create a design and “grout” it with stiff icing. To make sculptures, stick soft candy, apples and marshmallows together with toothpicks.

7. House it. After Halloween, kids can’t wait for Christmas. Save Halloween candy for gingerbread houses.

8. Wear it. Make a candy necklace. You’ll need an assortment of lollipops and colorful candies with twist-wrap ends to make this idea from the National Confectioners Association. Cut a 14-inch strand of thin twine or fabric ribbon. Tie one end of a wrapper of candy or lollipop stick tightly to one end of ribbon or twine (leave about two inches of ribbon free for tying at the end). Attach candy by knotting the ribbon around the wrapper ends or lollipop sticks until the necklace is complete. Leave two inches at the end. Tie the ends together and wear the latest in edible jewelry!

9. Decorate it. Create Christmas ornaments from candy. To make a train, take a long pack of gum and glue on round candy for wheels, a square piece for a smokestack, and something round for the bell on top. Attach a loop of gold thread or ribbon for hanging. Look at simple geometric illustrations (such as are in coloring books) for other ideas. Coat your ornament with an acrylic sealer so it won’t deteriorate and you don’t draw bugs.

10. Share it. Take your leftover candy to the office. Even if your co-workers who are parents are sick of the stuff, chances are your younger colleagues will relish childhood memories as they reach for another Mary Jane or Butterfinger. Or better yet, fill a coffee can with candy and bring it to your local nursing home, homeless shelter or a charity for the staff to enjoy. Add a note that says, “Thanks for all the good work you do.”

Twice in One Day

Tag... I'm it. I have been asked to write 5 random things about myself by my fellow EHAG artists Kim and Carolee. And after doing so, I am to tag 5 other people. Oh dear... do I know 5 other people?
1. Sketching in my studio in the wee hours of the morning before the house awakens brings me joy. 2. If I could be Alice for a day, I'd fall into an Arthur Rackham illustration and have a great adventure with Solomon Crow. 3. Hot chocolate and rainy days are a heavenly combination. 4. I have a bad case of wanderlust. 5. There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly. B. Fuller

Take a Break from Online Holiday Shopping with a Free Christmas Game

Don't let online holiday shopping stress you out! Go to SantaSuits.com and check out their wacky holiday game, Santa Dress Up. The free online Christmas game lets players dress up old St. Nick as wacky characters for the holidays with such styles as "Sumo Santa", "Elvis Claus", "Super Santa" and more. Just drag and drop a variety of shirts, pants, shoes, hair and accessories onto Father Christmas to create a unique Santa of your own on this fun holiday site.

"Everyone gets so stressed and wacky during the holidays that we wanted to create a free online Christmas game to let people have fun with our holiday site," said Shari McConahay, marketing director for SantaSuits.com and the Extreme Halloween network. "We hope our customers have so much fun playing "Santa Dress Up" that they'll want to dress up as Santa this year themselves!"

If you're inspired to dress up like Santa Claus yourself, go to SantaSuits.com and select a santa suit of your choice.

Full Moon Art Challenge

It's time again for the EHAG artist group to post their whimsical Full Moon Art Challenge holiday pieces on ebay! Crow in Wonderland auction will go live tomorrow at 7:00pm. Jump start your holiday shopping and support the handmade industry by logging on Nov. 24th.

Christmas Celebrations 2007

This fun website on Christmas Celebrations is just for those of you who love Christmas and the favorite customs that are honored, year after year. They have all kinds of fun stuff and goodies to help you make some very merry memories, including articles on office Christmas parties, history of Christmas cards, Christmas party activities and more. There’s even an article on regifting etiquette!

And if you’re having your own Christmas celebration, don’t forget to have Santa make a guest appearance! Check out a full selection of Santa suits at www.santasuits.com.

Spread Goodwill and Charity by Shopping on the Extreme Halloween Network

From November 23 - 26, shoppers on the Extreme Halloween Network can buy anything from unique kids costumes to Santa Claus suits, and a portion of the sales will go to the Daily Bread Food Bank. Can you think of a better way to give back to the community?

"It's important to everyone at Extreme Halloween to give to those less fortunate," said Shari McConahay, marketing director of the Extreme Halloween network. "We hope when customers are thinking about purchasing their unique kid costumes, Santa Claus costumes and other holiday dress-up items they'll think of visiting Extreme Halloween, knowing that a percentage of their purchase will go to such a good cause."

Last month as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Extreme Halloween Network raised more than $1,500 for Susan G Komen Foundation with our "Think Pink" costume promotion. So mark your calendars and help Extreme Halloween meet or beat that amount during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend.

After Halloween Sale Extended!

Our After Halloween Sale has been extended until November 21, 2007, so while you are getting ready for Thanksgiving, you can take advantage of the sale before the Christmas holiday shopping rush that ensues the day after Thanksgiving!

Here are some ideas:

• The obvious: SAVE BIG on next year's Halloween costumes, accessories and decorations.
• Increase your Thanksgiving celebration by having dinner in costume! Make a fun new tradition out of it: reinact the Pilgrims and Native American Indians Feast or maybe just some silly Turkey Hats for some holiday fun!
• Get a jump start on the holiday with our Santa Suits and holiday costumes.
• Pick our some early holiday gifts: many children ask Santa to be a princess or a super hero for Christmas (HINT HINT!!)
• Magic makes a great holiday gift whether the recipient is a novice magician just starting out or a seasoned professional, Wizards Apprentice Magic has magicians supplies for any age or level magician.

Digital Picture Contests for Best Santas

SantaSuits.com is sponsoring digital picture contests for the best adult Santa suits, funniest Santa suits and even the best pet Santa.

Categories for the digital picture contests include "Santa of the Year," "Most Original Santa," "Funniest Santa," "Jr. Santa," and "Pet Santa." The Grand prize "Santa of the Year" winner receives $500 in Extreme Halloween Network Gift Certificates that can be used at any of the networks 11 websites.

For more information on SantaSuit.com's digital photo contests, visit http://santasuits.com/entryform.htm for official rules and entry information.

After Halloween Costume Sale!

Our biggest sale of the year! 20% OFF

After Halloween Sale Details

Featured Baby Costumes on Sale

Featured Boy's Costumes on Sale

Featured Girl's Costumes on Sale

Featured Women's Costumes on Sale

Featured Men's Costumes on Sale

What to do with all that Halloween Candy??

So Halloween night is over and your sugar rush is still on high speed! Here's an awesome idea for using up some of your Halloween candy and still keeping the Halloween spirit and celebration going strong:

Make a chocolate and candy Haunted House centerpiece for your Halloween party this weekend!

• Chocolate Hershey bars made great walls and roof.



• Nonpareils make great shingles on your roof.



• Line up a Candy Corn fence



• Jelly Beans create a stone pathway effect.



• "Fun Size" candy bars like Snickers and Baby Ruth make great coffins in the graveyard.



• Orange slices can be the headstones.



• Pumpkin and Ghost Marshmallow Peeps and gummy worms are a haunted addition to the graveyard.



• Mix and match from whatever candy you have leftover- be creative and have fun!
  

For more details, see the full recipe and instructions on the FoodNetwork.com

Clinton vs. Giuliani, Halloween Matchup

In a fun article on Halloween costumes, Americans were polled on the leading presidential candidates:

The Associated Press and Ipsos asked Americans to pick which candidates would make the scariest Halloween costumes. Naturally, frontrunners Senator Hillary Clinton and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani won in their respective political parties (there were separate polls for the two parties). Clinton led Democrats with 37% while Giuliani had 14%, and no other candidates broke 6%, giving them resounding wins. And we found this interesting: "While a predictable two-thirds of Republicans picked [Clinton], she also was the choice of 18 percent of Democrats. Among members of her own party, that made her second only to Giuliani as the scariest costume."

Take the poll yourself here.

Moviefone's Best Horror Movies Countdown

Picture from www.best-horror-movies.com

The Movie Fone Website has been running a countdown all October of the 31 scariest movies of all time. Their #1 was just announced yesterday and here is a countdown of their top 10 scariest horror movies of all time:

10. 28 Days Later (2002)
9. The Haunting (1963)
8. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
7. The Thing (1982)
6. The Sixth Sense (1999)
5. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
4. The Shining (1980)
3. Psycho (1960)
2. The Exorcist (1973)

and the #1 Best Horror Movie of all Time:

1. Halloween (1978)
Oft-emulated but never equaled, John Carpenter's moody masterpiece is as terrifying today as it was 29 years ago. Vacant-eyed Michael Myers is soulless evil personified, the score bone-chilling, the cinematography eerily sublime and the overall impression unshakeable. Put simply, it is horror perfection.

See MovieFone's entire list of the Best Horror Movies

Nothing like the mention of the Christmas Holidays to get your head spinning faster than the morning after Halloween candy buzz.
It's hard to think about the winter Holidays when I'm sitting here, writing to you with pumpkin goo still in my hair from last night. But this is what I do... celebrate the holidays by creating small bits of silliness. When you get a moment, hop on over to the Glitter and Grunge site and check out my new winter holiday pieces that went on sale this morning. And if all goes as planned, I'll be posting another eBay auction by the end of the week as well. Peace!

Spookout! - Halloween Costume Contest

First off, HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

There were two entries for the Halloween Costume Contest. Come on people! I know you're out there. Tonight before you take off the makeup take a picture and send it in for the costume contest!

Here's what John Kinde wrote about Halloween Humor -- Get Dressed To Thrill! posted at Humor Power, saying that it's "A fun article on planning your Halloween costume."

Also our Halloween Costume Contest contestant Michael posted his Halloween Costume Contest posted at MySpace Comments for Halloween, saying that it's "An awesome idea!"

Click here to enter into the Halloween Costume Contest.

Tags: halloween costume, halloween costume contest