I Tip My Hat to these Cookies!

Squeeeeeeee! Tricorne cookies.

Yum. Yum. Yum.

Spider Catcher

• • • •
Wicked Webster
sculpted from paper clay
• • • •

• • • •
A not so happy victim dangling
from a wire web
• • • •

• • • •
Comes armed and ready with a netted
bug catcher
• • • •

• • • •
Sporting a grungy muslin drawstring sack
stamped and embossed with a spiderweb pattern
with additional hand detailing. Trimmed with
a crepe paper yolk and bottom ruffle.

A Vegan-Friendly Halloween Menu

In honor of my vegan friends (the spooky vegan and the creepy vegan, respectively) who have recently tried to get on my good side by sending me awards (fyi: it worked), I took a quick stabbity stab at an elegant vegan Halloween dinner menu.

It's time to break out the old-time homemaker manners and treat your friends to a vegan-friendly, excellently creepy meal!

These recipes are not my own and have been gathered from around the web, but I took a close look at the instructions and ingredients on all -- and I promise, there is nothing on this menu that meat eaters should scoff at and all of them are, or can easily be made, vegan.

The hardest sell for your non-vegan friends is perhaps the dessert (though you could always skip ahead to the Trick-or-Treats to satisfy your sweet-fang). Imitating a cheesecake when you can't use dairy is DANGEROUS BUSINESS, and advisable to only the bravest in-home cooks.

Click to enlarge:

the RECIPES...

APPETIZER
For the appetizer and salad eyes, I found the recipes here. Make sure to use a vegan-friendly fruit spread for the lychee eyes. The Radish eyes and New Potato eyeballs at this link can also be made vegan-friendly (potato eyes in your soup course would be good -- I just didn't want to have every food item STARING at you).

SOUP
Garlic tomato soup: http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2008/02/tomato-soup-with-roasted-garlic-and.html

For the crackers that go with the soup, try this recipe,and find a dog-bone-shaped cookie cutter. You can find them in the baking aisle at many craft stores or often in pet stores (the recommended use there being doggie treats): http://shmooedfood.blogspot.com/2007/01/vegan-goldfish-crackers.html

SALAD

Radish and Fennel salad: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/2302

Make the salad as the recipe states, but keep at least two whole radishes per salad -- using the instructions from the eyeball treats site, make up radish eyes with olives to set atop the salad.

MAIN COURSE

Mmm... Pumpkin Pasta: http://testkitchenette.wordpress.com/2008/11/24/pumpkin-ravioli/; I like how bloodied it looks with the thick tomato sauce.

Side of Marinated Red pepper (preserved 'hearts' -- because, if you serve them out of a jar, they look like preserved hearts... consider labeling them as such and serving out of a glass jar?): http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/marinated_roasted_red_bell_peppers/

DESSERT

"Pustule" (i.e. Pomegranate Fake-Cheese Cake) Pie: http://www.diaryofavegan.com/2009/09/thou-shall-not-preach/; while it seems a shame to give such a beautiful dessert such a gross name, thinking about those little pomegranate seeds in relation to Halloween just made me think of blisters!

COCKTAILS
Obviously, you need to be sure you're using a vegan-friendly alcohol. I don't know if you can trust Barnivore, but I don't know why they would lie. Vegans, are their'vegan-friendly' alcohol references accurate?

ALTERNATIVE DRINK... for the little boos and ghouls
Slime Smoothie

TRICK OR TREATS (candy to hand out to the kiddies in costume)

Vegan Candy Corn: http://theurbanhousewife.blogspot.com/2007/09/homemade-vegan-candy-corn-happy.html

Poisoned (with sweetness) apples -- mmm... vegan caramel apples: http://veryveganholiday.wordpress.com/2009/10/18/vegan-caramel-apples/

weaponry

I knew those rusty old curtain rods languishing in the basement laundry room would prove useful one day. As it turns out, with the addition of some unwanted plastic containers, some cardboard and, of course, duct tape, they make quite admirable Gaffi sticks.

I Scare People

Or at least, I scare the Spooky Vegan. Check out this award she gifted to me!

It's taking me a day or few to turn this one around, because there are rules involved (and I'm a strict rule follower. Always.):

1. You must thank the blogger who sent it to you

2. You must choose two Horror Bloggers that you feel are outstanding and deserve to be recognized for their work and dedication to the Horror genre.

3. You must describe why you think each recipient deserves this award.

Spooky Vegan, you have my word of thanks. You totally made my day!

Now -- horror bloggers. I follow very few horror blogs, as I'm a Halloween nerd first and Horror buff 3rd or 4th (I love 'em, I just don't live 'em). But there are two very talented Horror Bloggers I follow on a regular basis:

The Captain. He is a blogger like no other, and I adore him. He survives the Florida heat with all his fall-lovin', prop-buildin' integrity intact aaaaaaaaaand he's already been to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Without me. This qualifies him as the first victim if I ever decide to bring a horror movie to life. ;-)

The Atomic Fox. She's this giddy little ray of Horror sunshine, whose blog I always enjoy. She also is one of the few other scare-bloggers who opts for a gray/non-black blog background, which is kind of killer in my opinion. Black is my whole wardrobe, but I like to live wild on the gray spectrum!

Nom Skulls

This is a Nom Skull. The website describes them as follows (oh my goth! puns too fantastic not to quote!!):

"Knock ‘em dead with these four stylish silicone skulls. Nomskulls are ready to fill with your favorite grey batter and bake into perfect cupcake craniums. One bite and you’ll be head over heels, because there’s no doubt about it — this skull bone’s connected to the YUM bone! We’ve packed four silicone skull molds in each printed giftbox."

I. Want. One.

Seriously, I want to buy this. Why can't I figure out how to give them my money?

[edit to add: That looks to be a red velvet cupcake in there!!! Nom, indeed!]

blossoming

Despite an early casualty, these are heady days in the pumpkin patch. Flowers have begun to appear, filling my heart with hope for an actual pumpkin this year. I'd be happy with just one. Really. I'm easily pleased.

My husband has finally recognized the pumpkin plants growing merrily in the front yard, and despite his earlier objections, hasn't complained. Maybe it's the heat. Or maybe it's the sight of those vivid green leaves contrasted against big yellow flowers. After all, who could fail to love a sincere pumpkin patch.

O Great Pumpkin, please don't fail me now.

an awarding experience

I was thrilled when I sat down at my computer this morning to discover that I have had not one, but two blogging awards bestowed upon me. And by two vegans. This is almost enough to inspire me to give up bacon. Almost.



The first came courtesy of The Spooky Vegan , whose blog I discovered relatively recently when I noticed her creeping around behind mine. I was quite moved by her effusive praise of my blog and will admit that I got more than a little choked up when she referred to me as both kooky and creepy in the same sentence. Thank you, Spooky Vegan. I've been enjoying your blog too, although I will admit to scrolling quickly past the horror movie screen shots. They scare me.

The second award was sent by another herbivore: The Creepy Vegan. It was with a mixture of horror and surprise that I noticed I have not been following her blog. That situation has since been remedied. Thank you, Creepy Vegan.

This award comes with a longer set of rules than the first, requiring me to actually think. Of seven things about myself. Hmmmm . . . okay.

1] Vampires scare me . . .

2] . . . and the only exception is the Count from Sesame Street . . .

3] . . . although as a child I found him slightly disturbing.

4] My favourite flavour of miniature bags of Halloween chips was Hot Dog . . .

5] . . . and I was devastated when they were discontinued.

6] As a child, we never grew real pumpkins, despite having a large garden, and the only jack-o-lanterns I had were of the plastic variety.

7] I abhor pumpkin seeds.

Like many fellow bloggers, I will be ignoring the rule about choosing a few favourite blogs. At last count, I was following more than 80, so I wouldn't know where to begin. And I've noticed that not following the rules is the new rule.

Thanks again, Spooky and Creepy.

Perfect Can Lanterns

The perfect level dim lighting is absolutely necessary to create an eerily romantic mood.

That's why this Design Sponge Coffee lantern project is so ideal; they are elegant little lights that don't give off too much light. Spray pain the outsides black when you're done to make them uniform (you can line the inside with paper to keep the paint from getting everywhere).

One of the patterns looks a little bit like a spider web, too. Oh the possibilities!

Beautiful Bride, Boo-tiful Buffet

Buffet decor,
originally uploaded by Purity21_99.

Of course we love Offbeat Bride: they celebrate the fact that some of us want Halloween-themed weddings.

And this article features a rather cute one, full of black and red and a buffet with bones on a silver platter.

Wish I had thought of that!

Something Wicked This Way Comes

A sneak peek of my soon to be released rapscallion
Wicked Webster

The EHAG Emporium updates this Saturday
July 31st. Save the date and stop by to see the
latest offerings from the Halloween artists of
EHAG. Be sure to enter our giveaway for a chance
to win festive holiday art donated by the über
talented Halloween artists Chris Klinger, Shelia
Bentley and Allen Cunnigham... woohoo!

Adventure Time Paper Toys

Ooooo! Adventure Time Paper Toy of Finn!

This is exactly the kind of thing keeping me from blogging right now, but it's worth it, right? Look how awesome he is! It's Mathematical!

When (not if) you make your own, please send a picture. I love pictures.

On a mostly unrelated note: Halloween is finally on its way. I saw Halloween merchandise at Cracker Barrel yesterday. The season is almost upon us, and (speaking of Adventure Time and Halloween -- I'm pretty well decided I'll be Marceline this year).

Is everyone else getting in the spirit? :)

distracted

I am both horrified and embarrassed to admit this, but it's mid-summer and Halloween is the furthest thing from my mind.

I haven't planned props or pondered pumpkins in weeks. Even the 100-days-til-Halloween milestone has passed nearly unnoticed.

Why?

Because every spare moment of my time has been consumed by the creation of the Tusken Raider costumes for Hal-con. This has proven to be a far more time-consuming project than I had anticipated back in the cold dark days of winter when, inspired by my son's heart-warming agreement to participate in Halcon if we wore a group costume that covered his face, I committed myself to throwing together four quick Tusken Raider costumes. How much effort could it take?

I'm glad I didn't wait until September to begin.

The speed, or lack thereof, with which the project is progressing is at least partly my fault. My fault for relying on a needle and thread instead of glue, despite my non-existent sewing skills. My fault for improvising, rather than precisely following one of the many Tusken Raider instructional websites. My fault for attempting to re-purpose pieces of household clutter as costume parts, which leaves me absolutely giddy when it succeeds.

But there is a light - an orange flickering light - on the horizon.

I believe I have completed enough of the costumes now to slow down. Take a short break. Turn a fraction of my attention to other things. Like Halloween, perhaps. And I know that any day now the first of the Halloween magazines will begin appearing, which always excite and inspire me. Even the cheesy ones.

Sunday Postcard Art Challenge - Owl

http://sundaypostcardart.wordpress.com/ to join in on the challenge this week.

Guillermo + HM

Oh. Yes.

Theme Thursday - Vintage and Tag

http://themethursday.wordpress.com/

I designed this tag for Theme Thursday & Moonlight Journey.  Please visit their site to see all their wonderful collage sheets:  http://www.moonlightjourney.com/index.html

attachment issues

I don't trust glue.

I know that sounds ridiculous. I know my distrust is groundless. I know that there is an almost endless variety of glue out there. Strong and durable. Waterproof. Perfectly trustworthy.

Perhaps I should refine my original statement. I don't trust glue . . . on fabric. No matter how reliable it promises to be, I have an irrational fear that my project will be the exception. The 0.01% And that my glue-secured fabric will separate and unravel at the most inopportune moment.

I feel so much more comfortable with a needle and thread. Extra-strong thread. Yes, it makes the process of creating a Tusken Raider head a little more time-consuming. But the way I see it, I'm not just sewing head wrappings.

I'm sewing peace of mind.

Sunday Postcard Art - Magic

http://sundaypostcardart.wordpress.com/

first casualty

It was a depressing morning in the pumpkin patch. It seems one of my pumpkin plants - only one - has been completely devoured over the course of the past several nights. It began with a few holes chewed through the leaves. Similar to some of the others. But then this morning, I discovered most of the leaves on this plant had been eaten away entirely. Only the naked stems remain. The other dozen or so plants are fine.

Odd.

Predators

Things have been... busy. But tonight my Husband and I made some time for ourselves and went on a date to see Predators.

I won't say I loved it, but I liked it fine. The highlights were the Machete trailer and Walton Goggins, in my humble opinion (that's him on the left).

Now this is where I get to brag, which is not something I am able to to often so let me enjoy it: Walt helped me get my first job out of college. He's a heck of a nice guy and a truly committed, talented actor. When you watch Predators (and I know most of you either will or already have), take extra care to enjoy his performance. He's a seriously top-notch human being.

And he totally shivs a predator.

Did you know he was also in House of 1000 Corpses? He had my favorite death scene (warning: nudity and violence in the clip).

Blogging, oh how I miss you.

Mixed Media Monday - Something Blue

http://mixedmediamonday.wordpress.com/

You can find these collage images at:  http://www.moonlightjourney.com/index.html

Think Monday Think ATC - Raven

http://tmta.wordpress.com/

Make Plans for Keene NH's Annual Pumpkin Festival, 10-16-10

**Photo by Nancy A. Cavanaugh**

Colorado is a long way from New Hampshire but for all you lucky New Englanders, you can visit Keene, NH and experience their annual pumpkin festival.  This year the festival is October 16th.  I've been to Keene once (in October) and missed going to the festival by one weekend, wah!  I still have high hopes that I'll be able to make it someday.

Please visit their official website for more information:  http://www.pumpkinfestival.org/

in the heat of the day

So I was sitting on the deck watching the beginnings of my Tusken Raider head quietly drying in the breeze.



After a time, however, this lost its appeal and I returned inside to do something productive. Like . . . make a cup of tea. Or spend time on the Internet.

I later returned to check on the head's progress. And my heart almost stopped.

Somewhere. Somewhere within the trivial details and useless minutiae I've accumulated in my brain over the years lies the knowledge that hot weather does bad things to balloons. Knowledge painfully acquired through years of outdoor decorating for children's birthday parties in the often oppressive heat of an Ontario June. Sadly, upon my return to Nova Scotia, that knowledge had been submerged. Only to come rushing back as I stared out the window at the Tusken Raider head. A mere fraction of its former size and imploding by the second.

There was no time to lose. I grabbed a styrofoam head, which, fortunately, are never far away. I burst what was left of the balloon and shaped the still-damp head around the styrofoam. Thankfully, it would survive.

And the moral of this story . . . ?

Apart from keeping balloons out of extreme summer heat, the implication here is obvious:

Never leave a drying head unattended. Ever. This may require considerable sacrifice. Take a stack of books along if necessary, or perhaps a cold drink or two, and remain vigilant in your deck chair until the drying stage is complete. And always - always - keep a spare head within easy reach.

Halloween Witch Postcard, Circa 1910 - 1920s

This is one of my favorite Halloween Witch postcards.  Please feel free to save and use.

the geek family prepares for Hal-Con (update)

There is no finer pastime on a warm sunny morning than watching a Tusken Raider head drying in the breeze.

Halloween 2010 from Stampin' Up!

The new catalog is finally here and you can find these wonderfully spooky stamps, papers, embellishments and decor elements inside!  US customers can order directly through my Business Website:  http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/kdstamps/  or contact me directly:  jeffandkris92@msn.com .  Stay tuned, the Holiday Mini Catalog will be available starting September 1st and it full of amazing Halloween goodies!

time's a-wastin'

In my memory, the last days of high school never seemed especially intense. Final exams. Prom. Graduation. It all seemed to just . . . happen. Or maybe I was just more laid-back then. Because the last three weeks of my daughter's high school career have been nothing less than a blur of madness.

But now it's over. And I'm happy to say that it ended well. Which means I can finally focus on myself again. A welcome change. And a necessary one when I check the calendar and observe with mixed emotions Halloween's stealthy approach. The dollar store will be displaying its finest plastic any day now and I'm ridiculously far behind. My well-intentioned Halloween resolution of one prop a month? A complete embarrassment. I think I'm still in March . . .

Moving ahead to July, however, the removal of the kayaks from the backyard shed have revealed some half-forgotten potential prop parts. Triggering memories of nebulous ideas and loosely-formed plans which may yet come to fruition.

But first . . . there's a certain Tusken Raider head I need to work on.

Who is Andrew Garfield?

Is he a cartoon cat? NO



Is he an ex-president? NO



Andrew Garfield is soon to be a household name!
He is playing Spider-Man in the latest re-boot of the movie, being released in 2012!

Soon everyone will know who Andrew Garfield is, according to a MovieFone article.

The Untitled Spider-Man Reboot is scheduled to start filming in this December, so plenty of new information on other actors and the villain should be coming in soon! The release date is July 3, 2012, and you can expect big things for a Marvel summer movie released July 4th weekend!

This Spider-Man reboot will be directed by up and coming Marc Webb. See IMDB for more details!

2012 will be a great year for comic book & superhero films, also slated to premiere in 2012:

Flash Gordon

Hancock 2

Indiana Jones 5

Nick Fury

Silver Surfer

Sin City 2

Stretch Armstrong

Superman: Man of Steel

The Avengers

Untitled Batman Project

Untitled GI Joe Sequel

Untitled Lara Croft Tomb Raider Project

Venom

X-Men Origins: Magneto

Movie Data from http://www.squidoo.com/Movies-Coming-Out-Soon

Very exciting!!! There will surely be tons of new costumes in 2012!

An Adventure

Off to see what's new in the world.
Be back soon.

Introducing HD Makeup Foundation for Flawless Coverage

Celebré Pro HD Makeup - Flawless Coverage is now here!

Mehron, the extreme beauty leader, is proud to introduce Celebré PRO-HD Makeup Foundation. This latest innovative product is the result of collaborative efforts by the chemists in Mehron’s product development lab along with input from a select group of highly acclaimed makeup artists. Celebré PRO-HD Makeup Foundation is an oil-free and fragrance-free cream makeup that delivers satin-smooth, buildable coverage that is non-greasy and great for all skin types. Our experienced chemists formulated Celebré PRO-HD to be buildable to suit the amount of coverage needed. It contains powerful antioxidants such as vitamin E, pomegranate and aloe vera that help soothe the skin.

Renowned industry makeup artists worked with the experts at Mehron to create an impressive array of colors to accommodate all skin tones. The results of their efforts is a perfect range of colors that are sold individually and available in all the Celebré foundation colors plus new HD colors as well. From fashion runways and HD-TV to everyday wear, Celebré Pro-HD works for every occasion and on all skin types and colors.

Also available in a makeup foundation palette for professional makeup artists, theaters, etc.

Location, location, location.

We've all heard the phrase location is everything.
Well for the next several months I will be dancing
under my lucky stars rejoicing in the fact that I have
a Bay area zip code address. Which means I live within
a short driving distance to one of San Francisco's
crown jewels, the de Young Museum of Fine Art.

Right now, for a brief moment in time,
the de Young museum is the only museum in the
world to be graced with a coup of a lifetime
two consecutive special exhibitions
from the Musée d’Orsay in Paris:

Birth of Impressionism
Masterpieces from the Musée d'Orsay
May 22-September 6

Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne and Beyond
Post-Impressionist Masterpieces
September 25-January 18

Oh happy day!

This dazzling collection of one hundred works
by the masters of nineteenth-century French
painting tells the story of the Impressionist
movement that changed the way artists view
the world and the way the world views art.
Do what you can to see this exhibit.
C'est magnifique!

And speaking of magnificent art
be sure to stop by the EHAG Emporium
for an opportunity to purchase some
wonderful new Halloween art.

A big warm hug and heartfelt thank you
goes out to all of you FANTASTICAL FOLLOWERS
who stopped by and left sweet comments during
the Mad Tea Party giveaway.
Crown and Scepter recipients are Lori R. and Tristan B.
Thanks again!