Bat Hair Ornament!

Loving Cut Out and Keep this week! I guess I just haven't browsed around there in awhile. ...haven't had much time to do any interneting for fun in awhile, come to think about it.

But oooo! Bat headband. It's like a bow, only much, much cuter.

The creator also has a cute blog (leastofways I think this is from the creator): http://gothicallyyours.blogspot.com/; it reminds me of the good-ol' babybat days of my youth.

And oo neat look! Cleopatra eyemake-up tips. Very cute.

READY FOR HALLOWEEN DAY 21: I'm Batty for These!

Use this excellent tutorial from Dill Pickle Picnic to make elegant Bat Cupcake Flags (or straw decor -- your choice).

:) Moderately time-consuming, but well worth the effort.

READY FOR HALLOWEEN DAY 12: Felty Bat Pillow

Gosh darn it, I was going to make something like this and post about it. I am not even kidding... I was inspired by one I saw in a store with butterflies and thought, 'bats would be so much better.'

Oh well, now I don't have to take pictures as I make one for myself. :) Ameroonie Designs did a much better job at crafting a diy felt bat pillow than I could have hoped to!

Working around the flock

There's been a flurry of activity in my studio
this week due to the gloomy and rainy weather
keeping me indoors and out of trouble.
Halloween ornaments, party favors, noisemakers,
and hooligans are taking over my work space
as I prepare for looming deadlines and events.
I'll be posting some fun new Halloween pieces
in my ETSY SHOP shortly.
Wishing you a safe and cozy fun filled weekend!

Some White Beans, Some Black Beans

This is kind of nice as a year-round homey touch; if you keep display kitchen jars, use Martha's instructions to make one that's a little bit batty.

Husband and I are trying to set up shelves above our kitchen fireplace to house our flour, sugar, etc jars. This would make a nice, subtle addition.

Coupled with the cauldron I hope to find to place in the fireplace itself, my kitchen might start feeling quite welcoming. :)

Silent Hill for the Wii???? And a Bat project I love

I'm sitting around squealing about this game like a teenage girl at Robert Pattinson.

BRING ON THE SILENT HILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Also, something more fun and full of bats. My neighbor did this exact thing this year and it looks FREAKING FANTASTIC:



Found at: It's the Little Things that Make a House a Home

Bat Napkin Rings

Eddie Ross blows my mind sometimes. His projects are simple, achievable, and always inspired without being flashy.

No gimmicks here, just a quick and inexpensive way to dress up a seated Halloween soiree. Or to use napkins as an accent decorative piece at a party.

Felt Bat Napkin Rings

Halloween's Final Countdown

...and so begins the bittersweet week
of Halloween... sigh.
Final listings for the Halloween season
now in ETSY.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! You're running out of time...

...so go make some more! Woman's Day posted this really great doomsday cuckoo clock idea; unfortunately, someone forgot to supply the pattern. Tsk, tsk!

So I made something that might help those who really want to make one - hope it helps:

a printable

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! But I Never Wrap My Napkins

It's true; I never wrap them. Ever. If you come to my house and I've made the effort to fold the napkin in half, you should really count yourself special - I just never remember the napkins until the end, when it's too late to make them ... special.

Now that I'm getting married, though, I have a new item in my entertaining arsenal to contend with: CLOTH napkins. Seriously, we already have been gifted two sets of them! That means I need to figure how to decorate them appropriately, and I'm always down for bats. Though I'm not sure I approve of the cutest faces on the ones in this project.

Still, a ghoul has to start somewhere!

Time Marches On

...or in my case, is in a full out sprint.
Panic set in today as I stood in the very
recently remodeled ribbon isle at my local
craft store. As another chorus of Jingle Bells
filled the air I realized that the retailers
have already moved on to the holiday of
HoHo happiness. That overwhelming feeling
of being behind took hold as I'm no where
near ready to start whipping out the chubby
cherubs nor tinseled trees. After a long,
deep cleansing breath, I was able to regroup,
grab a spool of Halloween ribbon
(now in the clearance isle)
and continue on with my preparations for the
onslaught of ghosts and goblins who are about
to haunt my home in the coming weeks.
Though I can't stop the hands of time,
I plan on celebrating this holiday as if
I have time on my hands.

Bat Box with Boo Ornaments now on eBay.

Love=the New Camera

If the picture with the original Bat Lantern post had looked this good, wouldn't you have wanted to try the project?


Huzzah for the new camera!

Batty Tree

Look how cute this bat tree is; found over at ljc fyi.

This is one of the nicest variations I've ever seen on the decorated tree branch idea. Simple, perfect. The only thing I might choose to do differently is painting the branch silver, but that's just because I'm so into silver and black for the wedding.

Check out the blog link for a few more Halloween pictures and projects -- including little paper mache treat container pumpkins!

$2 Bat Lantern Project

Michael's had adorable, tiny paper lanterns on sale for $1 each when I was there the other day. Apparently, no one wanted the dark yellow ones, because there were a ton.

Since I've been wanting to try the butterfly lantern project but with bats, I bought three lanterns and two pieces of their black cardstock ($.29 ea). For less than $5 in supplies, I now have the makings of three adorable bat-and-moon lanterns!

I printed Martha's bat template at several sizes and tested it against my lanterns - they are itty-bitty, so I needed pretty small bats.

The cardstock was really heavy so the bats are quite sturdy. I folded along Martha's guides and glued just the bodies down to the lantern using a low-heat setting on my hot glue gun.

This project was cheap, fast - and the results are really cute and hanging over my bed.

Bat Lamps?

So cute with butterflies, even cuter with bats?

I can just see these lanterns at night, glowing like sweet yellow moons and dotted with little bats cut out on black cardstock.

Oh to have endless raw project material at hand to make every project I come across and a decent camera to show them to you with!!

I'm at least going to stop by and get some straws on the way home. Little bat straws sitting in a cool glass of lemonade would be outstanding. ;)

(EDIT: check here for a nifty bat template)

Bye, bye Bat King

She made me an offer I couldn't refuse...
The Grungy Bat King will be ruling the roost
in his new Southern California castle. Another
Plumpkin will be up for adoption tomorrow
evening on eBay.

Happy weekend to all as we say farewell to May!

Temporary Bat Wallpaper

Apartment Therapy turned me on to a great idea: fabric wall designs. If you already have painted walls but you want a cheap, customized, and removable design treatment then all you need is liquid starch, fabric, some scissors (and maybe a sponge brush... but definitely some paper damp paper towels!).

To start off you cut out the fabric in a pattern of your choice ... I'm thinking a cluster of these little bat cut-outs in black and gray, getting bigger as they go up my wall ... and use the liquid starch to "glue" the pattern where you want it.

I used Niagra brand liquid starch because it smells nice and sprayed my wall, pressed the little fabric bat against it, then sprayed the top of that bat and smoothed him out.

It worked really well and was very easy.

When you're tired of it, just peel them off and wipe down your wall. They say there is no mess left behind (???). When I first sprayed my wall I didn't remember to bring a damp sponge with me, so the dripping liquid starch left some mild streaks behind -- but they are not even noticeable if you don't know to look.

Take a look at this page: this chick wallpapered an entire room with this technique as a test. :)

Here's how to make your own liquid starch. You can also For really heavy duty crafts, you might need to try different strength solutions. Start with 1/2 cup cornstarch in a cup of cold water. Stir in boiling water in the amount needed:

• 2 quarts = heavy solution
• 4 quarts = medium solution
  
• 6 quarts = light solution
  

How to Make Liquid Starch

Here are some links to Martha Stewart Halloween templates you might use. Just trace them onto your fabric (trace to the wrong side of the fabric, the one that won't face out on your wall), then cut them out.

• Bats
• Other Martha Halloween templates (.pdf)

I did my bat by hand, just cutting out a pattern from the excess fabric I had on-hand, but if anyone would like it as a downloadable template of him I would be happy to whip up a .pdf.

Moonstitch - Zakka Style Owl Pennant

This is a very sweet pennant design, from Moonstitch.

Rather than using the blue, beige and reds I think it would be nice in blacks, and grays, and oranges for a vintage-looking Halloween design. But you know -- Christmas cheer is nice too.

Enjoy!

[EDIT] Check out this adorable BAT VERSION over at Shadow Manor!!

Simplicity Gives You Wings

Simplicity has a cute little tutorial for how to make simple wings on their "Classroom" website. Shockingly, it was the 'bat' wings I was drawn to first. I've always wanted some of those!

Just last night I was telling my father how if I were to get a tattoo it would be of large bat wings running down from my shoulder blades. I just adore bats.

Wedding Necklace insipration

Holy Batty Bride, Batman!

TotusMel is pretty amazing. Her tatting patterns are inspired and her jewelery always looks so hip yet elegant. While looking through her shop yesterday, pondering if it was worthwhile to make or buy masks for my bridesmaids for use during the wedding reception, I found the necklace in the picture.

Doesn't it remind you more than just a little of a ring of bats around the neck? My expertise in tatting is limited, but after seeing her neckalce I'm convinced I can draft a simple bat pattern using a little picoted circle as the base/head that will look like a ring of lace bats around the neck all joined at the wings. That would be great for my Hallowedding ... either for me, or the bridal party.

Not a lot of 'bat' tatting patterns out there for me to reference. If anyone reading this has some ideas (talented tatters out there? Anyone? Bueller?) ... you can always send them my way. :)

Whatever I do, if the pattern I draft turns out well I'll post it here for you guys.