Monday, August 30, 2010

Spooky Monday Post #1!

Hello Lovelies!!!
I am so excited to be a part of Spooky Monday , courtesy of Wendy's Adventures in Wonderland!

Practical Magic Blog Party
This is my very first Spooky Monday Post !!!

First and Foremost, I want to share with you all , what Halloween means to me. It is a very special holiday to me, and holds so many memories of my childhood, even leading into my adulthood. I still feel like a child whenever that bewitching time of year rolls around!! It usually starts for me around late August. I start my preparations right at the end of summer, because 4 weeks of october are just not enough for me. Not only because 4 weeks is just not enough time to get everything done, but because I am alittle overindulgent in that respect, teehee!! I actually get some very odd looks from my librarian at the checkout counter, when they see me taking out Halloween books, when it's still August. Sometimes they even comment!

But anywho, when I was a wee one, my parents used to host some pretty wicked Halloween parties at my grandmother's house, and just last year I decided to start up the tradition again , hosting at my house! It was a tradition that has been lost, but why not bring something back so wickedly fun for everyone to share!?! So I guess my Spooky Mondays will partly be dedicated to showing off my party preparations, or memories from past Halloweens ... Another part of my Spooky Mondays will be sharing craft ideas, recipes, costume ideas, magazine articles, or books that I have found that have inspired me. And another very important part of my Spooky Mondays, will be the video I will include at the end of my post. The video will most likely be a Halloween Cartoon or TV Show from my childhood, that I have to watch every year in preparation, to help get me in the Halloween Spirit !!

Now without further adieu, I present you my very first SPOOKY MONDAY!

This past week I was very busy working on my wacky spooky birdhouses, inspired by Tim Burton's designs of Halloweentown from the movie Nightmare Before Christmas. He uses alot of vertical stripes, and swirly patterns. I bought these plain wooden unfinished birdhouses from A.C. Moore for a few cents each. I also bought some Black, Copper, and Orange Glitter to finish off my paint with.


The roof is made of craft moss, which I also bought from A.C. Moore, and painted it black after I hot glued it to the roofs. The bats sticking out of the rooftops are cut out of felt. I cut 2 bats out for each one (front and back). The metal attachment are just paper clips, wrapped around a wooden dowel to get the spiral shape. After you take it off your dowel, pull apart just a bit and make sure one end is straight enough to glue onto your bat. Now take 1 bat cutout, and place some hot glue in the center of the bat. Now place the straight edge of your paper clip in the center of the glue drop and press down. Now place more glue over that, and seal it in with another bat cutout!! Now glue between the bat wings on both sides, and smooth out. Take the loose end of the paper clip, and coat in hot glue. Insert it into the craft moss on the roof of your birdhouse, and make sure it is hidden pretty well... I also have painted my paper clip black, to match everything else...



Now, I want to introduce you to my little friend...

Her name is Willemina! We have been friends for a few years. I found her in an enchanting little shop along the main street in Chester, NJ. She sits upon tuffet from where she casts her magic. She is a good witch, and she specializes in love spells!!



She is a spider tamer... Most people , like myself , are afraid of spiders!! But she embraces them , and they tell her their secrets !!


She summons her dear friends by candlelight... even the flames dance for her!


She was happy to have met you all !!!

Next I want to share some books with you, which I have took out on loan from my local library! These books have so many great ideas, so if you could pick up any of these, you definitely should!!


The Big Book of Halloween Fun
by Susie Johns
This book is mostly kiddie costumes and party ideas, but there were a few cute decor things towards the back that I can't wait to try!! Including some scary finger puppets !! :-B


Halloween Tricks and Treats
by Matthew Mead
This book is mostly food ideas for your Halloween parties. There are also some cute decor ideas towards the back, including the hanging chandelier ghosties made out of white cupcake wrappers! I also plan on trying those !


Halloween:
A Grownup's Guide to Creative Costumes, Devlish Decor, & Fabulous Festivities
by Joanne O'Sullivan
This book is def my fave one... The beginning is mostly costume ideas, but towards the end is where the fun starts! It gives cool alternative themes other than your traditional Halloween stuff... They give some cool Dia De Lost Muertos decor ideas, and New Orleans VooDoo ideas.
They also give ideas for a classy Masked Ball Dessert Party!! And all of these ideas are complete with AWESOME color pictures !!!

So if you can run out and get ANY one of these books, or ALL , you will be filled with inspiration!!

I hope you all enjoyed my very first SPOOKY MONDAY POST!!! I am so sorry I took so long to prepare this!! I can't wait for the next one !

Now I leave you with this cute Halloween Cartoon from my childhood

Raggedy Ann & Andy: The Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile






Trick or Treat!!

Photobucket

9 comments:

Marfi-topia said...

Yippeeeeee!!!!! this was just incredible!!!!! I have the Halloween adult costumes book too,so full of inspiration.
thank you for this post.....
verrry crreepy!(roll the 'R's)
and so cute!

Petunia said...

Justina I had sooo much fun going through your post! Your wacky spooky birdhouses are adorable. And I think my witch Lucinda would love to have tea with your Wilhemena. I have that Matthew Mead book too. I can't wait to see all your Halloween party prep. Happy Spooky Monday!

TheBlakkDuchess said...

Yay!!! It's never too early to delve into Halloween-y things! And the earlier we prepare, the more time we have to enjoy all the fun, spooky goodness. =D
I love those little bird houses! They're just too cute. And your lovely Willemina is simply stunning! Just looking at her makes me want to quit my job & run home & make dolls (even more so than usual, that is... ^_~)
Thanks for sharing these! ^-^

xoxo

Theresa MacNaughton said...

Hi Justina! Thanks for sharing your spooky post - it was so much fun to read. I liked learning about what Halloween means to you. By the way, your spooky bird house is fabulous!!! What a FUN project! We haven't started decorating yet. Still too warm here - but I am greatly looking forward to doing a little fall cleaning and decorating for the season very soon. Theresa

Anonymous said...

1. Halloween is my faaaaavorite time of year too! Surprise surprise. My friends and I get dressed up every single year and have a big crazy party.
2. I LOVE your birdhouse! It is really amazing. You should sell them on Etsy.
3. My favorite Halloween publications are Martha Stewart's. I know a lot of people can't stand her but I have to show love to a fellow Halloween enthusiast (and fellow New Jerseyan)
4. I love Chester. We should meet up there some time. We could have tea at Sally Lunns and go treasure hunting!
5. Sorry that this is the longest comment ever.

Wendy said...

Justina,

Yeaaahhhh, I am so glad you are joining in the fun.
I am in love with the birdhouse. So great. It made me want to go and make one right away.
I am also afraid of spiders, but I could use a love spell from Wilhemena. (as long as he has only two legs and not 8)

I cannot wait to see all the other little goodies you have in store for us. So excited.

Spells and Wishes
Wendy from Wonderland

Justina said...

THank you everyone for your wonderful comments ! Sorry I have been MIA , but I've been so insanely busy, in a good way! I love being productive :-D Fall is in the air !!! Can you all feel it ? There is such a lovely breeze coming through my window right now :-)

I have done a Spooky Monday post the other day , along with my Labor Day Fun... check that out when you have the time ... Anna, I hope you don't mind, I followed your link , and nabbed that little Halloween Counter! How adorable!

And Christina , a trip to Chester sounds like a great idea !!!! Also ... when my band is ready to gig , let's play a show together !!

-Justina
xoxo

Justina said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kate Mullins said...

Hey there!! I'm new to blogging and was wondering if you could follow me back? I love your blog by the way!

onedayleadstoanother.blogspot.com