It's Only June, But its Halloween Time for Me

 It's only June but it's Halloween time for me.  I discovered the hard way, that folks start preparing for Halloween way before the start of October.  Some real diehard fans have Halloween on the brain year round.  So, because I sell my handcrafted Halloween items on-line, I have to have most items made by August the latest.  With summer being the outdoor time of the year in the mid-west, if I start crafting early, it makes it easier for me to dedicate some of those days to crafting not to mention getting things listed online.  

The first of my new projects for the 2024 Halloween season is another paper Haunted house.  I like to keep my paper houses on the small size because it makes it easier to find the appropriate paper and they are easier to ship.  

I start by selecting the colors and paper choices.  Then I get my base ready by painting it black. 

I then cut out all of the pieces I will need to start the house.  This one will be black and orange.  My favorite Halloween colors are the traditional ones.

Next, I glue on any pieces that need to be adhered to the house while it is still flat and  before I put the house together.

Then I glue the base of the house together before adding the roof.  For the glueing, I like quick drying glues like Art Glitter Glue  to hold things in place.

After the paint is dried, I gather up any additional embellishments before glueing the house to the base with hot glue.

I then work around the glued down house to add the additional decorative items.

After a few hours, I have a finished product.

Though I repeat the process over and over, I try to change up each little house by adding a little something different each time.  

Not Just Halloween

 Though Halloween and Christmas are pretty much the reasons for my crafting, the environmentalist in me recognizes that I should maximize the use or purpose of my items.  I love all the little canvases that are for sale now.  But, I'm no artist so I had to find a way to make something with a canvas I had picked up months ago on a whim.

I saw a project where the maker used a paper wreath glued to a pre-printed canvas to make an accent piece.  I challenged myself to take the same concept and apply it to Halloween, taking the project one step further by making it displayable beyond the holiday.

I used this simple wreath shape from Miss Kate Cuttables, but changed the colors to reflect a little bit 'o Halloween and a little bit 'o fall.  I emulated the pre-printed background of the original project
by mod podging a muted Halloween paper to the canvas as a background.  Some black paint along the edges helped to bring out the wreath colors even  more.   In just a few hours, I had a completed project.

Dollar Tree Cloche

I'm no longer much of a shopper, but every now and then I try to stop in the Dollar Tree when they get their seasonal merchandise in.  I always manage for find a do-dad or two for my crafting.  And you can't turn down anything that only costs a dollar!

A few weeks ago, I stopped in for some picnic wear and meandered over to the floral section.  I never even saw what flowers were there because I spotted a few tiny acrylic cloches that I knew I had to have.  There were only a few left on the shelf so I can imagine that other folks felt the way I did.  I snatched up what was left and headed to the check out.  

Because I work pretty much in paper only, I turned on my computer, powered up my Silhouette software and scrolled through my Halloween files.   Lo and behold, the perfect file appeared.  Apparently I purchased it some time ago and pretty much forgot about it. But now, it was exactly what I was looking for.  I had to put a little elbow grease into resizing it, but only a little.  It pretty much must have been designed with a container like this in mind.

I cut the basic shape out of black cardstock, backed it with purple velum to catch the light, and cut some bats out that I covered in purple glitter so that they would stand out.  I attached the bats with strips of transparency so that they would have the appearance of flying.  Glued two tiny pumpkins in to add another little zap of color and whah- laaah'.  A tiny 3D Halloween project that can add a touch of décor to any surface.  I can think of sooo many uses: sit it on a shelf, nestle it in a table centerpiece, surround it with fallen leaves,  lift it on a pedestal in a window...what ever.  

Purchase here:

Easy Dollar Store DIY

I love miniature buildings of all kinds  and always enjoy the tiny villages and churches at Christmas time.  When I saw the white glittery churches at the Dollar Tree that are supposed to be used as ornaments, I just knew I could step it up a notch by adding something more to them.  So here's a simple DIY using the ornament, bottle brush trees and some upcycled tree cookies cut from Chicago's Park District tree trimmings.

Simply paint the edges and top of the tree cookies with white paint.   Position and glue the church on to the tree cookie.  Now glue down the bottle brush trees and you are done.