A Glorious First Fall Weekend!

And productive!

So it was sunny and hot on Saturday, so what? Igor and I went shopping for the last bits we needed for dressing up the house on the 1st. I measured the porch to see how everything is going to fit and then we figured out just how we're going to do the tree trunk which will be one of the main features of the Disenchanted Forest. Yes, that's what I've started calling it. It's less cumbersome than saying 'the once enchanted now zombified forest'. Maybe Zombie Woods might be better (and, no, we're not calling it just Zombie Wood for the obvious reasons) - I don't know, we're still working on it. We've also been doing some late night pillaging of wooden planks and yard debris bins from around the neighborhood as well as gathering other supplies. Igor's porch looks like a scrap yard, but it'll all come together next weekend! I also promise there will be pictures in the next post.

We also went to an insanely overpriced Halloween store. We wandered around and got some ideas, but the only thing we bought was a rabbit nose for Isabella's costume (yup, she's going to a be a zombie rabbit).

Then came Sunday. A wonderfully blustery, cloudy and then sunny and then pouring down rain day. In the morning I cleared out some of the blackberry brambles next to the porch (we want to scare trick-or-treaters, not scar them when they become entangled in the underbrush), but didn't throw out the tendrils because I have plans to use them as part of the yard dressing. I finished making gnome hats for our zombified gnomes, covered paper mache skulls in gesso and got another layer done on the zombie squirrel mask.

Oh, and Friday! How could I forget Friday! A couple friends came over and we watched Dead Snow. Why do Nazi zombies make me laugh so much?

First Day of Fall Tomorrow!!!

Well, it should be, but it hasn't felt like fall yet this week. This week the temperature's been in the 80s with nothing but sun sun sun. Ah, but last week, last week was gorgeous with rain and clouds and a little nip in the air. Sigh, and yet *this* week Summer is trying to rear it's ugly, sweaty head again. Give up Summer, tomorrow it's the 23rd and officially Fall! Laugh your last, hot fetid breath if you can - soon all will be as Autumn wills it!!!

Yeah, I'm done with summer.

As I wait for my favorite season to truly begin I've been working on Halloween plans. Not only getting costumes together, but working on pieces for the house. Igor and I have decided to go all out on the house this year and keep our costumes simple (i.e. no face makeup).

Way back on the 3rd I had a Birthday Zombie Making BBQ. Friends and family came over to eat grilled things and make zombies out of discarded children's toys.



Some were gorier than others

(that's a twig though the squirrel's nose)

Some were more disturbing


But all the zombies were kid tested and mother approved.


There was also a good deal of eating and drinking and sitting around

(And Igor wore my favorite t-shirt of his, the red Christopher Walken 'I got a fever' shirt. More Cowbell!)

Speaking of Igor, last week he finished the clay sculpting for my squirrel mask and I molded the mouth.



Then I put on the first layer of newspaper, covering it with a shiny layer of Elmer's glue to keep it all together.



Here are what my fingers looked like when I was done

I was very proud of them.

I'm following this guy's methods since he's not only a talented mask maker, but specifically a talented squirrel mask maker: Branden Byers.

Holy moly, I'm downright giddy it's so close to October!!! I'm already watching old horror movies and listening to my favorite seasonal music - well, I do those things year round, but it just feels more special this time of year.

This week's featured movie: Curse of The Crimson Altar (or The Crimson Cult according to Netflix). Staring Christopher Lee, Michael Gough, and Boris Karloff it's a cheezy little romp though the pastoral, witch filled, English countryside.

And it has some awesome costumes in just the first few moments of the film.