Christmas this year in London

London Bridge, a photo by jimmyharris on Flickr.

Its been over a year of planning but we are off on our very first trip to Europe mid December. Christmas in London and Boxing day we travel to Paris to spend New Years Eve in Paris. As a big Doctor Who fan I really want to go to Cardiff to see the exhibit. Trying to decide if we can squeeze that in as a side trip. That is almost 6 hours of travel on the train to see a small exhibit. Trying to justify the time and expense. My spouse would go along as he enjoys Doctor Who but he isn't an obsessed fan like moi. 4 Solid days in Paris is proving a challenge to pick the do not miss items. Pere Lachaise cemetery is of course on my list.

Keep Smiling

A woman dressed in a butterfly costume, a photo by Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com on Flickr.

Sometimes this is how it can feel with family during the holidays. Dressed up, smiling, and tap dancing to keep the peace. Hope you all have a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday.

Construction of Mummy Cat for Steamcon 4

Step by Step photos of the construction of Mummy Cat can be found here on flickr.

Mummy Cat Steamcon IV, a photo by dragonflydesignstudio on Flickr.

Target 70% off Halloween

Standing in the Halloween section a gal started pulling the 50% off and putting up 70% off signs at 3 pm Pacific time. Candy and food stuff was the exception. Now, the interesting thing was not all items were in the system yet as the price change had just occurred. Make sure you have the check out person call seasonal if the prices are not ringing up at 70% off. The clerk had to wring up each item by hand. Made the people in line behind me a bit cranky. Walgreens gets a big old boo this year. Corporate wants the entire store Christmas by the 6th. That means yesterday was pretty much your only chance to grab Halloween. By the time I hit the other stores today it was all gone!!!! Just some candy. Hope you all have better luck.

Bast and the Mummy

This photo is from a fellow convention attendee shows my mummy costume. My mummified cat was a huge hit at Steamcon 4. More photos and details after Halloween. Today is a holiday!

Happy Halloween!

Sorry for the silence

Working like crazy to get ready for Steamcon and now ill. No time for content and I feel bad about it. So...I give you the mummified cat prop my spouse has been working on for me to use as a pull toy Saturday at Steamcon.

If you are in the Seattle area Friday-Sunday the theme this year is Victorian Monsters.

Good day at the Pumpkin Patch

Gourd Wagon, a photo by dragonflydesignstudio on Flickr.

This is the display wagon in front of the barn. It was a stunning day in the uppers 70s and the shoppers were loading up huge wagons full of gourd goodness. We haven't had rain in so long the dust was thick. Brought my haul home and washed it to dry in the sun. Will post photos when the porch is done. There are still pumpkins to harvest in our own patch. Going to ask the great nephew to come over and pick the ones he wants.

Knitting a Devil Balaclava

Not in to knitting but thought this was adorable. Instructions can be found here.

Reproduction Beistle Decorations Review Part 2

Sorry for the delay this is a busy month. On to the goodies!

The Silhouette String Banner is a really good deal. Its double sided with a black cotton string. You string it so you can decided on the placement of the designs. The front has a shiny finish and the back a matte finish so if you like the less shine you can reverse it. The same applies for the Silhouette Tabletop Stand-Up.

My favorite has to be the Cat & Moon Centerpiece. Its really a beautiful piece. I used 2 tiny rubberized paperclips to hold the base fan part open. It helps protect the tissue and cardboard.

Another delightful piece is the double sided hand held mask made from an image of the old Beistle lantern. Its cute and whimsical and stands up in an old tin bucket for display.

The yard signs are really cute but to be honest I haven't been able to bring myself to punch the stick through the perforated sign. They are so cute they are in my kitchen window. It is just a really nice collection with good old fashion colors. Many people asked where to shop after I closed up shop and I can always recommend The Vintage Halloween Store with out hesitation.

Reproduction Beistle Decorations Review Part 1

My box arrived last week filled with old fashion Halloween goodness.

Jointed scratch cat made me very happy as my original looks like it has been in a few cat fights. This copy will replace the vintage cat since he is too fragile to display.

The skull cut outs look much better in person. Really nice crisp graphics. With a hole punched at the top these guys would look great as a garland or tied to a black wreath.

The 2 fortune games are stunning. They are double sided decorations that stand when the bottom is pushed down flat. Then they fold again for easy storage. They both have spinning parts that work great. The packaging headers on all the pieces are nice with hanging holes. If you wanted to keep your decorations bagged you could still hang them for display. There were more goodies so stay tuned for part 2. All these treats were purchased here.

October 1st Treats

West Elm has a small collection of Halloween goodies this year. The canape plates though have nice graphics.

Hallmark My Pet Ghost

$9.95 at Hallmark or $9.45 at Walmart. 3 different ghosts. My favorite is Julian Hijinks. Found video on youtube of Julian. Good sound and cute design so one had to come home with me today.

Halloween at Wayfair

Found this interesting web site via the Walmart web site. Nice selection of goodies not seen elsewhere.

Halloween Wiccan Lace Collection

Available only on the Target web site. Good looking dishes. There was a set of chili bowls that look like giant mugs that sadly seem to be sold out. I was in the store tonight and wasn't all that excited by the selection.

Batty Dress

Found here.

Beach Bum

Oregon Coast Aquarium, a photo by dragonflydesignstudio on Flickr.

Last week with a million projects in the works I decide to go to the Oregon coast. My spouse had a conference to attend so I rented a condo on the beach! Brought my sewing projects and cut out a skeleton applique project while watching the kites fly on the beach. A brief yet magical side trip to the Oregon Coast Aquarium. He was trying out a new camera and got this beautiful Octopus image. Now I am in full panic mode to get costume stuff done in time for Steamcon and Halloween!

Good Things-Halloween 2012

Lantern and Garden Pumpkin, a photo by dragonflydesignstudio on Flickr.

13 inch lantern has glass panels and was found at TJMaxx today for $14.99. The pumpkin was picked last night from the upper patch. Need to harvest its friends this weekend. The leaves are dying back as the powdery mildew wins the battle.

Skull Decorative Boxes

In the Martha Stewart Halloween line I found this wonderful set of paper mache candy boxes. Purchased for future use in costuming and props. The boxes are light and perfect for a hat or staff topper.

Beistle Reproductions Halloween 2012

A little back story on Beistle decorations. When I had the Halloween business we carried what I called the walking witch. She was so popular we couldn't keep her in stock. She is one of my favorite decorations and Beistle re-released her this year!

After years of putting up with scary contemporary designs Beistle is finally doing what they do best bringing back the classics.

Placed my order at the Vintage Halloween Store yesterday. As soon as I have the items in my hands there will be a review.

JoAnn Fabric Halloween Goodness

Sadly most of my photos came out blurry so this is only a little sample of the goodies. The Wicked Witch mirror is $49.99 but it is so cute. The orange cobweb background really makes this piece. This is probably the best mix of decor pieces I have ever seen at JoAnn. Now we wait for sales and coupons.

Skeleton Chair Back Cover

A black and white Halloween decor theme with the chair covers would be simple and elegant.

Ready to Harvest

Pumpkin Progress, a photo by dragonflydesignstudio on Flickr.

The over 95 degree weather for a week brought out the powdery mildew. This patch has it bad. Going to harvest this patch next week. Give them a dilute bleach wash to kill bacteria and store in a cool dry place until October. There is a too big for me to lift one in this patch for a total of 6 good sized pumpkins. The lower bed will have 4 or maybe 5.

TJ Maxx Halloween

Halloween is still hiding on back end cap displays. Once the summer clearance is over it can move to a bigger area. Right now its packed so tight it was hard to paw through it. There were several nice pieces. I brought home some Yankee Candle witches brew tea lights and a mercury glass bottle labeled poison. The little bottles pictured don't have real stoppers its one cast piece but they are adorable!

Double Feature Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein

Turner Classic movies has been celebrating 100 yeas of Universal movies with showings of classic movies on the big Screen. In September you can catch Hitchcock's The Birds and in October a double feature of Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. For times and participating theaters go here. My personal favorite To Kill a Mocking Bird will be out on November 15th. These are limited one night showings so don't miss a chance to see these great movies on the big screen.

Yankee Candle Coupon

Use Code SAVE10 through September 3rd to save $10 off a $25 purchase. My submarine votive holder arrived and it is wonderful. The lights are very bright LED's and they flash in different patterns. Makes a great table centerpiece.

The Pumpkin Patch

Pumpkin changing color
Originally uploaded by dragonflydesignstudio

The weather has been in the 90s now for several days. The pumpkins started showing a bit of orange! This patch has 6 that are good sized with a classic look. The lower bed has at least 4 that will be fine pumpkins. Yay!

Review of Martha Stewart Halloween Goodies

Who loves  a carnival? All of the items featured in this entry were ordered from The Vintage Halloween Store.

First up in the collection is the Martha Stewart Carnival Spinner Invites. Set of 6. The classic black and orange is accented by off white giving this set a great vintage feel. Like all Martha paper items the set is well thought out. You fill in the party info and then put a spinner wheel on with a little silver brad. There is window on the spinner and you turn it to read the date, time, and place. The carnival stripe envelope is heavy duty with an orange interior. Seal it with trick or treat printed seals. Click the read more link for the rest of the collection.

Halloween at Horchow

A few goodies up now at Horchow. So far nothing you can't find at other retail shops. My hope is they will still offer a few exclusive ceramic skull signature pieces. If you like the Steampunk Skull and the glitter skulls the entire line from Katherine's Collection is called Moonlight Sonata.

Haunt in a Hurry!

Wow...retail space with a 5000 sq ft basement wants the college theater department to put on a haunt. My scenic designer spouse just called to tell me this and that they want a haunt this year!!! There will be much discussion about this tonight. Not much time to pull something off but it could be interesting.

Vintage Halloween Garland Tutorial

Instructions for making this garland can be found here.

Glow in the Dark eyes!

Found here. This lace piece is similar to the skull lampshade, valance, or mantel piece all in one that Heritage Lace still offers. The beauty is you can string multiple pieces with a ribbon to hang just about anywhere. I think they would be cute gathered around a chair seat for the dining room.

Boney Bunch 2012 at Yankee Candle

My favorite piece is the Submarine votive holder that lights up! Catalog arrived today. The near 100 degree weather and road construction is keeping me home from the store event on Saturday. If you are going to a Yankee Candle store have fun! If you order online use coupon code CATS212 to save $15 on a $45 order.

Sur la table Halloween 2012

A few cute items are now up at Sur la table like this candy bowl.

GrandinRoad Halloween...oh my!

Sitting with my cup of tea going through the web site. My favorite so far is the Haunted Ash Urn.

Proof!

Pumpkin!
Originally uploaded by dragonflydesignstudio

Yay...its been slow with unpredictable weather and needing to hand pollinate the pumpkin patch. I've got 2 pumpkins about this size (6 inch) and a bunch of baby pumpkins. Fingers crossed we might have a decent group this year. The lower bed way is behind so I'm not sure about that patch.

Resin Books at Michaels

Skeletal Goodness at Michaels

In the craft section I spied with my little eye these wonderful skeletal items. On the top shelf are resin skeleton hands. Priced at $3.99 each. Next to the hands are plaster eyeballs and fingers! The next shelf down is giant beautiful skulls followed by witch heads all in plaster.