Category Archives: Halloween

Halloween, Product Review

2017 Halloween Merchandise Review: Home Depot

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I had the pleasure today to go to the clear front-runner in this year’s Halloween merchandise race.

Home Depot is just killing it again this year with their stuff.  Just look at this spread:

See that?  I couldn’t even get it all in one pic.

Of course they had your normal stuff: pumpkins, silly dancing toys, skeleton dogs, cats, and dinosaurs.

*Record Scratch*  Dinosaurs, you say?

How cool is that?  You can also see from the pic that they have a skeletal pony.  What you can’t see (because they didn’t have it in the store) is that they are also selling an 8-foot-tall T-Rex to go with the babies.  Yes, you can see them in museums, but now you can have one in your home.  That’s pretty sweet.

They also had this cool gargoyle:

These hanging ghouls:

And this creepy, thin, animatronic werewolf:

For value, I think this 3-pack of skulls for $9.98 is a steal.  Less than 4 dollars for a realistic-looking, good-sized skull is too good to pass up.

And this full-sized poseable skeleton for $29.98 is an excellent deal, too.

 

I also have to give Home Depot props (no pun intended) for bringing back the peeper decorations.  There were a few angry, easily-offended people that called from these to be removed from the shelf this year, and Home Depot decided to bring back – not only the original – but a few different versions.

They also had quite a few great animatronics.  Just check out the videos below:

Pretty cool, huh?

So there’s my rundown of what Home Depot has to offer this year.  I feel like it’s got a definite lead over the other home improvement store this year, which I’ll go over tomorrow.  Be sure to check back then!

Halloween

October Is Here!

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It’s here, guys!  My favorite month and yours: OCTOBER!!!

My celebratory breakfast this morning consisted of a pumpkin walnut crunch bagel from Einstein Brothers’ Bagels and an iced pumpkin spice coffee, leftovers from Dunkin‘ Donuts.

Delicious.

Then, I followed that up with my yearly tradition of creating my haunted cemetery.  It was a little tougher this year because I’m currently about 7 months into growing a little monster of my own.  Needless to say, my growing belly didn’t help with all the bending and lifting I needed to do, so I got a little creative with my decor.  Some old monsters didn’t make the cut, and some new ones were created with what I could find in my most easily accessible tubs.  It might not be as much as I usually do, but I’m pretty happy with the results.

The rest of the day was spent watching some horror movies.  All in all it was a pretty excellent day.

Since we’re getting close to the big day (that’s Halloween if you weren’t sure), I’ll be posting my reviews of the Halloween merchandise I’ve played with this year so far, and I also hope to post some new project updates.  Check back soon!

And Happy October, everyone!!!

 

Halloween

60 Days Until Halloween!

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We’re finally in the -ber months, and that means it’s my favorite time of year.  September 1 marks 60 days until Halloween, so if you haven’t started planning, you better get at it.

Since this month ushers in the return of fall, and the whole month of September is basically Halloween Eve (for those of us that celebrate Halloween all October long), it’s a great time to start talking almost exclusively about the big day.  I’ll be posting my reviews of Halloween merchandise, creepy project tutorials, and other Halloween-related fun.

But don’t be surprised if I throw a movie review or two in.  There are a lot of great horror movies on the way (can you say IT?!?!?!?!?), so I know someone who will be busy at the theater.

Me. That’s who.

So check back soon for some new posts! I’m ready to start talking my favorite holiday of all time, so I hope you’re ready to read.

Halloween

Halloween Lingers

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I’m still finding Halloween items at some of my favorite stores.  It’s not all grade-A material, but if you’re looking to satisfy your Halloween fix – you know, just to tide you over – then let me suggest checking out the following stores:

Kohl’s

I’m not sure if your Kohl’s is the same as mine, but my local store has a whole section of clearance merchandise tucked away in a random home decor and bedding aisle.  If you’re up for some spelunking, you should be able to find something to your liking.  Maybe a placemat or two.

Barnes & Noble

Being the sales guru I am, I know that Barnes & Noble stores do a seasonal clearance at least twice a year, usually at the very beginning of the year after the holidays are over and then again somewhere in the middle.  I went to scope out the sitch a few days ago and was quite pleasantly surprised to find a few fun goodies.

They also had this cool book that let you create your own zombie out of their flip pages:

Check out this cool one I made:

Those two stores are the best I’ve found for having old items still hanging around, but you should also check out clearance sections anywhere including Michael’s, Tuesday Morning, and many more.

Of course, if none of that does it for you, just make your own post-season Halloween crafts and feel good knowing that Halloween is only a short 284 days away…

Halloween

364 Days Until Halloween!

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I hope everyone had a fantastic, super-awesome, terrifying (in a good way), fun, eventful Halloween.  I dressed up as a clown, and – guess what? – no one shot me!  I was also the recipient of several compliments about my yard, so I was very pleased.

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Now, it’s time to count down to next year’s Halloween celebration.  I’ll be posting about movies, scary stories, creepy events, etc… throughout the year, but I’m taking the month of November off for NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writers Month).  Wish me luck!

Check back in December for new posts!  Until then, check out my past posts for fun lists, DIY projects, and more.  As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me through the contact page.

Halloween

It’s Almost Time: Halloween Creeps Closer

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Halloween is just days away, and I hope you all have everything ready for the big night.  I’m currently on vacation in the Big Easy, so – don’t be jealous – I might be on a ghost tour as you’re reading this.  I’ve had to get things ready a little early this year because of my vacay, and since I made a checklist to ensure I wouldn’t leave anything out, I thought I’d share with everyone.

Halloween Checklist

Candy – Go big if you can.  This is some kids’ favorite night of the year, and a full-size candy bar makes it that much…sweeter (I couldn’t resist).

Teal Pumpkin – Some children have deadly allergies, so they can’t partake in the usual sweet treats this time of year.  Thanks to the Teal Pumpkin Project, you’ve got a way to help them out.  Set out a teal pumpkin and provide non-food treats so that everyone can participate.

Costume – Have all parts of your costume ready.  You definitely don’t want to venture out to a Halloween store on the day.  It’s a freakin’ madhouse.

Jack O’ Lantern – You definitely don’t want to forget your carved pumpkin because you don’t want the spirits messing with you.

Decorations – For god’s sakes, put out something creepy.  It’s not hard.  Spiderwebs are so easy.  Foam tombstones are super-cheap.  I just don’t see enough Halloween decorations nowadays, and it just makes me sad.

Food – If you’re having a party, check out Pinterest for some great ideas for creepy appetizers and deadly desserts.  Or if you want to go easy, make sure you order pizza way ahead of time.  Halloween is one of the busiest nights for pizza places.  Don’t call too late.

Shopping List – I don’t know about you, but the day after Halloween is my biggest shopping day of the year.

I hope everyone is ready for the big night!

Food, Halloween

Easy Halloween Cupcakes

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Looking for an easy dessert for your Halloween party?  Look no further than the cupcake.  They’re easy to make, and with some Halloween-themed cupcake holders and a little bit of icing and candy, you can make a creepy and disgusting (looking) treat.

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Check out this ghost cupcake I made with just a little bit of chocolate and vanilla icings.  All you need to do is freehand a blob.  I happened to have some Halloween sprinkles on hand, so the eyes and mouth were crazy simple.

This is also the time of year you can find some gross-looking candy, so put it to good use.  I was looking for some gummy body parts, but I happened upon some eye gum balls that I opted to use instead.

I made two different types with the eyes.  I used some food coloring to make a nasty green icing and layered that atop a dark chocolate cupcake.  Add some sprinkles and the gumball, and you’ve got a cauldron:

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I also just really felt like making some edible blood, so these vanilla cupcakes turned out really nice:

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The Walking Dead spoiler alert!!!  I made these in honor of fallen hero Glen’s death.  Poor guy.  I don’t know about you, but that hit me hard.

I hope you have fun with your Halloween treats!

Halloween, Music

Halloween Party Music List

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It’s almost time to break out the costumes, candy, and party food, people!  It’s also time to make sure you have the right tunes to set the mood for your Halloween party.  I’ve put together a list of songs that remind me of my favorite holiday – from movie themes to monster titles to straight Halloween songs.  I hope this helps you set the mood.

(Don’t Fear) The Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult

(Ghost) Riders in the Sky – Johnny Cash

Abracadabra – Steve Miller Band or Sugar Ray

Addams Family Groove – Mc Hammer

Bad Moon Rising – Credence Clearwater Revival

Bad Things – Jace Everett

Beetle Juice theme – Danny Elfman

Black Magic Woman – Fleetwood Mac

Burn the Witch – Queens of the Stone Age

Creep – Radiohead

Dead Man’s Party – Oingo Boingo

The Devil Went Down to Georgia – Charlie Daniels Band

Disturbia- Rihanna

Dragula – Rob Zombie

Enter Sandman – Metallica

Feed My Frankenstein – Alice Cooper

Ghostbusters – Ray Parker Jr.

Halloween (Michael Myers ) theme – John Carpenter

Halloween – The Misfits

Halloweenhead – Ryan Adams

Highway to Hell – AC/DC

Hotel California – Eagles

Howlin’ for You – The Black Keys

Hush, Hush, Hush Here Comes the Bogeyman – Henry Hall

I Put a Spell on You – Screamin’ Jay Hawkins

I’m Your Boogie Man – KC and the Sunshine Band

Jeepers Creepers – Louis Armstrong

Living Dead Girl – Rob Zombie

Love Potion NO. 9 – The Searchers

Monster – Kanye West (ft. Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj)

Monster Mash – Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers

Paint It Black – Rolling Stones

People Are Strange – The Doors

Pet Sematary – Ramones

Psycho Killer – Talking Heads

Red Right Hand – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

Runnin’ with the Devil – Van Halen

Season of the Witch – Donovan

She Blinded Me wits Science – Thomas Dolby

Sleepy Hollow theme – Danny Elfman

Somebody’s Watching Me – Rockwell

Superstition – Stevie Wonder

Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) – Marilyn Manson or Eurythmics

Tales from the Crypt theme – Danny Elfman

This Is Halloween – Danny Elfman (Nightmare Before Christmas)

Thriller – Michael Jackson

Time Warp – Little Nell (Rocky Horror Picture Show)

Trick or Treat – Otis Redding

Tubular Bells Part 1 – Mike Oldfield (The Exorcist)

Walk Like a Zombie – Horrorpops

Werewolves of London – Warren Zevon

When the Man Comes Around – Johnny Cash

Who Do You Voodoo, Bitch – Sam B (Dead Island soundtrack)

Witchcraft – Frank Sinatra

Witchy Woman – Eagles

Zombie – The Cranberries

 

Creepy Crafts, DIY Horror, Halloween

5 Ways to Use a Dollar Tree Skull

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It’s no secret that I love Dollar Tree, and one of the reasons I love it so, so much for my Halloween shopping is that you can make so many of their items look more expensive with only a little bit of work.

Of all the Halloween items they carry, their skulls are my favorite.  I always pick up a few each year.  This year, just to help you out, I bought a few more than usual to play around with.  But with them being just a dollar, it was totally worth it.

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1. Use metallic spray paint to make your skulls look at home in any chic Halloween setup.

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2. Who doesn’t love a sugar skull?  Spray paint a skull white and go to town with multicolored sharpies, paint pens, stickers, and jewels.  It’ll look great at any Day of the Dead celebration.

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3. Transform a skull into a mini jack-o-lantern by carving it with a craft knife.   Insert a flameless tea light and – voila! – glowing skull!  You can even spray paint it orange for a faux skull pumpkin or other colors to match your decor.

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Processed with Snapseed.

4. Make your skull look gross and creepy – and much more like a high-end prop – by using the corpsing technique I outlined here.

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Processed with Snapseed.

5. Grab a few items you probably already have on hand and make this cool hanging ghost.  Read the tutorial here.

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Processed with Snapseed.

SO. MUCH. FUN.  I hope you try out a few of these projects because you’ll be missing out if you don’t.  Let me know how your projects work out in the comments. Happy Haunting!

Halloween, Television

Upcoming Halloween TV

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One of my favorite things about this time of year is that it’s so very easy to find a Halloween-themed show or scary movie on TV any ol’ time.  If you’re looking for what to watch, look no further.  I did the research so you don’t have to miss any of your favorites.

TV Episodes/Movies

October 14

All-Star Halloween Spectacular (HGTV)

October 16

The Simpsons  “Treehouse of Horror XXVII” (Fox)

October 18

Brooklyn Nine-Nine “Halloween IV” (Fox)

October 19

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (ABC)

October 20

The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again (live musical) (Fox)

October 23

Bob’s Burgers “Teen-A-Witch” (Fox)

The Walking Dead (season premier) (AMC)

October 25

The Middle  “Halloween VIII: The Heckoning” (ABC)

American Housewife “Westport Zombies” (ABC)

Fresh Off the Boat “Louisween” (ABC)

The Real O’Neals “The Real Halloween” (ABC)

October 26

Modern Family “Halloween 4: The Revenge of Rod Skyhook” (ABC)

The Goldbergs “Stefan King” (ABC)

Speechless “H-A-L-HALLOWEEN” (ABC)

Black-ish “The Purge” (ABC)

Series/Events

American Horror Story: Roanoke: The much-anticipated 6th season of this crazy series premiered on September 14 on FX, and you can catch new episodes on Wednesday nights.  Catch up on the FXNow app if you’re behind!

Scream Queens: Season 2 began on September 20 on Fox.  New episodes can be watched each Tuesday night.

Halloween Wars: The first episode premiered October 2 on Food Network, but you can watch new episodes every Sunday through October 30.

Halloween Baking Championship: The first bake-off of the season premiered October 3 on Food Network. You can watch new episodes every Sunday through October 31.

AMC Fearfest: There will be over 60 different horror movies running from October 16 through October 31 on AMC.

13 Nights of Halloween: Watch fun movies each night on ABC Family from October 19 through October 31.

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Looks like we all have quite a bit to keep us busy until the big night!  Enjoy these glory days while you can.  Before you know it, we’ll be inundated with Christmas music and sappy tv shows, and we’ll have to satisfy our horror cravings with Nightmare Before Christmas and Black Christmas.  That’s not really a bad thing, but we definitely have more options this time of year.

Are there any shows coming up that I missed?  Let me know in the comments or contact me through the contact page.