Evans Pumpkin Carving 2012

On Monday evening, while the 49ers were mercilessly beating the Cardinals (yesss!), my husband and I carved our yearly pumpkins.  I'm super proud of my husband for selecting a more challenging piece and pulling it off beautifully!  I about had a coronary while carving mine - the tiny pieces almost fell apart too many times for my liking.  We had a blast though and I'm truly proud of what we pulled off!

This is how our space started out.

My husband hard at work.

Mmm... guts!

Working on those stencils.

Remember!  Start with the little pieces first!

 Then the larger pieces!

A rare shot of yours truly! 

 This is what our space ended up looking like.

Thankfully clean up was a breeze!

Husband's Creepy Tree Pumpkin

My "Eye of Newt" Pumpkin

Want to know how to create your own pumpkin masterpiece?

Check out all the tips, tricks and templates here.

For more Pumpkin Carving inspiration,

check out my "Pumpkin Carving" Pinterest Board.

Pillowcase Pumpkin Ghosts

Oh yes, it's a mouth full. 

Pillowcase Pumpkin Ghost.

But check out this {wildly}easy, quick and inexpensive project I did this weekend.

I have trouble coming up with outdoor decorations that won't melt or fall apart in the Arizona "Fall" sun.  I was suddenly inspired when I saw these plastic pumpkin treat buckets for $1.  Add a pillowcase and some cheesecloth - BAM!  You're done!  The total cost of this project is less than $10 for 2.

Materials
Pumpkin Treat Bucket
White Pillow Case
Cheesecloth {I reused from a failed ghost from last year - you can buy cheesecloth at JoAnn}
Hot Glue Gun and Glue
Scissors
LED Flameless Candles

Instructions
1.  Scrunch up your pillowcase so the short-side seam creates a bottom.  This will make it easy to glue the pillowcase to the bottom of the bucket without having a "glue vs. fabric" battle.

2.  Turn your pumpkin bucket upside down and carefully apply hot glue around the rim.  Place the outside of the pillowcase on pumpkin bucket - being sure to center it along the seam.  Your hand should be touching the inside seam of the pillow case.

3.  Flatten out pillowcase and use scissors to cut strips up the body - about 3/4 up the pillowcase.  The more rigid and rough it is... the creepier.  I had 8 strips when I was done.  I also chose to leave the fold-over seam intact so there would be weight on the bottom and not cut the corners so he has little arms.  Set aside.

4.  Lay cheesecloth flat on table and cut 7 strips - mine were about 3-4 inches wide.  Again, the more rough the better.  These will go in between the pillowcase strips.

5.  Turn pumpkin bucket upside down and flatten out the strips of pillowcase.  You should be looking at the underside of your bucket.  {Mine looked like an octopus!}

Take one strip of cheesecloth and hot glue it to the pillowcase along the same rim you glued the pillowcase too.  Avoiding the middle will ensure your ghost doesn't hang down flat and has body to it.  I doubled up the glued material so if wind comes along, the cheesecloth stands a chance.

 Continue gluing your strips all around your bucket.  Flip your ghost right-side out.  You should be able to see cheesecloth among the pillowcase strips.

 6.  Insert LED lights and hang!

Howl-o-Ween

  

One of my favorite Halloween activities is going to 

Howl-o-Ween at the Phoenix Zoo.

The zoo is converted into a creepy Halloween town

for ages 8 and up.  

 

There are spooky characters and lots of scare factors.

 Like this guy... he was about 12 feet tall... and moved.

 

 There's the Scarecrow Maze with horrifying characters.
Aliens... pirates... and ghouls.

Of course, there was so stuff that wasn't so scary.

Like this awesome zebra.  :)

  

The best part of then entire experience was an indoor 

haunted house.

There was a variety of scare factors from

a bloody butcher to a child's room being taken over by clowns

{aka my worst nightmare}

I couldn't have been more grateful to have

my scare buddies with me.

 

What's your Halloween tradition?

Pinspiration Friday: Halloween Treats

Source

I love Halloween treats.

They are funky and cute.

Some are creepy and, frankly, a little gross.

I absolutely love them.

Pinterest is a wealth of treat ideas.

Here are some of my favorites

that are easy to achieve.

I mean... really... not all of us are awesome

at baking and working with icing.  :)

Candy Corn Rice Krispie Treats 

Source

Witch Hats

Source

Candy Corn Marshmallows 

 Source

Peep S'mores Kits

Source 

Great for class treats.

Caramel Apple Bar

Source

Perfect for an office Halloween Party!

Happy Pinning!

Halloween Cookbook

Over the past few years, I have collected quite a handful of recipes relating to specific holidays.  They are theme-y and usually contain ingredients in-season during that particular time of year.  Therefore, in my mind, it didn't make sense to keep these recipes in the hoard of cookbooks and recipe organizers that I use year round.  It also seemed like a great opportunity to play with holiday-themed craft supplies.

This project is for my glorious Halloween Cookbook {other holidays to follow}.  So gather your Halloween recipes and craft supplies... and let's get... cookin!

Here's What You Do

Create and cover your binder.

Remember that hot glue isn't very good at sticking to plastic,

so I suggest tacky glue and a bit of patience.

Find the recipes you would like to save and cut out.

Use a paper cutter to clean up any edges and make smaller.

Use embellishments and glue to stick to decorate your page.

 Put into sheet protector {saves it from cooking mess}.

 And enjoy!!!

Here are some other pages I have created.

You've Been Booed

You've Been Booed!

AHHH!  Don't be scared!

This is a fun way to spread Halloween fun

{and sweets}

during this spooky holiday!

Plus, it's easy and inexpensive to do.

Simply print the appropriate

"You've Been Booed"

tag for your situation.

{I have created a work-edition so you can boo your coworkers.}

Create a bucket/bag/basket of treats.

And leave for them to find!

Don't forget the tags - this keeps the game going!

Happy Boo-ing!

You've Been Booed Printable

You've Been Booed - Work Edition Printable