2012 Virtual Halloween Costume Linky Par-Tay!

Since I can't be there for all of your trunk or treats or Halloween parties,
I thought it would be SO fun to have a virtual costume party.

So come and link up your costumes -
handmade or store bought.
I know we all want to show off how darling our kids looked
and get some credit for the work we put into it.
Because we all know,
even getting them into the costumes and look at the camera is HARD WORK!

Plus, it will make us all post
our Halloween pictures in a timely manner ;)

So I'll get this party started.
Here's my Frankenstein and Merida.

Frank takes himself very seriously.

Hide yo' children! He's coming!

My rad friend Heidi painted his face all legit.

Merida is serious about her archery skills.

I'm serious about her darling little face.

Costume details:

Frankenstein
Head/Hands - Pottery Barn Teen
Jacket and Pants - Thrifted
Boot Covers - ME!

Merida
Dress - McCall 5499 with alterations by ME!
Wig - ME!

Bow/Arrows/Quiver - Target with alterations by ME!

So come link up and show us what you got!

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TOO Cute Tuesday: Linky Par-Tay! #117

Last night we had a SPOOKY family dinner - it was so much fun!

The kids loved eating by candlelight and trying the spooky food.

Now onto TOO Cute Tuesday!

What did you make this week that is TOO Cute??

Come link up!

Rules:

• Must be made by you.
• Link up to the specific post - not your main blog.
• No Etsy shops or giveaways please :)
• Please post the button or link back here so more people can join in the fun.
• Visit some of the other participants and leave them some LOVE!

TOO Cute Tuesday will be open Tuesday-Saturday.
On Saturday or Monday I'll highlight some of my favorites
and then we'll start over on Tuesday!


<a border="0" href="http://funkypolkadotgiraffe.blogspot.com/search/label/Too%20Cute%20Tuesday" target="_blank"><img src="http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p12/mormishgirl/Blog/TooCuteTuesdayNEW.jpg" /></a>


This post brought to you by:

 I changed the linky party so that the most recently uploaded project will show up as number one. This way everyone gets a chance on top. So, look in the first spot for your project, not at the end. Thanks!!!

How to Host a Spooky Movie Night

I decided that I wanted to host some of my friends for a Spooky Movie Night Halloween Party.

I love a good scare - the anticipation, the racing heart beat - it's awesome.

However, I discovered that most of my friends don't appreciate a good scare like I do,

in fact, most of them shun it. Ha! 

But I was undeterred and sent my Evite and invited the ladies to join me and 

headed to Smart and Final to check out their Halloween ideas and Halloween Candy selection.

One thing you definitely need for a Spooky Movie Night is a tasty popcorn treat. 

I went with Monster Munch from Our Best Bites.

I love Monster Munch because it uses candy corn - a classic Halloween candy.

You'll also need something cute for your guests to hold their Monster Munch

and yummy Halloween candy.

I found these great GIANT Styrofoam cups at Smart and Final,

added a bit of black and white chevron washi tape,

and I BAM! I had a cute popcorn/treat cup.

I put out lots of Smart & Final candy in cute black serving bowls, lit lots of candles,

dimmed the lights and waited for the guests to arrive.

I put out the Monster Munch, plates & napkins, beverages, cups, and chips & dip.

Even the dining room table got candles and a jack'o'lantern.

I encouraged my guests to come in their jammies, bring a favorite blanket,

and a pillow to get comfy and cozy for a good spook.

I even used my LED candles to light the stairway up to the living room.

I loved the mood it set!

I also turned my strobe light on - it was so fun!

The ladies arrived, we settled in with our treats,

and watched a spooky movie together.

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Most of my supplies for the Halloween party were purchased at Smart & Final -

you can see my complete shopping experience in my Google+ story.

You can find find more ideas for Halloween in the Smart and Final Social Circular.

You can also keep up with Smart & Final on Twitter and Facebook.

Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Smart & Final #CBias #ChooseSmart #SocialFabric”. All opinions are my own.

The OC Zoo Gets SPOOKY: {Halloween} Zoo-tacular!

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Come join in the Halloween fun at the OC Zoo in Irvine Regional Park 

on Saturday, October 27 10am to 4pm.

At Halloween Zoo-tacular kids ages 12 and under will enjoy trick-or-treating, 

a scavenger hunt, themed crafts and face painting. 

The darling zoo animals will receive treat-filled pumpkins throughout the day! 

The first 100 children that visit the OC Zoo in costume on October 27th will receive a free gift.

The Halloween Zoo-tacular is free to visitors with paid zoo admission.

Parking at the venue (Irvine Regional Park) is $5 per vehicle.

Tutorial: DIY Halloween Canvases

I got a fantastic box of paints, stencils, and tools from Martha Stewart Crafts.
It was seriously like Christmas morning! I kept pulling things out and oohing and ahhing.

I decided I wanted to do some Halloween art canvases to try out all my fantastic
paints and supplies from Martha.
First, I started with these canvases from the local dollar store.
I thought they'd make the perfect jumping point for the Halloween gallery art.

I painted them different colors with my rad Martha Stewart Craft paints.
Then, it was time to get spooky!

First up is the 3D Bat Canvas!!!!

To make the 3D bats I used the Holiday Icons Stencils, Clear Paintable Plastic,
Satin Craft Paint, and Multi-Surface Glitter Paint.

1. Position the stencil on your plastic and lightly paint - working in a dabbing motion.
2. Repeat painting the bats all over the 8x10 piece of paintable plastic.
3. Add a little glitter paint - because glitter makes everything better.
4. Cut out all your cute little bats and then fold the wings up for the 3D effect.

Next, you'll need the Transfer Paper to get that spooky little tree onto your purple canvas.


I found the perfect image, laid the transfer paper (carbon side down) onto my canvas,
placed the spooky tree on top of the transfer paper, and then traced with a pencil.


Voila!!!!
The spooky little tree outline was on my canvas.
Then, I filled in the outline with the craft paint and BAM!

A fantastic 3D bat canvas for my collection.
I glittered up the canvas with the Coarse Glitter Acrylic Paint for a night
sky effect and then glued on the cute little bats.

Next up is the spiderweb canvas.
You'll need the Martha Stewart Glass Patterning Tape, Chalkoard Paint,
a craft knife, cutting mat, and a straight edge.

1. Cut the Glass Patterning tape into think strips with the craft blade.
2. Create a spider web with the tape.
3. Cover the canvas in chalkboard paint, layer by layer, allowing
for sufficient drying in between each layer.
4. Slowly and carefully remove the tape to reveal the web.

Add a cute little spider with chalk and you've got a spiderweb canvas.

Finally, the 3D pumpkin canvas!

You'll need the Coarse Glitter Paint, Chalkboard Paint, a craft pumpkin, and washi tape.

1. Take your cute little pumpkin (I got mine at the local dollar store) and cut it in half.
2. Paint up a storm with your chalkboard paint.

3. Apply your washi tape and then paint over the tape with the Coarse Glitter Paint.
4. Let the paint dry and glue the little pumpkin into the center.

There you have it - three spooky Halloween canvases.
I don't have a lot of wall space, so I used a staple gun to attach them to a
wide piece of grosgrain ribbon and hung it from my front door.
I love how it adds a bit of festiveness to the entry.

If you want more fabulous ideas using supplies from Martha Stewart Crafts,
then check out these fabulous sites!
;


You can get even more ideas and discover more about Martha Stewart Crafts
from Plaid by connecting with them on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

Disclosure: I wrote this post as part of a paid campaign with Plaid and Blueprint Social. The opinions in this post are my own.