Halloween How To- Easy DIY Floating Witch Hat with Iris Groveland



Three of my favorite words are cheap, fast, and easy, and when it comes to Halloween décor, this fun Flying Witch Hat couldn’t get any better. Much of what you’ll need can be found very cheaply, or you may already have creative solutions at home in your craft or fabric stashes. I’ll show you how I did mine and what I used, but you can put any kind of twist on you want. 



You will need:

1. A semi-sheer witch hat (or as many as you like)
** I found three matching hats in the Halloween bins at Goodwill. You can find them at any dollar store or wherever cheap Halloween costumes are sold

2. A sheet of gauzy, “ghost cloth”
** This is the loosely woven cloth usually sold in packages in the Halloween aisle, also available at most dollar stores.
** Also, check your craft stash. You can use leftover tulle, scarves, or old, sheer curtains.

3. At least one large paperclip (and several smaller ones to chain if desired.

4. Glow stick 
** This is optional, but can add a nice effect if you’re hanging these outside at night. 
** You can use any kind of safe light source you like, such as batter powered string  lights.

Step 1

Unfold the large paperclip. 

From the inside of the hat, poke one end through the tip of the cone. This will be your hook for wherever you wish to “fly” your hat. The bottom half of the paperclip will be utilized inside the hat. 



(Picture shows the whole paperclip poking up through the holes that I had made with my paperclip. My hats are now two years old, so the holes have gotten a little roomier. However, this also shows that, at this point, if you wish to simply hang your hat from a tree or porch corner, you are done!)


Step 2

Evenly fold or gather your ghost cloth so that you can tie a loose knot with a corner. This knot will loop around the bottom “hook” portion of the paperclip that is inside the hat. You can poke the paperclip through the fabric, but I like to be able to reuse my décor from year to year (as much as I am able) and this ensures that your cloth is securely fastened inside the hat, which is particularly important if these are to be hung outside. 




OPTIONS

There are variations you can play with at any point. You can hang the hat with just the ghost cloth. You can add a paperclip chain and use that to give you more coverage inside the hat for a glowstick (or other light source) or even other layers of spooky fabric. You can hang the hat with simply a glowstick and no material at all. 




I usually stick with just the hat and the ghost cloth until closer to Halloween.  Then I’ll pop in a few glowsticks on the nights leading up to, and the night of. This is also a fun way to identify your driveway if you’re having a party and people need to get to you in the dark. 
 
Lastly, hang where desired! 

I usually place three in the trees outside. The gauzy fabric looks great as blows in the breeze and it will get eerily caught in the leaves and branches and create a great affect. 


Happy crafting and Happy Halloween!



Freaky Flint History with Joe Schipani - Salts/Strychnine February 1st, 1913


Flint is well known for its modern violent crimes but Flint's history is filled with little known stories that read stranger than fiction. Gruesome murders, weird accidents, and violent deaths. Join us every Thursday as Joe Schipani details some of the odd but true deaths he found in Flint's archives.


Edith Lucile Abel was a pretty, popular, and smart seventeen-year-old girl. 

She was the only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Abel and the youngest of their three children. Edith attended public schools until the eighth grade, when due to her academic performance, was able to transfer to Baker Business University. In her final semester, right before graduation, an incident occurred. 

On this cold Friday night, Edith was with her parents playing cards. She was not feeling well so she left early. She had an upset stomach and decided to take some salts and go to bed. After getting herself ready for bed, she went downstairs to the medicine cabinet and poured some salts. The bottle was almost empty so she decided to finish it off. She poured nearly a dram of salt into a glass of water in the poorly lit room and drank it. 

She didn’t know that a few months earlier, while the family was on vacation, her grandfather bought some strychnine that he used to kill some of the stray cats that had been making a mess around the house. 

He put the partly used bottle in the medicine cabinet next to the salts. The two bottles looked very similar. Even in the light of day the bottles could easily be mistaken. 


After unknowingly drinking the poison Edith went to bed. 

Concerned about their daughter’s illness her parents decided to leave the card game early to check on her. When they went into her room to bid her goodnight she complained of stomach cramps, but insisted there was no need to call the doctor. 

Her parents went to bed but soon after lying down they were startled by a piercing scream coming from their daughter’s room. When they rushed into her room they found her thrashing and screaming in pain. 

The father rushed to call the doctor while the mother stayed to comfort their daughter.  Unable to reach any local doctors, he desperately asked the operator to locate any doctor that would respond to an emergency. Dr. Warren Taylor, a coroner, was the only doctor able to be reached. 

It was then that the father noticed the empty bottle of strychnine.

Dr. Taylor rushed to the home but it was too late. The poison quickly settled into her system and there was no way to reverse it. 

Edith died shortly after the doctor arrived, less than two hours after drinking the poison. 

Coroner Taylor decided that no inquest was needed for the cause of her death. Her body was taken to the morgue. 

~ Joe Schipani is the Executive Director of the Flint Public Art Project and the FFAR Project Assistant at the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.  Find him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HauntedFlint/ 

Flint Photo Credit: David C. Lucas- DS Photo


Halloween How To- DIY Skeleton and Coffin Shaped Light Box

I spotted this skeleton lightbox/lantern from Michael's on some one's feed and decided to make a DIY version.  

I had all the materials I needed in my craft stash so I gave it a try and I am pretty happy with the results. Mine isn't translucent on all sides like the Michael's version, just the front, but that's OK with me.



To make it you need:

7.5 inch wood coffin tray 
(I bought these in bulk on Michaels.com before they added all the Halloween stuff, now they no longer have them. But you can find them on Amazon or ConsumerCrafts.com- FYI they are way cheaper on ConsumerCrafts.com)

Paint in your color choice (I used Glidden Premium Latex Paint and Primer from Home Depot)


Strand of wire fairy lights. The wire is important so they bend and stay in place.

Vellum paper for your printer

Small cordless drill

Small Finishing Nails

Hammer (I use the child size hammer from Lowe's Build and Grow kid's classes- perfect size for my small hands and it is small and lightweight so I can get into spots a big hammer can't. A large hammer would not have worked for this tiny coffin and tiny nails)

Tacky Glue


Sticky backed Velcro 

Instructions:


First paint the coffin tray in your color choice, let it dry and clear coat it, then let that dry.

Select a skeleton image with a translucent background and adjust the size as needed. The skeleton linked here is sized correctly for the 7.5 inch coffin.

I made one with the coffin shape but I was afraid the coffin would not match the tray so I took the outline away and just printed the skeleton, selected my tray and used a white colored pencil to trace the outline of the coffin around the skeleton. Click the links and you can download the skeleton and the coffin from google drive.

Once the tray was dry I cut the vellum to fit the front of the tray as exact as I could.

I turned the tray over and drilled a hole in the bottom corner large enough for the strand of fairy lights to fit through.



I then fed the fairy lights through the hole and lined the inside of the coffin tray with them, going round and round until the strand ended. 

They popped out some and touched the vellum when I tested it so I hammered tiny finishing nails inside to hold the fairy lights in place.



I placed a piece of Velcro on the back of the coffin and one on the battery pack for the fairy lights so it would stick to the back of the tray and not hang out loose. But if I need to change batteries I can just pull it apart.

Make sure your vellum is trimmed to fit the front of the coffin tray as exact as possible. Brush glue onto the edges of the tray. 

I used a small paint brush and tacky glue to get a good and even coat of glue on the edge.

Then I carefully lay the vellum on the tray and made sure the edges lined up. I put a board over the top for about an hour to let the glue and vellum dry flat. Vellum has a tendency to curl.



Once it is dry turn on your light and enjoy. 

I think I might add some kind of border to cover the vellum edges, I don't like seeing the glued area and the wrinkles in the vellum.  If I fix that, I'll post an update.







Update- I made a few more lightboxes and added glitter and sequins to the edge as a border.

I also used a smaller set of fairy lights.

These images are from my first event of the season, the Mid-Michigan Paranormal Convention. It was great. Met some awesome people and I have a stack of new reading material.


The one on the end is edged in giant Halloween glitter. 

The other two have strands of black sequins borders.


These are for sale $10 each plus shipping.

Seeking Guest Bloggers

Seeking Guest Bloggers for Tarot Tuesdays; Halloween How To DIYs; Halloween Make Up Tips, Tricks and Tutorials; Haunted Places; and Halloween Recipes.  







Submission Details- 

Halloween DIYs, MakeUp, and Recipes should include lists of materials needed for the project or recipe along with detailed instructions. Include images as jpegs and embedded in the document. Please include a little intro about what you are creating along with a closing and a short bio with links to your website or social media.

Tarot Tuesday posts should be 500+ words and can be about anything relating to Tarot- history, types of decks, artwork discussion or creation, how to do readings, specific layouts for readings, divination for yourself using the cards, etc. Please include a short bio with links to your website or social media. 

Haunted Locations should be 500+ words detailing the location and the haunting. Please include images. Close with a short bio with links to your website or social media. 


If your guest blog is accepted you receive 2 months of sidebar advertising linking to your website, product, book, etc. Value $25

We're also accepting submissions for Halloween Events, Haunts, and more








All Things Halloween is happy to promote your Halloween haunt, event, website, book, costume, or product on our blog and social media. This is FREE.

We'll be doing blog features as well as link lists in the sidebar.

If you would like to be featured and have your link listed please submit details at https://goo.gl/forms/F92YU99oM24AT8RD2 or email RoxanneRhoads69@gmail.com

We are also open to sidebar advertising and review products.

Square sidebar ads are $25 each and will be live on the blog from the day you pay through Halloween.



How to Halloween and Lansing Zombie Walk October 13, 2018




October 13 – October 14
Oct 13 at 11 AM to Oct 14 at 5 PM
Lansing Center
333 E Michigan Ave, Lansing, Michigan 48933

Details from Facebook Event Page

How-To Halloween is a festival for ghosts, ghouls and goblins of all ages!

• Celebrate the WOMEN OF POWER at our 5th annual event.
• Meet Capital City Wonder Woman, Batwoman, Supergirl & more.
• Participate in over 50 interactive activities and games.
• Wear your costume and bring a bag for trick-or-treating.
• See custom-built attractions and amazing holiday displays.
• Enjoy a huge variety of entertainment from the main stage.
• Learn tons of tips and tricks from cosplay experts.
• Snap photos with killer cars like KITT & the Mystery Machine
• Win our homemade costume contest for over $100 in prizes.
• Shop with our many creative and unique vendors.
• Help support our community and local charities.
• Get your tickets for only $8 (kids 2 and under enter for free).



Saturday, October 13 at 12 PM - 5 PM
pin
Lansing Center
333 E Michigan Ave, Lansing, Michigan 48933


Details from Facebook Event Page

The 9th Annual Downtown Lansing Zombie Walk invades the Capital City once again on Saturday October 13, 2018, and all ages of the undead are welcome to walk for FREE! We ask participants to bring a nonperishable food donation in support of the Greater Lansing Food Bank, and to assemble at 11:30am inside the Lansing Center by Exhibit Hall C. 


Once the donations are collected, the horde members will be given a wristband before being unleashed on the unsuspecting citizens of Lansing, Michigan at high noon. Traffic comes to a stand still as we shuffle our way to the steps of the Capitol for the greatest photo op ever seen. Afterwards, we invite the walking dead to return to the Lansing Center for discounted entry into How-To Halloween to compete for big prizes in our Best Zombie Contest on the main stage and join in all the spooktacular fun at the festival.

2018 Michigan Witches Bazaar


Royalty House Banquet Facility
8201 E 13 Mile Rd 
Warren, Michigan 48093

A Magical Shopping Experience

FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

85+ TABLES

FREE SWAG BAGS FOR THE FIRST 200 ATTENDEES

Bring Can Goods for Pagans In Need

Welcome to the Michigan Witches Bazaar 2018– a unique concept of creating an opportunity for like minded individuals to come together in mutual support.

The Michigan Witches Bazaar, showcases products, services and resources for Witches, Wiccans, Druids and Pagans of all Faiths. Wouldn’t it be great if you could go to one place and explore everything that is available? Well, that’s exactly what the Midwest Witches Bazaar is all about!

The Michigan Witches Bazaar is held yearly and is a place where first rate vendors and readers gather to provide products and advice for those who enjoy the metaphysical

See the List of Vendors here http://michiganwitchesball.com/2018-vendors/



Halloween How-To: Halloween Spell Book with Laura Bickle



Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, and I love making decorations for this time of year. 

I looked around at the materials I had rattling around my craft room and thought I’d try to create a fancier journal than the kind I usually use.



For this project, I used:

A plain journal
Black spray paint
Gold hobby paint
A couple plastic spider rings 
Brushes
Alphabet pasta
Glue

I already had these items at hand. So I’ve invested pretty much nothing in this project. I won’t too feel bad if it doesn’t turn out! 

I used a blank book for this project, but if you wanted to create a purely decorative book, you could use any book at hand. Just make sure that the cover doesn’t have raised lettering or a texture that you wouldn’t want to see later in the project. I also suggest using a hardcover book for stability.

First thing I did was pour the alphabet pasta out on a plate and fish out some letters. I picked enough letters to create a label for the book: SPELLS.

I glued the letters onto the book. I didn’t worry about making them too even or anything. I wanted them to look pretty whimsical. I did try to be mindful not to use very much glue on each letter and used the end of a paintbrush to position them (to avoid burned fingers). Looking back, I should have used even less! But the idea is that the letters will be raised and will be highlighted with gold paint. 

Using my glue gun, I drizzled the outline of a spider web on the cover of the book. Looking back, I could have used this to write “Spells” on the cover. 


I cut off the ring parts of two spider rings and also glued them on the cover. If you have other plastic creepy-crawlies around, like snakes or insects, you could also use those.

Next, I spray painted the book black. If you’re wanting to make a spell book that you can continue to use, it might make sense to use making tape on the pages to protect them. This is what it looked like when I was done:



I used a little bit of the gold paint and dry-brushed it on the lettering and around the spider web design. The gold paint highlights the letters and raised portion of the design you’ve created. If you have a gold marker pen, you could do some more doodling and flourishes on the cover, too. 



And here’s my finished book! It was a lot of fun to make. I might try other designs with glue in the future and experiment with glue lettering or maybe stickers. But for now, the spell book will contain lists of all my Halloween plans! 





~ Laura Bickle grew up in rural Ohio, reading entirely too many comic books out loud to her favorite Wonder Woman doll. When she grew up, she patrolled the stacks at the public library and worked with data systems in criminal justice. She now dreams up stories about the monsters under the stairs, writing contemporary fantasy and horror. Find the latest updates on her projects at www.laurabickle.com



Freaky Flint History with Joe Schipani - The County Fair August 30, 1912


County Fair
August 30th, 1912

By Joe Schipani

One of the best things about summer is the county fair. The livestock, the food, the games… but it is the rides that really attract the children.

The fair is usually the last big event before going back to school. For one thirteen-year-old boy named Chester Betts, this was the year his dreams of becoming an Aeronaut were coming true. Almost a man, he spent most of his summer training for this day, by practicing rope tying and building up his strength to hold the balloon.

On this beautiful Friday afternoon, after the balloon filled with gas, Chester started untying the ropes. He got the last one free and the balloon ascended into the air, but his foot was caught in the rope and he sailed away with the balloon.

Professor Abner Amedill was inside the balloon manning it. He heard the boy’s cries for help and tried to bring the balloon back to the ground.

The balloon was around two thousand feet above the ground when Chester lost his hold and started falling.

The boy fell onto the roof of a barn on East Court Street, known as the Stewart Estate. The boy’s body busted a hole in the barn roof about eight foot long and four foot wide. His body then tore through the rafters and landed on the cement floor.

Two employees of the estate, August and Albert, were in the barn when it happened. They thought the barn was collapsing when the poor boy came crashing through the roof. Then they heard the boy moaning, incredibly Chester was still alive after the fall. 

A couple of doctors arrived at the scene to find a horrified crowd from the fair gathered around the boy who was moaning in agony. The doctors looked at the boy with tears in their eyes knowing there was nothing they could do for him. His body lay limp and the doctors could tell that almost every bone was broken as blood seeped from his mouth and nose.

Chester was still alive when the ambulance arrived. They carefully loaded him inside and both doctors rode with him but sadly he died on the way to the hospital, before his parents were even notified of the accident.

Later the police interviewed Professor Abner Amedill questioning- why he didn’t cut the rope as soon as he heard the boy’s cry for help?

His response was:  Then both of us would be dead.  

He went on to say that bad luck and unfortunate occurrences had been haunting him for weeks. A couple of weeks before the fair his balloon caught fire and he was burned.  After that a gas bag broke and he fell from the balloon, causing bruising and a sprain.  A week before a similar incident happened with another kid in Kentucky. 

Chester’s accident was the third time this type of accident has happened with the professor.

No charges were ever filed against Professor Abner Amedill.

~ Joe Schipani is the Executive Director of the Flint Public Art Project and the FFAR Project Assistant at the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.  Find him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HauntedFlint/ 
Flint Photo Credit: David C. Lucas- DS Photo