I was doing so good until now...

I was doing fine, I was staying on budget BUT this happened:

Can you dig it?!  I ordered this, and it's absolutely fantastic!  3 are left at last count so get one while the gettin's good!

Artwork Link Page

To make matters worse, he has the matching shirts...

Workshirts are $40 and tees are $20 USD.  You have to order 2 tees at $20 and then put in the Paypal note to seller that you would like a workshirt instead.  And the design GLOWS!!!
BUT HURRY AND BUY BECAUSE AFTER AUGUST 21, THIS DESIGN WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE ANYMORE!!!

Shirt Link Page

I'm here...still here!

Ok, so I've been missing in action lately, and I'm so terribly sorry. First of all, it's been hot. Like surface of the sun hot with humidity that lets you swim to the mailbox. THAT kind of summer and then there's work; I have a residential and commercial window tinting business and with the heat, comes the business which is good.  VERY good since last year stank.  But enough of excuses...I have been sewing a lot lately and made myself a wonderful ruffled shirt and long wool coat for Hallowe'en.  For those who sew, I have 3 words of wisdom...Butterick, Simplicity and McCall's.  I wouldn't deviate from the mainstream pattern companies anymore because I had forgotten how much easier they were to sew than the independent companies that I have used.

Now, for something that I've decided that I HAVE to collect...

The Dennision Bogie Book series ran from 1909 (NO, I WAS NOT BORN YET THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!) to the mid 1930's.  These were basically idea book/catalogs featuring the Dennison line of holiday decorations.  This is the one that I bought from Amazon.  Now my review:

Wow!

This is a glimpse back into history when Hallowe'en was for adults and not children, the days before it was associated with the gore genre.  The illustrations (and they are lavishly illustrated) show elaborately decorated rooms for parties, that could be done with Dennison's crepe paper and paper decorations.  The costumes, well, let's say we've come a long way baby, they looked kind of goofy but they might have been the height of haute couture back then.  Charming but goofy.

The bad news is that the 10 cents price tag has gone up...considerably.  If you get your sights on an original Bogie Book for less than 100.00, then you're lucky.  Fortunately, there are high quality reprints out there (the route I took) for 12.00 to 14.00.  Yes, they're worth it.  A fanatic of Hallowe'en should have at least one of these on their shelves to see where we came from and what out ancestors did (at least the rich ones, all the people in these books look well off) to celebrate the most fun night of the year.

Some vintage photos from the interwebs (not from the Dennison books)...Please visit the blogs, I happened up on them and they're great!

This one scares the %$#@ out of me! (via Halloween Monster Party)

This SHOULD be a LOL Cat saying 'I iz skard fur life' (via Johnny Cupcakes, a really cool blog and store!)

SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET (via Ethics Soup)

All I can say is WTF?! (Via Ethics Soup)

A Little Cartoon To Get You In The Mood...

This has the manic quality of Ren and Stimpy.  Love it!

Nature's Pinata!

Sorry I haven't posted anything Hallowe'eny in a while, same ol same ol excuses about work, busy with life, crap like that.  I have some video footage that I've been meaning to edit but after dinner, dishes and baths, it's bed time.  I need to get my priorities straightened out...fun NOW!

Mother Nature gave my folks a present!  A pinata!  Yah!  Let me go get a stick so you can swing at it and try and hit it!  I bet candy and goodies fall out!

In all seriousness, this thing is a work of art.  I looked at it (from a VERY safe distance) and it's amazing.

Look what you're missing folks....

Shameth on me.  I art a sluggard and a dufus.

I host these giveaways and Pam Morris of Labyrinth Creations actually showed the results of one.  And I haven't.  Actually, several people have strutted their stuff including Shell of Shellhawk's Nest when she did some great postcards from another giveaway.  But not me.  Shame be unto me.
One the average, Uprinting.com, allows me to host a GENEROUS giveaway on the average of once a month and I HIGHLY encourage you to stick your name in the hat when you see ANYONE hosting one of these giveaways;  the prizes are fantastic and although you have to do the design work yourself, you have something that is truly unique and impressive.

A 24" x 24" wall sticker of my Hallowe'en poem for the Unresting Place

My brochure AND THE GIVEAWAY THAT I'M CURRENTLY HOSTING SO GO LEAVE A COMMENT AND ENTER! 

July Giveaway! 100 Full Color Brochures!

You're going to love this month's giveaway, brochure printing!  Brochures are a surefire way to have the space and the creativity to say what you want about YOU.  If you want to step up to the next level of self promotion, then a brochure is the way to do it.  I have had brochures done in town and through online printing with this company.  I can attest that the quality is MUCH better, the paper a LOT heavier and the prices a LOT lower.  But what about getting it free?  You can't beat THAT price through this giveaway!

Here's the nitty gritty:

100 8.5 x 11 inch tri-fold brochures, full color printing on BOTH sides!    

Glossy 100lb Paper          

Eligibility: Limited to US Residents only, 18 and older 

Now, here's how to go about entering...just like all the rest, I would like to know how you would use a stack of custom brochures in the comments.  That's all...no tweets, no Facebooking, no Myspacing, no linking, just a comment, that's all!  How simple is that?!  The only thing is, I HAVE TO BE ABLE TO GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU VIA AN EMAIL ADDRESS!  I'm a pretty smart guy and can look most people up or track them down but I have to be able to find you pretty quickly when the contest ends so I can let my sponsor, brochure printing know how to get your prize to you.  

Drawing will be held July 28 via Random.org, just to keep things fair and square.  Prizes will be sent on or before the end of the month. So go ahead and don't procrastinate or you'll forget!

Good luck y'all!!!!

*Just a quick heads up--the brochure printing prize requires that you do your OWN designing; this can be a challenging feat if you aren't familiar with an imaging program like Gimp, or Photoshop.

Happy Independence Day!

I saw this and kept reading the words over and over.  Yes, America has a LOT of problems, but to those of us that live here, it is our home and I'm proud of it and love it despite the boneheads that try and screw it up (and boneheads in this case is NOT a nice term).
God bless America, and Canada, and England and Australia and Mexico and wherever else that you may live today and every day.

Something talented this way comes...

It started with this fellow...

Now it has spread to this...

And another is on the way.  For those that may not know her, please allow me to introduce to you Shell of Shellhawk's Nest.  If you don't follow her blog, then you should, you're missing a LOT.  First of all, she's a regular on Hauntcast (if you don't know what Hauntcast is, it's a podcast of nothing but Halloween tips, tricks and instruction on how to make a first rate haunt and profiles the brilliant evil geniuses that spend their lives for one night each year.  If you don't know what a podcast is, I can't help you).  Second, her blog is always entertaining, informative and fun, (although her new banner makes me envious!).  Third...she's an artist and that's what this is all about...these pumpkins are hers and now they're mine!  The top one is raku, which is a glazing technique that can give organic, metallic colors that are very beautiful and from what I understand, is a bit time consuming to execute.  The bottom is a wonderful traditional design like what I grew up with (he makes me nostalgic, that's why I had to have him) in glossy pumpkin orange.  I love them both, they put me in the mood.


Link to her Etsy site (what the $#@% is an Etsy anyhow?! And while we're at it, what the &*%@ is an EBay?! Electronic tsy?  Electronic Bay?!  Whaaaaaaat?!?!?!)

Be on the lookout for more designs and larger sizes coming up!

Cussed Out

I have never been cussed out before...until yesterday at a customer's house.  It was unexpected, and his high pitched voice grated on my nerves.

I was cussed out by an African Gray parrot.  The fellow asked me if I spoke Spanish and I said very little, and for me to please not be offended by what comes out of this bird's beak.  This bird is bilingual and can cuss in English and Spanish!   He also tried to imitate the phone ringing and made an uncanny imitation of his master's voice.

YOU %$#^ SONUVA &*%#@$%  

You would be VERY surprised about what I run across in people's homes from time to time!  This is just one of the funnier ones!

Now that's what I'm talkin' about when I say breakfast!

Now kiddies, this is what I call breakfast!  2 Krispy Kreme classic donuts and a couple of greasy strips of bacon!  All I needed was a little maple syrup to drag the bacon through and I would have been all set but this will do in a pinch. 
Mrs. Macabre and I went to Nashville for a freebie trip from her company, which was nice.  They always do things first class.  I'm in love with Tennessee, what a beautiful state!  Nashville was gorgeous, it kind of reminded me of New Orleans without the stale beer/prevalent barf smell everywhere.  This was my mood 3 minutes after I woke up this morning realizing that I had to come back home to Alabama...

This was obviously BEFORE I pulled out the Mary Kay and Paul Mitchell....

I made an ever-loving hog of myself Friday night when the Big Boss treated us all to a free dinner at a classy restaurant.  I had never had a 24 ounce steak before...mind you the plate was about 16 inches across...a charger size.

I like my steaks to moo.  Nevertheless, it was delicious and the best part was that I didn't have to pay for it!

Lastly, I'm wiped out.  It was 96 here today with high humidity and tomorrow is supposed to be 100, but I've got some how-to video editing that I'm going to post soon that will be done in the nice cool air conditioning and a couple of pumpkins that I got that I've got to gush over....they're gorgeous and the best part is, Shell of Shellhawk's Nest did them!

More to come!

A Quick Blogger Question...

Is anyone else out there not receiving email notifications on new posts or replies to posts or is is just me?  About a week ago I stopped getting email notifications and thought no one loved me anymore until I checked my dashboard and saw the love there...

Random Youtube Scariness...

This one is dang scary.  Why the %#$@& would you pet a cat with human hands after he viciously ate a crow in the first place?!


This is somewhat disturbing, the 1920's music, the 'happy' dancing clown, I don't know, it just does...



What...just...happened??? (warning, they don't use &%$#@, they use the real thing)



Demon possessed baby doll...



And lastly...

FangAGRA

I, of course, don't need this. I'm just posting this for those of you who might...I'm just sayin'...


FangAGRA

Atom.com: Funny Videos | Spoofs | Funny Animations

And Now For Something Creepily Different! And A Review!!!

If you haven't had the pleasure of meeting Unkle Pigors, then you've missed a treat!  Allow me to introduce you to Toxic Toons, your one stop shop for all things creepy and WAY over the top!  His artwork reminds me of Rat Fink with all the wonderful vileness and depravity that you can stand with a decidedly Halloween twist!  He seems like the kind of person that you make SURE comes to your parties.

Now for the review...

Unkle Pigor's Spookhouse DVD
Available HERE

I have to admit that besides secretly listening to Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson, this is another one of my guilty pleasures that I indulge in.  I'm not one to quote popular culture too much but THIS ROCKS, IZ DA BOMB AN ALL DAT, and pretty dang groovy too!  My two favorite sections have to be Children's Day at the Morgue and Lets Chop Soo-e!, an animated cartoon with all the the subtlety and restraint of a rabid cat on crack.  I can't stop watching it!  Lots of twisted and demented animations as well as a very interesting interview with Unkle Pigors (aka Eric Pigors).  I can vouch for the sheer insanity of this DVD.

Click HERE for a preview of Unkle Pigor's Spookhouse DVD, you'll be glad you did!

Crazy Cool Retractable Vampire Fangs!

Remember Gary Oldman when he's about to put the bite on Winona Ryder in Bram Stoker's Dracula?  His fangs slowly grow down leaving vampire aficionados like me drooling for a pair.

My dear dark friends...I joyfully present Vampfangs:



Ordered me 2 sets.  They were on sale too so hurry up!

A Little Bit of Everything

Some people do link dumps but this is a picture dump.  Just a bunch of pictures from my cell phone and around the house...

Pretty lily at my folk's house...

Blue Hydrangea in my garden

Wallpaper for my computer...

Yes, upside down tomatoes do work.

First one of the season to turn red.

Snuggie, the wonder Chiwienie! (Sleeps with me, tends to be a bedhog though)

Blue Angels over the house earlier last month...they nearly scraped the shingles off the roof!

Bought these at a discount clearance store.  WT@#&%* is going on here?! I'm trying to stay at 'multi-flavor colorings' to keep from looking down at the really horrific spectacle... I really don't know what terrifies me more, the scary @$$ clown vomiting the jelly beans or the Little Orphan Annie zombie kids eating the regurgitated confections!  Either way, I'm scarred on a very very deep level.
And the jelly beans were nasty, I managed to pick out and eat all the red ones and tossed all the rest.

Found these two animal crackers gettin' freaky in a box I bought and had to take a picture AND WHOA, WE DON'T GO FOR THAT THERE STUFF HERE IN THE SOUTH!  
*chomp munch munch*

And lastly, my first olive off of my olive tree...

A quick update post...

Since the spider war is over, I've been in the shop cleaning, reorganizing and actually WORKING ON HALLOWE'EN PROPS!  I've neglected blogging a bit but I have some tutorials on some of my new and old props that you might be interested in coming up soon...as well as pictures of Snuggie, my new Chiweinie.

And remember, the clock is ticking, you should be working on props and decorations!

Winner for the Month of May From Brochures Printing Online!

Congratulations to Pam Morris of Labryinth Creations for being chosen by Random.org to be this month's winner of 100 custom brochures from Brochures Printing Online!   

Again, congratulations Pam from Brochures Printing Online, (my wonderful sponsor) and myself!

Happy Birthday...To MOI!!!

Gentle readers, I'm so sorry that I have been MIA for a while, for things have been hectic lately from the brown recluse massacre in my shed (thanks to my very understanding exterminators who still treat me with respect in spite of the fact that there was a shed full of skulls, skeletal parts and coffins in it), to actually working (yah!  I can buy name brand macaroni and cheese this week for dinner!), to reorganizing the shed (ugh, organization is NOT my forte').

And in the process, I have a birthday tomorrow. 46 years old....1......2......3.....................................


AAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!


Ok, I'm better now.  I'm calm, collect and able to take this like the strong, mature man that I have grown to be...mainly by having a mid-life crisis!  Yay!  That will be fun!  I can get an earring, a tattoo, a motorcycle, some leather pants, and, uh, uh, $#@^&!!!  Been there, done all that.

I'm prattling, forgive me, we just got a new puppy, a 4 pound Chiweenie puppy that has this habit of waking up at 3 in the morning wanting to pee and play and I'm rather delirious at the moment.  I've made some great progress on the piano playing ghost; the mechanism works wonderfully, the hands go up and down and back and forth across the keys.  I will post pictures and video soon of the progress. I bought myself (or rather Bellasarius) a new top hat today.  I, (or rather Bellasarius), has a big fat ginormous head, a XXL hat so I have to  order a hat online when I can catch them carrying big sizes.  I have waited for this company to get this top hat in for about a year in my size.  Why can't things be normal for me just once.

Sorry for the stream of consciousness writing, I promise to do better next post.

From the Garden

Despite my overwhelming love of things dark and dank, I do have a certain passion for beautiful flowers.  The theme of the garden is magic, I try to have plants in there that have some sort of wondrous or spiritual significance to them (I have a ton of marigolds in there for the Day of the Dead but I figured you know what a marigold looks like). These are some that are currently on stage in the garden right now.  Above we have lantana, a scrubby bush with flowerheads that change color as they bloom outward, like magic. I think this one is called Candy.

Next we have the French Poodles of the plant world...roses.  They're temperamental, fussy, and takes a lot of TLC but if everything is right, they're breathtakingly beautiful.

The bottom newest one called Cinco de Mayo.
And if roses are the French poodles of the plant world, peonies are the drag queens...showy, over the top, and absolutely stunning...

By the way, can someone tell me what kind of tree this is that popped up on the edge of the garden?

I thought it might be some kind of maple but the leaves are really large. Whatever it is, please tell me it has beautiful fall color, please?