Halloween: Easy Skull Candles

 

Can you ever have enough candles? Especially ones easy to "make" and that go with your Halloween decor? Clearly, my answer is: "Of course not!"

These are super easy to make and can be done in any style you like.

Supplies:

• Plain Glass Candles (Dollar Tree)
• Decorative Napkins (Walmart)
• Mod Podge (Stash)
• Cording and Beads (Stash)

I keep plain glass jar prayer candles from Dollar Tree in my stash, and picked up a $.98 package of napkins at Walmart. 

If you want a more opaque look, you can skip this part but I was going for a more translucent effect so I separated the patterned layer from the white backing. 

This also lets the Mod Podge seep through better. After I separated the layers, I tore the edges of the napkins both for appearance and because they were too tall for the candles. 

If you have any edges hanging over, no worries. Use lightweight sandpaper, a sanding block or an emery board to sand off once the candles are dry. 

Spread Mod Podge down the length of the candle and adhere one edge of the napkin. Normally, I coat the object and the paper I'm adhering but since the napkins were so absorbent, I just tacked one edge, and then applied the Mod Podge atop the napkin as I wrapped it around the candle. 

For this project, all of the crinkles and wrinkles just added to the look! I let these dry overnight. 

You can see here where I had some edges that were hanging over. I used a sanding block on them and they came right off. 

To finish, I grabbed some waxed cotton cording and crystal beads to wrap around the tops. 

When lit, you can see the glow come through the skulls! 

So now we have some spooky candles to accent our table! 

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Sundays on Silverado

Papercrafting: 2023 Halloween Cards

 

I'm easing back not only into making things but also getting them posted, after my unintentional Summer Break. It doesn't take long to forget the work that goes into taking pictures, uploading and photo-editing them, planning out a post, etc. 

Of course, I never take a break from being on the lookout for supplies and ideas and in early September, I didn't skip or delay picking up a fun Halloween Paper stack at Michaels. I needed an escape from the news over the weekend so I got busy making cards for family and friends. I love that a few people keep these and pull them out each year as part of their decor. 

Supplies: 

• Witch's Lair 12x12 Paper Stack (Recollections, Michaels)
• Black 110 lb Cardstock (Recollections, Michaels)
• Gold Foil 65lb Cardstock (Recollections, Michaels)
• Gold Star Transparency (Stash)
• Tape Runner or Double Sided Tape
• Self Adhesive Rhinestones

This is the stack I used which comes with a mix of plain, foiled, and panel sheets. As much as I love my digital cutting machines, I love these kinds of paper stacks because the panel sheets are perfect focals for cards. 

I generally make my cards 5x7 which I did for these. Cut the black cardstock 7x10 then score in the middle. For the background panels, I chose a few different papers in the stack. 

The panel pages always come in different sizes. If you're not into card making you can simply cut and frame some of them!

Cut and trim the panels you want to use, and then mat with coordinating paper. I used the gold foil or black cardstock. 

I picked up the coordinating washi tape in the Witch's Lair collection which I attached to some of the panels before adhering them to the background panel.

To finish, I used self adhesive rhinestones to add a little glam! 

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Jewelry Making: Spooky Season Jewelry

 

I recently made some birthday gifts for fellow September babies and since Spooky Season would soon follow their birthdays, made them each a coordinating pair of earrings and a bracelet. 

Supplies: 

• Hildie and Jo Witch and "Jack" Beads (JoAnn)
• Bead Landing Coordinating Beads (Michaels)
• Fish Hook Ear Wires (Michaels)
• Jump Rings, Head Pins (Michaels)
• Stretch Jewelry Cord (Michaels)
• Jewelry or Super Glue (Walmart)

I found the Halloween-themed beads at JoAnn over the Summer and got them in the off-season. The other beads are ones I keep stocked in my stash. I hit the Michaels and JoAnn sales or use coupons! It's what we do, right? 

The process is the same for each set. 

For the earrings, string desired beads onto a head pin, then make a wrapped loop. There are a ton of tutorials on You Tube that can show you better than I can. I've linked one here but I find that I have to look for tutorials that make sense to my brain so watch a few different ones.  You will need a pair of small round nose pliers like the ones shown here which are available in jewelry sections of craft stores, bead stores, or online. 

Once you've completed your loops, attach to the ear wire using a jump ring (and here's another video on how to open and close jump rings) and you're done!

For the bracelets, cut a length of stretchy jewelry making cord longer than you need. Some people measure precisely. I don't. I cut about 12 inches for a bracelet because I like having the ends longer for knot tying. Use a clamp (they sell specific ones for jewelry...I use a binder clip or a cheap plastic clamp I found at Dollar Tree). String beads in whatever pattern you like. I just string, do a checkpoint aroung my wrist for size and when I'm good, tie a tight basic knot and add a tiny dab of jewelry glue or I like the gel formula super glue. 

This stuff is great and you really only need a tiny bit. I always make another knot with another dab. Give the glue a minute to dry then trim as close to the knot as possible with wire cutters or sharp scissors. 

I used extra beads and related charms to add a little dangle to my bracelets. String the bead on the head pin as shown for the earrings, close the loop, use a jump ring to attach to the bracelet. Same with the charm. 

Happy Haunting! 

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Halloween: Spooky Season Layered Bat and Moon Cards

 

Halloween cards just may be my favorite cards to make. I love using non-traditional colors and for this year's, I went with a brilliant royal blue as a color accent to go with shiny silver and gold.  

Supplies:

• Black 110lb Cardstock (Recollections,Michaels)
• Metallic Blue,Silver,Gold Cardstock (Recollections,Michaels)
• Foiled Halloween Scrapbook Paper (Spook Hill, Michaels)
• Layered SVGs (Bat is from Creative Fabrica Moon is Cricut Design Space)
• Digital Cutting Machine
• Adhesive Tape Runner
• Coordinating Sequins
• Self-adhesive Rhinestones
• Dimensional Glue (Glossy Accents, Ranger)

I selected the foiled skull and stars papers from the Spook Hill stack I had from last year. When I'm making multiples, I like to have my cards and panels all cut ahead of time, as well as any images I'm using. That way when it's time to assemble, I'm just focused on that. 

Card Size: 5x7 so cut 7x10 and score in the middle. 

Blue Panel: 4.75x6.75

Foiled Papers: 4x6

After deciding on my images, I brought into Cricut Design Space and then cut everything out. 

The Bat SVG comes with four layers but I went with three. Black base, white middle, gold top. For the moon, I used the offset option in Cricut Design Space to create the gold layer and cut the image from silver paper. 

I used spray adhesive to attach the Bat layers and then foam dots to attach the silver layer to the gold layer for the moons. 

I assembled the cards as shown and then used double-sided tape to attach the moon and foam tape to attach the bat. To finish, I used bright gold sequins and clear rhinestones to decorate the moon and bat. 

The blue reminds me of the night sky!