of ghosts and goblins and ghouls

Halloween is in the heavy planning stages already.  I have both costumes ready to go too!  They seem to have outgrown cute, and this year we're into scary.  Pook is going as a mummy and Bug as a vampire.

He's unaware of vampire-trendiness although he will certainly be a kissable vampire.  No blood on the face.  Lipstick if he'll allow it, hair gel, plastic teeth (until he wants to snack on candy), and a cape.  We're lucky on the cape.  Sister MD gave each boy a handmade cape when they were toddlers.  Red velvet and black satin.  With the help of my mom (my sewing machine is still dead) they were given the same hem and tacked together so the red is inside the black satin.  Then a collar was added.  Let me say, this type of sewing is half math, half art and half luck.  I found a pattern for a shirt collar online.  I experimented until I had made a paper sample about the right size.  (Then I called my mom for help!)  Using fabric left from Pook's bat costume (2008) and canvas left from a school auction project , plus the always present hot glue gun, we made a black stand up collar to tack in between the two capes.

For Pook, we sacrificed a shirt and pants, then hot glued long, winding strips of white ripped up t-shirt and sheet onto the clothes.  A t-shirt sleeve (adult size) fits over his head, exposing his face to wear his skeleton mask (2006).  He owns skeleton gloves too, if the weather isn't too hot.  I can't wait to get photos of the costumes up here!

notes:
* The haunted gingerbread house is still a bowl of dough.  Maybe tomorrow I'll have time to bake.
* The Halloween candy is still in an unopened bag on the top shelf of the pantry.  My regular chocolate stash has filled in as emergency chocolate to keep the Halloween candy untouched.  Once that bag gets opened, it's all over!
* I might be hosting a pre-trick-or-treat gathering for about 40 children in our neighborhood.  Or not.