Halloween is Fast Approaching

We're coming on one of the most enjoyable holidays again... Halloween!!! If you need some creepy decor ideas, I have a great Pinterest board on uber creepy decor. Since it's my board, I have to say, I personally love this collection I've curated over the web.

Of course, if you need more ideas, come and check out my shop too, specially my signature creepylicious bottles. I also have other curio items that would be just as creepy! They are sure to add that extra kick to your Halloween decor this year! Check them out here. 

Make your own ghoulish Halloween centerpiece

Simple, easy to assemble and will make a real creepy centerpiece

Planning your Halloween dinner? Here's a macabre centerpiece for your dining table that will fit the mood - a dead tree with low hanging Halloween decor. It's pretty simple to make with found materials. All you need are: Halloween decor that you can hang (your local dollar store is always a good bet for affordable, creepy fun, or you can get unique and hand made Halloween decor, or use any Halloween decor that you already have). Next you need a dark green wine bottle, cleaned and dried.  If you don't drink wine or have any old wine bottles handy, look in your kitchen. Those brown steak sauce bottles or even soy sauce bottles would make great vases.  Last, you need fallen twigs/branches and some of those glorious autumn leaves. And with trees shedding their golden foliage this time of year, the last two are available almost anywhere.

Materials: wine bottle, twigs, leaves and Halloween decor

1. If you want a black bottle, you have to first spray paint your bottle and let it dry. As an alternative, you can use your cleaned dark green or brown wine/sauce bottle as is. The color adds interest and color that's in keeping with the season.

2. Position your twigs and make sure they fit in the bottle's mouth securely. Arrange the twigs to point in different directions, away from your bottle. This will make it look like a tree with its branches spreading out. Try to choose twigs with several branches or curves on them. These lines will give your centerpiece more interest.

3. And here's the best step, hang your decorative Halloween decor! Oh so fun!

4. As a last touch, spread autumn leaves at the foot of the bottle. You can also hang some up on your twigs for color.

If you want to make a bigger centerpiece, use three bottles and stand them together with the sides touching. Tie all three bottles together with a black ribbon or loosely drape a gray or black muslin over it after you have inserted the twigs. Cheesecloth also works great for this, you can dye them with fabric dye or just let it steep in really strong coffee, then dry, to get a darker, dirtier look. Use bigger twigs and insert one in each bottle and then hang up your Halloween decor. This simple piece would work great as a corner accent too.

There you go, a creepylicious centerpiece for Halloween! Hope you have fun creating your own centerpieces!

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If you are interested in the hand made, one of a kind Halloween decor in the pictures (they can sit on a vase or hang upside down) and creepy Halloween bottles, they are available in my Etsy Shop or at the Spooked in Seattle Gift Shop.

How to arrange a lovely bouquet of creepiness

With Halloween fast approaching, many must be picking their creepiest, scariest decor ever! And I must say, there's nothing creepier than a centerpiece of eyes on stems looking at your dinner guests as they take each gruesome bite.

But getting it to this nice arrangement can mean a little craftiness on your part - they are on thick metal stems after all that will not stand on its own. So I made this little infographics which I hope will help you with your centerpiece, be it a bouquet of eyes or something similar. Enjoy! 

OrangeJar Art now available at SPOOKED IN SEATTLE

Super excited! My Halloween products found the perfect gateway to the world beyond - the center of everything that goes bump in the night of this evergreen state -- Spooked in Seattle! 

All of my works are hand sculpted and are one of a kind (OOAK). If you're in the area, I do hope you can check it out!

Bouquet of eyes, also available as singles

Creepy eye keychains and skull fridge magnets

An eye for you

So excited about this new item I'm coming out with - eye on a stick. This is the first batch, my studies, but I'll have more pictures up soon and more designs of eye on a stick available on my Etsy Shop.

Apothecary Collection - hand painted labels

Recently, I started my ghoulish bottle collection (I blogged about it here) - creepy eyes and screaming black souls looking at you from black bottles filled with whatever ghoulish content your imagination can dredge up. And I'm having tons of creepy fun creating them!

Today, I started a hand-painted labels series featuring the most exotic of ingredients - mermaid scales and werewolf fur. They are now available on my Etsy shop. These, like my ghoulish series are so fun to make, I'll definitely be coming up with more soon.

Halloween / Witch's Brews & Potions / Apothecary Collection

Mermaid Scales

Back of Mermaid Scales bottle

Werewolf Fur

Back of Werewolf Fur bottle

Ghoulish potions

Back of ghoulish potions

Creepy bottle, rounded edges

Screaming souls from all sides

Screaming souls from all sides

The new collection

Product details available on my Etsy Shop: OrangeJarArt

Halloween decor

I love Halloween decor. I'd love to go crazy with jute sacks and black lace, ghoulish props and witches' brews. But of course, budget and space is always a problem. So I keep my Halloween party ideas on Pinterest instead. I collect inspirations from classic to the macabre on my board called Booooo... oooo... ooooooooooo.... 

So while collecting those, I have also dreamt up of making my own props and decor and finally this year -- enter unabashed self-promotion -- I have finally come out with my first Halloween inspired decorations: ghoulish bottles that will look back at you; black, aged, vessels to keep the spirits of the night. These, I am very proud to say, would look at home in your apothecary cupboard or witches' kitchen. These are available for sale in my Etsy shop. To view the full collection, just click here. 

Booooo.... oooooo... ooooo to you all.....

ARTE Souq Ikea (Nov 2, 2012)

It was a Darth Vader day. My day opened with the sale of cutie pie Darth Vader (about 1.5" tall) and ended with the bigger Darth (about 4" tall) being broken.

A group of teens passed by and saw the Star Wars inspired items and immediately bought lil Darth. Yey! First sale of the day.

Unfortunately, towards the end of the evening, not much people were passing through so I started reading my book. A lot of kids from all ages have grabbed the clay collectibles, particularly the one in the red shayla and Darth Vader, so I don't mind kids holding them. They are sturdy and will not break easy.

So there I was reading, when I heard a couple of kids gab excitedly about Darth Vader (he is such an attention getter!). As I looked up, I saw one of the boy's hand grab Darth Vader and use his other hand to bend the light saber the other way. He quickly put it back, still talking to what I assume what his sister, and walked to the other side of the table. I took Darth V and sure enough, the light saber was broken, I looked at the kid and all I can stammer was "You broke it". Kid promptly turned around and disappeared in the crowd that suddenly formed going out to the parking. There goes 4-5 hours of work in a blink. I can repair it but I don't feel comfortable selling items that have been repaired.

Sigh. Guess I have to be more vigilant about warning kids to be careful.

That said, I got a good sale from my Gingerbread and Camel Christmas tree decor, so yey again! Lots of people found the Shrek Gingerbread man during torture and after torture adorable and bought them as sets.

By the way, thanks to Rohini of Ragmatazz for including my little mummy in the ARTE Halloween blog entry. Little Mummy also found a new home yesterday, as an adorable little boy promised his dad that he will keep him beside his bed and not be scared. Awww.

Big shoutout to all my friends who dropped by to give their support (and much-needed bathroom breaks!).

Here are some images from my table yesterday.

In the morning after set-up

Near closing time

Gingerbread and Camel Christmas tree decor. I also have "Shrek" Gingerbread Man during and after the torture versions.

I was also super duper lucky with my highschool friend Dea coming over to say hello before going off to sniff out great jewelry finds at ARTE. Her hubby, Chef Andrew made sushi and I got two full boxes! It was yum, I gobbled up the first box for my sit in dinner, since the souq yesterday was until 9pm. 

Yum!

Anyways, one more week till the next ARTE Souq - gotta get busy again creating more Christmas Tree decorations. Hope to see you at ARTE Souq Timesquare on November 9!

Camels & Christmas

Happy Halloween!

The rest of the world is still celebrating Halloween but for us it was last night. And instead of scaring ourselves, hubby and I decided to laugh the night away at the premiere of Here Comes The Boom. Quite a funny and uplifting movie, thoroughly enjoyed it.

That was our treat to ourselves, the major break in our last two days' mad rush to finish work.   I've been creating new items for tomorrow's ARTE Souq Ikea. Been working mostly on some Christmas tree decorations - I have some pretty cute Christmas camels that will be charming your socks off.

Here's a preview of the Gingerbread men. Bet you would recognize this fellow here. Each piece will come with a red silk ribbon to make your Christmas tree more merry.

Hope to see you tomorrow at ARTE Souq Ikea!