DIY Zombie Nails and Zombie Photo Shoot

     This year I decided to go for a zombie look for Dare to Wear's annual Halloween costume contest.  I saw these awesome nails on Pinterest and decided to use them for inspiration.  I'm not nearly as talented as the person who painted those, but I think my nails give that "just crawled out of the grave" vibe nonetheless.  Plus, you can make these using just nail polish.
     I intended to take pictures of the stages, but it ended up taking some trial and error, removing polish and adding it back, before I got the "bruising" to a point where I was okay with it.  Thus, my instructions don't fully capture the process I went through.  Hopefully you can replicate these without those issues, but if it takes a few tries, you're in good company.

Materials:

*Clear base coat
*White nail polish
*Dark purple nail polish
*Lavender nail polish
*Magenta nail polish
*Crimson nail polish
*Nail art brush
*Makeup sponge or sponge brush

Directions:

*Start by painting your nails as you would for a French manicure.

*Sponge on dark purple around the base of the nails to create bruising.

*Sponge on a light layer of lavender nail polish to tone down the dark purple a little.

*Sponge a little bit of magenta around the edges of the "bruising.". Let dry.

*Use the nail art brush to draw on "cracks" in the nails in crimson.

*Add crimson "bloodstains" to the tips of the nails and sponge on some crimson along the skin beneath the nails.

Undying Love Photo Shoot

     For Dare to Wear's contest, I wanted to do something with the Sweetheart Top in scarlet.  The red roses remind me of Valentine's Day and Valentine's Day reminds me of zombies, so I decided to go with a zombie themed shoot I called "Undying Love." Here are the photos that I thought  captured the story.

Other Zombie Photos

     I also took some photos that didn't really fit into the narrative.  And since I have my zombie romper, I thought it would be funny to do a zombie shoot in a zombie romper, so we did a second photo shoot with the zombie romper.  I'm so glad we did that second shoot too, because I feel like I really got into character with that one and some of the pics are pretty creepy.
     This was probably my favorite photo shoot I've done.  The nice thing about being a zombie is that you don't have to worry about looking pretty.  I didn't have to smile.  I spent the two hours Brian was photographing me growling and gnashing my teeth.  This may sound weird, but I had a ton of fun pretending to be a zombie.
     The pics that follow are just a small sample of the ones Brian shot, and I love each one of them.

Stenciled T-shirt

cw: domestic violence.  For more information about domestic violence or how to receive help, check out this post I wrote a few years ago.

     In addition to being Halloween season, October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  Each day, more than 20,000 calls are made to domestic violence organizations across the country.  In Maine, about half of all homicides in a given year are acts of domestic violence.  Millions of Americans are experiencing or have experienced physical, psychological, or sexual abuse at the hands of intimate partners or family members.  Many of these people are suffering in silence.  There are myriad reasons why, but lack of education around what relationship violence is, inadequate support systems, and a cultural refusal to believe survivors are all contributors.
     This month I challenge you to do something to take a stand against domestic violence.  Participate in an awareness event, donate to your local domestic violence organization, check in on your friends and loved ones.  If we all made a small effort, the sum of those small efforts could create a big change.  That change could save lives.

Flowers laid down at the 5th annual UMaine March Against Domestic Violence in memory of school teacher Amy Bagley Lake and her children Monica and Cody, who were killed by the children's father in 2011.

     Now to your regularly scheduled craft.  I used my Silhouette CAMEO to cut out the letters for this shirt, but letter stickers could work just as well.

Materials:

*T-shirt
*Letter stickers
*Spray on fabric paint

Directions:

*Cover your well ventilated work station with newspaper, scrap paper, or some other covering.

*Lay your clean, dry T-shirt down on your work surface.

*Stick the letter stickers to the shirt, forming the message you want to send.

*Paint the area around the letter stickers following the directions on the can.

*Let dry for a few minutes and then carefully peel the letter stickers off.

*Let dry the rest of the way.

*If your stickers are sufficiently sticky, the fabric paint should not get under the letters.  However, if it does, you can touch up these areas with fabric paint that is the same color as your T-shirt and a small brush, such as a nail art brush.

Mad Hatter Hat

     No Alice in Wonderland themed party would be complete without the Mad Hatter.  Since Brian and I are going with a dark Alice look for Halloween, I used black fabric and adornments, but you could always use green or other colors for a more classic Mad Hatter look.

Materials:

*1 yd of fabric in the color you would like the hat to be
*Ribbon in a corresponding color
*All purpose adhesive
*Large cardboard box
*Two 12"x12" sheets of paperboard or large cylindrical container
*Packing tape
*Scissors
*Adornments (optional)

Directions:

*Start by cutting out the brim of the hat from cardboard.  Make sure to have the hat wearer nearby so they can test to make sure it fits.

*Cut out the top part of the hat from the cardboard.

*If you don't have a cardboard cylinder on hand to use to make the hat, you can make one from paperboard.

*Curl two sheets of paperboard such that, when placed edge to edge, they form a cylinder.

*Tape two ends together using packing tape and then repeat with the other two ends.

*Glue the cylinder in between the hat's brim and the top part of the hat like such:

*Drape the fabric over the hat.

*Tie a ribbon around the lower part of the hat.

*Trim excess fabric so that there is just enough to cover the underside of the brim.

*Glue the fabric to the brim.  Let dry.

*Once dry, add any adornments you would like to.

Alice in Wonderland Pinafore Apron

     Complete your Alice look with this easy to sew pinafore apron.

Materials:

*2 yds white cotton fabric

*Scrap red fabric

*Metallic marker

*Ruler

*Needle
*White thread
*Red thread
*Safety pins

Directions:

*Place a well fitting camisole or T-shirt over the white cloth and trace around it.  If the straps are thin, do not trace around those. 

*Using the outline as a guide and a ruler, create the top part of your pinnafore.  I've left the dimensions of mine on the pattern if you want to use those.  You'll want it to be long enough to reach your natural waist, so if you're tall, you'll want to add some length.

*Hem the edges, with the exception of the bottom edge and the tops of the straps.

*To make the bottom part of the pinnafore, you'll want to make the upper edge as wide as the bottom of the top piece and then flare out a little.  I've included the dimensions of mine if you want to use them.  Again, I'm short, so if you're taller, you may want to length it a little.

*Hem the edges, except for the top one.

*To make the waist tie, I cut out a length of cloth that was 2.25" x 60".

*Align the top piece with the center of the waist tie and sew together.

*Align the bottom piece with the waist piece so that it is in line with the top piece and sew together.

*Hem the edges of the tie.

*Cut out two strips of fabric that are 2.25" x 24".

*Hem all of the edges of both strips except for the one that will connect to the straps.

*Sew one length of fabric to each strap to create the neck tie.

*To make the pockets, trace the template below onto the white fabric twice and cut out.

*Cut out two small hearts from the red fabric and sew them to the pockets.

*Hem the top of each pocket (the side with no overhang).

*To sew the pockets on, fold the edges under and pin to the apron, then sew down the three sides, leaving an opening at the top.

Eyeball Throw Pillow

     All eyes will be on you this Halloween season if you add these spooky throw pillows to your decor.

Materials:

*White fabric (I used flannel, but other fabrics would probably work just as well)
*Black felt
*Felt in the color you want the iris to be
*Needle and thread
*Red fabric paint
*Scissors
*Stuffing

Directions:

*Cut out two large white circles (I used a dinner plate to trace the circles), a medium sized circle in the color you want the iris to be, and a small black circle.

*Sew the black circle to the medium sized circle.

*Sew the medium sized circle to one of the white circles.

*Place the two white circles right side in and sew along the edge, leaving an opening for stuffing.

*Turn the pillow right side in and stuff, then sew closed using the ladder stitch.

*Draw on blood vessels using red fabric paint.

Alice in Wonderland Mushroom Props

     Here's another piece of my Alice in Halloweenland project.  You could make props for a typical Alice in Wonderland event by using red paint instead of black.

Materials:

*Air dry clay (I accidentally used oven baked and it still worked, but I would recommend oven baked so you don't have to worry about potentially setting the paper or cardboard on fire)
*Thin cardboard tube
*Scrap paper or newspaper
*Black paint (or red if you're going for the classic Wonderland mushrooms)
*White paint
*Paintbrush

Directions:

*Cover the outside of the cardboard tube with clay.

*Make a clay circle as large as you would like your mushroom to be and place that on top of the cardboard tube.

*Merge the clay at the top of the tube with the clay on top of the mushroom such that the whole thing comes together as one unit.

*Crumple a piece of paper and place it on top of the clay circle.

*Form a larger clay circle and drape that over the wadded up paper.

*Merge this clay with that of the other circle to form the top of the mushroom.  Set aside to dry.

*Once dry, paint the mushroom as you wish.

White Rabbit Pocket Watch Bag

     Your White Rabbit plushie will always be on time with this bag made using a real pocket watch.

Materials:

*Mini pocket watch
*Jewelry chain that matches the pocket watch
*Two pairs of jewelry making pliers

Directions:

*Find a mini pocket watch that is the desired size for your White Rabbit.  Many pocket watches come with a chain, so if yours does, all you'll have to do is shorten the chain to the desired length.

*Take the chain and drape it across the White Rabbit like a sash to figure out how much of the chain you'll need.

*Remove excess chain by opening the link at the end of the desired length with pliers.

*Slide the watch onto the desired length of chain and then connect the two ends of the chain using pliers.