13 Days of Creepmas: Gingerbread Haunted Houses and Gingerdead Cookies

The Haunted Mansion's 2014 Gingerbread House at Disneyland! 

They change it every year for their Nightmare Before Christmas 

display! It is massive and I believe it is made with real gingerbread.

Building gingerbread houses for the holidays just got a whole lot creepier! Instead of traditional cutesy gingerbread houses, this year you can make a ginger-"dead" haunted house, taking inspiration from Halloween or The Nightmare Before Christmas, like the photo above! A lot of gingerbread kits are sold around Halloween, but you can also make or modify your own for Creepmas. 

Halloween Party Planning Begins: Zombie Prom

 Dying to Party!

[source]

Sheesh, I feel like I am so behind on my Halloween planning even though it is only July. Around this time of year, though, I usually already have my costume picked out, the theme all planned out, a date chosen, and lots of ideas for games/food/etc.

This year though, I’m lagging a bit behind, even though we are only 114 days away from Halloween! I have decided on a theme, though: zombie prom! I know zombies are a bit over-played at the moment, but who cares? I have always loved zombies and I think this theme would allow people a lot of creativity in choosing their costumes, plus would be really awesome/easy to decorate for! Some of my ideas for the party are below.

Costumes: Obviously, guests could come as just a regular ol’ zombie, but even better would be high-school themed zombies (undead cheerleaders, jocks, nerds, etc.). Guests could also choose to glam it up and come as undead prom attendees (puffy dresses, tiaras, corsages, tuxedos, are musts!) OR as their favorite deceased celebrity (how cool would a zombie Marilyn be?). Another unique option would be to do Dia de Los Muertos skeleton makeup…I love Dia de Los Muertos, so I would definitely welcome that costume. Whatever undead costume guests pick, though, a pale complexion, sunken eyes and cheekbones, tattered clothes and blood are all musts! There are lots options for zombie costumes (how cute would a Plants vs. Zombies couple’s costume be?!) and I can’t wait to see what creative creepy-crawlies everyone dresses up as!

Decorations: I’m thinking tons of balloons and streamers, lots of confetti over everything, using black butcher paper to create silhouettes of gravestones and shambling zombies on the walls, scattering bloody handprints/blood splatter and body parts here and there, having a “zombie contamination zone” and so on! I will also have a prom photo area decorated with a "Zombie Prom 2012" banner where guests can take their prom photos.

Music/Entertainment: I will have ‘80s/’90s prom classics (suggestions, please!!) alongside zombie-themed songs playing on the iPod and I could have zombie movies playing in the background or in a separate room.

Games: There will be a costume contest and the winners will be crowned King and Queen of the zombie prom. We could play zombie-themed games like zombie trivia, a zombie survival game, a contest for best zombie impression, etc. for entertainment. Zombie prizes will be given to the winners!

Food: There are tons of options for food, but I would definitely make some zombie finger cookies and would definitely have some sort of braaaaaaaiiiiin (don’t worry, it will be vegan!) dish. I’m thinking a bloody brains dip made with (vegan) cream cheese and salsa served with bat wings (blue corn tortilla chips) and maybe some brain cupcakes or blood-shot eyeballs.

I’m getting excited thinking of ideas already! I have to be honest, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to host another Halloween party (I skipped hosting one last year), but now I am totally stoked and ready to hunt down some braaaaaaaaiiiiins for this year’s festivities!

Suggestions are much appreciated…sound off below if you have any for this theme!

What are you planning for this Halloween? Or is it too early for you to even be thinking about?

Eerie Idea: Headstone Throw Pillows

I was browsing Etsy the other day for Halloweenie things and came across some cute headstone-shaped keychains made out of fabric and felt that were too creepy-cute for words!

 What my pillow would look like, miniaturized! Photo from SilentOrchidStudio via Etsy!

And then I had an "a-ha" moment and thought, what if I made headstone-shaped pillows?! I could personalize each one and write my own eulogies on them!! I got all excited, but realized, ummmmm...I don't really know how to sew and I'm not that crafty.

It sounds like a simple project, though, right?! I'm sure someone much craftier than me can execute (mwahahahahaha!) this awesome project...and then perhaps they can send me a few pillows!

Pretty please?!

Halloween Party Planning Begins!

Hello my dear boils and ghouls!

Today I want to talk about every monster kid’s favorite holiday, Halloween!! Every year around the end of June I start getting really antsy about the approaching All Hallow's Eve holiday. Yes, it might seem a little early, but my Halloween cravings start during summertime, because I know that when the August rolls around I’ll be in full-on Halloween mode! August is when craft store Michael’s starts putting out their Halloween wares and when that happens you better stay outta my way because I only have a few months left to finalize decorations, costumes, food, etc. for our annual Halloween party (past themes have included Blood Feast, Dia de los Muertos and Carnival Noir)!

Pumpkins - Harbingers of Halloween!