The folks at Threadbanger never disappoint. The hosts Rob and Corinne plus all the budding Threadbangers in the forums are always full of unique DIY project ideas. With October half way over, they’re kicking into Halloween mode and unleashing another series of spooky video tutorials on us. Here’s a preview of what’s to come…
And here’s the first video tutorial for 2008: a Wicked Witch Costume. With some basic sewing skills you can transform some old clothes you aren’t wearing anymore into a super ruffled, super stylish witch costume. And what witch would be complete without her hat? Using some wire, interfacing and scrap fabric you can make a custom hat to your own bewitching specifications.
Plus more from last year’s Threadbanger tutorials;
Don’t Decaying Mummy Eyeballs sound delicious? Here’s an easy Halloween treat that puts a new twist on rice krispie balls with peanut butter and some gross presentation. Nom nom!
If you need more spooky snacks for a Halloween party or just for some spirited October munching, be sure to check out all of our Halloween recipes.
Comments Off on New Recipe: Decaying Mummy Eyeballs
Comments Off on New Recipe: Decaying Mummy Eyeballs
Fright-Rags was created for one simple reason: the owner, Ben, wanted cool looking horror shirts! He started in September of 2003 and up until that point there weren’t too many shirts out there that impressed him. Of the ones he did like, everyone seemed to be wearing them. What’s a horror hound to do? “As a way to let off some creative steam, I started working on my own ideas and posted them on various forums I was a part of to see what people thought of them. Well, apparently I wasn’t the only one that wanted something different as many others liked what I was showing. Based on that alone I ordered my first three designs with money I didn’t have (i.e. credit card) and spent Labor Day weekend designing and building the first ever Fright-Rags site and hoped for the best…”
It was a good gamble because 5 years later Fright Rags designs have been sold through out the world and there are are several new creative team members helping design, print, and program. But some things never change. Ben still fills all the orders and answers all of your emails, and he’s remaining true to his original focus: “To create the best horror shirts I can… no matter what.”
Here’s your chance to win one of these amazingly designed shirts. Flex those scary movie buff muscles and identify which movies are being shown in the 3 screencaps below.
The contest runs from October 9th – October 13th, 2008 at midnight PST. 2 winners will each get their choice of shirt.
BONUS: Get 10% off your order at Fright Rags from now until Halloween using coupon code 365HALLOW!
Name These 3 Scary Movies:
Send your answers to by October 13, 2008 before midnight PST. If you’re really stuck, here’s a hint: you can find each of these movies reviewed on our Top Scary Movies page.
Open to US residents 18 and older. Shirt choice can be any style listed in the “Horror T-Shirts” section of Fright Rags (this excludes the Vintage Horror Shirts). One entry per person. 2 winners will be chosen at random from all entries who correctly identify the 3 scary movie screencaps.
There are some costumes that are nearly impossible to buy used; this year’s blockbuster superhero costumes for instance. You’re going to have to pay retail and the costume will always have that fresh-from-the-factory polyester smell. On the other hand, hippie costumes are much easier to buy vintage and at a discounted price. Since the “costumes” are authentic clothing from the 1960’s-70’s the quality is always higher and you’re likely to end up wearing a more comfortable natural fabric instead of the itchy stuff that new costumes are usually made of. When you take a look at the styles of store bought “hippie costumes”, the choice is pretty much a no brainer.
How easy is a vintage hippie costume to put together? After choosing an awesome vintage outfit, it just depends on how detailed you want to get. With the right accessories you can really win some costume contests. For women, you can ride the boho trend with tall boots, ethnic jewelry, and a headband worn across the forehead. A more simple hippie girl look can be achieved in barefeet (weather permitting) or sandals, a pair of comfy bellbottom jeans, some fresh flowers in your hair, and yes even some peace-loving face paint.
For men, look for anything patchwork, tie-dyed, fringed or “ethnic” looking. Vests, bellbottoms, dashikis and ponchos are good outfit staples. Long hair is a must so if you don’t have your own, look for a long wig.
Since hippies were trying to start a revolution, why not use this costume as an excuse to spread your own message of change? Carry around a sign with your favorite slogan about peace. Or use John and Yoko’s: War is Over (if you want it).
Remember, hippies did their own thing and defied conventions so get creative with your costume. We can look to the past for inspiration, but there’s no “wrong” way to create this look. If you’re even considering a hippie costume, your friends are all too young to know what a “real hippie” even looked like: you can easily get away with mixing early 60’s with mid 70’s styles.
Oh, and one more cool thing about buying a vintage costume? Reusing is always more eco-friendly than buying new, and a great way to make this year a green Halloween.
Your local thrift stores are always the best place to start looking for vintage clothing, but eBay has some amazing finds, too. Below are some of the most popular hippie costume auctions to get you inspired or get your costume started.
No response!
More authentic vintage hippie costumes for Women or Men
For the most unique and spectacular Halloween goodies you really can’t do better than handmade. The diversity, quality and imagination beats the pants off any of the mass produced Halloween items. Etsy – the epicenter of handmade items sold online – has put together a spooktacular Halloween gift guide that features quite an array of treats; costumes, decorations, jewelry and accessories, toys, cards, spooky art, and even food. Now you can support independent artisans while decking out your haunted mansion in style.
We’ve talked about October being Fair Trade monthbefore, and this year we’ve unearthed a clever new way to integrate that into your Halloween celebrations: Reverse Trick-or-Treating! Showing that kids are capable of making immense change in our world, they will be handing adults a sample of Fair Trade chocolate. The tasty treats will be accompanied by a card that talks a bit about the child labor and poverty problems in the cocoa industry. The solution is deliciously simple: don’t cut cocoa out of your life, just swap the commercial stuff for Fair Trade chocolate. Thanks to some awesome Fair Trade companies, the chocolate and cards are FREE (you just pay for shipping). If you want to participate, just register by October 13, 2008. If your wee monsters will be out candy collecting anyway, why not add Reverse Trick or Treating to the night and create a wonderful new family tradition?
Want more Fair Trade chocolate options? Check out the extensive lists of manufacturers at Trans Fair USA, and New American Dream. As featured above, there are Fair Trade Halloween kits that make treat-giving on The Big Night super easy. In addition to the 42 delicious chocolates, you get 42 Halloween postcards to hand out that explain how cool and easy Fair Trade is.
