For some, it's Hocus Pocus. But for me, it's The Addams Family - the ultimate indication that Halloween is about to kick us in the groin. Hard.
It's true. Halloween isn't always pretty, but it sure is fun to let your inner demon out for just once; to get out the fangs and the claws, the pointy hats and crooked toes, to embrace your messy hair. If you ask me, Halloween doesn't come round nearly as often as it should. You don't need to tuck in your shirt and your eye liner doesn't need to be perfect - come to think of it, I'm not sure mine really ever is. But it's nice to not be judged for it at least that one day of the year.
Wow, humans really are little monsters.
Mysterious and spooky,
They're all together ooky,
The Addams Family.
So apart from creepy families, I always had a healthy obsession with vampires. Not the sparkly kind though. I'm talking about the real deal here, the mysterious wanderers of the night that will suck the life right out of you just cause they're in the mood for a Bloody Mary.
Which, come to think of it, is kind of overdoing it. But then again, to each their own.
So despite our cultural differences, I wouldn't actually mind meeting a vampire at some point. As long as he's had his fair share for the night.
Now I know what you're thinking. So hold it right there. I'm not looking for some bizarre cross-species romance here, just an adventure. A little story to tell. A friendship maybe.
Except if said vampire happens to look anything like Brad Pitt with fangs twenty years ago. In that case, a cross-species romance it is! And in which case, he can bring his buddy Tom also. I'm down with that.
This is going to be one thorough interview, I can tell you that much.
So you see, I really can't do Halloween without a little homage to my blood-sucking friends of the dark. Whether that's draping the mirrors with bed sheets, or making bat bunting like I did last year.
This time round, I opted for a little swarm of bats hanging from my desk lamp.
They were kind of an accident really. I started out by making little bugs and butterflies, but figured that probably wouldn't pass as Halloween material. Plus, Brad disapproved.
So with a little black coat, these maple fruits quickly turned into a little family of baby bats.
I named them Edward, Esme, Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper, Alice and Carlilse. Cullen.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
- maple fruits
- wooden beads
- black acrylic paint
- paint brush
- black marker
- hot glue gun
- white sewing thread
Step 1: Head outdoors and collect a bunch of maple fruits. Pair two maple fruits of similar size with one wooden bead.
Step 2: Using a paint brush, paint all of the beads and the maple fruits with black acrylic paint and let dry. Touch up with a black marker if necessary.
Step 3: Using a hot glue gun, glue two maple fruits onto each bead as desired, creating the wings of the bat. The bead's holes should be facing upwards/downwards.
Step 4: Thread a piece of white sewing thread through the bead so that it barely sticks out of the bottom end, and add a dab of glue. The bottom hole should now be sealed shut and the thread should be fixed into place. Add another dab of glue on the top hole of the bead sealing it shut as well. While the glue is drying, let the bead dangle from the thread, and wiggle it into place if necessary, so that the bead hangs from the thread as desired.
Step 5: Paint over the glue with a black marker so that it blends right in.
Step 6: Once dried, hang the bats from a lamp shade or similar as a mobile.
Happy Halloween!
They're house is a museum,
When people come to see 'em,
They really are a screa-um,
The Addams Family.
So get a witch's shawl on,
A broomstick you can crawl on,
We're gonna pay a call on
The Addams Family.
MUSIC PARINGS:
Theme Song from "The Addams Family"
I Put a Spell on You, Nina Simone
Sympathy for the Devil, Guns n' Roses, from "Interview with a Vampire"
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