Arts & Crafts: Stuff I made for Halloween 2013

Halloween is a fun time around here--lots of opportunities to make stuff.  All kinds of stuff.  Of course, it always turns into a costume extravaganza for my son.  One year, he was a Ghostbuster.  The next, he was a Transformer-style robot.  This year, he's going to be a knight. Of course, that's something that I had no idea how to construct so I did some internet research.  And then things started to get a little crazy as I began to think that the costume needed to be historically accurate (no mixing English armor with Italian or Spanish details!) But I came to my senses and realized that it doesn't need to be historically accurate, it just needs to fulfill a 6-year-old's idea of what a "knight" looks like.

I also made a halloween-themed quilt and a mantle decoration made of ping-pong balls decorated to look like eyeballs.

Are you ready to see it all?

Here's the quilt:

For this quilt, I did three things that were new to me:  I made wonky 9-patch blocks (a speed-quilting technique which was new to me); I made my own bias edging; and I used a darning foot to help me machine quilt the top.  Don't look too closely at the quilting!  I was moving fast and having a good time--much better than if my goal had been perfection.  There is a tutorial for the wonky nine-patch blocks (here) and a tutorial for homemade bias tape (here)--not MY tutorials, but some that I referenced when learning how to get the job done.

The eyeball garland was a quick and fun project--ping pong balls that I painted and drew on with colored pens before stringing them onto black yarn.

Ping pong ball "eyeballs".

The armor was a fun project, too.  I started early (mid-September) because I didn't want to have a rush to the finish.  It was a pretty quick project, though.  People have asked me how long it took and I really have no idea.  I definitely putzed around a lot.  And there was a lot of down-time while I waited for paint or glue to dry.  But the actual work was, probably, 15 hours or less?  That's just a guestimate.  Originally, I'd planned to make boots and armored gloves.  I had plenty of time and materials to complete those items, but, you know, I just started wanting to get the mess packed up and OUT OF THE KITCHEN already! So I did what I did and called it a day.

Here's the finished costume:

I made it (mostly) out of EVA foam--that's the foam that is used for play-squares and anti-fatigue matting.  The only thing I bought ready-made was the sword, which I embellished with leather scraps and painted.  My mom crocheted the "chain mail".  

Here are a couple of in-progress pictures:

It's a torso! (Sorry about the blurry, low-light photo.)

The whole thing got a few coats of Mod Podge to fill in the crevices and to harden the surface.

Yea for Mod Podge.

Sanding and painting.

Well, here it is almost complete (the torso, that is!).  

Almost complete! Still needs the buckles on the sides.

The leather accents came from a pair of boots and a belt that I sourced from Goodwill.  I was pretty proud of my use of inexpensive, second-hand materials--something that is definitely NOT a strong skill for me.  Baby steps!  From the belt, I made the tabs that connect the torso to the panniers and I used the boots for leather strips, the shoulder pads (under the pauldrons), and the decorative buckles.  The rest of it was mostly EVA, foamies craft sheets, Mod Podge, hot glue, acrylic paint, paintable caulk, fabric, upholstery tacks and sundry items, and a feather boa for the all-important plume. 

And there you have it--Halloween 2013.

Garden: The Lurid Colors of the Fall Garden

I hate to admit it, but the garden actually looks like this: 

The blues of the geranium are a little bright, but the rest of the color is just about spot-on.

And I don't know quite what to do about it.  The space is small and I already have a river of grasses running through the middle of the bed:  Pennisetum, Chasmanthium, Hakonechloa macra.  I guess this is what happens when the grounding/moderating greens turn orange and yellow.

Luckily, I did get a new, more subtle fish kite.  That really evens things out, now, doesn't it?  (Just joking--but it IS preferable to the lilac, pink, and orange one it replaces.)

New fish kite.

Garden: Finally, Officially, Fall

Fall.  Eventually, it will be a time to wind down and appreciate the slow close to the gardening year--but not this year, not at this time.  I am still angsting and twisting about the planting in the front garden.  Mostly, I think, it is an improvement.  But I keep circling around, moving and swapping out, circling closer to my original vision.  I edited a little bit this morning, and here's what we've got now:

Front garden beds.  The color of the photo is a little lurid (more so than real life).

The other day, I got the bright idea to remove all the grass (it's a small, intentional, kidney-bean-shaped lawn which I thought would be a nice nod to the mid-century styling of the house) and replace it with a smaller, oval, graveled patch.  The graveled area would be be home to two chairs and would allow one to feel much more immersed in the garden then is possible at present.  I'd have room for a couple of bigger grasses or shrubs on the fence side and I'd plant the front with low, mounding plants and ground covers.  The entire "micro-patio" would be surrounded with foliage.  So far, I've  bounced the idea off of a couple of people with disappointing results.... Just an idea...

...And here's a close-up of the plants in the corner.

Close-up of the front garden.

This (below) is the site of the most recent editing.  I moved the grass (Pennisetum "Hameln") to the front of the bed and transplanted some Lobelia siphilitica into the new space at the back.  I plan to add Perilla frutescens (purple shiso), an annual, to the back to mix with the lobelia.  I am still looking for ways to weave a darker, somber color throughout the border. And I need to get some more height back there, too.  One of the dark penstemons would be ideal for the look I have in mind, but I think they wouldn't survive the winter wet...or, Lobelia cardinalis save for the scarlet/red flowers.  Scarlet flowers are a no-go for me.  Let me know if you have any plant suggestions for this situation--all suggestions will be considered!  

Site of the most recent transplanting...

I am realizing, though, how the dark foliage blends in to the color of the fence, behind.  The cimicifuga, for example, is almost invisible.  Maybe the back-most layer of foliage needs to be green?  There's a lack of bulk, too.  The space is small, so I have to keep size in mind but I don't want the planting to look like it belongs in a dollhouse.  Maybe I should think about swapping out the cimicifuga for a bulkier shrub?  Maybe I should just let it stay in the ground for a year to see if it is capable of bulking up and doing the job?  I do realize that all of these plantings are immature and, increasingly, I realize just how beautiful mature plantings and well-grown specimens can be.  Maybe these planting just need more time.  I don't know.  More angsting and twisting... Moving on...

This year, I added a couple of new hydrangeas to the garden--Hydrangea paniculata "Quick Fire" (below) and several H. paniculata "Bombshell".  I've been really happy with both varieties.  

Fall color on the "Quick Fire" hydrangea.

During the growing season, the foliage on Quick Fire was a lovely, rich, green suffused with purple.  Now it's turning a medley of hot pinks and oranges.  I'm not sure that it is the most attractive color at this exact stage--if you step back a bit, the overall impression is mid-brown--but it certainly is interesting. Bombshell is coloring up nicely as well.  It's a bit of a mystery, though.  I have three plants and all three look different.  This is the one in the front border where I removed the Annabelles.  It is a lovely coral red.

Hydrangea "Bombshell" color.

Two more Bombshells are planted behind the house.  I failed to capture the lovely color of this one--soft yellow blushed with coral--but I liked the juxtaposition of the hydrangea foliage with the big leaves of the Brunnera.

"Bombshell" hydrangea in the back yard.

The third Bombshell is located in what is, perhaps, the best location of the three.  Its fall color is clear, bright yellow.  All three plants are in slightly different environments.  In addition, the two in the back were planted last year while the one in the front yard was just planted this summer.  I wonder what that means for the color in future years?  If the happiest plant is yellow and the (possibly) most stressed plant is beautiful coral/red...darn, I bet the "true" fall color will prove to be yellow.  I've got my fingers crossed for red, though.

Finishing-up with a few pretty flower photos... In the raised planter behind the house, the Rosa "Mutabilis" is still pushing out blossoms.  Between the occasional raindrops and gusty winds, I was lucky to get a photo!

Rosa "Mutabilis". 

And the Japanese anemones continue to look fresh wherever they are planted... 

Japanese Anemone "Whirlwind"