Image : http://www.flickr.com
Scrapbooks are a great way to keep the memories alive and to write down a journal to put your feelings and emotions in words and retain them for posterity. Halloween is a time when the whole family gets together to celebrate and party. One may want to save some of the memories of the special times in the form of a Halloween scrapbook page. Many themes and ideas can be used to design a scrapbook. Since it is a special one for Halloween, you may want to have a funny or scary theme, to suit the occasion. Scrapbooks are a big business nowadays, because many people want o store their memories for the future. Therefore, it will be quite easy to get ideas by conducting a search on the Internet. You need not stick to ideas from the internet; you can add your own inputs to the layout and theme. A few ideas for scrapbooks may help you get started.
As stated earlier, you can have a theme for your scrapbook, something based on Halloween. For example, you could theme the page around your daughter's costume that she had worn for Halloween; maybe she was a dressed as a princess. You could have the layout in light pink color with princess motifs, very typical of a princess's line of thinking... You could give a funky title for the page based on something to do with a princess.
Another Halloween scrapbook idea would be to focus on a specific event like a visit to the local pumpkin patch. You could have various shades of orange for the layout, with pumpkin cutouts on the pages. You could describe your trip to the pumpkin patch, explaining what you saw or did there. You could put a title that says something like 'Pumpkins, pumpkins, everywhere?' Be imaginative while creating the scrapbook page.
If you want to opt for a scary theme for the Halloween scrapbook page, there is nothing like putting ghost faces on the page. You can also have scary looking Masks or cut outs of witches put on the page. Pictures of your kids dressed up in scary costumes, stuck on a background of a haunted house can be one such idea. Think creatively, there is no limit to the imagination. Take chances by being a little adventurous and outrageous in creating the Halloween scrapbook page.
You can search the Internet for great Halloween scrapbook ideas. You will also find many scrapbook message boards on the Internet and you can utilize these to convey some message through the scrapbook. Halloween scrapbook ideas from the web can help you design a great scrapbook to commemorate your Halloween celebration and your special memories. Again, imagination is the key to have a truly unique Halloween scrapbook that you can be proud to display.
Abhishek is an expert at making Halloween Crafts and he has got some great Halloween Craft Secrets up his sleeve! Download his FREE 93 Page Ebook, "How To Make Your Own Spooky Halloween Crafts!" from his website http://www.Fun-Galore.com/99/index.htm. Only limited Free Copies available.
A Star Wars party is a classic - it keeps getting bigger and better with age! From age 5 - 50 every little boy wants to have a Star Wars party at some time! So roll up your sleeves and Let the force be with you...
Invitations: You can make your own invitations on black card stock paper. Write with a white gel pen or use your computer to help you using this script - "A LONG TIME AGO IN A GALAXY FAR AWAY A BOY OF DESTINY WAS BORN" "THIS YOUNG JEDI WILL CELEBRATE HIS BIRTHDAY IN A GALAXY NEAR YOU..." A really cool site that has a free download of the the font used in the introduction of the Star Wars movies is galaxyfaraway.com. This site also has free Star Wars music and movie audio clips. Another great site is the official Star Wars website http://www.starwars.com which leads to my next invitation idea. Go to the "Kids" section and then type in the search box "Halloween Masks." What you will find is a variety of printable character Masks. Choose one or several of the Masks to use as your base for the invitation. Follow the printing instructions and assemble as required. Attach the party details with a request to wear the mask attached to the string or place the 2 items in a large envelop. Mark the envelope TOP SECRET and seal with a Star Wars sticker. You can choose to print the full coloured Masks or opt to use black and white and have the kids colour them in for the party - a colouring contest of sorts. Either way - Very Cool!
Decorations: The party table can be adorned with licensed Star Wars tableware and decorations. Other tables like the food table and gift table can be dressed up with black tablecovers, lime green moon rocks(to follow) and those plastic glow in the dark stars that can be found at any dollar store. Put out your child's Star Wars toys and figures around the room for both decoration and play. Give your area an Outer Space feel. Cut out stars from heavy stock tin foil and hang from ceiling with fishing wire. Decorate your walls with funky looking planets made from coloured construction paper with silver & gold glitter to make them look out of this world! Hang posters and pictures of your childs favourite characters. Gather a bunch of ordinary rocks of all shapes and sizes, paint them lime green and place all around party area to resemble moon rocks. And Finally, you can't forget the asteroids. Asteroids can made with pieces of styrofoam cut to shape and painted or by hanging brown, tan or gold balloons from the ceiling with fishing wire. Be sure to draw lots of cracks and crevices on the balloons with a black sharpie before blowing up. In keeping with the licensed partyware, stick with colours like red, orange, black and metallics for the balloons, streamers and any additional decorations.
Crafts: Make your own Light Saber. This is a pretty easy craft if you do not mind some pre-party planning. All you need are pool noodles believe it or not. Cut a full length in half giving you 2 Sabers. Because they are so wide you will need to carve in a handle with an exacto knife. Make T shaped cuts 4 inches in and 1 inch deep all around one end and then very carefully remove the pieces. The handle does not have to be perfectly smooth because on party day it will be up to the kids to choose their colour, decorates the shaft with multi coloured markers and wrap their handles with coloured electrical or hockey tape to give their Light Saber a good grip. Make sure their names are written on their creation! If you have a crafty bunch, set up a table where they can build their very own planet. The supplies needed are Styrofoam balls, paint and brushes, glue and some decorations like glitter, beads and sequins. First have them paint their planets. During drying time have them name their planets by taking the first 4 letters of their first name and the last 4 letters of their last name and placing them together. What would yours be? My son's would be Sethbald! Have them write their planets name on small pieces of paper and then staple on to a toothpick. Now its time to embellish the planets with decorations of their choice. When all is dry and they are off to the next adventure, be sure to push the toothpick into the Styrofoam and attach a piece of fishing wire with a thumbtack so the guests can hang their very own planet in their very own room!
Games: Now that each child has their very own light saber, play "Keep Up The Meteor." Tell guests that the evil Darth Vador has set off a meteor shower to destroy planet earth and it is their duty to to prevent the meteors from hitting earth. The prep for this is simple; blow up a bunch of balloons, turn on the Star Wars soundtrack and have the kids form a circle. Start with one balloon, and then another and another until you have thrown in 1 balloon for each kid. If they can keep up just 1 balloon for the length of a song or a timer set to 3 minutes - they will save the Earth! A really fun thing to do is have an adult dress up as Vader with a mask, cape and light saber. Have the young Jedi Knights battle Darth Vador with their very own light sabers. It may get a little rowdy but the kids will love it! If you have an older group, Star Wars trivia is always a big hit but if the group is a bit younger try playing "Shapeshifting." Shapeshifters are dark side creatures that can change into different forms or characters. You will need - Star Wars music and 2 large bag filled with funny clothes, costumes and accessories. Gather the guests around in a circle, turn on the music and ask the kids to pass the bags around. The players holding the bags when the music stops must reach in, pull out an item and put it on. Game ends when all items are gone. Very silly and very funny! "Galaxy Hunt" - The villanous Darth Vador has stolen all the Galaxies treasure and hidden them within Star Clusters scattered around the Galaxy. It is up to each young Jedi to search and find 5 star clusters and report back to mission central. If even 1 Jedi is unable to complete his mission it is up to all young Jedi's to help out their fellow trainee. When all missions are complete the Star Clusters may be opened to reveal their treasure. The Prep for this game is to wrap different pieces of candy with tin foil making odd shaped balls. Hide around the "hunt area" only 5 clusters for every player. Make it a little difficult - you want the young Jedi's to have to work for their treasure! A good idea is to give each child a loot bag with their name on it to hold their treasures when they return to mission central.
Lootbags: If you have played the Galaxy Hunt its likely you already have a bag filled with candy. Complete the guest loot bags by throwing in some Glow Sticks, Pop Rocks, Silly Putty, Glow in the Dark Stars and some Star Wars favors. Ebay is a great place to find large lots of Star Wars favors and trinkets at really reasonable prices. Finish off the loot bags with a Jedi Knight certificate letting the guests know the have passed their training and completed all their missions. A free printable certificate like the one shown on the left can be found at the website 123certficates.com in the "sci-fi" section. You can easily dress it up by printing it on blue paper and filling in the symbol with colour and silver glitter.
http://www.partydepot.ca - purchase party supplies in canada
http://www.partycanada.blogspot.com - more great party planning ideas!
Image : http://www.flickr.com
Making a mask requires a lot of patience and a certain amount of artistic ability. Masks are lots of fun to make and can become a great past time, which can also make you money in the process. If you're retired and are looking for something to do in your spare time, mask-making can be the thing for you. The more Masks you make, the more proficient you become. Who knows, you may actually become good enough to sell them.
Many people think that paper mache Masks are messy to make. On the contrary, paper mache has come a long way. Of course you can do it the old fashioned way with glue and newspaper strips but, nowadays, paper mache is mixed in a bowl just like you were making dough. It comes in a powdery mixture which is a dream to work with. Once it has been mixed, it holds the same texture as soft clay. It's amazing! Also, paper mache masks do not have to be lumpy and bumpy. Using this type of paper mache allows you to create a smooth, even finish.
There are so many varieties of mask designs which keep mask-making from becoming boring, such as Venetian masks, Mardi Gras masks, Carnival masks, Halloween masks, African Tribal masks and decorative wall masks. You can add almost anything to a mask design. Decorative materials can include pearls, beads, rhinestones, ostrich feathers, peacock feathers, roping, bells, fringes, glitter, tassels, mirrors, stones, lace, sequins, satin, ribbon, etc. Of course you can also just get very creative with paint alone.
There are various kinds of paint you can use as well, such as puff paint, gel paint, metallic paint, acrylic paint, water paint, glitter paint, or just about any kind of paint you can find on the market. Glitter paint works very well for Mardi Gras and Carnival masks because it offers a very festive look to the mask.
Learn more about how to make a beautiful, high quality, paper mache mask.
Nancy Settecasi
Mask Maker, Graphic Designer, Web Designer
Make a Mask: http://www.makeamask.wordpress.com
Halloween is big business, and it begins long before pumpkins are carved and houses are decorated in October. Costume and decorating manufacturers such as Disguise and Rubies launch their new products well in advance of the season. Costume retailers must place their Halloween orders in the New Year, and therefore the suppliers have to know what is going to be a hit.
They look to the movie industry to see where trends are going and create costumes and accessories that fit the bill. Movie releases from 2007 will have a huge influence on costume trends for this year. Pirates will undoubtedly be the largest costume trend for the season. With the release of Pirates of the Caribbean - At World's End this May, the 3rd instalment of the franchise, eye Masks, swords and tri-corn hats will be in huge demand by retailers.
Other franchise instalments include Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Spiderman 3. Wizards and superheroes are always popular costumes, but the spring/summer releases of these movies it top of the mind for Halloween.
Another popular trend in dress-up and movies are zombies and the undead. There has been resurgence from the 70's genre zombie horror movie and in 2007 we see zombie movie sequels including 28 Weeks Later, Day of the Dead and Resident Evil. Horror makeup, prosthetics and fake blood will be in high demand by retailers and consumers.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or TMNT is being released in March while a contemporary Nancy Drew will be out by the summer. Rob Zombie's Halloween, promises not to be a remake or a sequel and will introduce Mike Myers to a whole new audience.
The movies of 2007 will inspire the costume choices of its fans and lead the trends of this Halloween season.
Heidi Loney has worked as a stylist and costume designer in theatre, televison and film. Heidi is owner of Ms. Dress-Up Custom Costumes, and on-line costume retailer and Toronto based store. Check it out at [http://msdress-up.com/home/home.htm]
