Stitching Up Halloween

BOO!

There's nothing scary about Halloween around here.  Even our bats hang around in purple stars and green polka dots. 








Our fourth Holiday Table Setting is out with a Halloween party theme.  It's amazing how adults have taken on this territory once mostly populated by trick-or-treaters and made it into the second most popular holiday in the year.  We're happy to help you find fun ways to decorate your home, jazz up the youngsters venturing out for candy and generally have a hauntingly good time.

 

The plan for this table setting began late in the summer when I saw the "Pumpkin Party" place mat pattern from Susie Shore Designs.  Susie brought us the very popular cupcake placemats, tea cozy and accompanying designs earlier in the year, so I knew that these jack o'lanterns would be easy and fun to make.  By the way, I satin stitched the eyes, noses and mouths on these mats, which the pattern doesn't call for, but if you want to wash them, you'll want them stitched.

                                                     Next, we needed a table topper as a base for these mats, so I used some fun witches from Clothworks as a center, added borders and corner blocks and quilted.  Note the tea-sized polka-dot napkins in the mugs.

If you are putting together a cute buffet table for your Halloween gathering or assembling some food gifts to deliver to friends,  you need some equally cute containers. The cookie carriers in Tidings, last year's Christmas book from Art To Heart, are perfect!  What a great way to use up some Halloween fat quarters you might have in your stash.  These use double-sided fusible Peltex and some ribbon.  Fast and easy.  They store flat and can be washed.

If the purple bats hanging overhead (Spooky Hollow by Little Quilt Company) weren't enough, you can go batty with these guys from the Art To Heart book Count on It.  Purple button eyes and candy corn button teeth make these very dressy bats.

 Every trick-or-treater needs a roomy tote bag for stockpiling goodies, and I found this free pattern using the Scribble Monsters II fabric line online at www.quickquilts.com. (Go to "bonus patterns" - then to Quick Quilts - then the Oct-Nov issue - then to the table runner using the fabric line.) It's big, lined, easy to make and uses blocks from the Scribble Monsters panel.  Lots of fun!












 If you take a close look at our table area, you'll see a couple of items from years past.  Our Halloween Mouse from Country Stitches is still around, as well as the little mouse in the pumpkin hanging on the table-top stand.  The cat flying above the table is a long-favorite primitive piece from a pattern that is long gone.  We also have these retro-style wall or door hanging panels that are easy to make, as well as a quilt-as-you-go wall hanging from Fast & Fabulous Holidays.  No tricks here; just fun projects that are a treat to share this Halloween.  Enjoy!