Eerie but Easy Halloween projects

I can hardly believe that for 17 years I've been a contributing crafts editor designing original Halloween and fall projects for Good Housekeeping magazine.

Halloween Spider

With the season of Halloween magic at our front door, I wanted to share a few of my favorite projects that I created.  Halloween is such a creative time but it does not have to consume you. These projects are based on getting an effect when time is limited. You may not believe this at first glance but this effect below is really easy to get with little effort.

Styled by Karin Lidbeck Brent

Halloween is all about the entry . You can conjure up some drama easily with bare tree branches and a selection of pumpkins. I  simply cut a small hole in the top of the pumpkins and pushed the tall branches down and into the pumpkin to hold. Then place your woodland path and add those menacing black crows. Add spiderwebs  and creepy crawlers if you really want to go to town. I like simplicity!

Styled  by Karin Lidbeck Brent

Imagine this eerie creature in your entry hall. A friend's dress form caught my eye one day, and it sparked this idea! The carved pumpkin sits on top of the dress form covered with torn and tattered cotton cheesecloth.  It's spooky but still playful which is definitely my style for Halloween.

Styled by Karin Lidbeck Brent

                                                                        

I also love to use bags of spidery webbing ripped, pulled and stretched for creating the haunted look over curtains and windows. I made these light weight black paper bats cut outs with folded wings.  Use the webbing to hold the bats in place.

If your looking for a small project, take a closer look at the spidery votives pictured at the top of this blogpost! This is a great hostess gift! 

Cut a hole in the top of the gourd to hold the tea light. The legs are black pipe cleaners pushed into the gourd.

Projects above were created for Good Housekeeping magazine 2007

Crepe Paper Halloween, Back to Basics

A number of years ago, My friend, vintage Halloween collector Bruce Elsass, shared his Halloween decor books from the 1920's with me.  Looking through these books I was blown away by the creativity of earlier days. I decided crepe paper needed a revival.

With Crepe paper in mind I designed numerous Halloween projects betwen 2011 and 2013 for Good Housekeeping and Country Living magazine,  like this candy bowl elf.  Using a round piñata as a form underneath, I made this lively creature and his hat from crepe paper rolls and folds.  Remove the hat to find the treats inside!

Then, with simple rolls of crepe paper creativley cut, I made shaped ribbons, and festooned doilys to make a fantastic table skirt to show off the candy bowl elf!  Double sided tape works wonders.

The mantle is an obvious place to play out some Halloween drama. Using Black crepe paper folds ( 2 packages for a bow this big), I fashioned a stylish funeralesque black bow.

It was time to rethink ways to hang crepe paper over the party table.  I taped the crepe paper swags to 2 long lattice strips adhered to the ceiling with sticky back velcro squares.  Gravestone slipcovers: roll of gray crepe paper, cut to chair back shape.  Staple sides and use a wide mouth magic marker for the tombstone engravings.

This adorable witches hat was taken right from the pages of a 1920's Halloween manuel. A fun new centerpiece that takes your purchased black witch hat to a new height.  Tape shredded crepe paper to inside of hat.  Use rolls of orange over a black table cloth to create a criss cross table runner.

You can buy crepe paper rolls and folds at any party store and also find larger rolls in different weights, and bigger quantities online. 

With weeks ahead to plan your Halloween event you might want to include some good old fshioned crepe paper ideas in your festivities.

All photography by Michael Partenio, projects designed amd styled by Karin Lidbeck for Good Housekeeping and Country Living magazines.

Clever Halloween party ideas! Easy last minute DIY.

As you prepare for your Fall holiday gathering, it's never too late to create a few last minute Halloween party inspirations.   I created this table for a Good Housekeeping Magazine Halloween Feature in 2010.  It's filled with super-easy styling ideas that you can pull together quickly. 

Smaller pieces of cheese cloth can be draped over tiered dishes for an  eiry effect.  Add candy bowls and scatter in creepy bugs.

Black Flowers! Yes, you can paint white mums with black spray paint for a 'deathly' effect! They will live for days.  The vase was created by placing black and white wrapping paper inside a glass cylinder.

These inexpensive mice, skulls, bugs, and spiders look great mixed in with your pumpkins. Stay with the Halloween color story, black, orange and white!

I found this giant spider years ago at Crate and Barrel.  It's perfect for protecting its nest of cup cakes. Use your props in imaginative ways!.

Spell "BOO" using a small brush to apply black craft paint.  Artificial ivy is sprayed black, cut and then placed along the mantle.

Wherever your Haunting Celebration may take you, have a Happy Halloween, friends!

Produced and Styled By Karin Lidbeck for Good Housekeeping mag. 2010 Oct Issue. All photography by Michael Partenio

Carved Pumpkins: Several Of My Favorites!

With Halloween approaching, 'tis the season for carving!

I thought I'd share a few of my favorite carving projects. 

After all, there is nothing more appealing during 

Halloween than a glowing pumpkin!

A bird with leaves seemed like a twist on the scary Jack-O-Lanterns that  
I've carved over the years.  It fit perfectly within the nature inspired story 
I created for the 2013 Fall issue of 'Country Gardens' magazine.

Photo: Andre Baranowski

For the 2009 'Good Housekeeping' issue, I created a cast of amusing 
characters by adding props to enhance their personality.

Photo: Michael Partenio

Trees painted with black gloss enamel craft paint will hold up 
to rain and cold.  To make the little stars around the painted back 
trees, I used a screw-driver pushed into the pumpkins.

Photo: Michael Partenio

Create these little 7" to 8" sugar pumpkin Jack-O-Lanterns:
After carving designs into the pumpkins, I created the above 
Chinese style lanterns to sit on a mantle by using black 
poster board as a base and faux handle.

Photo: Michael Partenio

This pumpkin-bonfire was a bit hit in the 'Better Homes and Gardens' 
pumpkin party feature described in my previous blog.

BOOoO! An elegant Jack-O-Lantern created for 'Garden Design' magazine.

Photo: Andre Baranowski 

During Halloween, there is nothing more mystically heart-warming 

than glowing pumpkins.

 Happy Carving!

Notes from the Field:  Harvesting the pumpkin

As a contributor to New England Homes Homes Magazine I write for the NEH Blog a few times a month.  Since my  theme this month has been all about pumpkins I thought I'd share this post that I wrote last week for www.nehomemag.com/blog

Now that Halloween is over, you may find yourself with a few un-carved pumpkins. There’s no need to discard them. The fall season is far from over and the Thanksgiving Holiday is the perfect time for using pumpkins for something more than just a pretty Jack-O-lantern.
Floral arranging is one of my greatest passions and I use pumpkins as my go-to vessel to create center stage arrangements during fall.

A typical Jack O Lantern pumpkin can be carved into the shape of a basket,   Scoop out the center.  Place wet floral foam   inside to hold flowers and a candle

A large, flat shaped pumpkin like this Cinderella pumpkin makes a great container to create a small garden scape.  I planted the miniature tropicals sold for terrariums in dirt that I placed in the inside . Then I topped it off with moss dug up from my yard.  Add garden decorative s to create a little fairy, Enjoy for a few week!

 !

As your fall garden fades, bringing some color to your landscape is easy by using the birdbath as a vessel. I mixed gourds, green pumpkins, cabbage, bittersweet and grapevine together to create this autumnal arrangement. Why not bring it to your front entryway as a great welcoming display!

Photos by Andre Baranowski

For more floral arranging and entertaining ideas for the holiday, visit my blog: yourcozyhome.blogspot.com.

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Heirloom Pumpkin Basket

Beyond Halloween

From October through November, you will find a large variety of heirloom pumpkins at your local garden centers.  Bring them inside away from the frost and they will last through thanksgiving!

If the last remnants of your Fall garden have survived the frost, its not too late to create a pretty pumpkin centerpiece. Simply cut foliage and flowers and then add them to the interior of your favorite pumpkin

Cut a hole in top of pumpkin and place a 
container of water inside. 
Now add your arrangement.

This arrangement above is a mix of the season's last hydrangeas, late blooming asters, vine berries, poke weed, and wild flowers. Even artificial flowers would look great!

For Added Style, Create A Faux Fall Basket:
1- Pull apart a grapevine wreath and wrap a large portion loosely
      around your pumpkin.
2- Take enough of the end of the grapevine to create a faux handle.

You have just created a beautiful Faux Fall Basket!

Resuming My Blog!

Getting Started Again

Where did four months go?

During the past four months, I've traveled New England from corner to corner. Along the way, I've had the opportunity to style for many of my favorite magazines and catalog companies.  I've missed posting my blog, and now that the Fall Season is upon us, I'm anxious to get started again.  I look forward to celebrating Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas with you!

This past week, I paid a visit to my favorite local far-stands and 

came home with a carload of fall produce.

 

Who wouldn't be inspired by these Fall colors?

Using a variet of colorful Fall produce, I will share with you several awesome projects to help embellish your holiday displays! Starting tomorrow, I'll post my first Fall-Season blog which will include several wonderful pumpkin display ideas. So please stay tuned as we make October a time for celebrating the season together!

Celebrating October in Style with Do it Yourself Ideas

All of my friends say I have the coolest job, and I must say I  probably do. 

My life as a stylist has many wonderful faces that present me with a continual stream of challenges to design, create and make beautiful projects happen. 

It's fun looking for new approaches to things like making this this faux vase from gourds.  It's easy to make! 

Use a wood shish kabob spear and push it through all of the gourds to hold them vertically. The top squash was hollowed out and filled with wet oasis. This project I created for Better Homes and Gardens Country Gardens magazine.

Designed by Karin Lidbeck for Country Gardens magazine. Photo Andre Baronowski

I do find inspiration sometimes in the strangest places. 

My friend and fellow designer  Elizabeth Reilly and I created this canopy of drapped blueberry netting in tree branches resulting in a magical setting for an evening soiree.  Carving all those pumpkins in record time nearly killed us. We had two days to create this garden party for Garden Design magazine in Elizabeth's garden and the blueberry netting was a last minute inspiration that really worked.

The end result of hard work is always so rewarding!  Holiday product Designer Bruce Elsass and  I created a party in the woods for Country Living magazine.  It really was one of the best Halloween parties ever that continued after the shoot into the night. (By the way, that's me in the witches get-up)

It's  great to work with so many fantastic photographers who bring gorgeous light and vision  to every project.

 Literally, it's all about teamwork!

Styled by Karin Lidbeck Brent for Better Homes and Gardens
 Photo by Michael Partenio

I've always loved throwing parties and creating DIY entertaining projects which are easy and quick.

Designing this table scape with bittersweet for Better Homes and Gardens was a really fun project for me to work on.

Styled by Karin Lidbeck Brent. Photos by Michael Partenio

When it comes to my job and working with so many fantastic creative people,  I could hardly ever imagine doing anything else.