Crafts- Wardrobe Sachets

This one is a simple project that's great to get started on if you don't have much experience with sewing.

Things you will need-

• Fabric of your choosing (make sure it's breathable so that the scent can escape)
• A needle and thread or a sewing machine
• A ruler
• Tailor's chalk or a pen to mark your material
• Pins
• Scissors
• Ribbon or other drawstring
• Extra ribbon, lace or buttons for embellishment (optional)
• Smelly stuff, ie: dried lavender, cloves, rose petals, etc

I've chosen a black and silver spiderweb netting material for this. I will also be hand stitching rather than using a sewing machine as it's a small project so it won't take long.

Lay out your material flat so that the right side of the fabric is face down, if it's creased you may want to iron it first to smooth out any wrinkles. Using your chalk and ruler draw out a template for the sachet. I have drawn a rectangle that is 30cm by 7cm. The template will be folded in half before sewing so a 30cm long template will become a 15cm long sachet. There will also be a 1cm seam allowance on each side so a 7cm wide template creates a 5cm wide sachet. After you have drawn out your template carefully cut out your rectangle of fabric.

Fold over a 1cm seam along the two 7cm wide edges and pin in place. Double up your thread and tie a triple knot in the end. If you are using a netted fabric like I am you will need to push the needle through the fabric and then loop it between your two strands of thread as per the photo below. When you pull the thread tight the knot will be kept in place by the thread and won't be pulled through the netting.

Use a simple running stitch to secure the seams. This is done by weaving the needle in and out of the fabric and then pulling the thread through.

Fold the fabric in half with your newly stitched seams facing outwards. Make sure your edges match up evenly and pin the fabric in place to stop it moving about as you sew. Starting at the top end of your sachet work your way down one side using the same running stitch as before. Tie a secure knot in the end of the thread once you get to the bottom of the sachet, then stitch down the other side starting at the top edge again and working your way down. Starting at the top on both sides will help prevent your fabric becoming skewed as you sew.

Tie a secure knot in the end of your thread and then turn the sachet right way out so that all the seams are hidden inside. Now loosely weave through a piece of thin ribbon or decorative cord for the drawstring roughly 2cm down from the top edge.

If this sachet is to go inside a chest of drawers then congratulations, you are finished. Fill the sachet with smelly stuff and tie the ribbon in a bow.

If you want this sachet to hang up in the wardrobe then we just need to thread one last piece of ribbon through the back for it to hang from.

These sachets also make great gifts if you want to DIY your xmas presents. 

Halloween- Fake Bones

If you eat meat you can make plenty of creepy Halloween decorations out of real bones (chicken drumsticks, spare ribs etc) but if you are vegetarian or vegan you can also make some bone decorations out of papier mache.

Things you will need-

• Old newspaper or scrap paper
• Masking tape
• PVA glue
• Acrylic paint 
• Paint brush

Roll a page of newspaper up into a tube and secure it with a bit of tape. Cut the tube into several smaller sections and stuff the insides of the tubes with crumpled paper for added strength.

Scrunch two pieces of newspaper up into rough ball shapes and tape one to each end of the tube.

Next mix up a ratio of 1:1 PVA glue and water to create a paste. Tear up the rest of your newspaper into strips and dip them into the paste. Scrape off the excess paste and start wrapping the strips around your basic structure to build up the bone shape.

Once you are happy with the shape you have place the bones to one side and leave them to dry completely.

Next you need to paint the bones. If you look at a real bone you'll see it isn't a pure white but a very pale yellowish brown colour. Start with a blob of white paint and gradually add very small amounts of yellow and brown  until you have a colour you like.

Leave the bones to fully dry and you're done. You can place these on a table as they are for spooky decoration or you can wrap some yarn/cord around them and hang them up instead.

I turned mine into a hanging mobile as hanging decorations really add a lot of atmosphere to any room. 

Halloween- Animal Poppet

Animal poppets are cool little trinkets for any witches house. You can label them as tools for capturing animal spirits or as dolls that turn into the creature they represent following the proper ritual.

Things you will need-

• Aluminium wire
• Yarn or wool (optional)
• Rough yarn such as help cord or hessian strips
• Glue

We are going to create a simple snake poppet today because unfortunately I don't have time to create a more complicated one (8 month old puppies take up a lot of time!). Cut a length of wire 140cm long, fold it in half and twist it to provide more strength and durability to your frame. Next shape the twisted wire into a coiled snake shape as per the photo below. 

Take your yarn and wrap it around the wire. If you like you can use a dab of glue to hold the end of the yarn in place but this shouldn't be necessary as you just wrap the yarn over the end several times to secure it. Don't worry if you accidentally bend the wire out of shape as you can bend it back once you are finished. I bulked up the shape of the snake with a softer wool before going over it with the rough hessian as the wool is a lot thicker than the hessian so takes less time to create the body. 

Keep going around the wire and build up the body shape of the snake. A snakes body is thicker in the middle than it is at the tail and neck, and the back of the head is wider than the tip of the nose. 

Halloween- Creature Nest & Eggs

Let's create a colourful and creepy array of monster eggs!

Things you will need-

• Eggs (if you are vegan you can buy some fake eggs to use instead of real ones)
• A small skewer or skewer like object
• Acrylic paint
• Paintbrush
• Masking tape (optional)
• Twigs
• Hay or straw
• Yarn

We'll start with the eggs. Hold the egg carefully and use the skewer to puncture a small hole in the bottom of the egg. I find lots of small taps create a hole without breaking the egg whereas one big push often cracks the egg open. Once you've opened your hole use the skewer to gently pull the insides of the egg out through the hole. Be patient and go slowly as this is a delicate process.

Once the eggs contents are completely removed give it a quick rinse inside and out to remove any remaining goop and leave it to dry. If you don't like having a hole in the bottom of your egg you can cover it over with masking tape as shown below.

Next you can paint the eggs whatever colour you like. I decided to have one red egg that looked like it came from a fiery creature and one green egg that looks like it came from a swamp monster. Applying several thin layers of paint works better than one thick layer. You can also stipple on the paint to create different effects.

Once the base colour is fully dry you can add speckles to your egg with a different coloured paint by flicking the paint brush with your finger or by using an old toothbrush.

Now we need to make the nest. This part is arguably more fiddly than hollowing out the eggs. First take some of your twigs and tie them together with a length of yarn to create a basic nest shape, that is to say some sort of oval or circular form. 

It will be easier to create a nest with fresh twigs rather than old ones as fresh wood will have a lot more give in it and be flexible to weave with whereas old wood will have dried out and will be brittle and snap if bent too far. Don't worry if you do have old wood though, you can still weave with it but you will need more yarn to hold everything in place as you work. 

Keep building up and securing the twigs until have have a nice framework to start covering with hay or straw. (If you don't have a pet shop nearby that sells hay or straw you can create your own by cutting some long grass and leaving it in a warm place such as an airing cupboard to dry out for a few days.) Be patient and keep weaving your hay/straw through and around the twigs until you have a nest you are happy with. 

As my eggs are from different creatures I only want small nests for each of them but if you would rather have a group of eggs from the same monster you will need to create larger nests. 

If you want to add some variation to your nests you could try adding in some fresh grass for a green coloured nest or various types of leaves, flowers or seed pods. 

Halloween- Eyeballs

This year I want some monster eyes so I'm making some large and extra large eyeballs.

Things you will need-

• Polystyrene balls in various sizes
• Marker pen
• Chunky wool/yarn
• Glue
• Acrylic paint in black, white, red and iris colours of your choosing

I am using one extra large polystyrene ball to create a dragon eye and several large balls to make gryphon and manticore eyes. First use your marker pen to draw on the outlines of the pupil and iris.

Next take your chunky wool and cut four equal lengths. (The bigger your eyeball the longer you will want the wool to be.) Glue them onto the back of the ball and fan each of them out in a different direction to create the 'veins'. Twist them together where they meet as per the photo below. 

Once the glue has dried you can start painting on the details. I mixed in small amounts of white and brown into my red paint to create various different shades of pink and red for the veins. Use a pure black for the pupil and go crazy with whatever colours you want for the iris. I used greens, blues and purples but you can create more fantastical effects with red, gold and other unusual eye colours. 

When colouring the iris start with lighter colours and then move onto the darker colours. It is much easier to darken a light area than to lighten a dark area when painting. 

Halloween- VooDoo Doll

Things you will need-

• Hessian sack or similar rough woven fabric
• Paper
• Pen
• Pins
• Scissors
• Sewing machine (or needle and thread)
• Large needle
• Wool or yarn 
• Buttons
• Pencil or blunt knitting needle
• Polyester stuffing or alternative (ie: tumble drier lint or straw)
• Tweezers (optional)

First draw out a basic pattern on a piece of A4 paper. The doll will be much easier to make if you give it a wide neck. Once you are happy with your pattern cut it out and don't forget to include a seam allowance. 

Fold your fabric in half so that you have two layers of material one on top of the other and either draw around the pattern with a pen or if you prefer pin your paper pattern to the fabric. 

Cut out your fabric making sure you cut the bottom layer as well as the top and pin the two pieces together. With hessian both sides of the fabric are the same but if you are using a fabric that has a right side and a wrong side you want to pin the fabric with right sides together. 

Stitch around the edges of the doll using a straight stitch. Leave a gap at the top of the dolls head so that you can turn it right side out later. Once you have completed your straight stitch go around the very edge of the fabric with a zig zag stitch to stop the material fraying. A sewing machine will make this process a lot faster but if you don't have a sewing machine this can also be done by hand, it will just take a lot longer. 

Turn your doll right side out so that the seams are now hidden on the inside of the doll. This is a bit tricky so be patient. A pair of tweezers is a huge help to pull the fabric out. 

Now you can stuff your doll. Use the end of a pencil or knitting needle to help push the stuffing down into the ends of the legs and arms. 

Once you have finished stuffing your doll you will need to stitch the top of the head closed. Double up your thread and tie a double knot in the end. Pull your needle through the fabric and before pulling it tight thread your needle between the two strands of thread. This will ensure that the thread stays in place and isn't accidentally pulled through the loose weave of the fabric. 

Hand stitch the hole closed, don't worry too much if your stitches are messy as this is going to get covered up by the dolls hair later. 

Next stitch on the eyes. I used two mis-matched buttons but you can use matching buttons or beads if you prefer. 

Adding hair to the doll is similar to latch hooking a rug. Take a strand of wool and thread it through your needle as per the photo below.  

Next push your needle through the dolls head but don't pull the wool all the way through. With the loop of wool on one side of the fabric and the tail ends of the wool on the other side place the tail ends through the loop and pull tight. 

Repeat this process until you are happy with the amount of hair your doll has. 

Take your black wool and stitch on a mouth. I used a straight stitch but you can use a cross stitch if you want a different effect. 

Now you can either leave your doll as it is with a face or you can add extra detail to the rest of its body. I used the black wool to add large stitches around the neck, arms and legs. I also added a cross roughly where the dolls heart would be. 

Please note this voodoo doll is for entertainment and decorative purposes only. Please do not attempt to do horrible things to other people with it. 

Halloween- Fake Skin

This DIY will really creep people out!

Things you will need-

• Rice paper
• Paint brush
• Red and flesh toned acrylic paint
• Water

Take a sheet of rice paper and tear it up into 3 or 4 pieces. (Jagged lines will look better than straight lines.) You can make a couple of small sample pieces to get used to the material but larger pieces will make more of an impact.

Now things are going to get a bit messy, when rice paper gets wet it becomes both sticky and delicate. Take your water and brush a very thin layer of water onto the rice paper, then while it is still wet start to apply your paint. I used a flesh toned acrylic paint in the centre to mimic skin and applied red around the edges of the paper to imitate a bloody edge where the 'skin' has been cut away from the body. 

When you are happy with your paint job you will need to very carefully lift the rice paper up and place it in the location you want it to be. Below you can see I stretched mine out on my witchy dream catcher. Don't worry if your first few pieces break apart, it takes a little practice to handle the rice paper. 

Once the rice paper is in place it will dry out and maintain it's shape. If you want to go for an extra ick factor though you can re-wet the rice paper before your guests arrive and it will have a nasty freshly peeled skin feel to it should anyone touch it!