A Haunted Tower

Welcome to Magpieheaven...but, before you step inside, I have to check that you are not of a nervous disposition. You see, Halloween fever seems to have hit Crafty Blogland with ghouls and ghosts everywhere! I have to confess for a while I resisted the temptation to go 'spooky' because that's not really me! Then I saw the Artistic Outpost Haunted Halloween stamps and I wanted to play! I should like to enter my project for Country View Crafts 'Something Spooky' challenge and Artistic Outpost's October Referral. Anything Goes!

 I had a Retro Cafe Art Gallery exploding box, which reminded me a little of a Gothic tower so I decided to decorate it. My children are long past the 'Trick or Treat' stage, but we still have troupes of little witches, demons, vampires and ghouls who appear out of the mist and come knocking on October 31st - with spookily dressed parents in tow - so I thought I'd keep their chocolate pumpkins in a scary box this year! I began by giving the layers of the box a good couple of coats of Snowflake Fresco paint. Then I went for a blending of Butternut, Pumpkin Soup and Smoked Paprika on one layer and  London Night, Eggplant and Pansy on the other. I also coloured some Grunge Paste with Pansy and pushed this through a mesh Crafters' Workshop stencil. I blended in some Butternut when the Pansy was dry and edged the Butternut and Smoked Paprika layer with Blood Orange.

I used my Artistic Outpost stamps to create a flurry of bats on the roof by stamping and heat-setting the bats onto a layer of napkin tissue and then sticking this carefully in place with Claudine Hellmuth Multi Medium. I stamped the ravens straight onto the box and with the witch, the Gothic house and the skeleton I stamped onto shrink plastic die-cut ovals, heated and then glazed with Glossy Accents. I wanted them to look like portraits hanging around the ghostly tower!

Here is the box assembled. The window is a die-cut by Spell-binders, Crackle-glazed and painted with Fresco 'Tinned Peas' and edged with Green Amber Treasure Gold. The Dresden trim was gold, but I toned it down with some Green Amber Treasure Gold too. I dusted a little Treasure Gold White Fire on the lid to make the bats appear to be in the moonlight. My railing is a Tim Holtz On the Edge die. I also added a little spider web at the window from the Artistic Outpost stamps.

In this view of the outside you can see the Artistic Outpost raven and a tattered pine cone rose which I edged with Ice Stickles. There are some black, crackled leaves on the roof too.

And then the spooky surprise! At the top of the tower the Lady waits! I formed her from wire, tissue and a little RCAG 'Day of the Dead' skull and crown. She is sitting on a little golden chair with a scattering of fallen October leaves that have probably found their way in through a hole in the rickety tower!

My daughter says she's scary, but I think she's just sad; a bride jilted on her wedding day, a little like Miss Havisham in 'Great Expectations'. Her veil is tissue decorated with White Lace Stickles and she has pearl earrings to match her pearly white teeth.

Perhaps this is the beautiful young witch she once was! It's a long time since I made anything for Halloween, but this has been fun and I can't wait to fill this box with some treats.

 Thank you so much for stopping by Magpieheaven today. Happy Halloween and I hope you're not too terrified to pay another visit soon!