A Gothic Tale

A few of us from my flickr swap group collaborated to create a book of gothic arches in celebration of the Halloween season.
CassieMercedesKimWendyJenMyself

And for the cover I chose this lovely arch created by
Karla.
Bound with black binding rings covered in shades of gray seam binding and black fibers, we have ourselves a gothic tale.
Thank you ladies for a wonderful swap!

Welcome To The Party

A very special Halloween PartyHosted by the wickedly wonderful Vanessa of
A Fanciful Twist.
Won't you come in?I'd like to introduce you to some special friends.

Meet the Queen of HalloweenKris Dickinson, of A Nostalgic Halloween.

The enchanting April Dudko


The talented Lynn Stevens, of Trash to Treasure Art.

And the amazing Laura Carson, ofArtfully Musing.

These were all cards swapped in our Vintage Photo Images Yahoo Group. But this is only the beginning of the Halloween Party! If you've never visited before, I invite you to stay awhile and scroll through the last several posts, all featuring Halloween art and swaps.
And don't forget to stop by A Fancilful Twist for Vanessa's most engaging party and links for all the other party participants.

Trick or Treat Sorority Style

When I learned my Bloggerette Sorority secret swap sister was Karen, of Karen's Monday Musings, I was thrilled. I've recently come to know Karen through my flickr altered matchbox group and she is a sweetheart!
I wanted to make a treat bag that was quirky and fun but also had "some pretty" to it. So I started where I always start (etsy!) and found this lovely lady skeleton image at Antique Graphique.
A little lace, a touch of bling, some well-placed flowers and you have a special trick or treat bag for a special sorority sister.
I filled it with a mix of store bought and handmade items,
including this altered bingo card and little vintage Halloween tussie mussie.
I love how the witches hat turned out thanks to my favorite new black trim and feathered friend.
Fall cookie cutters,
some vintage trim, an altered carte de visite,
and a mini accordion book using images from Lisa's Altered Art.
Then I tucked in a little bit of this & a little bit of that for what I hope is a perfect treat bag!
My secret sister is fashionably late but I'll be sure to share when it arrives.

Random.org Has Spoken...

,,,,,,And the winner of my Trick or Treat Domino Book isWicked Faerie Queen
If you've never visited and you're a Halloween lover, this blog is a must! I know my little book will be right at home here.
Thanks so much to everyone who entered and left such kind comments. You warm my Halloween heart! Here are a couple treats I'd like to share with you.

Halloween Image Freebies

Here's a couple of my favorites I thought you might like to add to your collections.

Enjoy!

No Tricks, ALL Treats!

Now it's time to show off what I received in the Handmade Halloween Swap from my creative, talented friend, Kimberly of
ArtJoyStuff.The altered matchbox is a gift in itself, so hauntingly beautiful. And she made it so I can use it as a hanging ornament! All of these Halloween treasures are exquisitely handcrafted and now displayed throughout my home. Thank you again Kimberly!
If you enjoy one of a kind Halloween art you really need to take a look at what's being made and swapped in my flickr group.
Here's just a little taste....
Wonderful Witch Hat by Mercedes

Perfect Picks by Jean

A most awesome matchbox vignette by Anna

You may even be inspired to sign up for the Secret Santa Swap. There's plenty of time to put a festive holiday swap together and enjoy the countdown opening your tiny packages from December 1st until Christmas Day!

I have a couple of other treats to share, having been the lucky winner of two blog giveaways recently.
Sharon of Plumrose Lane has some of the most fabulous graphic designs. Her blog is loaded with tutorials and freebies, and her etsy offers a spectacular array of very reasonably priced designs. She also hosts a monthly giveaway and I was the winner for September! I haven't used my gift certificate yet but I think I'll be showing off a little Plumrose Lane for the holidays!

This adorable wall hanging
is a win from my new blog friend Cyn. I hope you'll stop by her place for a visit and check out her new announcement.

If you'd like to enter my Halloween Domino Book Giveaway, you can do that by leaving a comment HERE.
Back to the Halloween work table.......

Skulls, Rosettes, Polka Dots & Lace???

Sounds funny doesn't it? But it worked!
It was so much fun. Days and days of creating. And now we're all in the process of swapping it out. Our Handmade Halloween swap challenge was to create a Halloween themed altered matchbox and at least 4 other handcrafted items that did or didn't fit inside the matchbox.

Here's what I made for my partner, Kimberly, of ArtJoyStuff.
I used scrapbook paper to cover the box and embellished the edges with dresden trim. The focal point is a pretty coordinating rosette covered with little paper rosettes,a skull and a handstamped message scroll. I found that wonderful skeleton ribbon at Michael's.
Isn't this the yummiest gathered lace with beads and rosettes?

I also sent her a domino book

a little gothic arch book




a paper doll made on a pack of pumpkin seeds

an altered, handstamped cartes de visite

a festive altered skelly (yes, his parasol really does open!)

and other assorted tags, cards and goodies.

If you'd like to see what other group members have created visit our flickr group. The next swap for December is already posted. Ho, ho, ho, I think we'll have a lot of Santa's joining in on this one! Maybe YOU?

If you haven't entered my Trick or Treat Domino Book Giveaway, you can do that HERE.

I'm linked with French Cupboard's Handmade Harvest Party.

A Domino Book Gift & A Domino Book Giveaway

Look what I received from Kim of
Tabby's Place!
We did a domino book swap in our VPI yahoo group and this stunning book with all these wonderful witches is mine!Thank you Kim for this very special Halloween gift!

When you receive something this awesome, it's only fair to give something away, so...

If you'd like a chance to win my little domino book, please leave a comment under this post. If you're a follower, you get a second chance and if you grab the giveaway button and link it back to me, you'll get two more chances.
The winner will be announced October 15th.
Happy Halloween luck to all!