It’s the most wonderful time of the year…

Now that I know that my laptop survived an attempted assassination at the hands of my cats (Don’t ask!), I’m back!

 

And, it’s the hap-happiest season of all..! And, sorry, Christmas devotees, I don’t mean Yule. I mean the ever fabulous and fast approaching Halloween! With Labor Day marked off on the Calendars and the back-to-school rush settling, stores are ushering us into fall with the introduction of Halloween items to their shelves and I couldn’t be happier. Halloween has always been big business for me, since I was a kid. I can recall years that I managed to find ways to wear three and four Halloween costumes, huge wings, elaborate face paint, and growing older hasn’t managed to take away my love for the holiday of all things spooky. I’m even such a Halloween fan that my fiance and I decided to set the date for our wedding as Halloween (Mega-post on that coming on Monday)!

Some of my Halloween swag on my dresser. The black glass skull came from Big Lots this year and the pink skull candle should still be available from D.L. and Co. Other goodies came from Loved to Death in San Francisco and Necromance in Los Angeles.

 

 

A little bit of last Halloween's ensemble.

When I can, I like to go all out when it comes to decorations and sometimes, store bought just doesn’t cut it. One of my favorite Halloween decorations at my last big party was a dead chef, complete with pools of blood and real knives stuck out of him. It was just one of those times when I happened to have the things I needed lying around to turn out a cool decoration out of junk in my house. (And, I swear, no actual chefs were harmed in the process, but that poor doll suffered a hideous, hideous fate.) I’m also the kind of person that keeps some of their Halloween decorations up all year round. I’m a little behind the times this year when it comes to figuring out what I’m going to do when it comes to my costume, but that hasn’t stopped me from acquiring new Halloween items. Every trip out into the world is another venture into the danger zone. This year, I’ve had the best luck so far with

  • Michael’s – Skulls and fake spell books galore, decorations indoor and out.
  • Pier 1 – A surprising amount of skeleton and spider swag, including doormats and ornaments that would even make a great addition to your Christmas tree if you roll that way
  • Big Lots – MOAR SKULLS! And pumpkins. Tons and tons of pumpkins. And, a scary owl or two.
  • I’ve had a peek through Walmart’s offerings, and if you’re looking for value candy or pink pumpkin pails, they’ve got you covered, but aside from some cute window clings I found their offerings to be lacking.
Escaped from a postal zombie apocalypse, Horror Block comes to your door showing its "battle scars."

If Halloween, or all things horror, are you thing, then I’d also recommend taking a look at NerdBlock’s offering of The Horror Block and Dread Central’s Box of Dread. The HorrorBlock comes complete with a shirt every month in your choice of style, men’s or ladies’, and size and an assortment of goodies. Subscribing also gives you the chance to win their Monster Block, a special block sent out every month to a lucky subscriber packed full of extra swag. Last month, they featured The Sharknado to celebrate the release of Sharknado 2, including a FUNKO Pop figure of the maritime/meteorological beast itself. Spoilers if you get the box and haven’t received yours this month, the t-shirt features a really great Xenomorph. It was definitely the standout item for me. I’ve enjoyed the box so much that I actually gave up my Nerd Block to receive only Horror Block.

Do you have a favorite place to hit up for Halloween swag? Already know what you’re going to dress up as? Have suggestions for any horror subscription services I might be missing out on?

  • http://youfancymemad.com/ B.

    I looooove Halloween! I’ve already checked out Michael’s and hit up Spirit Halloween. I think this year I’m going to be Abby from NCIS!

    • Jessica

      I can never find a Spirit down here, but there’s one right by my fiance’s place. I remember going there when I lived up North, though, and I fear for my wallet. And Abby is totally adorable. I’m not sure what I’m going as yet though since my in-laws are doing a haunted house I’ll be participating in and we’re meeting about it in two weeks.

  • http://youfancymemad.com/ B.

    I looooove Halloween! I’ve already checked out Michael’s and hit up Spirit Halloween. I think this year I’m going to be Abby from NCIS!

  • http://nerdjoyblog.com/ Stephanie Medeiros

    Same, absolutely love Halloween!

  • http://nerdjoyblog.com/ Stephanie Medeiros

    Same, absolutely love Halloween!

  • http://www.nerd-burger.com/ Nerd Burger

    I wish people celebrated halloween here in Australia. it looks like so much fun. :( I love looking at all the houses done up online and all the rad costumes everyone gets to wear.

  • http://www.nerd-burger.com/ Nerd Burger

    I wish people celebrated halloween here in Australia. it looks like so much fun. :( I love looking at all the houses done up online and all the rad costumes everyone gets to wear.

  • http://aprilsprinkles.blogspot.com/ Kelsey | April Sprinkles

    I’m so excited! Love your little collection. I’m going to have to check out a few of those other places because I’ve only seen Michael’s and JoAnn Fabric’s selections. There’s so much I just don’t know what to get!

  • http://aprilsprinkles.blogspot.com/ Kelsey | April Sprinkles

    I’m so excited! Love your little collection. I’m going to have to check out a few of those other places because I’ve only seen Michael’s and JoAnn Fabric’s selections. There’s so much I just don’t know what to get!