I’m back with more fun stuff from Horror Addict’s Guide to Life 2 today! If you know me, you know that I appreciate a fun craft, especially if it makes use of something I don’t have to go out and buy. This time, I have an excerpt from Kristin Batestella. She’s going to show us how to make a fun and creepy craft made even better by the fact that it features a chance to recycle old materials into something new!
Yo-Ghost Candlesticks
by Kristin Battestella
Does your family love those on-the-go drinkable yogurts? Do you purchase bulk six or eight packs weekly only to rinse and toss the bottles in the recycling bin without a second thought to your penchant for Horror décor?
The Bottle Called to Me
One day, the label was partially peeling off my drinkable yogurt, so I pulled it off all the way, as you do. Suddenly, it wasn’t a convenient snack anymore but a blank white slate. I saved it for a spooky bottle project—see March’s “Tea Stained Labels” craft.
I Recycled Foam Leftovers
After using pre-cut foam letters on my cardboard tombstone project, there were a lot of filler pieces left over like the inside of the O, triangles within the A, pop-outs from Ps, Bs, and Rs. Rather than seeing these little black stickers as trash, my Horror brain saw the inner O as an open, gasping mouth. Eureka! Those little throwaway pieces could be the faces for ghostly white yogurt bottles.
Recycling = Craft
I chugged down some more yogurt just to save the bottles, sticking the letter bits on the plain white surface. Varying the eye shapes and the angles of the O mouths looked cute, but trying some other shapes for the mouths didn’t look right and it was nice to leave them matching in some way. What then was I to do with a bottle that looks like a ghost? I don’t have any white décor, and even painted the dollar shop battery candles from a stark white to a more aged, cream color…
Reuse, Recycle, Reclaim
Since they are marketed as a purely Halloween item, I buy up all the battery candles once they arrive at the dollar shop in the fall. I told the checkout lady I used them all year and all over my house, which I guess might be strange if I was stocking up on the ones that have the red blood drips on them. The plain white ones, however, come in a removable black base and are perfect for sitting in the window sill as well as candelabras or sconces where drafts or smoke detectors are impractical for real candles. Putting the candles inside the ghost bottles didn’t work, nor did sitting them on top with the cap removed, but putting the black base on top of the cap fit perfectly! Now, I had a use for my ghost bottles as ghost candlesticks!
Add a Little Rustic Charm
Lo, though they still seemed incomplete. A candle stuck on top of a bottle, big deal. I thought I could wrap some twine around the base to create something rustic just like the Halloween décor you see in the store. Ironically, wrapping the connection in plain old dollar shop twine was one of the most difficult and time-consuming tasks in all of my Kbatz Krafts. Rather than gluing one end to wrap, wrap, and glue the other end, the curved base forced me to glue as I went, wrapping more than one area numerous times for full coverage. I even cut and glued in pieces for extra layers. I’m pleased with the result, but what I expected to take an hour took an entire evening, a lot of glue sticks, and somehow a bit of back pain.
Cute and rustic aren’t really my style, however, I had the materials to make something fun and went where the spooky appeal took me. It’s tough for Horror Addicts to find some of the décor we like, and if then only around Halloween. By necessity, we should look at generic objects in a potentially unique way. These yogurt bottles could be painted orange with pumpkin faces, used as a fall vase, or painted green for monsters with fun objects on top. Kids can learn about recycling by saving their own bottles for a personalized craft—so long as adults handle the tedious twine gluing!
To read more craft how to’s, go to: https:/www.amazon.com/dp/B09YNF5QM3
And be sure to check out Kristin and her work here!
Do you love the horror genre? Do you look at horror as a lifestyle? Do the “norms” not understand your love of the macabre? Despair no longer, my friend, for within your grasp is a book written by those who look at horror as a way of life, just like you. This is your guide to living a horror addict’s life.
Our month-by-month almanac with important dates, movie lists, puzzles, crafts, articles, and recipes will guarantee your whole year is occupied with delightful horror activities. Don’t miss our monster guide with articles about vampires, zombies, ghosts, and some creatures that just can’t be categorized. Enjoy interviews with creators of horror content and hear perspectives from different cultures and backgrounds. Read stories of real hauntings, nightmares, and vile vacations.
Allow us to curate your horror lifestyle.
With articles by: A. Craig Newman, A.D. Vick, Alyson Faye, Angela Yuriko Smith, Brian McKinley, CM Lucas, Camellia Rains, Carrie Sessarego, Chantal Boudreau, Courtney Mroch, Crystal Connor, D.J. Pitsiladis, Dan Shaurette, Daphne Strasert, Dee Blake, Emerian Rich, Geneve Flynn, H.E. Roulo, H.R. Boldwood, J. Malcolm Stewart, James Goodridge, Jaq D Hawkins, Jeff Carroll, Jonathan Fortin, Kate Nox, Kay Tracy, Kerry Alan Denney, Kieran Judge, Kristin Battestella, Ksenia Murray, Lee Murray, Lionel Ray Green, Loren Rhoads, M.D. Neu, Mark Orr, Martha J. Allard, Michael Fassbender, Mimielle, Naching T. Kassa, Pamela K. Kinney, Priscilla Bettis, R.J. Joseph, R.L. Merrill, Rena Mason, Renata Pavrey, Rhonda R. Carpenter, Russell Holbrook, Selah Janel, Steven P. Unger, Sumiko Saulson, Tabitha Thompson, Theresa Braun, Trinity Adler, Valjeanne Jeffers.
Available now at: Amazon.com
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