SeñorScary.com

Get ready for some Boney Bunch goodness at Yankee Candle's Halloween Preview Party , on Saturday, August 2nd. I have yet to get a single catalog, coupon, or email promotion to share. Sorry!

Grandin Road has opened the coffin lid on it's Halloween Haven shop. There's lots to see.  And if you've see my Halloween porch haunt , you know I love eerie lighting. This little gem gives the appearance of a burning fire! I've seen them in blue for underwater or pirate scenes but not in crimson red. Awesome!

Under The Dome and my DVR are now officially split up. Season 1 was quite rocky, and in the unforgivable tradition of Lost , brought up more questions than answers then veered into absurdity. Unfortunately, Season 2 has slipped further down that hole. The dialogue is so unnatural, and the highly uneven cast struggles to make any sense (what I call the "I!ACT!NOW!" method). While I like the quirky/hissy new science teacher (because the show apparently needs more characters), her sudden appearance and rise to the head of the class reemphasis that the show has surpassed the plausible. Other examples: The DJ is now a cop, in full uniform! It's raining blood (how biblical)! The diner is open for casual dining and folks look quite relaxed, even when a character stumbles in and declares the main waitress/protagonist has been murdered! Oh, there's now an ax murder! And only the Microsoft Surface that everyone suddenly owns gets internet access! Suspension of disbelief is alre

I've completed David Everett's class  Making a Day of the Dead Skeleton, offered through Artful Gathering 's Online Art Retreat ( read my first post here ). What fun class! David's instruction was clear, educational, and quite entertaining, and the site included access to comment boards where you could post in-progress pictures to get advice, feedback, and support. Although the second session is now closed, get on their mailing list for next year's retreat and make some Halloween art! That said, I don't consider myself "an artist" and find it difficult to draw even a straight line. I took this class because I love David's whimsical Halloween creations (see them at Chicken Lips ), and wanted to learn how to work with paper clay. It's definitely much easier to work with than other mediums, and plan to use it for making props for my Halloween village, and maybe even a few ornaments for my Halloween tree. A BIG thank you to David for showing

In case you haven't been keeping up with our Facebook page (why don't you Like Us ?), here are some the trailers for scary movies recently posted. Looking forward to a great late-Summer/Autumn! Annabelle Last year's The Conjuring  opened with a lengthy prelude that included a creepy doll. This is the prequel that explains how that doll got to be so evil. October 3, 2014 (wide) YouTube Link Dracula Untold Luke Evans plays the title role of Vlad the Impaler in this epic origin story. October 3, 2014 (wide) YouTube Link Ouija Based on the Hasbro game, this originally was going to be a Jumanji- like action adventure with kids. Looks like they went in a different direction. October 24, 2014 (wide) YouTube Link Into the Storm Mother nature proves to be the scariest monster of all in this incredibly destructive trailer, like Twister on steroids. August 8, 2014 (wide) YouTube Link Horns Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) continues with hi

Those who are not satisfied by simply seeing horror films can finally experience one first hand. Making its way across the West Coast this summer is The Great Horror Campout , a 12-hour, overnight extreme adventure where campers can chose either a Low Octane or High Octane (more extreme) experience. Activities include the standard camping fare (bonfires, singalongs, roasting marshmallows) but then the Hell Hunt begins as creatures/psychos descend upon the camp to chase, bleed on, cage up, bury, or otherwise terrorize campers – all night long. If things get too intense, there's even a safe word and the horror subsides. For more timid campers there's also a "Chicken Zone" where you can safely observe the shenanigans without actually partaking in the terror. At the end of the event, the Camp Headmaster crowns one Hellmaster as the winner. This sound terrifyingly AWESOME!?! Here are the upcoming dates: July 11 & 12 – San Francisco, CA (Dang it! I missed it!) July

Pier 1 Imports has debuted their Halloween collection on their site. The products fall into the craft fair/whimsical category with a focus on home decor (and even features a Day of the Dead section). It arrives in stores on or around August 4th but you can see it online now: Pier 1 Imports Halloween .

For those whose dark witch interests where not satiated with American Horror Story: Coven , WGN's Salem  is a welcome surprise. Instead of style trumping story, this series remained focused on a straightforward narrative loosely based on the Salem witch trials of 1692, plucking many actual names from history.  Two things immediately stood out: the thick layer of supernatural hokum, and the period setting. The sets, costumes, and even lighting were exquisite and painted a very crisp picture of early Colonial life. The dialogue however often tested even the most forgiving fan and came across as modernly stiff rather than antiquated and flowery. (By contrast, every line Ichabod Crane utters on Fox's Sleepy Hollow seems completely genuine and out of place.) This is mainly due to the uneven cast who were not all up for the very difficult challenge of acting in a period piece. And there were many loooooong and Important monologues given by characters alone on the screen that

Yankee Candle   will hold it's annual Halloween Preview Party in three weeks! Details are scarce but sources tell me Boney Bunch is back (of course). As for their candles, their new Fall Fragrances left much to be desired although I liked both the Silver Birch  (woodsy and bright) and the Ginger Pumpkin (sophisticated and warm). Sign up for their email newsletter to receive coupons, and line up early to get your hands on The Boney Bunch 2014 Collection because they do sell out. Last year Yankee Candle replenished their stock a month after the preview party to extend availability to their more casual customers who shop later in the season ( see previous post ). Who in their right mind would shop for Halloween stuff in October?!

Pottery Barn continues to impress with their incredible (and incredibly pricy) Halloween collection. This year seems to be dedicated to dragons and medieval themes! If you like hosting Halloween parties (and have an unlimited bank account), this is the site you'll want to check often over the next few weeks as it take them a while to unveil the entire collection. And if you are so inclined, order early since they sell out fast. Take a look!

The embers from last night's fireworks may still be warm, but the Halloween season is now upon us. July 5th is the unofficial start of the Halloween retail season. With Christmas hogging store aisles from October to December, Halloween merchandise begins to sneak into stores as early as July, with September being the high season (though most marketing is delayed until after the Back-to-School blitz in August). In 2013, 158 million consumers celebrated Halloween, spending nearly $7 billion, according to the National Retail Federation . Here's a couple of comparisons from the 2013 survey: Decorations: 70% of consumers planned on buying Halloween decorations   <- Winner  69% of consumers planned on buying Christmas decorations Candy: 95% of consumers planned on buying Halloween candy   <- Winner  91% of consumers  planned on buying Easter candy  Halloween is a consumer juggernaut! Take a look at the infographic below for an interesting overview of the the 2013 Ha

Musician Sam Haynes has created two fantastic Halloween albums, and just released his most eerie collection yet, called Ghost Stories , available to purchase at Hauntmusic.co.uk , Bandcamp , iTunes , and Amazon . Sam was kind enough to share his thoughts on the album and its inspiration, including his own personal encounters with the supernatural! Read on, if you dare! Q: Ghost Stories features some of the your darkest compositions to date. Did you approach this album differently from the others?  A: Hi, firstly thanks for your kind words about the music, very kind if you. Each CD I do has a different theme, the last one, Welcome to the Horror Show , takes iconic horror subjects and creates a piece of music themed around it. For this one I wanted to write some music that deals with ghosts and the paranormal so each track is based on a theme or atmosphere related to ghosts. It's quite a dark album compared to the previous two, which was deliberate because of the theme. When I