Quick Stitch Halloween Costumes with Free Patterns!

Remember those horrible plastic Halloween masks of the 80's that attached around the back of your head with an elastic band? Remember they had little holes cut out for your eyes and always looked creepy no matter how cute the character they were based on happened to be? I still have nightmares about the plastic Care Bear mask I wore one year... Thanks goodness we've moved beyond those things. Or at least have the ability to do so. Last month I suggested crocheting up a Futurama brain slug as a quick costume idea. That got me thinking about what other crochet and knitting projects you could whip up for a quick costume.

First up, you can show your love of all things Katamari while keeping your ears warm with Nikol Lohr's Katamari Prince Earmuffs. Just click the link to view the free pattern, courtesy of Shojo Beat magazine.

And of course this wouldn't be Cthulhu Crochet and Cousins without a mask of our favorite Lovecraft monster. This cthulhu mask was crocheted by flickr user djonesgirlz. No formal pattern, but djonesgirlz does give a link to the original ski mask pattern that was modified to make this awesome monstrosity and an explanation of how the tentacles were created.

Craftster user mamaedgar's son really wanted to be Yoda this Halloween so she whipped up this Yoda hat for him in just two days. I'm impressed! That's a lot of stitching in just two days. Click the link to see more photos and the free pattern that mamedgar was gracious enough to share. I really admire the detail on this one, including the bits of fluffy hair around Yoda's ears. Nevermind, Halloween, this hat would be great to wear anytime. Of course, the original pattern was designed to fit a four year old, so some alterations may be in order if you want it in an adult size.

Running short on time, or just a beginner? Here's something a little simpler that could still be part of a pretty awesome costume. Just add a sword to this traditional masquerade mask, created by Priscilla Hewitt and you could be Zorro, or deck it out with some sequins or beads for something a bit more flashy.

Sadly, these last two masks aren't available as free patterns, but I liked them so much I decided to include them anyways. I'm guessing that more experienced stitchers will be savvy enough to figure out how to make these, or at least something pretty similar. First up, start practicing that gravely Christian Bale impersonation so that you proclaim yourself Batman while wearing a crocheted cowl, like this one stitched by Etsy user nmelone13.

And last, but not least, Dr. Zoidberg courtesy of another Etsy user, blackfezstudios. I absolutely love the eyes and the colour of yarn that was chosen for this one. It makes for a very realistic Dr. Zoidberg!

Time To Switch to a Garlic Shampoo

New episodes of Futurama and the appeal of having a really cheap Halloween costume have caused a brain slug epidemic around our house. My boyfriend, who is both wise and witty, appears to be the first victim, but what's really scary is the number of people I have lining up and asking how they can get a brain slug of their own.

If you're the crafty sort you can crochet your own using this terrific free pattern from Hook & Needles. To attach the brain slug to the head I poked a small wire hairband (Dollar store purchase!) through the base of the piece. I thought I'd have to glue it in place so it wouldn't slip around when someone's wearing it, but surprisingly it actually stays put. What can I say. those brain slugs are clingy little devils! The eye was made using a piece of white crafting foam that's adhesive on the back side. Rather than attempting to cut out a very tiny black circle, I just cut open a googley eye and used the black pupil from that.

We were joking that it would be fun to carry around a prop bottle of garlic shampoo when one is wearing a brain slug. Simple enough to make, just put a new label on any old bottle of shampoo. Then I did a little Googling and discovered that garlic shampoo is a real thing. It turns out that aside from combatting the tenaciously clingy brain slugs, garlic shampoo also aids in preventing hair loss. Huh, who knew?

Puff Stitch Pumpkin

It's a bit early for Halloween, but I wanted to share this unique little pumpkin that I just discovered. Mousica crocheted this and used puff stitches to make the pumpkin's body. It's an interesting technique that gives it a bit of a different look from your standard single crochet amigurumi. I've occasionally seen amigurumis made with a double crochet, but it's never occurred to me to try something like a puff stitch before. I'm guessing it would take up more yarn than a single crochet creation, but I really like the texture it creates. I can also see this being suitable for a bumpy skinned monster or maybe even the shell of a turtle. Any other suggestions?

Want the Pattern?

Check out the free tutorial for making your own pumpkin head that's available at Mousica's Magical Menagerie.

The Great Pumpkin! Cute Thing of the Week!

I always see these plain plastic pumkins at Micheal's that you can take home and paint yourself. Sadly, I'm not much of a painter, so I know I could never come up with something as awesome as this. This great Charlie Brown tribute comes courtesy of Craftster user MissKerouac. Click on her name to see more amazing pictures of this one from other angles, and check out that little polymer clay Woodstock hanging off on the right. Great attention to detail!

Happy Halloween everyone!

Free Candy Corn and Pumpkin Patterns! Cute Thing of the Week!

Consider the Cute Thing of the Week a bit of a blank canvas this week. Two basic Halloween related patterns that you can add your own creativity to. Add eyes and other facial features to make them into amigurumi or just leave them as is and use them as decorations or quick Halloween gifts. The pumkin comes courtesy of PlanetJune and I have to give honourable mention to her PocketAmi Set 3: Halloween (Ghost, Witch, Black Cat) which is also an absolutely wonderful creation and a great deal at only $5.

The Candy Corn is a free pattern available from Lion Brand. Every time I look at it I want to sit down and crochet some for myself, but sadly I just don't have the time this week. Hopefullly, sometime before Halloween I'll get a chance. You'll need to sign up for the free membership to access this one, but it's well worth it. It gives you access to hundreds of free patterns on the Lion Brand site and the only downside will be all the time you spend looking at those patterns instead of doing the other things you're "supposed" to be doing online!

Little Bat Pattern! Cute Thing of the Week!

Welcome to October! Since my tastes tend to run towards the strange, the unusual, the creepy and the cute, I'm really looking forward to seeing all the creative things people put out there this Halloween season. Time permitting I'm hoping to get a Cute Thing of the Week out every Friday in October and with luck most of these will be projects that have free patterns or at the very least, are relatively cheap. That way if you feel inspired, you can get working on them right away and have them decorating your home or office space before Halloween.

To start us off I thought I'd feature shala_beads adorable Little Bat Pattern. This is a free pattern that you can view here. How great would it be to have a few of these guys hanging from the celing or in your doorframes?