Update: I have officially lost my freakin’ mind.

This post is for my regular readers, who may be wondering what the hell is going on with me. It is, after all, less than nine weeks until Halloween, and –after a rather anemic start — my normal Halloween Countdown posts have stopped appearing on schedule.

Two things have happened:

Thing 1 (good):

I have been making excellent progress on my current novel project AND incorporating my brand-spanking-new copy of Scrivener into my process. (For those of you who don’t know, that’s a piece of software that simplifies the organizational aspects of a novel writing project.) I’m thrilled with the tool, but it’s got a steep learning curve. I’ve been refusing to let the time needed to familiarize myself with the program reduce my word count progress, thus, I am spending A LOT of time working on my fiction. The blog has suffered.

Thing 2 (insane):

I’ve realized that many of my original Halloween posts have grown unwieldy as I’ve updated them over the last couple of years. Getting some of them updated has made me realize that my system isn’t sustainable. The whole concept of my Halloween section needs an overhaul. I believe the countdown needs to be separated from the articles that have always accompanied them. Consequently, the countdown images themselves need to be redone. (I was getting tired of them anyway.) I expect to have a new series of images to share soon, but the countdown will be shorter than usual this year.

In the meantime, the Halloween-centric content that already exists needs to be repackaged.

Here’s a peek at the bones of the future Halloween index:

Halloween at The Paranormalist

So I’m gonna do as much as I can manage this week, in an attempt to salvage the season before we get much closer to The Big Day. It will actually be less time-consuming than forcing the current system into an even more Gordian state. (My alternative is to completely strip Halloween out of the blog this year, and we all know that would kill me.) The project is underway, but I’ve got a lot to do before I’ll feel like I’m managing things well. Posts may go up at wonky intervals and/or be backdated. They may not yet fit neatly into a framework. For short periods of time, photos may be placeholders for planned shots. In short, it’s gonna be a mess before it gets better.

Forgive me.

Halloween Treats: Adult Coloring Pages

Printable Adult Coloring Pages

Adult Coloring Pages

Recently, my husband and I went to the bookstore where we saw dozens of themed coloring books prominently displayed, all of them intended for adults.

I couldn’t help but think the retailer has a brilliant sense of timing.

In late August and early September, I am always struck by back-to-school nostalgia. For me, that nostalgia manifests as an almost primal urge to hunt for and gather fresh creative supplies.

In the early autumn, when I shop for things I actually need, I keep accidentally wandering into the office and school supply section, where I linger over new academic planners and fondle new journals. I am prone to searching for a familiar green and yellow box just so I can open it and breathe in that new Crayola smell. (Is it stealing if all you do is snort up all the scent your sinuses can handle?)

I don’t really need any new art  supplies. I’ve got plenty of crayons, markers and colors around the house. What I really need is a reason to use them. I am pretty sure there is a new coloring book in my near future, but I don’t yet know what theme I want to purchase. Until I figure it out, though, I can content myself with a few coloring pages.

I’ve offered a couple of links to free, printable coloring pages here at The Paranormalist in years past, as a sort of Halloween treat. This year, I’ve double-checked that those designs are still readily available AND I’ve found some new ones to share.

Instructions:

NOTE: I discovered that finding free coloring pages on the web is more complicated that one would think–there are A LOT of badly formatted sites out there.

All of the links I provide below will lead you to a PDF version of the image which will print on one standard size sheet of paper … you DO NOT have to download the document to special PDF viewers that so many of these pages aggressively advertise. (You do need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your PC — but you probably already do.) All of the following links have specific information about what to click. In general, clicking the correct link will open a new window with a larger version of the printable image. When the full-sized image opens, drop your cursor into the lower right corner of your window so the control panel opens.

TIP: Printing the designs on white card stock will give you an even better coloring experience, especially if you want to use colored pens or markers, rather than crayons or colored pencils.

Adult Coloring Pages for the Halloween Season:

NEW 5 Designs From Secret Garden:

Back in 2013, Johanna Basford published Secret Garden a vanguard title in the adult coloring book trend. Since then, she’s drawn at least two more books which can be ordered from Amazon, and found in many bookstores and gift shops. She is the rock star of adult coloring book artists. I’ve found five of her designs from Secret Garden available for free at The Guardian.

Please click this link to view the list of designs, then click each text link on that page to open each PDF. Forgive me for not posting thumbnails; the potential layers of copyright protection (between the book & the newspaper article) make me nervous about posting the images here. Here’s an image of the coloring book:

For the lead-up to Halloween, I especially love:

• #1 (a garden scene that could be colored to reflect late summer)
• #2 (a Mandela-style owl that begs to be colored in autumnal tones)

~***~

NEW Seven Sugar Skulls:

6 sugar skulls at Coloring Castle.

Choose from 3 difficulty levels, or a blank skull on which you can make your own decorative design.

At the above page, click the text link directly beneath the design.

Sugar skull woman with flowers at Kidspress.

At the above page, click the blue PRINT button beneath the design.

~***~

NEW Two Intricate Horror Designs from Coloring Life:

• Slasher Movie – at print screen: change layout to landscape and change margins to minimum (Default margins will make it over-run a tiny bit onto a second page.)
• Graveyard Celebration – at print screen: change layout to landscape and change margins to minimum, which makes it slightly larger

At the above links, look for the SMALL gray box that says “Print.” It’s above the random ad, which is above the image.

~***~

3 Halloween-themed coloring pages at Activity Village.

Carving Pumpkins

Haunted House

Spell Room

• Carving Pumpkins
• Haunted House
• Spell Room

At the above links, click the text link directly above the design.

~***~

BlueBison.net has a Haunted House with Skeletons:

At the above link, follow for the instructions under the image.

RETURN TO THE HALLOWEEN INDEX

Halloween Hobbies: Monster Models

I do NOT need a new hobby. That said, I am lusting after a monster model kit or two.  A fellow blogger hooked me on this idea a while back, with a post titled: Aurora Monster Models and Prehistoric Scenes Kits. Ever since I read his piece, I’ve been resisting the pull of these beauties. What saves me is the fact that I really just want to HAVE the models, not so much spend the time MAKING them. (I did ask Ogre last night if he missed model making. Perhaps there is a trip to a hobby store in my near future.)

NOTE: It appears that any given model might be available from any number of sources. I’ve linked to the ones I found, but if the suggested site goes out of stock, just google the proper name of the creature and see what comes up. Click around a little to find your favorite monster – many different designs are available. Be careful, though. Some listings are for reproduction boxes only. Others are for more expensive models in vinyl or resin. Some models might be available at your local hobby store. I’ve gathered a selection that shows a cross-section of the available plastic (styrene)  model kits.

Creature from the Black Lagoon w/Female
1/8 Scale | Moebius |Skill Level 2. |Ages 15 and up. |Approx. Price: $36.89
See more details about the kit at The Modeling News

Bela Lugosi as Dracula Deluxe Kit with Woman
1/8 | Moebius| Skill Level 2. |Ages 10 and up. |Approx. Price: $40.99
See more details about the kit at IPMS / USA Reviews

Dr. Jekyll as Mr. Hyde
1/8 | Moebius | Skill Level 3. | Ages 15 and up. |Approx Price: $21.99
See more details about the kit at IPMS / USA Reviews

Bride of Frankenstein
1/8 | Moebius | Skill level 3. | Ages 15 and up. | Approx. Price: $39.99
See more details about the kit at IPMS / USA Reviews

Psycho Bates Mansion
1/87 | Polar Lights | Skill Level 2. | Ages 10 and up. | Approx. Price:  $26.99
See more details about the kit at IPMS / USA Reviews

Munsters House 1313 Mockingbird Lane
1/87 | Moebius | Skill level 2. |Approx. Price: $36.89
See more details about the kit at IPMS / USA Review

MONSTER SCENES SNAP-TOGETHER MODELS

If even the level 2 kits I’ve spotlighted above are a little too intimidating, there is another option. Monster Scenes models are snap-together, rather than glue-dependent. The scale of these models is 1/13, and each kit is intended to work with all the other kits in the collection.

SEX & SADISM IN A KIT

Yes. That does mean “The Victim”  fits inside “The Hanging Cage” … and in every other torture and restraint device in the dungeon diorama pieces.

The Monster Scenes line was created by Aurora, who had enjoyed massive success in the 60s, with classic Universal Monsters models. In the early 70s, they introduced this set, which quickly attracted the ire of religious and feminist groups. (And probably most parents.) Remember, the suggested age on these “toys” was 10 and up.

There is a great articles about the backlash at RetroCrush. There is also an elaborate website dedicated to the Monster Scenes models and their scandalous history at monsterscenes.net.

You can see how the pieces can be used to create multiple scenes in the following video, and get a glimpse of some additional pieces that may be available if you’re good with a search engine.

Get The Victim, The Hanging Cage & Gruesome Goodies at Moebius Models. ($25 – $30 each.) Try MegaHobby for: The Feral Cat, Sabre Tooth Rabbit, The Skeleton. Amazon is another resource which currently stocks  The Pendulum, and Dr. Deadly himself.

GETTING STARTED

Having never been a model builder, I had to do some poking around to even begin to understand what to do.

I found this:
A beginner’s guide to making plastic models. (This is a general site, that talks about model vehicles,)
and this:
How to Make (Plastic) Monster Models by Dex Robinson. Where Dex shows various stages in the process resulting in this masterpiece:

And this:
 — just to get an idea of how expensive (outside of the cost of the models themselves) this hobby is.
Megahobby Modelers Pack Set 4
“Great for getting started in Modeling”
You get the Testors Hobby Knife, Liquid cement with applicator, Special Value paint set and Testors sandpaper.
Approximate Price: $19.79

Or:
Megahobby Tool Pack
This set includes Testors liquid cement, a three-pack of fine sable paint brushes, a Model Expo sprue cutter, a Testors assorted sand paper pack with three different grits, and a Testors standard hobby knife.
Approximate price: $22.99 0r, if you want a Mega Hobby tee, $29.99.

I know, of course, that the actual supplies to complete a model would be far higher.

Especially because, of course, I want to do this:

FOUR figures! Plus a bat, a rat and a rabbit(?)

Munsters Living Room
1/16 | Polar Lights | Skill Level 2. | Ages 10 and up. | Approx. Price:  $24.99
See more details about this kit at IPMS / USA Reviews

RETURN TO THE HALLOWEEN INDEX

Photo credit: Wolfman link image, on the Halloween Index page, is by Parlor of Horror