Edgar Allan Poe Soiree Guests Gifts and The Raven Society - Halloween

 

I presented each guest with brick dust from the building in New York that Poe used to live in while he wrote “The Cask of Amontillado”.  The girl I purchased the brick dust from, acquired the brick from an auction. She scrapes dust from it and attaches it to a card to sell. Clever. My guests received a print out with details about the building and their response was one of surprise and intrigue. Another gift was a candle named after Poe.

 

I spent some time sharing quite a bit of information about things related both directly and loosely to Poe with the ladies:

~Darling daughter’s first word was, Edgar! How cool is that?!

~Poe attended the University of Virginia for a short time. Sugar daddy aka husband attended the University of Virginia Law School and was inducted into the Raven Society. I passed around his framed certificate.  The honor society recruits members when they are juniors, seniors, or first or second-year graduate students. Potential members must demonstrate academic distinction. Fewer than thirty students are initiated each year and the initiation occurs at midnight. Since its founding in 1904, the Society has been steadfast in its commitment both to the University and to academic excellence.  The Raven Society has sought over the years to honor and promote superior academic and extra-curricular achievement. One of its primary aims, as laid forth in the Constitution, was “to bring together the best men in the various departments of the University for mutual acquaintance and for cooperation in their efforts to protect the honor and dignity of the University.” Its membership, concomitantly, was to include men from every phase of college enterprise. Besides fostering all lines of scholarship, the Society was meant to encourage concerted action by cultivating a broad community of interest and emphasizing leadership and idealistic determination.

 ~One week-end, a friend of his who lived in one of the rooms on the UVA campus “Range” was going out of town and allowed us to stay there overnight. The Range is where coveted single rooms are for students attending UVA. 

 ~A few doors down from his friend's room was the room where Edgar Allan Poe stayed as a student. 13 West Range. The Raven Society uses the room for its annual initiation ceremonies, during which there is a reading from Poe’s work and new members sign with a quill pen in a book of names. They also take an oath of selfless service.

 Poe's room at UVA

 

Husband purchased a bottle of Amontillado, a sherry that Poe enjoyed consuming and is also the name of a quite disturbing story of his. After dessert, we toasted Poe with it.

Tomorrow, there will be numerous photographs of the highly decorated dining room and my costume.

xo

 

Mailing Sent to Edgar Allan Poe Guests - Halloween

 Wanting something dark and foreboding, I created this card using the titles of stories and poems of some of Poe's writings.

 

  The next entries will focus on the decor and dessert table.

xo

Edgar Allan Poe Costume Suggestions Mailing - Halloween

At one point, I mailed guests a card that provided suggestions for costumes based on the titles or characters of Poe's stories/poems.

 Much to my delight, everyone dressed in a manner to honor or reflect Poe and some were amazingly gorgeous and/or creative.

More to come...

xo

Edgar Allan Poe Candlelight Dinner Table - Halloween

My desire was for the table to emulate an icy, frigid scene, from his poem, "Annabel Lee". 

Two tablecloths were used. The first was white and over that was draped sheer white fabric with hundreds of huge silver paillettes. I often use fabric as a tablecloth overlay as it usually get precisely what is desired. 

There were crystal glasses, clear glass plates, ornate silverware, white linen napkins and individual tiny crystal salt cellars. I created two, three-tiered cut glass servers to hold the food.  12"x12" silver, glittered card stock was used as place mats. My frigid tablescape had been realized.

Two glass candelabras held tall ivory tapers and the centerpiece consisted of a dozen red roses in a crystal vase. They symbolized red roses that were secretly left at Edgar Allan Poe’s grave by the "Poe Toaster", a masked gentleman who for many years (from around 1949 until 1977), arrived at Poe's grave site dressed in black, a white scarf around his neck and a large black hat. He would visit in the wee hours of January 19th, Poe's birthday, leave three red roses, toast Poe with a glass of cognac and left the bottle as well. 

Note that the photograph does not show the roses, food or second candelabra as they had not yet been placed there when the photograph was taken..

The menu (catered), consisted of lemon parmigiano stuffed artichoke - ricotta, prosciutto and hot honey crostini - vegan ratatouille tarts - apple bacon jam and brie crostini. Two types of hot tea were served.

My guests were pleased, as was I.

More to come...

xo

Edgar Allan Poe Soiree Invitation - Halloween

A few weeks after mailing the "save-the-date" invitation, the actual invitation with specifics was sent. 

The front was a moody portrait of Edgar Allan Poe and I hand-painted the envelope with grey brush strokes. Creating invitations is such fun and there have been times that I have used a personal photograph. 

The middle section featured a photograph of two Victorian ladies and the party details. 

Black feathers and ravens/black birds would play a large part in the party.

The back encouraged guests to respond sooner rather than later. 

 More to come...

xo sequestered and serene

The Edgar Allan Poe Soiree - Save the Date Invitation - Halloween

There will be quite a few posts shared in order for me to reveal the details about this party. 

The save the date invitations were chicken eggs that I removed the yolks and whites from, sanitized the insides, painted them black and inserted tiny rolled paper with the details. They were nestled in moss and mailed in a black box.

One guest said that she was afraid to break it open and this was precisely the response I was hoping for. Ha!

 

 So much more to come...

xo

Skeletons Awaiting Their Orders - Halloween

              

Making themselves comfortable, in front of the stone bar in Greystone, my Florida home.

How well I recall driving hither, thither and yon searching for these life-sized skeletons in Florida at various Walgreens. Several years ago, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that they carried them. I wanted thirteen. Twelve are shown in the picture. The thirteenth was probably taking a bathroom break.

It took several weeks and driving as far as forty minutes away, but my perseverance won. I met my goal of thirteen.

 

 The clan a few days after Halloween. 

I will show you how and where I used them, which resulted in their exhaustion in another journal entry, between now and Halloween.

More to come...

sequestered and serene xo

Brain Food - Halloween

This was one of the appetizers guests were offered upon their arrival and the shrimp served inside a life-size skull was a big hit. 

This soirée was at Greystone, my Florida get-away home.

Skeletons are almost always part of my Halloween entertaining. I thought that this edible decor would be a unique surprise. Trust me, there were lifesize skeletons around and about.

More to come...

xo sequestered and serene 

Vampire Pumpkin - Halloween

 

 A pumpkin painted black.

A hole carved into the front.

Vampire teeth inserted.

Hmmmmm, perhaps some dripping red paint would be a nice addition...

xo sequestered and serene

Halloween - Floating, Bewitching Skirt

This piece is whimsical and unique, offering some things that I adore about Halloween.  It hung from the covered porch ceiling one Halloween.

My fondness for tulle is great and this one left me almost knee deep in it. Color me delighted.

If you would like to make one, I have written out how mine was created. The process took quite a while, so patience is important. Should have no interest in doing so, just skip the rest of this post.

Items needed:

~ A black umbrella

~ Black boots. Calf or ankle length will work best, as they reveal more of the tights and will weigh less than tall boots.

 ~ Black tulle. Do not buy the small, narrow spools...purchase it by the yard. I believe that I used at least 5 yards, possibly more. JoAnn's and Hobby Lobby are good sources.

~ Striped tights

~ 1 or 2 pool noodles, depending on how long you want the legs to be. Note: depending on what color tights you buy, you may need to first wrap the pool noodles in white fabric to keep the bright pool noodle color from showing through.

~ Duct tape 

~ A 20 pound command strip. If hung outside, this size will hold your umbrella skirt in place during windy weather. 

~ Hot glue gun and glue sticks

~ Scissors

To Assemble:

~ Break off or snip off the handle of the umbrella below the latch. Cover the sharp end with a bit of duct tape. Discard the broken off piece.

 ~ You can open the umbrella all the way and click it in place. Or, open it not quite all the way and apply hot glue, then a piece of duct tape at the area of the handle where you want it to remain in place. 

~ To make your tulle strip for hanging the umbrella, gather several strips together, and tie them at both ends to hold them together. Make two slits about half an inch wide parallel to each other at the very top of the umbrella. Thread one end of the knotted tulle through each slit and tie the two knots together to make a loop. This is what you will hang your umbrella skirt from. 

~ Cut several long strips of tulle. The length you will want your strips depends on the size of your umbrella, so cut one, tie it to one of the higher spokes and see how far below the edge of the umbrella it hangs. Adjust the length accordingly. As you work your way from the center of the umbrella downward, you gradually shorten your strips. I made most of mine the same long length and simply cut them off to the right length once the entire umbrella had strips. You should see several inches of  the tulle below the edge of the umbrella. 

Suggestion: Fold your tulle several times to be able to cut several strips at once. For the final trim, I gave mine jagged ends to provide a tattered appearance. Tie enough strips onto each spoke until you can no longer see the spokes. More is better, as you want the end result to look like a very fluffy petticoat.

~ Cut your tights in half, from the crotch area up through the waist band. Scotch tape along the cut edges can help keep them from getting runs.

~ Cut the pool noodles to a suitable leg length and cut off two short lengths to serve as feet. Duct tape the  feet to the legs. Slide them into the boots to make sure they fit. If they are too large, trim for a better fit. 

~Slide the tights over the pool noodle legs/feet. Make a loop with a piece of duct tape with the sticky side out and place several pieces inside each boot, along the bottom foot area and up the sides, ending just below where the top of the boots end. Use enough duct tape to be certain the legs will support the weight of the boots when dangling from the umbrella. If you are using boots that you will not wear again, you can hot glue the legs/feet inside the boots.

~ Part some of the tulle in the two places where you want the legs to dangle from. Attach the tops of each leg to the exposed spoke with enough hot glue to hold them firmly in place. You may need to trim some of the tops of the tights a bit if they are too long.

~ I added some gathered tulle around the top of the boots, but this is not necessary.

~ Attach the command strip to the ceiling of your porch or ceiling inside your home. Put a dollop of hot glue on the curved piece and hang the tulle loop you made at the top of the umbrella, from the command strip.

Voila! Your floating, bewitching skirt is complete.

If any of my instructions are unclear, feel free ask a question below in the comment section and I will clarify more.

More Halloween sharing will come next week. I wish you a beautiful week-end.

xo sequestered and serene

Halloween - Skull Tulle Gown

 

I wore this frothy dress to my Mischief and Mayhem Halloween Soiree last year. Purchased from Anthropologie, it is an ankle length gown and since it was unlined, I wore a satin sheath underneath. 

After purchasing a few bags of skulls, I attached them all the way around, where the ruffles began. There were twenty if my memory is correct.

This was a hoot to wear and with even a little movement, the skulls hit against one another resulting in a wonderful clacking noise. Similar to what I imagine real skulls might sound like. Shiver me timbers!

I almost never purchase a regular costume, usually opting to create one, first by buying an evening gown or ballgown, and then adding embellishments, etc. That way, I know that it is one-of-a-kind. Besides, my taste leans toward the more elaborate sometimes.

xo sequestered and serene

Halloween - The Freakish Monster

Behold...

 

This amazing apron was worn by my party assistants at two different Halloween soirees...once at the Florida house and the other this past October, here, North of the Mason Dixon Line.

Lovingly handmade of rubber body parts that were stitched together. It is gorgeously hideous. This wearable art piece was a major hit with all of my guests. I purchased it from an artist, but alas,she no longer creates them. 

Touching it feels downright revolting, yet you cannot cease stroking it. It brings to mind the line from Silence of the Lambs spoken by Buffalo Bill, "it rubs the lotion on its skin".

This is a cherished, wearable, Halloween art piece.

xo sequestered and serene

 

Autumn Wreath

 

 

Quite popular several years ago, this wreath was made with unbleached coffee filters and remains a favorite. It took hundreds of them to create it, somewhere in the range of five hundred, if my mind serves me correctly.

As for the size, methinks it ended up with a diameter of approximately 3 ft.

The base is a grapevine wreath and the coffee filters were gathered at the center of the base, then hot glued at the base onto the grapevine form. A tiny branch was tucked into the center upon completion. It was quite easy to create, just time consuming. 

You can dye white coffee filters whatever color you desire using food coloring, acrylic paint or Rit dye. To learn how, search "how to dye coffee filters". Keep in mind that once immersed in water, you will lose most of the pleated effect as they must be laid flat to dry.

 

 close up of the pretty ruffles

I no longer have it, but may make another to hang in the kitchen. As always, time shall tell.

By the way, I am going to begin sharing some of my previous Halloween creations this week, as the season is fast approaching! 

I am...

sequestered and serene xo

 

 

Wedding gift wrapped with love

We have dear friends who live in Virginia and have known for at least thirty years. Our kids grew up together and there were many sleep-overs, parties and just all-around good times. When their daughter married, we gave the couple money and I wanted the presentation to be extra special. This is what I came up with.
 

 Beginning with a round ivory box, I hot glued reindeer moss onto the lid. 

A few large silk hydrangea blossom heads were added along with a wide, sheer, ivory ribbon. 

It was finished with aqua and ivory ostrich feathers. 

Close-up of the lid.

The card and money were placed in an ivory envelope decorated with a 

fabric flower sprinkled with pearls and a wide, ivory satin ribbon.

 

 

 

  

Additional reindeer moss was glued inside along the bottom and an led candle was added 

which gave the interior a soft, warm glow.

 

 

I took my glue gun with me (the wedding was in Virginia), so I could turn on the candle and glue it in place just before we left the hotel room. Since the candle battery lasts for approximately three days and they were not taking a honeymoon right away, I felt confident they would open it while it was still glowing.

Hopefully, it brought a smile to their faces.

sequestered and serene xo

Once Upon a Time

I decided that it would be fun to start a children's party business, concentrating on parties for girls. Below are details about the fairy theme. 

The costumes consisted of fairy wings that I made from scratch. This meant that I purchased long, thin metal bars from Home Depot and bent each one into a unique shape. No easy feat, I can tell you. Then, I covered them with a variety of beautiful fabrics like organza and finally decorated them with marabou, sequins, rhinestones, ribbons and all manner of fancy schmancy things.  The tutu's coordinated with their respective wings, as did each headpiece. I also created fairy wands made out of real branches. Each fairy ensemble was different. I purchased tube tops and a large selection of jelly shoes in various sizes.

Here are some photographs of the ten costumes:

 

I painted petite wood stools brown, padded them, attached brown felt on top and painted on red dots. 

Ta-Da. Toadstools.

A shopping trip provided me with several tables with telescoping legs allowing them to be raised or lowered for a variety of ages. There were plates, silverware, linen napkins, pitchers in bright colors. Whimsical tablecloths and many more fun things.

One of the crafts consisted of tiny wood bird houses that we would decorate with feathers and sequins turning them into fairy houses.  There was story time where the Head Fairy would read a story about fairies. A fairy parade in the neighborhood. Fairy dancing. The taking of the fairy oath. Oh, what fun!

There were handmade invitations, cute music and a portable cd player. Oh yes, I had to locate and purchase take home gifts. The process of finding a baker who could make gorgeous fairy cakes was enjoyable.  I sourced make-up that was safe and suitable for youngsters and found two assistant fairies to help set up, dress and make-up the wee fairies. Everything needed to flow seamlessly.
 

My ballgown with amazing with a skirt that consisted of a gazillion layers of tulle, iridescent wings that spanned five feet and a dazzling headpiece.

It took me about a year to research, create, purchase and plan everything.

When I did a test party using the daughter of a neighbor, it took the lawyer and his vehicle, my vehicle, man/child, woman/child and an assistant fairy plus myself to schlepp everything, set up and execute the party. It was a huge success.

However.

I literally a mini-van would need to be purchased as I had that many items to transport. 

I drew the line at purchasing a mini-van.

So, all of these items, plus several other themed party collections to include, Little Lavender Ballerinas, Spa Girls and Fancy Dress-up Tea Party went into the attic where they remained for a time, then sold.    

There were no regrets, as I had a fantastic time coming up with the concept, creating the costumes and decorations, then hosting the neighbor's daughter's party.

On to the next idea...

sequestered and serene xo

Winged Victory

When I first laid eyes on her, Winged Victory took my breath away. Displayed in the most dramatic fashion, standing at the head of the sweeping Daru staircase in the Louvre, she was an awe-inspiring sight.

Winged Victory in the Louvre in Paris

Also called, The Nike of Samothrace, the statue was discovered in 1863, and is estimated to have been created around 190 BC. She was created to not only pay tribute to the goddess Nike, but also to honor a sea battle. She conveys a sense of action and triumph as well as portraying artful flowing drapery through her features which the Greeks considered ideal beauty.

Fast forward some years. While shopping at a Home Goods/ Marshalls,

 

there 

she 

was. 

 

I stopped and stared, my eyes wide and mouth open. A clerk asked me if I was OK and I assured her that I was absolutely OK.

It took approximately five helpers in the store to get her into my SUV. The reason is simple. Although she is slender, Winged Victory is made from concrete and, is life-size.

After backing the vehicle up to her new home, the lawyer and man/child got her out. It mattered not that my bumper was dented in the process. Honest. I told you that she is weighty. 

 

She now stands in all her glory in the front yard. Happy to have a home where she is adored, On the other hand, she was quite insulted when a contractor, and then the airport driver mistook her for a fairy. The Nike is sensitive that way.

 

her detailed wing

 

 

 

 

As I delved more into her history, I learned that Frank Lloyd Wright loved her as well and used reproductions in a number of his buildings. 

 

Twice, one of her wings collapsed and each time the lawyer repaired her. Thus, she has been left somewhat fragile.

How I love seeing her in her elegant glory each time I go outside and delight that she is there to greet me. 

Read more about her fascinating history below and be sure to select English to have the information translated should you need to.

http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/winged-victory-samothrace?selection=44909

Blessings to you and yours...

 

Participating in an Antiques Bazaar

The decision was made to participate in a church bazaar. Not one to do anything halfway, I hired a guy with a pick-up truck to deliver the furniture and decorative accessories from my 10 x 40 foot storage unit. I followed with more items in my suv. It was hilarious to watch the truck making it's way to the site as I drove behind him. The items were packed in such a way that it looked like the traveling Beverly Hillbillies.

He made two trips while I began setting up.

It took me about six hours to complete the task. A sweet gal pal showed up to help me drape the vintage table cloths over the top of the canopy. Thank you Rose.

Below is the fruit of my labor...

The canopy draped with vintage tablecloths.

Inside.

Romantic vanity.

Dresser with some of my handmade appliques.

Area in front of the canopy.

Another fabulous dresser

Back inside. The wire dress form eventually had vintage hankies hanging from it.

The huge pink rug from my favorite auction house.

The "front yard" outside the canopy. The petite picket fence sections were found
a few days before the event and were a nice addition.

Precious lil girl's chenille chair.

Hope chest overflowing with quilted pillows.

 It was a successful event.

Ciao for now.

I remain sequestered and serene...