Whimsical Haunted Village

What an incredibly fun weekend I had creating this Whimsical Haunted Village. I think I used every Tim Holtz/Sizzix Halloween die I own, plus every Village die set. I love how the accessory dies like the Surf Shack, Cottage, and Rooftops allow me to be as creative as possible to build a unique village like this.

Rather than the expected creepy and dark Halloween scene, I opted for a whimsical touch. I've incorporated Graphic 45's fantastic Hallowe'en in Wonderland papers with the new Village Manor die to build the main structure in my village. The new Twisted Edge die works well on its side to create spooky branches in the background. I simply die cut it twice and flipped it and trimmed it so each one looks a little different on each side of the manor. Tim's new Wicked Metal Adornment (spider charm) works well as a creepy decoration over the front door.

I created custom steps following the same basic construction as the base in the Village Dwelling die. 

My second structure is the Village Brownstone, mixed with some accents from the Village Cottage die. You can probably identify some of the older dies I've incorporated here, too, like the Branch Tree, On the Fence Edge, and Autumn Gatherings. (I snuck in a little paper from last year's Graphic 45 Halloween release "Rare Oddities" for this house, too.)

Tim's new Pumpkin Pieces and Broomsticks are a bit large in scale for the village, but since mine is a whimsical Hallowe'en in Wonderland, I thought they were perfect! Out of proportion makes perfect sense here. The base of this house has been created with a texture folder to resemble a cobblestone effect.

My third structure is made from the Village Dwelling, plus some parts from the Surf Shack. Tim's new Boneyard Bones are perfect on the front porch. The bats coming out of the chimney are from Tim's new Mixed Media Halloween Thinlits set. I've attached them to a thin strip of clear plastic (from Sizzix cutting plates packaging). The roof, of course, is made with the Rooftops die and some black Kraft Core, sanded for a distressed shingle effect.

Older dies like Gothic Boo and the crow (movers and shapers) are worked into this design, along with some swirls from the Festive Greenery die. (I told you I used a bunch of different dies.)

Flickering battery-operated tea lights sit inside each house to give a nice eerie glow. You can find these in a two-pack in Dollar Tree.

Thanks for stopping in today. I guess it's no surprise I LOVE all the Village dies. I'm totally and utterly addicted to them!

I'll be teaching this Whimsical Haunted Village class in Jacksonville, Florida at Crafting at the Nest, Saturday September 24th. If you're in the area and would like to join us, please contact Cindy Bosnyak at CraftingAtTheNest@bellsouth.net or phone her at 904-838-8151.