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6 Ways to Celebrate the Day of the Dead

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The Mexican Holiday, Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is becoming more and more popular around the world. The Day of the Dead is typically celebrated on November 1 and 2, just after Halloween in the United States. Day of the Dead costumes and decorations can now be found in most stores mixed right in with Halloween costumes. So before the 2 holidays blur any further, let’s take a look at what the Day of the Dead celebration is all about.

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Halloween vs. Day of the Dead

In the U.S, we are used to spooky graveyards, where unsettled spirits haunt anyone who comes near. But in most cultures, people celebrate the dead in a more positive light. In fact, even in the U.S. during Victorian times, most families spent their Sundays in cemeteries picnicking near the graves of their loved ones. That’s why so many cemeteries are designed with park-like surroundings.

The Day of the Dead is a positive celebration, a way to honor ancestors. Día de Muertos is hundreds of years old, with its origins most likely coming from Aztec ritual. It is believed that once a year, ancestors come back for 2 days to spend time with their families. To honor their presence, people decorate their ancestors’ graves, build beautiful altars in their honor and cook their favorite foods. Celebrations also include parties and parades. The Day of the Dead is a holiday that is colorful in every way!

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How to Celebrate the Day of the Dead

Want to get into the spirit of the Day of the Dead and honor your ancestors? Here is how to get your Día de Muertos celebrations started:

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1. Put Together a Colorful Day of the Dead Altar (Ofrenda)

In Mexico, people usually decorate family gravesites and often create an altar, or ofrenda, in their homes to honor their ancestors. Altars like the one in the photo above can be elaborate works of art or simple and very personal. Start by finding a location in your home for your altar, such as a corner table, desk or fireplace mantle. Add a colorful tablecloth or table runner. Next, add photos of the person or people you want to honor. To get into the Mexican Spirit, you may want to place your photos in beautifully crafted tile frames like these. Then place personal items that were owned by your relatives in their lifetime on the altar. Or use items that make you think of your family members.

Next, place Day of the Dead decorations like marigolds, skull figures and paper banners on your altar. We will discuss how to make these items or where to buy them below. Some people also add their ancestors’ favorite foods and drinks to their altar to encourage their spirits to stay near. And finally, candles and incense make great additions to your altar.

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If you have more time to be crafty, check out the directions for making this Day of the Dead Carved Pumpkin Altar at Michael’s. The altar is made out of the fake carvable pumpkins, so you can use the altar year after year. Or if you enjoy getting a bit messy with pumpkin guts and/or paint, you can use real pumpkins and create a perishable masterpiece.

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2. Decorate with Paper Banners (Papel Picado)

Papel Picado, or specially cut Mexican paper banners, are a festive way to celebrate the Day of the Dead. Traditionally Papel Picado are intricately created by Mexican artists. With a little bit of practice, simple paper banners are easy to make. You can also find free printables such as this one from LiveColorful.com. Make sure to have bright colored paper on hand or markers to color in the designs.

Want to purchase Papel Picado for your altar or Day of the Dead party? Affordable paper or plastic banners are available on Amazon.com in a variety of sizes and colors.

Day of the Dead Marigold Flowers and Petals

3. Celebrate with Marigolds (Cempasúchiles)

Look how gorgeous this fountain looks decked out in orange Marigold flowers and petals. Marigolds, or Cempasúchiles, are the main flower used in decorating for Day of the Dead. You can grow your own to add to your altar, though beware, Marigolds have a very strong odor if you are using them indoors. Many people also use paper Marigolds. You can purchase paper Marigolds in orange and yellow from a party supplier.

Paper Marigolds are also really easy to make. We like the directions on this tutorial from Tinkerlab.com.

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4. Decorate with Sugar Skulls (Calaveras)

Sugar Skulls, known as calaveras in Spanish, have become an essential part of Day of the Dead celebrations. Decorated skulls, literally made out of pressed sugar, are placed on altars to represent the ancestors being honored. Of course, you can now find Day of the Dead skulls made in all sorts of materials which are fun to collect. Check out these Sugar Skulls to get your collection started.

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If you are interested to making real sugar skulls, we suggest using the directions and sugar molds from MexicanSugarSkulls.com.

We also love this do-it-yourself sugar skull painting kit, which makes a great gift.

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5. Dress to Impress (Disfraces)

Day of the Dead is your opportunity to dress up in stylish skeleton costumes, or disfraces. Check out these great costumes for men and women at Amazon.com. Many qualify for 2-Day Shipping with your Amazon Prime membership. And don’t forget to pick up a Day of the Dead makeup kit.

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If you know how to sew, Simplicity offers a beautiful sewing pattern for DIY Women’s Day of the Dead costumes.

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6. Host a Traditional Day of the Dead Party Instead of a Halloween Party (Día de la fiesta de muertos)

Hosting a Day of the Dead party, known as Día de la fiesta de muertos in Spanish, is both fun and educational for your guests. You can find lots of fun Day of the Dead party supplies at your favorite retailer or make your own.

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Encourage your guests to come dressed as Day of the Dead skeletons. Ask guests to bring photos and favorite mementos to honor their ancestors. Create a community Day of the Dead altar and ask guests to add their mementos to it. Ask your guests to share stories about the relatives they are honoring. Explain the traditions on the Day of the Dead and encourage guests to take part in activities such as painting or carving sugar skulls on pumpkins, face painting and making paper marigolds. Serve popular Day of the Dead treats and drinks. Here are some great recipes to get you started.

More than anything, surround yourself with colors and enjoy this very festive holiday in a way your ancestors would appreciate!

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How to Get into the Steampunk Style Craze

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A few years ago, we received a call from an old friend asking my husband and me to be in a Steampunk fashion show. I quickly made a face and said, “A Steam what now?!”

Al is a huge sci-fi junkie, so he was a little more up on the Steampunk movement than I was. He told me to go read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne and watch the Sherlock movies to understand Steampunk style. AND he said this was an excuse to wear Victorian costumes. DONE! I was a go.

What is Steampunk?
Steampunk is a creative alternative reality stemming from the Victorian era when steam engines were powering much of the industrial world. What if electricity was never developed and steam power continued to dominate? What would our daily reality be like? Then add in some extra science fiction, Hollywood effects, cosplay adventure and over-the-top costumes and you’ve got the Steampunk genre down.

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Here are some hints for getting started in Steampunk:

1. Join a local Steampunk Club
Most communities have Steampunk social clubs or have Cosplay or Science Fiction groups that have Steampunk members. Our group (called Temporal Entities of Syracuse or TEOS) was originally a Dr. Who Club that spun off in the steampunk direction. Many groups have events such as monthly dinner gatherings (in costume), a yearly steampunk ball, gear swap weekends, dates to work on costumes, parades, fashion shows, conventions and Victorian street festivals.

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2. Connect Online
There are tremendous forums, websites, Facebook groups where you can virtually connect with other Steampunkers. There are tons of tutorials to help you create your costumes, accessories, and characters. Pinning ideas on Pinterest is a great way to also get ideas.

3. Develop Your Steampunk Character
Do you have a favorite character in literature or the movies? Or a historical person you admire? With some ingenuity, almost any character can be “steampunked.” Or start by researching Victorian-era costumes, plus the culture of the 1880s in Europe or in the U.S. What scientific and industrial advancements were taking place? What political issues were occurring at the time? Start with a person and then develop a story around them. Who are they? What’s their personality like? What do they do for a living? What do they struggle with? What inspires them?

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4. Visit Your Local Thrift Shop
The thrift shop is a great place to start to put together your first Steampunk costume. While ready-made Steampunk Halloween costumes are available and great if you need an outfit on short notice, most Steampunkers like to create their own unique style.

For men, look for striped or corduroy pants, collarless dress shirts, vests, boots, and sports coats you can doctor. Also look for leather coats and bomber jackets.

For Women, look for long flowing skirts, Victorian-style blouses with high necks and puffy sleeves, flowing gypsy-style blouses, tight-fitting tops with corset seams, vests, boots and leather coats.

For both, look for belts, jewelry and leather handbags that can be repurposed as Steampunk accessories. You may want to check the knickknack and electronics sections for items you can also repurpose such as small glass bottles, wood boxes, old clocks with gears, etc.

5. Purchase Steampunk Accessory Essentials

It is worth the money to purchase certain essential parts of your Steampunk costume. These include a quality wool top hat or derby hat, goggles, leather gloves and comfortable boots if you plan to go to a lot of events or conventions. Women may want to invest in a quality made corset and men may want to invest in a proper waistcoat or tailcoat.

6. Get Out Your Sewing Machine and Glue Gun
Simplicity and McCall’s have produced several great Steampunk costume sewing patterns for men and women if you want to make a costume from scratch. If you don’t sew, then you may want to go the thrift shop route or make fast friends with someone in your club who can help you. If you are willing to invest, many talented artists sell elaborate Steampunk costumes and accessories on Etsy. Also check eBay and Amazon regularly for Steampunk related items. As a Steampunker, you will find there are many things you can make for your character. Besides a sewing machine, antiquing paint and your glue gun may become your favorite go-to tools!

7. Have Fun!
Steampunk is all about an imagined alternate reality. There is no right or wrong. Keep evolving your character and your Steampunk costume will evolve as well. Fully embrace your character when in costume and remember to take photos!

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Make Your Own Upcycled Easter Display

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Time to decorate with something new this Spring without spending a fortune? Try making an upcycled Easter display.

Make Your Own Upcycled Easter Display

I LOVE the boho experience of thrift shopping. I enjoy the sport of never knowing what I’ll find and sometimes manifesting just what I want. And when I decorate, I love mixing old with new to create my own unique style. Can’t get much more bohemian than that!

We were ready to do something new with our beloved Easter decorations this year. We have a beautiful storage cabinet in our kitchen that needed a new display. I try and change the space out every few months.

We have a slew of velvet Easter eggs and Easter egg candles that I usually arrange in baskets around the house. This year I wanted to display them in glass somehow. So what an excellent reason to head over to our local thrift shop!

For about $10 I purchased a mix of miscellaneous crystal and glass wine glasses, champagne glasses, and cordial glasses. I selected a variety of looks and heights, enough to make an interesting display. After a bit of scrubbing, the glasses shined beautifully and here is what I came up with for my upcycled Easter display:

Make Your Own Upcycled Easter Display

I set eggs into the top of each of the glasses and arranged the glassware until it looked appealing. Then, I set a glass bowl full of additional eggs in the middle of the display and added the grass rabbits and other décor around it. I also added a tall glass vase filled with eggs and topped that with birds sitting on a nest.

To finish the display, I surrounded the decor in white lights. I set the lights up on an easy remote control clicker so they are easy to turn on and off at night.

I enjoy looking at the display especially at night with the white lights reflecting all the crystal glassware. This upcycled Easter display makes my boho spirit very happy I hope that it inspires your creativity too!

For more cool bohemian craft and decorating ideas, check out the DIY section of this blog.


Valentine’s Day Boho Altered Art Shadowbox

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Need a unique Valentine’s Day gift? Try your hand at making a boho altered art shadowbox.

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My boho altered art project began when I found this great little shadowbox at my favorite thrift shop. Even better, I picked it up for only 99 cents. Altered art printer trays have always attracted my attention, so I decided to play with some mixed media myself.

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My boho personality also loves any excuse to collect some of this and that to eventually use in my artwork. So I dug around my art studio for embellishments, rubber stamps, paints and other supplies and found objects that would give texture to my shadowbox. I hope my boho altered art shadowbox inspires you!

Supplies:
Printer Tray or Shadow Box (from a thrift shop, garage sale or the craft store)
Sandpaper
Copper, Gold and Silver Metallic Acrylic Paint
Scrapbooking Paper Scraps
Paper Punches and/or Sizzix Machine and Dies
Rubber Stamps and Ink
Black Embossing Powder and Heat Gun
Scissors
Paint Brushes
Craft Glue
Misc Found Objects (such as Old Buttons and Vintage Costume Jewelry)
Misc Craft Store Finds (such as Microbeads, Scrapbooking Stickers, Stick-on Jewels, Mini Bead Garlands, Felt Designs and Gift Basket Fillers)

Steps:
1. Start by painting your shadow box or printers tray. You may need to lightly sand your tray and wipe with a damp cloth first. This will help the paint adhere better to the wood.

I painted my box with gold and copper metallic acrylic paint and then used silver metallic paint for the interior of each of the boxes. I also added a touch of silver to the front edge here and there.

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2. Next play with your papers, found objects and craft store finds to give you ideas on what to place where.
I chose to start by creating the LOVE banners. Once I decided to place the letters diagonally as the focal point of the piece, the rest of the boxes were easier to design.

3. Create your art elements and then assemble your shadow box. Think about colors, dimension and personality. There are no wrong choices! Run with that bohemian spirit!

Here’s a tour of my shadowbox (All openings are 1 inch by 1 inch):

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Top Row:

Box 1: Square filled with silver gift basket filler. “L” rubber stamped in black on floral scrapbook paper, then heat embossed in black. L then layered on burgundy paper cut from Sizzix die.

Box 2: Red metallic mini bead garland with vintage-looking metal stick-on.

Box 3: Banner cut in black glitter paper with Sizzix die. Fleur de lis metal jewelry finding.

Box 4: Hot pink mixed microbeads with felt puffed heart.

Second Row:

Box 1: Square cut from scrapbooking punch in burgundy metallic. Tiny birds and hearts cut from Sizzix machine and dies.

Box 2: Square filled with gold gift basket filler. “O” rubber stamped in black on floral scrapbook paper, then heat embossed in black. L then layered on burgundy paper cut from Sizzix die.

Box 3: Assorted frosted glass stick-on jewels.

Box 4: Vintage antique gold shoe clip.

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Third Row:

Box 1: Vintage antique gold shoe clip.

Box 2: Square cut from scrapbooking punch in burgundy floral paper. Vintage Christmas gold wire with berries shaped into heart.

Box 3: Square filled with silver gift basket filler. “V” rubber stamped in black on floral scrapbook paper, then heat embossed in black. L then layered on burgundy paper cut from Sizzix die.

Box 4: Banner cut in black glitter paper with Sizzix die. Mini vintage heart jewelry finding attached to vintage gold button.

Fourth Row:

Box 1: Hot pink mixed microbeads with felt puffed heart.

Box 2: Vintage button.

Box 3: Square cut from scrapbooking punch in black glitter paper. Mini heart and key vintage charms.

Box 4: Square filled with gold gift basket filler. “E” rubber stamped in black on floral scrapbook paper, then heat embossed in black. L then layered on burgundy paper cut from Sizzix die.

Front Edge:

Decorated with 5 frosted glass stick on jewels and 2 large black glitter paper birds cut with dies and Sizzix machine. The LOVE pennants are also glued to the front edge of the shadowbox.

Happy Valentine’s Day crafting! To see more Valentine’s day boho altered art, click here.

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Valentine’s Day Laser Cut Wood Plaque

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Here’s a quick and fun do-it-yourself project for Valentine’s Day using some of those neat laser cut wood products that are flooding craft stores like Michaels these days.

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You Will Need:
Large Laser Cut Wood Plaque
Large Wooden Heart
2 Laser Cut Words (I chose “Love” and “Adore”)
Small Laser Cut Wood Heart (I chose one with a flower and leaf motif)
3 small Wooden Hearts
Red, White, and Pink Acrylic Paint
Paint Brushes
Glue Gun
Twine
(I found all of my supplies at Michaels.com. Look for the Artminds brand).

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Directions:
1. Start by painting the wood hearts and words. I painted the small laser cut heart and the words white. I painted the 3 small wood hearts red.

2. Next paint the large wood heart. My example has 2 layers. The outer heart is painted white and the inner heart is painted hot pink.

3. Then paint the large laser cut plaque. I chose to paint the middle section white with the outer part blending into pale pink. I then used hot pink paint to casually shade the outer edge of the plaque.

4. Once dry, arrange your wood hearts and words on the large laser cut wood plaque as desired.

5. Use a hot glue gun to glue all the pieces together.

6. Cut and knot twine to the top of the plaque. Your project is ready to hang!

Enjoy your new Valentine’s Day laser cut wood decor! Happy Crafting!

To find more great DIY Valentine’s Day projects and other fun boho craft ideas, click here.

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