These days, I don't do anything for Halloween. Who knew when I was a child that one day I'd be old enough not to do anything?
I grew up in the good times. We lived in a safe neighborhood, which most neighborhoods were at the time. We knew and went to school with our neighbors for blocks and blocks. Like the general tradition at the time, we would dress up on Halloween night in some sort of costume, scary (light children scary) or silly and go as a group to all of our neighbors houses, ring the doorbell, yell TRICK OR TREAT! ...and the neighbor would open the door and put candy (mostly) in our treat bags and off we would go to the next house. The streets were full of others doing the same. You'd try to guess who was under the other costumes, some easily guessed, some not.
At the end of the evening you'd go back home with your bag full of treats and everyone was happy. It was SO much fun.
For us and those we knew, it was nothing about satan or real witches or celebrating the dark arts, we didn't even know about that stuff, it was a simple tradition started long before our time and we took it for only how we knew of it.
I know this still happens in small pockets here and there, but mostly that tradition seems to have nearly disappeared. People don't know their neighbors, the world appears to be a scarier place in general and etc.
I was a lucky one I guess, because I still have fond memories of those childhood times.
I don't have a lot of Halloween decorations, just a very small box. I didn't even open it this year, although I meant too. I did however have my big ceramic pumpkin sitting on a shelf in my little storage area and brought it out a couple of weeks ago, where it has been smiling from my table every since. I like happy things! I didn't notice till after I looked at my photos on my computer that this one had blue eyes where the stained glass behind it shown through. It's kind of perfect eyes, don't you think? Fun accidental photo catch.
This little sweetie had not made it back in the box last year and was also on a shelf in storage, so it came out in the living area too. I bought it on Esty one year.
These two things are the only pieces I put out this year. I was pretty slack about it, but I have enjoyed them all the same and it only cost me a tiny effort.
A couple of nights ago I was testing something and put some paint on this canvas board and after, it was a bit of a mess (yes, a different kind of mess than it is now! 馃槀).... and I didn't really think I would make a finished piece out of it. Last night though as I was piddling around at my art desk while listening to a podcast, I laid a piece or two of random papers against the test board and found a few things almost looked like they should be on it, so I glued them there. Later, after I did that a few times, I began to think it looked like something for Halloween with it's dark parts and a little orange, so I balanced the orange and called it done! Yeah, I know, pretty weird.
Another photo here at my computer desk this morning and a little further back. I sometimes think my close-ups like the above, don't really show the effect of the overall piece as well. Too easy for the eye to break up the parts and not get an overall feel. I could be wrong on that, but that is the way it seems to my eyes.
This one has nothing at all to do with Halloween, but I realized I had not included it before. Two torn strips of funly painted cool colored collage papers stitched together with the highly contrasting warm, yellow/orange painted paper and one warm orange ball to focus.
There is something I really like about it.
No parties tonight or trick-or-treaters, just another night that I will stay home to make sure I don't get caught up in other people's shenanigans. Just me in my comfy lounger, at my art desk with the TV or videos on. The perfect kind of evening!
Hope you are all doing well and that your hearts are happy.
