Die Cut Blow Out

Well, once again we find ourselves at the day before THE day.  Traditionally on this blog, today is the end of garage sale content with tomorrow reserved for photos of my home haunt.  Believe it or not, our outside still isn't decorated (as of writing this).  We had a new roof put on a little over a week ago (tornado damage last March) and I didn't want the decorations damaged by flying shingles.  Then it began raining (after a 3 month drought). And raining. And raining.  Today (10/30) is supposed to be cloudy but dry, so I'm going to go into overdrive and get the outside decorated.  Hopefully photos tomorrow will prove I was successful.

But for today, I thought I'd do a photo dump of all the diecuts I have heretofore not shown on this blog.  Some of these are from this past season, others I've found in prior years, but never posted (to my knowledge. Honestly, I didn't go through the blog and look).

Up first is a find from this year.  It's a giant version of the classic Beistle skeleton, measuring in at 54" tall.  I picked him up for $10 which I thought was a good deal.

Wax Scarecrows

 At the sale where I found one of my grails (heretofore known as the "grail sale"), I also picked up these 2 fellows.

First up is a classic Gurley candle dating from the 1970's.  Technically, it's a Suni candle, but W&F Mfg. owned both companies and used the same forms.

Halloween Revisited -- Hoostradoos and You

 Today's post comes from 2015 as we revisit the Wyandotte legend of the Hoo' Stra Doo'.

Beistle Nite-Glo Ghost Diecuts

This trio of glow-in-the-dark ghosts comes from Beistle in the 1980's and were known as Nite-Glo Ghosts.

Spearhead Industries Mummy Make-Up Disguise Kit

My first Halloween was the only year I got a store-bought costume. It was a Ben Cooper Spider-man in all its red, blue and yellow shame (I won't go into how disappointed I was with the off-model coloring).  Every year after that, I was on my own to make myself up with whatever resources I had. I've written previously how I used my mom's makeup and Imagineering vampire blood and teeth to transform myself into a wannabe Wolfman (everyone thought I was a tramp).  I never had any actual Halloween makeup like this.

This Mummy Make-Up Disguise Kit comes from a little-known company called Spearhead Industries.  It dates from 1981.  While it's hard to see, it comes with a "mirror" on the front of the packaging so you can check yourself out.  It's actually just a thin strip of reflective foil.

Imagineering Sparkling Faces

I've written about my love of the Imagineering company numerous times on this blog.

This Imagineering Party Makeup dates from 1987, so it's a little after my time and appears to be aimed at the Glitter Rock crowd, also not my crowd.  You can also see it was purchased from Venture (a local midwest department store similar to K-Mart) for $6.39. Quite pricey for 1987.

Atari Haunted House

I was late to the Atari craze.  Its popularity was already declining when my parents broke down and bought me one, likely because it was finally affordable.

I didn't have a whole lot of cartridges; again, that affordability thing.  After all, if memory serves, cartridges still cost about $30 in 1983.  So, often, I would borrow cartridges from friends.

I distinctly remember borrowing this Atari cartridge from a friend in high school in the Fall of that year.  I thought a cartridge called "Haunted House" would certainly augment and enhance my Halloween experience.  It did to varying degrees of success.  I wandered around the blocky maze that stood in for a house, usually in the dark, encountering digitized creatures that required some suspension of belief to see them for what they were supposed to be and never did win.  I think I only had it for a week or two and the day soon came when I had to return it.  I recently rediscovered it at an estate sale.  

Don Post Nostrum

When you discussing rubber masks (and I do frequently) you are obligated to acknowledge Don Post Studios as the crème de la crème of the mask world (with everything but Yul Brynner!).  In fact, he's known as The Godfather of Halloween.

This Don Post "Nostrum" mask dates from 1983 and is essentially, just a giant nose with eyes and ears.

The Fright Stuff

When you see more die cuts posted, you know I'm running behind on posts and needed something quick.  I'm having trouble keeping up this year, despite taking several days off this past week.  But anyway, here you go.  While these aren't classic die cuts, they are Beistle and they date from the 1980's, so they have a little creep cred.

First up is a classic Dracula.

Masked

Continuing from yesterday's blog about disguises, here are some rubber/vinyl masks I found this summer at various garage and estate sales.  When I was a kid, rubber masks were for the wealthy.

First up is this vampire mask with "lifelike" hair.  The odd thing is, he had sculpted hair already.  I guess it didn't do well, so they thought adding additional hair might help.  I'm not sure of the maker of this.

The Blue Baron

Now, I know some of you may argue that today's entry may not qualify as Halloween or horror related.  I would counter, first of all, that Snoopy is very Halloween related, given "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" in which he makes a memorable appearance as a World War I flying ace battling the Red Baron.  I would then add, that not only is today's entry Snoopy, it's a Hitler-mustachioed, Iron cross-bearing, masked, alternate universe Snoopy in which he was born in Germany under the Kaiser's watch and now fights for the other side. How's that for horror?

Wax On, Wax Off

I'm not sure of the age of this Glenn Confections Fun Gum.  It has a 9-digit zip code.  Zip+4 was introduced in 1983 in the United States.  Glenn confections went out of business in 1994.  At any rate, it's a survivor.  The original recipient resisted the urge to chew it.

What was on TV February 27th through March 5th, 1982

This week's TV Guide is yet another example of that bothersome mailing label.  Sorry, Pamela Sue Martin.

Rubber vs Latex - A Vintage Halloween Crisis

It's always heartening to find vintage rubber or latex masks and accessories at garage and estate sales these days.  Not only are the values climbing for these, in some cases, the supply is diminishing at an accelerated rate.  But I'll get into that.

I found these giant-sized rubber monster(?) feet at a recent sale.

Imagineering Second Skin

There's something disturbing about something called "Second Skin".  Almost lycanthropic, like that scene I recall from a werewolf movie (possibly one of "The Howlings") where they shed their human skin as they transform. Someone help me out here.

Anyway, this is just a make-up kit from Imagineering.  I've written before of my love and memories of their products.

Halloween (and 80's) Wizardry

I've had this witch for a number of years and thought I'd written of her prior.  But it was a Gurley candle that strongly resembled it, which affirms my statements made in that post.

The reason I thought of her was due to these finds I made at the bus driver estate sale.

Please Don't Haunt the Charmin

There are many mysteries in the Universe.  Some things have no reason to exist.  This is one of them.

Saturday Night Popcorn

 When I was a kid, treats and snacks were limited, but I could usually talk my mom into making popcorn at least once a month, usually on a Saturday night.  It was made on the stovetop in a big cooking pot with regular vegetable oil and the cheapest popcorn kernels we could buy.  It was seasoned with table salt and served in a large tin cake pan.  Then I'd settle down in front of our RCA console color TV for a double-header of  "Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island" or maybe the CBS Saturday Night Movie.

Sometimes my mom would spring for a more expensive popcorn brand like Jolly Time that came with it's own packet of yellow-colored seasoning. I loved that powdery salt. I told myself it tasted like butter (it didn't).

In my teen years, my desire for popcorn as a weekly snack got to the point that my mom finally bought a popcorn popper.  It was a simple Mirro brand model; just an electric pot with a lid similar to this one, although ours had a clear plastic lid (this, by the way, was not my find).

I once scalded the inside of my nostril sniffing the popcorn immediately after lifting the lid (I told you, I really loved popcorn); lesson learned.

It made adequate popcorn, but I sometimes burned the bottom. There is no worse smell than burnt popcorn.  I longed for one of these (this IS my find):

Imagineering Fake Skin

I've previously written about Imagineering and their glorious products and how they impacted my childhood.  What I didn't know was how long they lasted.

I found this Imagineering "Fake Skin" at an estate sale late in the season last year.  It dates from 1990.

Ceramic Ghost and Jack O' Lantern

I recognized this popular design as taken from a Gurley candle.  This is a ceramic mold based on that.