The Bat Tree (DIY)

Fall is certainly in the air and on the ground.  The two huge trees in our front yard have shed their bright yellow leaves, and I think it is far too pretty to rake them up right now.  I could easily say that fall is my favorite season, like ever.  Actually I should probably clarify that.  There is a 3-4 week window when the temperatures are warm enough to stand, and cool enough to pull out your favorite sweater(s) and riding boots.  Once I see snowflakes, I'm outtie.  I've also had the good fortune of coming up with some of the most kick-ass costume ideas ever.  Usually couple costumes with my hubs and sister is the route I prefer to take.  Here are some of my favorites if you are looking for a little inspiration yourself.

Black Swan/White Swan

Dia De Los Muertos

Wayne's World

Effie Trinket

There's Something About Mary

Enough about awesome costumes, let's get down to brass tacks.  About a month ago I started pulling out Halloween decorations only to find that my Edgar Allan Poe snow-globe didn't make it through the winter, turning all of my decorations into moldy swamp monsters.  Sad story.  Needless to say I took this as a learning opportunity to make my decorations instead of trusting big box stores... bastards.

List of Materials:

A stick with branches (free)

A spool of black ribbon ($2.99)

Foam ($3.19)

White or yellow Puffy Paint ($1.99)

Vase/Lantern (free because I had one)

Vase filler (I used some free rocks)

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Total Cost: $8.00 and some odd cents

The first step was finding a stick.  Me and Shane came across a brush pile while walking our pup last night.  It was a handsome stick, but Shane was convinced there were bugs on it.  Gretzky was a fan of it too.  Every time I turned my back he munched on it a little. 

I grabbed an amber colored lantern thingy I had laying around the house and cut the foam block down to size to fit into the lantern. Then I shoved my stick into the foam, pressing down firmly.  I placed a few rocks on top of the foam to hold the stick in place.

Next came the fun part.  I loosely tied black ribbons to different branches to give the illusion of bats, and cut the ends of the ribbon at a sharp angle.  Once I was satisfied with the amount of bats I had on my branches, I applied two white puffy paint eyes to each ribbon.  I think you could have a lot of fun with the eye color.  Even green would be kinda spooky!

So there you have it.  A project that costs under $10.00 that I feel adds a lot of pizzazz to your holiday decor, while still being subtle and classy!  Now, go make yourself a bat tree, ghouls.