The Bewitching Home Blog Party

Every witch’s home needs a table centerpiece for the season.  I’ve pulled out all the stops on this one.  I started with my apothecary from the Pretty Potions & Poisons Apothecary Event and surrounded it with other decor like large bottles altered bottles, decorate candles and other Halloween and fall décor.  I’ll walk you through how I created some of the pieces in case you want to add something to your own “witchy” décor!

If you missed the Pretty Potions & Apothecary Event Tutorials and want to learn how to build your own apothecary click here.

LARGE BOTTLES

In addition to the small bottles contained in the apothecary cabinet, I also made some large bottles to create more of a tablescape.  I’ve created two NEW large label collage sheets which contain larger versions of some of my favorites from the other label collage sheets, plus new labels and decorative images.  You can find the collage sheets at Alpha Stamps.

Potion X Bottle

"Made of Unknown Ingredients"

A really easy way to add texture to a bottle is to crumple up white tissue paper and glue it to a bottle.  To achieve the color, I inked the tissue paper (after it was attached) with the Tarnished Brass Distress Stain to give it a metallic look then inked it with Vintage Photo Distressed Stain; wiping off some of the stain after I applied it.  I applied more of the Vintage Photo Stain in some areas than in others. 

The topper is a crystal drawer pull.  The hole for the hardware made a convenient place to insert feathers.  I used tree buttons as feet.  I added color to the raised areas or the trees using Copper Gilders Paste

Alpha Stamps Products Used on the Potion X Bottle:

Apothecary Large Labels #3 Collage Sheet – NEW SHEET

Slope-Shoulder Glass Bottles

Raven Charm

Metallic Distress Stain – Tarnished Brass

Distress Stain – Vintage Photo

Graveyard Ghost Buttons – Tree Feet

Rosary Chain – Black/Jet

Copper Gilders Paste – Used on the tree feet

Chrystal Rhinestones - Black

Witches Brew

"Aged to Perfection"

I purchased the orange bottle at Michaels Craft Store.  I used a smaller bottle turned upside down as a stopper.

Alpha Stamps Products Used on the Witches Brew Bottle:

Apothecary Large Labels #3 Collage Sheet – NEW SHEET

Apothecary Labels #1 Collage Sheet - Eye

Glittered Spiders Stickers

Small Amber Bottle w/Corks – Used as the stopper

Gravediggers Musty Bones

I purchased the green bottle at Michaels Craft Store.  I dripped Caramel Alcohol ink on the bottle to age it.  I used a skeleton mold and paper clay to make the head and bones.  This is the same mold and technique I used and demonstrated in the first Apothecary Event tutorial.  The hands glued to the sides of the bottle are plastic.  To create different heights in my tablescape I placed some bottles on candle stands.

Alpha Stamps Products Used on This Bottle:

Apothecary Large Labels #3 Collage Sheet – NEW SHEET

Apothecary Large Labels #4 Collage Sheet – NEW SHEET

Large Bendable Skeleton Hand – Glued to the sides

Large Skeleton Mold – Skull on the front and in the bottles

Caramel Alcohol Ink – Used to distress the bottle

Holographic Round Eyes – Glued in the skull eye socket

1000 Year Old Gargoyle Drool

&

Certified Black Swamp Frog Slime

I purchased the bottles from Michaels Craft store.  I dripped black wax on the Gargoyle Drool bottle and white wax on the Frog Slime bottle.  I colored the white wax with Pesto Alcohol Ink.

Alpha Stamps Products Used on the Gargoyle Drool & Frog Slime Bottles:

Alcohol Inks - Pesto

Apothecary Large Labels #4 Collage Sheet – NEW SHEET

Apothecary Large Labels #3 Collage Sheet – NEW SHEET

Spider Web – Frosted Blue Bottle

This bottle is a little bit of a tease for a future tutorial.  I used an easy technique to create a frosted etched look.  I’ll be posting a tutorial on how to do this with some winter themed art.

Alpha Stamps Products Used on This Bottle:

1 oz Boston Round Glass Bottle – Cobalt Blue

Pewter Spider Charms

Spider Bead - Pewter

Giant Snowflakes – Used as the lid – bent the prongs of the snowflake down around the neck of the bottle.

DECORATING CANDLES

Why not jazz up your candles with stickers, rub-ons and paper.

A fun and easy wait to decorate a plain candle is to use stickers.  You can find the Dazzles Boo Stickers I used on the candle above at Alpha Stamps.

Another option for decorating candles is to use rub-ons.  The trick is to use a good quality rub-on (all rub-ons are not created equal), and to use a candle with a smooth even surface.  The rub-ons I used on the candle above are made by Creative Imaginations and are from their Fright Night line.  Unfortunately they don’t make these anymore but you may find some Ebay or Scrapbooking Stores. 

CANDLES & BOTTLES

Another great item to add to your décor is to mix candles with bottles.

 I start by inserting the candle in the bottle and burning it down to the desired height.  The cheaper the candle the better as it will drip more.  I don’t worry about having a colored candle.  Most of the time, I paint the candle wax with alcohol inks because you get a varied translucent look that you don’t get with a colored candle.  After the candle is the desired height, I use a second candle to create even more drips on top of the first candle.  To embellish the candle even further you can glue something to the top of the candle.

Feathered Crows – Alpha Stamps

Resin Skull Bead – Alpha Stamps

Alcohol Ink - Pesto to color the wax– Alpha Stamps

Owl –  Michaels Craft Store

For the candle below I started with a jar and added Chillingsworth Manor Elements Stickers to the jar and the candle.  Then I died a piece of cheesecloth dyed with Pesto Alcohol Ink and tied it around the bottle.

Wine Bottle Candelabra

Friends of mine found some bottles of Vampire wine and thought instantly of me. Hmm wonder why?  My sister generously drank them as I’m not into red wine.  I was just going to stick a candle in them and drip wax but I discovered a candelabra made to fit in the top of a wine bottle.  Perfect!

You can purchase the candelabra at Save On Crafts.  They are $19 each or $17 each if you buy three.  Here is the link:  http://www.save-on-crafts.com/winebottle.html

As the shadows start to lengthen and night approaches, it’s time to light the candles.  

Thanks for stopping by and a special thanks to the Witch of Howling Creek for putting this party together.  To checkout other blog party participants click here.

If you love Halloween Blog Parties (and I do), you’ll want to stay tuned for the 5^th Annual Halloween Party hosted by A Fanciful Twist on October 27^th.  I’ll be participating and if you’d like to join in the fun, click here for more details.