Origami skeleton hand

I got a huge kick out of making this creepy origami skeleton hand! It's actually pretty easy, just lots of layers of paper to fold at once. Learn how in this video by Jo Nakashima; design by Jeremy Shafer. I will leave it on Alex's keyboard.

Origami jack-o-lantern

Heh. I made a pumpkin. Follow along with this origami tutorial by TCGames to learn how. It has turned into Halloween origami week at How About Orange.

Intermediate origami bat for Halloween

Here's another paper bat decoration, a little more difficult than in the previous post. This origami design is by Protogenius, demonstrated here on YouTube. My attempt at it has a big head, small wings, and something is funky with his feet! But he's a bat, all right. The cool thing is this model is a glorified paper airplane and (sort of) flies, plus it'll hang upside down from a string stretched across a doorway because the feet fold over and function like hooks.

This origami bat is made from a letter-sized sheet of paper. Follow along with the video tutorial, Part 1 and Part 2.

Easy origami bat for Halloween

Bats lend themselves to paper folding since their bodies can be easily reduced to flat planes. Here's a very simple version by Nick Robinson that you can fold in a minute or two. I followed this good video tutorial.

Picture this: you make a couple bats along with the video to memorize the steps. Then put on your favorite Halloweenish movie and fold an entire colony of bats. You could crank out dozens, hundreds! (Depending on how engrossed you get in the movie. Beetlejuice yields 65 bats. Batman Begins yields 2 bats.) Then tape strings of bats to fishing line or invisible thread and hang garlands from the ceiling. Or stick them to the wall in a huge group with a little ball of poster putty or loop of painter's tape at the bottom point of each bat.

Tips: If you end up with a little edge of white showing around the bat's head, color it black with a marker. Find packs of black origami paper for a few bucks at Amazon.

Ten free Halloween fonts

If you're planning to make any Halloween invitations or banners this month, a round-up of ten free Halloween fonts from Creative Pro might be just what you're looking for. I tried out Tango Macabre and Needleteeth above. (Thanks for the tip, Elizabeth!)

Parlor progress (or lack of)

Ugh, it's taking me forever to get anything done in our house! So unfortunate how work gets in the way. And eating. And sleeping. And watching past seasons of Scandal on Netflix. Wait, one of these things could be avoided.

I could quit my job.

All the rooms are in various stages of haven't-started to halfway-there. I'm focusing on the parlor right now since it was totally empty and also the room you see when you open the front door. We would like it to look like people actually live here.

The light fixture I ordered arrived recently. It's so pretty! But it has a small problem, as you can see above. A new shade is on the way, thanks to the excellent customer service at Joss and Main.


The fabric I ordered for the chairs came. It's Malta Tourmaline by Iman Home. It's soft and a little bit velvety. I'm waiting for the chairs to upholster themselves.

And the rug I ordered? I just cancelled it. I don't want to wait 12 weeks, and the more I thought about it, the more I felt like I just didn't LOVE it. I kept thinking circus tent, and it's not very plush. If option #1 was cheaper, I'd try it. Maybe I can find it in a store and they'll let me bring it home and then bring it back if it looks insane.

At least we've got drapes up. Progress!

Free Vera Bradley wallpapers

A Google search for new desktops led me to a mother lode. Vera Bradley, the patterned handbag and accessories company, has gazillions of floral designs to choose from. Sized for desktops, iPads, and phones, you can download recent files or raid the downloads archive from seasons past. Vera Bradley products are usually way too quilted and flowery for my taste, but when those florals are paired with a nice solid color field, I kinda dig some of them.

Say it in llama font

It's so silly. Go to this website, type a phrase, and your text will be displayed in a typeface made from llamas. "Need to send a harsh message to a loved one? Helvetica is cold. Say it in llama." Why? Because llamas make everything better. (Thank you, Patty.)

Update: Clicking "save" for your text results in offers to download a file that I didn't understand--if you want to save your llama words, my suggestion is to take a screen shot of your text and then share that image however you like.