Tophatter: Reclaimed Craft Supply Resource

This is a sponsored post on behalf of Tophatter. All opinions are 100% mine.

When you’re shopping for craft supplies, one of the easiest ways to keep it eco-friendly is to buy used rather than new. When you pick up second-hand supplies, you’re doing environmental double duty: keeping those materials out of the landfill and avoiding the impacts that come with creating new tools and supplies. Hurrah!

Scouring thrift stores, estate sales, and yard sales is great for finding all kinds of reclaimed supplies from vintage buttons and beads to tools like sewing machines. Sometimes, though, it’s hard to find the time to head out yardsaling or dig through the thrift store. One resource for finding gently used craft supplies is on auction sites, like Tophatter.

Tophatter is a new auction site, and they’re a great place to find second hand supplies for your craft projects without the legwork you’d do at a thrift store. I did a little fantasy supply shopping this week and found some really cool supplies on there. You can see photos of these auctions at the top of this post:

A lot of vintage buttons from Cayce.Pages from an illustrated French dictionary from Meredith.Vintage seed bags from Two Gals and a Toyota.

The main page for Tophatter doesn’t list the auction categories. To find craft supplies, click on the Auctions button at the top and choose “Catalogs” from the drop-down.

Once you’re in the Catalogs, there are two sections you’ll want to check out: Supplies and Craft Supplies. I’m not sure what distinguishes these, but there are great reclaimed craft supplies in both of those Catalogs.

It’s a little bit tricky to tell what’s new and what’s used on Tophatter, since like on any auction site it’s up to the individuals to give you that information. If you’re not sure, a good way to check is to email the user offering up supplies to find out. You can also look for telling words like “vintage” and “destash” to tip you off.

The kind folks at Tophatter are also offering a $5 credit to Crafting a Green World readers! Just use this special Tophatter link to get your credit.

Have any of you guys used Tophatter to find craft supplies? What did you pick up?

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2011 Halloween Costumes And the New Movies That Inspire Them

Some movies just translate well into Halloween costumes and this year 5 movies inspire costumes more than any others. This year your 2011 Halloween Costume can be something that is truly unique, fun and inspired by any of the top 5 movies of this year. What could be better than looking at yourself before you head out this Halloween and knowing that your costume is really one of a kind? If you are looking for a costume that is truly in tuned with your movie watching needs try on a costume that is one of the 5 movies that inspire Costumes in 2011.

For all those looking to put a little kick butt fantasy into their lives why not tries on any number of costumes from the movie Sucker punch. Sucker Punch Costumes are going to be a bit hit this Halloween because this movie translates so well into costumed art and attire. This movie is filled with so much drama and action that it will be hard not to want to replicate the fun and excitement of the movie this Halloween. Show off your strength both physical and mental with a fabulous costume with any number of Sucker Punch costumes. Your 2011 Halloween Costume will be one that is truly out of the world. Don't just dream up a fantastic costume in your mind but bring it to reality with a movie costume this Halloween.

Another movie that translates beautifully for Halloween is the Green Lantern. Just think how great it will be to come to your next Halloween event dressed up in a superhero Costume. You will be the hit of the party when they see how great you look and how fabulously you fight crime in any number of green lantern costumes. These new for Costumes are a great addition to your next costumed event. With all the fun and excitement that is in this movie your friends will expect you to bring home and you will be able to and then some with a Green Lantern Costume. Just think how great you will look and the mayhem you can keep at bay when you transform into a superhero for the night.

Maybe the Green Lantern isn't for you but you are still looking for a super hero costume for your big event. Why not look to 2011 Captain America Halloween Costumes for the perfect costume piece. Fight for the American way all night long with one of these fabulous new Captain America Costumes. Just think of the compliments you will receive and how great it will feel to show your patriotism and your true devotion to the USA. Captain America lends himself nicely to costumes because of his color and spunk. Don't let anyone threaten your homeland with Halloween; step out and save the country with any number of fun costumes from the Captain America movie.

Though superheroes have a lot of fun they don't have all the fun and another rowdy movie that inspires costumes is Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirate Costumes are always a great choice for your Halloween attire but what is even better is true Pirates of the Caribbean Costume. These costumes will have you swashbuckling and treasure hunting all night long. Step on the wrong side of the law for a night that you won't soon forget. Enter the party as Captain Jack himself or one of his crazy crew. These movies are so much fun they can't just be contained to the big screen. Bring your adventures to life with new and an exciting 2011 with a Pirates theme.

If dangerous adventure isn't your thing maybe you should stay a bit close to home or your childhood home with a costume from the Smurfs movie. Bring the fun and exciting cartoon to life with any number of Smurf costumes this Halloween. Won't be it great to step out in a Papa Smurf Costume or a Smurfette costume this Halloween! Those little blue fellows are all the rage and always cute. The adorability factor will be on your side and that is exactly why this Movie makes a fabulous costume choice.

No matter what your Halloween plans this year any number of new 2011 Halloween Costumes from the movies will bring the spotlight to you.

The Author of this Article is David Price, a Halloween enthusiast, who loves everything to do with Halloween. To learn more about the latest styles in costumes, visit Halloween Costumes for information on the new and classic costumes for all ages.

Halloween Costumes Should Be Safe and Comfortable

As Halloween is nearing most of them might have started planning as to what they will wear on the Halloween night. It is very important that people wear a Halloween costume that is comfortable to wear. You can enjoy your party if you choose a comfortable Halloween costume. Here are some of the tips:

Avoid huge and cumbersome Halloween costume. Do not wear a large card board box because it is uncomfortable. You can't drive while wearing one. If an emergency arises, you can't run for help. You can't fit the door also. Don't think of wearing such type of costumes.

Avoid costumes that have too long dangling things because they may get caught in car doors, house doors, sliding glass doors and other problem areas. If you are planning to drink on the Halloween night, you should think of wearing a comfortable and safe costume. Avoid wearing high heels if you are not used to it. While wearing mask, make sure you can see out from them. Always make a test run in your costume before leaving the house.

There are many online stores that sell affordable Halloween costumes. They come with dress and head wear. They come with costume and mask. You can always these cheap Halloween costumes with accessories. If you live in an area where it gets cold on Halloween night, prepare for it. Make sure that you can put a coat on over your costume. From a trench coat and hat to a long black dress and a pointed witch's hat, you can still make Halloween night a fright.

While buying costume you have to give importance to few other things. Some of the things to consider are size of the costume, mask, proper shoes etc. This could make for a good or bad Halloween experience. If you want your child to enjoy the party, avoid heft bag or bucket of candy or uncomfortable shoes could be hazardous. Avoid masks and heavy crowns or thick costumes or thin costumes if it is cold outside.

Some states may have a cold climate and some warm. Make your child wear thin costumes for warmer climates and wear a coat on thinner costumes for cold weather. If the costume is very thick, you will not layer on another coat. The child will be walking as well and might overheat if he or she is wearing too much.

If you want your child to wear a mask, make sure that your child can breathe properly in it. Some manufactured masks have tiny holes for the nose and mouth. Make the hole big if the child can't breathe. Your child should try the costume at least once before the Halloween day. If any adjustment is needed, it can be done before hand but it becomes difficult on the special day. Let your child wear tennis shoes instead of fancy boots.

There are plenty of Halloween costumes to choose from. You can enjoy the best costume for the D-day. So pick up the right costume for yourself and your family, and remember the safety factors as well.

Robert James is an expert author, who is presently working on the site Halloween Costumes, Halloween Costume. He has written many articles in various topics. For more information about Couples Costumes, Scary Costumes. Contact him at halloweenarticles@gmail.com.

Halloween Costumes for 2011: Top Six Tips for Selecting the Perfect One!

It might feel like we just ended Christmas and you might still be hungover from a raucous New Year's Eve celebration, but for the elves working hard at Plum Drama, it's never too early to start planning your Halloween costumes for 2011. We just introduced this new category to our website a few months ago, but we are already seeing a great deal of interest from our web visitors in this category and with thousands of costumes to choose from, all in stock and ready to ship, we envision 2011 to be the year that costumes from Plum Drama really took hold. To that end, we put together this buyer's guide on tips to consider when selecting your Halloween costumes for 2011.

Pick the right size. I can already see the no-duh meter hitting an all time high with this suggestion, but oftentimes the simplest ideas are the best. When it comes to deciding on your Halloween costumes for 2011, don't forget about fit. If you come up with the best, most original or entertaining idea, but it's not avaialable in your size, forget about it and move on. I've heard too many horror stories about kids who trip over their costumes all night long, or grown-ups who buy something so tight, they can't eat at the Halloween party they're attending. Don't be one of the many who report a nightmare story like this and make sure you order a size that actually fits. Believe me, the trade off between a Halloween costume that fits correctly and one that's just a great idea, but in totally the wrong size, always err toward the correct size.
Determine if you'll be inside or outside. Again. Another basic one. But the type of Halloween costume you purchase for your child to go trick or treating on a cool, dark October evening is very different from the costume a grown-up might wear to an indoor party. For one thing, you want to make sure you don't freeze to death or overheat, based on what you choose to purchase. Secondly, a costume that's bulky and lot of accessories might just take up more space than is welcome at acrowded party. Similarly, these types of accessories become a big liability if the wind starts to blow more than you might have planned. All environmental things to consider when selecting your Halloween costumes for 2011.
Determine how the costume will be used. What I mean by this tip is that it's important to consider whether your Halloween costume will be exposed to any harsh elements that might cause it to fall apart more than you might have predicted. If it's a kids costume being bought for one parade down the school hallway, this is a very different purpose than buying a costume for your child to run around the neighborhood for several hours. Make sure to bear in mind how delicate the costume can be when choosing Halloween costumes for 2011
Buy high quality now so that a younger brother or sister can use the same costume later. In this day and age, you really can't be too tight with your money. Buying a Halloween costume is a luxury item for people who can afford it, so we recommend you try to stretch that dollar as far as possible by purchasing a costume that can be handed down the following year. Halloween costumes are a lot more durable and higher quality than they used to be. For that reason, they last longer than you might expect. No one wants to wear the same costume year after year, but there's nothing wrong with borrowing a costume from a friend or older sibling. When selecting Halloween costumes for 2011, bear in mind whether what you're purchasing can also be shared with someone else at a later date.
Homemade is still a good option, but so is mix and matching. Back when I was a kid (which was a very long time ago!), most people went to their neighborhood fabric store on Oct 30, and two scissor cuts later, you were a ghost on Oct 31! Not so anymore. These days Halloween is much more elaborate than that. But we still think homemade is a great option, especially for those short on money, but long on imagination. If you're thinking about Halloween costumes for 2011, be sure to think about buying some things, but making others. Putting it together provides originality and cost savings!
Halloween accessories can make or break a costume idea. Similar to the idea just before this one, a great way to dress up or embellish any costume is through the right accessories. Whether it's a sword for your Sir Lancelot costume, a wand for your Harry Potter, or a tiara for your Snow White. It's details like this that separate the truly original costumes from the ordinary ones and will create a Halloween costume you will remember well beyond 2011.

As you think about your Halloween costumes for 2011, there is one additional tip that will ensure a great Halloween experience: Order Early. Halloween costumes are usually made in limited quantities, so once they're gone...they're gone. So to make sure you get exactly what you want this year, follow these tips and get your order in before they're gone!

Jim Kim, Contributor

[http://www.PlumDrama.com] - The web's leading source for party favors, supplies, costumes, and everything you need to celebrate a special occasion.

How-to: Neckerchief-Style T-Shirt Scarf

It’s still sweltering here in Atlanta during the day, but we’ve had some nice cool mornings and evenings lately. Fall is in the air, and this light, cozy t-shirt scarf is just right for those cool-but-not-cold times of day.

I know, t-shirt scarves are kind of old news, but the ones I’ve made have always been that spaghetti-style: lots of skinny pieces of stretched jersey. Those are fun to make and cute, but chances are you’ve seen a thousand of them by now. What I like about this scarf is the chunky pieces of fabric and the faux neckerchief detail. Here’s how to make your own!

Materials

reclaimed t-shirt – clean out your dresser, or hit the thrift store to find a shirt that’s the right color for your scarffabric scissorssewing machine, pins, and thread in a coordinating color – I used a contrasting color, so you could see my stitching, but you’d really want yours to blend

Directions

1. Lay your t-shirt out on a flat surface, and cut the bottom seam off. Set this aside, but don’t discard it. You’ll need it later.

2. Cut your shirt horizontally from armpit to armpit, right under the sleeves. Then, cut the rectangle you just made in half horizontally. When you’re done, it will look like this:

3. You’ll be left with two tubes of fabric. Cut one of the shirt’s side seams out of each tube. Most t-shirts will have two side seams, but you only need to cut one open. Once they’re open, stretch the fabric. As you stretch it will start to curl under, which is what you want.

4. Time to sew! You should now have two long pieces of stretched jersey fabric. Grab your two pieces and lay two of the short sides together, right sides in. Pin and use a wide zig zag stitch to sew your pieces together. Make sure you back stitch on either end, so your stitches will be nice and strong.

5. Repeat step 4 with the other unfinished edges of your fabric. When you’re done, you should have a big loop of jersey.

6. Double that loop over, bringing the seams that you just sewed together, then grab that bottom seam of the shirt that you set aside earlier. Slide that bottom seam under your scarf where the two seams meet up. Knot that bottom seam piece around your scarf so that it hides the seams you sewed.

That’s it! To wear your t-shirt scarf, you can let it hang low or double it over. In the photo at the top of this post, it’s doubled over to really work that neckerchief look.

The shirt I used, and the one on the mannequin, were extras from this year’s World Domination Summit. My awesome friend Jen Neitzel from The Maven Circle helped organize the event and when they had a bunch of leftover shirts, she was kind enough to send me a few to craft with.

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Halloween Costume Funky Ideas

Halloween is a holiday celebrated on the night of 31st October of each year. The Halloween ritual conceptualized in the 19th century in Ireland was introduced by the Irish immigrants in their traditional costume parties and Halloween activities in North America. In modern times, Halloween holiday has its origin in the ancient Celtic festival where lighting bonfires, wearing bizarre costumes and masks are part of the ritual that mimics the evil spirits or placates them. Traditionally, most of the ideas on Halloween costumes center on horror characters like ghosts, skeletons, witches, vampires, bats, vultures or are based on themes and characters from TV shows and movies.

Mass produced popular costume ideas for Halloween party are Batman, Cat woman, Wonder Woman, pirate and clown / jester costumes. These are sported by couples and are downright phantasmagoric constituting of coordinated and perfectly matching risque outfits. One of the most coveted costumes is the new Batman and Cat woman outfits. The Batman costume is a brightly printed jump suit with bat wings and accessories like gloves, mask, metal belt and cape. The Batgirl costume is a spectacular black leather outfit that is form fitting with the yellow colored bat logo on the chest and back. The various accessories highlighting the apparel include vinyl black eye mask, black boot tops and yellow vinyl belt.

The beautiful super heroine Wonder Women costume has enthralled and captivated the attention of all fashion conscious geeks who love to flaunt funky outfit in any costume or themed Halloween party. The most attractive feature of the Wonder Woman dress is the multicolored mini outfit. The crimson colored strapless dress is attenuated by the golden colored Wonder Woman emblem in the top half and the navy blue colored bottom half is embellished with glittering silver colored sparklers. The two halves are complemented by a golden belt which creates one of the most awe- inspiring Halloween costumes.

The accessories are a visual delight comprising of the golden tiara, a red cape, matching arm gauntlets and knee-high stilettos in red and white stripes and the golden lasso that compliments the fighting spirit of Wonder Woman.

The funky bold super deluxe Diabla costume, mask and full length gloves that adorn any wearer can set the carnival mood of the party and adds comic relief to the party atmosphere. However, youngsters specially teenagers customize their outfit and prefer the shimmering green Tinkerbell costume that comprises of a gorgeous green dress with a small Tinkerbell cameo at the center. This is overlaid by a beautiful petal skirt with tulle rounds, off the bottom half of the dress. A pair of sheer white wings highlighted with light purple trimming can be attached to the back of the dress creating one of the most innovative Halloween costumes.

The attire can also be accessorized by a blonde wig to imitate the popular puffy hair of Tinkerbell perfectly. A metal wand completes the mystical appearance of the wearer. The incredibly adorable outfit can make the wearer a real eye catcher at the next themed Halloween party.

Halloween costume ideas continue to tease party attendees. There is no dearth of costumes and each wearer attending the Halloween party tends to sparkle either in their horrific pagan attire or in their non-scary dazzling fairy princess outfit!

How-to: Save and Store Melted Wax for Future Craft Projects

So you made candles, or preserved autumn leaves, or cooked up furniture polish, or crafted modeling wax for the kiddos, and now you’re left with a crock pot or bain-marie half-full of melted beeswax (or its vegan wax substitutes).

Here’s the easy way that I store my leftover wax, measured into known amounts so that future projects are easier to put together, and pretty enough that the wax can be stored right out in the open, leaving more storage space for my fabric stash:

Portion melted wax into silicon molds or muffin tins to harden for easy storage.

To easily save and store your wax, you simply need to know that you can pour melted wax into any mufifn tins, ice cube trays, or novelty silicon molds and pop it out when hardened, leaving behind no residue.

Melt down chunks of beeswax like these, and re-harden them in molds that allow for better portioning and more efficient storage.

Therefore, you probably already have in your house molds of the perfect size to store your leftover melted wax. If you primarily use your wax in bath and body recipes, choosing mini muffin tins or ice cube trays will allow you to store your wax in small portion sizes.

If you primarily use a pot full of melted wax at a time, choosing cupcake molds or mini loaf tins will allow you to store your wax in large chunks.If you buy wax wholesale, as I do, in a big box of bits and pieces and chunks of random size, melting down your wax and hardening it in molds like these will allow you to store it much more efficiently, taking up much less space.

I live in a small house, and my own storage space for stuff is pretty tight, so I’ve learned that if I pour my wax into novelty molds, so that the hardened wax comes out shaped like leaves, and flowers, and LEGOs, I can store the wax not on a shelf in my craft room, but in a little basket on a shelf in pretty much every room in the house. The wax looks pretty, smells like honey, and it’s easy to gather up when I’m ready for my next project.

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