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One of a Witchy Kind!!
Just drop me a line and give me your shipping info and your new broom will be winging your way!
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Travel Log 10-25: Welcome Everyone On the Blog Tour
Welcome everyone who is stopping by from Mrs. B's Haunted Blog Tour!
I'd like to give you a hearty welcome to our little corner of Astral Space. We seem to have been having some navigational issues, but they should be resolved soon. Pay no attention to that beeping or the red warning lights. And I have no idea who Will Robinson is or why that robot seems to keep telling him there is danger....
But anyways, I thought I would entertain you all with a tutorial on how to make one of my favorite Halloween decorations. These are some of those multi-purpose crafts that can be decoration, spell paraphenaila, or even protective ward or spell charm. Also I am currently doing my annual Halloween Tale and this year it is a "Choose Your Own Adventure" version. You can find the start to the story here.
So without further ado (because there has been more than enough ado so far, and we here at Lost In Astral Space have pledged to become an ado free establishment at some undisclosed time in the near future) here is my walk through on making my Witchy Brooms!
What you will need:
Wooden dowels (1/4inch thick, about 12 inches long- you can get them in a package at your craft store)
3yrds of ribbon (any color or pattern you want)
A package of pre-dried corn husks (I use the ones that you get from the grocery store for making tamales)
A bowl of water (large enough to soak the corn husks in)
A drying rack (I use a cookie sheet with paper towels on it)
Hot glue gun and sticks
Step 1: Soak the corn husks in the bowl of water until they are soft and pliable.
Step 2: Take one of the corn husks and tear it into thin strips (you will need 2 per broom)
Step 3: Start wrapping the corn husks around one of the dowels with the thin end lined up to the end of the dowel, leaving the wide end laying along the length of the dowl
Step 4: Using one of the thin strips of husk, tie the strip around the thin ends about 1/4 of an inch from the end of the dowel.
Step 5: Now push the dowel down until about another 1/4 inch is showing below the husks.
Step 6: Now begin to fold the husks down over the tie, until the other end of the dowel is now clear of husk and the end that you just pulled down in Step 5 is now hidden in the husks. This is a good time to tear the husks so that they seem fuller and more broom like.
Step 7: Now you'll use your other thin strip and you will tie the strip around the husks about 1/2-1 inch below where they meet the dowel. This will really make it look like a broom.
Step 8: Let them dry. I suggest over night, sometimes longer if you have a particularly thick set of husks.
Step 9: I usually, as soon as they are dry, use a hot glue gun to clue the upper (folded over) part of the broom to the dowel ensuring that it won't move around.
Step 10: Decorate! I use ribbon to wrap around the dowel and the "broom tie" so that mine end up looking like this:
This one I used 2 different colors on (orange and purple) in the Halloween spirit. Or they can look like this:
This one i used a patterned ribbon on and it looks a bit more homey.
I also like to add a little folded envelope (you can find a great tutorial on the one I use here) and stuff the little pockets with protective symbols or small stones, or anything that sets my purpose. I then punch holes in the top and string a ribbon through it and hang them from the brooms.
These can be just simple decorations, or you can charge them with intent and hang them as charms, or you can even use them as home made altar besoms for those of us who have limited ritual space! One of my favorite things to do is to soak the corn husks in tea or an herbal concoction instead of water. It leaves a sublte scent to the brooms. Also herbs or potpouri can be put into the envelope or can be hung from inside the "bristles". It's one of those multi-purpose crafts that I love !
And now to the giveaway!
I'm giving away one of my brooms pre-made!
You can have this sweet little broom all for your own!
Here are the rules:
1. be or become a follower of Lost In Astral Space
2. leave a comment on this post
2. Leave me a way to contact you- either a blog profile with email contact, or leave your email in your post!
Good luck and I hope you enjoy!
I'd like to give you a hearty welcome to our little corner of Astral Space. We seem to have been having some navigational issues, but they should be resolved soon. Pay no attention to that beeping or the red warning lights. And I have no idea who Will Robinson is or why that robot seems to keep telling him there is danger....
But anyways, I thought I would entertain you all with a tutorial on how to make one of my favorite Halloween decorations. These are some of those multi-purpose crafts that can be decoration, spell paraphenaila, or even protective ward or spell charm. Also I am currently doing my annual Halloween Tale and this year it is a "Choose Your Own Adventure" version. You can find the start to the story here.
So without further ado (because there has been more than enough ado so far, and we here at Lost In Astral Space have pledged to become an ado free establishment at some undisclosed time in the near future) here is my walk through on making my Witchy Brooms!
What you will need:
Wooden dowels (1/4inch thick, about 12 inches long- you can get them in a package at your craft store)
3yrds of ribbon (any color or pattern you want)
A package of pre-dried corn husks (I use the ones that you get from the grocery store for making tamales)
A bowl of water (large enough to soak the corn husks in)
A drying rack (I use a cookie sheet with paper towels on it)
Hot glue gun and sticks
Step 1: Soak the corn husks in the bowl of water until they are soft and pliable.
Step 2: Take one of the corn husks and tear it into thin strips (you will need 2 per broom)
Step 3: Start wrapping the corn husks around one of the dowels with the thin end lined up to the end of the dowel, leaving the wide end laying along the length of the dowl
Step 4: Using one of the thin strips of husk, tie the strip around the thin ends about 1/4 of an inch from the end of the dowel.
Step 5: Now push the dowel down until about another 1/4 inch is showing below the husks.
Step 6: Now begin to fold the husks down over the tie, until the other end of the dowel is now clear of husk and the end that you just pulled down in Step 5 is now hidden in the husks. This is a good time to tear the husks so that they seem fuller and more broom like.
Step 7: Now you'll use your other thin strip and you will tie the strip around the husks about 1/2-1 inch below where they meet the dowel. This will really make it look like a broom.
Step 8: Let them dry. I suggest over night, sometimes longer if you have a particularly thick set of husks.
Step 9: I usually, as soon as they are dry, use a hot glue gun to clue the upper (folded over) part of the broom to the dowel ensuring that it won't move around.
Step 10: Decorate! I use ribbon to wrap around the dowel and the "broom tie" so that mine end up looking like this:
I also like to add a little folded envelope (you can find a great tutorial on the one I use here) and stuff the little pockets with protective symbols or small stones, or anything that sets my purpose. I then punch holes in the top and string a ribbon through it and hang them from the brooms.
These can be just simple decorations, or you can charge them with intent and hang them as charms, or you can even use them as home made altar besoms for those of us who have limited ritual space! One of my favorite things to do is to soak the corn husks in tea or an herbal concoction instead of water. It leaves a sublte scent to the brooms. Also herbs or potpouri can be put into the envelope or can be hung from inside the "bristles". It's one of those multi-purpose crafts that I love !
And now to the giveaway!
I'm giving away one of my brooms pre-made!
You can have this sweet little broom all for your own!
Here are the rules:
1. be or become a follower of Lost In Astral Space
2. leave a comment on this post
2. Leave me a way to contact you- either a blog profile with email contact, or leave your email in your post!
Good luck and I hope you enjoy!
Travel Log 10-24: An Apology Then Onward!
Sorry about not getting this up last night, but we had some internet problems over here. The tech goblins were playing around much too much last night! (you can find the first installment of the story here)
So without further ado, here is-
"Mockingbird Lane, Part Three"
Linda opened the door to the hallway.
Where on earth is Samantha, and what happened last night?
The hallway she stepped into seemed to stretch the length of the house with doors lining each side. At one end was the landing that lead down to the rest of the house, and at the other end was a couple steps leading up to a door that she assumed lead to the tower. Her room appeared to be the closest one to the stairs and she turned to check the rest of the rooms down the hallway. Samantha had to be here somewhere.
The walls were covered in what looked like silk and were faded but she could still make out the pattern of alternating stripes of light blue that would have been gorgeous when it had been new. Photographs were spaced along the hallway in elegant frames. The one next to the room she had come out of was an old black and white showing two young girls posed in the serious tradition of the Victorians. One of the girls was tiny, had dark hair piled into a gibson girl bun, had very thick glasses, and was seated on a velvet chair. This could only be a very young Ms. Ashworth. She even seemed to be wearing the same dress she had been last night. Next to her was a blond girl with large bows tied to her long braids. While Ms. Ashworth was serious to a fault, the blond girl seemed to be almost impish in her short skirts and and pigtails, a slight smile playing on her lips. Linda almost smiled back at her.
She turned to the door directly across from her. The soft carpet that ran down the center of the hallway completely muffled her footsteps. The door opened easily and showed an empty sitting room. The furniture was covered in a thin layer of dust and the room appeared to be unused.
The picture outside this room was of the same girls in almost the same position, only a few years later. Ms. Ashworth looked almost identical, only her face had seemed to fill out more, but the blond girl had grown a good foot and towered over the small woman in the chair. Her hair was now put up in a bun as well, and she appeared to be wearing a high necked button down gown that looked very similar, if not identical, to the one that Linda now wore. She had not lost the air of mischief in this photograph, but it had taken on a subtly sultry edge.
Hmm. Must be relatives, Linda thought. If I am wearing her dress then she must have lived here. I wonder what happened to her.
There was a second photo not that further along the wall and it showed what appeared to be a wedding party with the happy couple stoically not smiling at the camera. The blond woman was standing with a a rather good looking young man and did appear to be happy. Ms. Ashworth was still on her chair to the side of the rest of the wedding party, looking not at all happy. Hmm, can't be fun to be left behind.
The next door along the hallway opened into a bedroom outfitted similar to the one she had woken up in except that where hers had been decorated in lilacs, obviously decorated for a woman, this one was definitely masculine. The furniture was heavy and solid, and the walls were done in a dark oak. The other difference was that where her's had been clean, with everything in it's apparent place, this room looked as if it had been ransacked. The bedclothes were torn and tossed around the room. Furniture was over turned and broken, or haphazardly stacked in the corners. Really weird.
Linda turned away from the room and walked a little further down the hall to look at a cluster of photographs. They were all set up like the early photo's of the two girls. These were obviously done over a period of years as Ms. Ashworth aged visably in each of the pictures but the really weird part was that while Ms. Ashworth was in every one, her companion changed with each photo. They were all in the same pose and all blond, their faces were different. They looked frozen and stiff, and they were all wearing what looked like the dress she was wearing now. And in the corner of each photograph was a stone that looked like the ones out in the garden, but she could read them in the photo's. They all said Sylvia but had a different date under the name. The latest was dated about three years earlier.
Ok. Really, really creepy. Time to find Samantha and get going on our merry way.
Linda began walking a bit faster and tried the rest of the doors in the hallway. These were all locked and no answer came when she knocked and called Samantha's name. She had just reached the door she believed lead to the tower when she heard loud sobbing coming from the room she had woken up in.
No one had been in there, had they?
She cautiously headed back to the room and peered around the door frame. There was a woman sitting in the bedside chair, sobbing uncontrollably. her hands covered her face and her blond hair hung down in tangled clumps. Her body rocked slightly back and forth as her grief shook her.
Linda went to her, preparing to offer comfort, but as soon as she reached out to touch the woman she shrieked and ran across the room. The woman ran through the other doorway in the room. Linda went after her and found herself in an empty sitting room. This one, while matching the bedroom in femininity, had recieved the same treatment that the man's room across the hall did. Furniture was splintered and even the wallpaper had been shredded. She took a moment to check behind the piles of what used to be nice furniture and found the room to be truly empty. The door leading out into the hallway was still locked, and the window was closed.
"Alright, that's it, I'm out of here." Linda said as she unlocked the door that lead to the hallway and stepped out of the room.
As she passed through the doorway she felt something cold brush her cheek.
"She's in the tower" came to her on a whisper almost to low to hear.
Linda paused and glanced back and forth between the landing and the door to the tower.
So which one is it going to be?
Will Linda-
Go down the stairs
OR
Try to get into the tower room
You Decide!
So without further ado, here is-
"Mockingbird Lane, Part Three"
Linda opened the door to the hallway.
Where on earth is Samantha, and what happened last night?
The hallway she stepped into seemed to stretch the length of the house with doors lining each side. At one end was the landing that lead down to the rest of the house, and at the other end was a couple steps leading up to a door that she assumed lead to the tower. Her room appeared to be the closest one to the stairs and she turned to check the rest of the rooms down the hallway. Samantha had to be here somewhere.
The walls were covered in what looked like silk and were faded but she could still make out the pattern of alternating stripes of light blue that would have been gorgeous when it had been new. Photographs were spaced along the hallway in elegant frames. The one next to the room she had come out of was an old black and white showing two young girls posed in the serious tradition of the Victorians. One of the girls was tiny, had dark hair piled into a gibson girl bun, had very thick glasses, and was seated on a velvet chair. This could only be a very young Ms. Ashworth. She even seemed to be wearing the same dress she had been last night. Next to her was a blond girl with large bows tied to her long braids. While Ms. Ashworth was serious to a fault, the blond girl seemed to be almost impish in her short skirts and and pigtails, a slight smile playing on her lips. Linda almost smiled back at her.
She turned to the door directly across from her. The soft carpet that ran down the center of the hallway completely muffled her footsteps. The door opened easily and showed an empty sitting room. The furniture was covered in a thin layer of dust and the room appeared to be unused.
The picture outside this room was of the same girls in almost the same position, only a few years later. Ms. Ashworth looked almost identical, only her face had seemed to fill out more, but the blond girl had grown a good foot and towered over the small woman in the chair. Her hair was now put up in a bun as well, and she appeared to be wearing a high necked button down gown that looked very similar, if not identical, to the one that Linda now wore. She had not lost the air of mischief in this photograph, but it had taken on a subtly sultry edge.
Hmm. Must be relatives, Linda thought. If I am wearing her dress then she must have lived here. I wonder what happened to her.
There was a second photo not that further along the wall and it showed what appeared to be a wedding party with the happy couple stoically not smiling at the camera. The blond woman was standing with a a rather good looking young man and did appear to be happy. Ms. Ashworth was still on her chair to the side of the rest of the wedding party, looking not at all happy. Hmm, can't be fun to be left behind.
The next door along the hallway opened into a bedroom outfitted similar to the one she had woken up in except that where hers had been decorated in lilacs, obviously decorated for a woman, this one was definitely masculine. The furniture was heavy and solid, and the walls were done in a dark oak. The other difference was that where her's had been clean, with everything in it's apparent place, this room looked as if it had been ransacked. The bedclothes were torn and tossed around the room. Furniture was over turned and broken, or haphazardly stacked in the corners. Really weird.
Linda turned away from the room and walked a little further down the hall to look at a cluster of photographs. They were all set up like the early photo's of the two girls. These were obviously done over a period of years as Ms. Ashworth aged visably in each of the pictures but the really weird part was that while Ms. Ashworth was in every one, her companion changed with each photo. They were all in the same pose and all blond, their faces were different. They looked frozen and stiff, and they were all wearing what looked like the dress she was wearing now. And in the corner of each photograph was a stone that looked like the ones out in the garden, but she could read them in the photo's. They all said Sylvia but had a different date under the name. The latest was dated about three years earlier.
Ok. Really, really creepy. Time to find Samantha and get going on our merry way.
Linda began walking a bit faster and tried the rest of the doors in the hallway. These were all locked and no answer came when she knocked and called Samantha's name. She had just reached the door she believed lead to the tower when she heard loud sobbing coming from the room she had woken up in.
No one had been in there, had they?
She cautiously headed back to the room and peered around the door frame. There was a woman sitting in the bedside chair, sobbing uncontrollably. her hands covered her face and her blond hair hung down in tangled clumps. Her body rocked slightly back and forth as her grief shook her.
Linda went to her, preparing to offer comfort, but as soon as she reached out to touch the woman she shrieked and ran across the room. The woman ran through the other doorway in the room. Linda went after her and found herself in an empty sitting room. This one, while matching the bedroom in femininity, had recieved the same treatment that the man's room across the hall did. Furniture was splintered and even the wallpaper had been shredded. She took a moment to check behind the piles of what used to be nice furniture and found the room to be truly empty. The door leading out into the hallway was still locked, and the window was closed.
"Alright, that's it, I'm out of here." Linda said as she unlocked the door that lead to the hallway and stepped out of the room.
As she passed through the doorway she felt something cold brush her cheek.
"She's in the tower" came to her on a whisper almost to low to hear.
Linda paused and glanced back and forth between the landing and the door to the tower.
So which one is it going to be?
Will Linda-
Go down the stairs
OR
Try to get into the tower room
You Decide!
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Travel Log 10-23: Busy Busy Busy
I'm sorry I haven't updated the story, but it's been pretty hectic over on this side of the astral plane.
I've been getting ready for my day on Mrs. B's Haunted Blog Tour and I'll have my turn for that on Monday so look forward to a tutorial as well as a giveaway!
Been getting ready for Halloween here. decorating is almost done as well as furiously sewing to finish up costumes. Took a break on Tuesday to take Her Royal Highness to Disneyland for her 9th birthday. It was a lot of fun, and we did Mickey's Halloween Party too, and if you ever get the chance to do it! It was a lot of fun trick or treating around Disneyland, and let me tell you Walt does not stint on the candy! That and they close the park down for the party, so there was no wait for any of the rides.
Since our anneversary is Halloween, and with my best friend coming down to visit and all, the hubster and I aren't going to be doing much on the day so he got me my presents early! I scored a brand new digital camera and a portable fire pit! So squeeeee!!
I'll have the next part of the story up tonight, and I'll look forward to seeing what you all pick for Samantha and Linda next!
I've been getting ready for my day on Mrs. B's Haunted Blog Tour and I'll have my turn for that on Monday so look forward to a tutorial as well as a giveaway!
Been getting ready for Halloween here. decorating is almost done as well as furiously sewing to finish up costumes. Took a break on Tuesday to take Her Royal Highness to Disneyland for her 9th birthday. It was a lot of fun, and we did Mickey's Halloween Party too, and if you ever get the chance to do it! It was a lot of fun trick or treating around Disneyland, and let me tell you Walt does not stint on the candy! That and they close the park down for the party, so there was no wait for any of the rides.
Since our anneversary is Halloween, and with my best friend coming down to visit and all, the hubster and I aren't going to be doing much on the day so he got me my presents early! I scored a brand new digital camera and a portable fire pit! So squeeeee!!
I'll have the next part of the story up tonight, and I'll look forward to seeing what you all pick for Samantha and Linda next!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Travel Log 10-12: October Fun!
Since I decided to join the fun over at the Whimsical Cottage I have yet to actually post anything about what I am doing to bring a little bit of halloween into everything I do this month. So here is an abridged list of all the halloween type fun being got on in our household!
- magickal brooms with protection envelopes were made by all (hopefully will have tutorial with pics on this fun craft before this weekend =)
- mini funkins were decorated with glitter glue and put outside to decorate the front
- pumpkin bread, pie, and chocolate cake with pumkin whipped cream frosting were baked
- shopping at the 99 cent store with the little guys suprised me with new halloween dessert plates, raven accented bowls, and cool pumpkin ice cube trays!
- a trip to the craft stores got me a bunch of Halloween/fall ribbon for uber cheap, and I got some cool Halloween themed fabrics for half off. (I'll show you pics of what I did with them soon, it's really cute and involves Her Royal Highness's costume!)
- Found out on a tour of Target's Halloween section that nothing can lure Littleman away from a Warmachine costume (for those who don't know it's from Ironman).
- worked on my "choose your own adventure" style story for the blog this year ( you can catch the start of it here)
- made half of my Halloween costume for this year
- and I have to admit I have been obsessively Halloween decorating in Pet Society on Facebook
Been busy here, lol. And tonight we're making shortbread cut with Halloween cookie cutters!
I love this month!!
- magickal brooms with protection envelopes were made by all (hopefully will have tutorial with pics on this fun craft before this weekend =)
- mini funkins were decorated with glitter glue and put outside to decorate the front
- pumpkin bread, pie, and chocolate cake with pumkin whipped cream frosting were baked
- shopping at the 99 cent store with the little guys suprised me with new halloween dessert plates, raven accented bowls, and cool pumpkin ice cube trays!
- a trip to the craft stores got me a bunch of Halloween/fall ribbon for uber cheap, and I got some cool Halloween themed fabrics for half off. (I'll show you pics of what I did with them soon, it's really cute and involves Her Royal Highness's costume!)
- Found out on a tour of Target's Halloween section that nothing can lure Littleman away from a Warmachine costume (for those who don't know it's from Ironman).
- worked on my "choose your own adventure" style story for the blog this year ( you can catch the start of it here)
- made half of my Halloween costume for this year
- and I have to admit I have been obsessively Halloween decorating in Pet Society on Facebook
Been busy here, lol. And tonight we're making shortbread cut with Halloween cookie cutters!
I love this month!!
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Travel Log 10-10: Mockingbird Lane Part Duex
You've chosen a path so lets see where it takes the girls! ( you can find the first part of the story here)
"Mockingbird Lane (cont'd)"
"C'mon, lets go up to that one on the left, the porch light is on so they may be waiting up for visitors."
Samantha led the way up the cobbled pathway that wound up the hill, through the rose garden. The light gave off a welcoming glow from the large wrap around porch that dominated the front of the house. In the irratic flashes of light from the storm the square tower would be briefly illuminated and the wind caused a loose set of shutters somewhere on the second floor to bang irratically against the side of the house, making Linda jump.
As her gaze roamed the garden they passed through she wondered how they go the roses to bloom this late in the season. The large blooms looked black in the rain but a flash of lightning revealed them to be a deep red. The porch light reflected off of small carved markers in each bed. She couldn't quite make out what they said and leaned closer to read one just as Samantha knocked on the front door.
I'll check those out on the way back to the car, she thought and hurried up to her friend just as she was lifting her arm to knock again.
"Give them a moment to answer." Linda told her, grabbing her arm to stop her from knocking just as it swung silently inward.
The girls looked down into the wrinkled face of a very old, very short woman. She was dressed in an old fashioned ankle gown, and even with her hair piled into a bun on top of her head she must barely have been four feet tall. The old eyes appraised them from behind a pair of thick round spectacles and slowly a smile spread, changing the web of wrinkles that covered her face.
"Hi. Sorry to intru-"
"Come in out of the rain my dears, you'll catch your death." She turned and began walking down the front hallway of the house, leaving the girls standing on the front porch staring after her.
They looked at each other then looked down the hallway, after the woman.
"Maybe we should go to the-" Linda began.
"Come along dears tea is waiting in the parlor." The woman called back to them and disappeared into a room on the left.
Linda looked at Samantha and gestured back to the car. Samantha shrugged and stepped into the hallway after the woman. Linda groaned and stepped in after her.
The hallway was dark, most of the illumination coming from the porch light behind them. Bowing to her ingrained sense of etiquette Linda reluctantly closed the door behind them to keep the cold night air out, cutting off that small bit of light. The hallway was oppressively dark, but as their eyes adjusted they noticed that there were old fashioned lamps hung from the walls with shutters on them letting of dull glows. The lamps only gave off enough light to allow them not to trip over the few pieces of furniture that lined the hallway. Picture frames lined the walls but it was too dim to see what they showed clearly. When they got about halfway down they came to the door they had thought the woman had gone in. There was a very faint glow around the door frame. Linda stopped Samantha as she reached for the door handle.
"This is really creepy. Maybe we should just go back and try the other house."
"Oh quit being a sissy, it's just a little old lady who isn't used to visitors trying to make us comfortable in the rain." Samantha pulled the door open and stepped into the parlor.
Linda gulped and followed her.
The room was softly lit by a flickering fire in the large hearth. Classic scrolled sofa's and old fashioned arm chairs were placed around the central rug close enough to the fire to share it's warmth as well as it's light. The woman was sitting in an arm chair facing the door. The firelight deepened the shadows in her wrinkles making her face seem almost a mask, and her glasses reflected as if they were two round mirrors where her eyes should be.
"Sit and I'll pour the tea." She gestured to the sofa across from her and lifted the teapot from the side table next to her. "Not often we get visitors anymore in our little town. Used to have people dropping in on us all the time, but lately it's been almost downright lonely"
As the girls sat she handed them both delicate cups and saucers filled with a hot liquid that smelled wonderful. They sat and sipped their tea politely while glancing around the room. It seemed to have dropped right out of another century. The slightly worn feel of the furniture gave the feeling that the furnishing were original. Samantha cleared her throat.
"Thank you so much for your hospitality. We were actually on our way to a Bed and Breakfast that is supposed to be not far from here but we took a wrong turn I think. I'm Samantha and this is Linda. I'm sorry but we didn't catch your name?"
"Oh I'm Miss Ashworth. Every one around here knows me. Family's been here for ages. This house was the first building in the town. Quite a nice little town we have here on Mockingbird Lane. Despite those riff-raff that built the house next door. Digging up my rose garden and howling at all hours. It simply is not done in polite society."
The neighbors must have a dog, Linda thought.
Now drink up that tea so you don't catch a chill from that rain. You poor girls are soaked through." As the girls dutifully sipped the tea on command, the grin sipped it's way up her face again.
"This is really very good, what kind of tea is this?" Linda asked.
"Why it's elderberry, deary. I make it myself. A very old family recipe." The little woman began to giggle softly to herself and rock in her chair. The giggle quickly grew in volume and the rocking increased in intesity.
The last thing Linda saw before the world went black was Miss Ashworth laughing and rocking in her chair, the round lenses of her glasses reflecting the fire light like her eyes were windows into the flames of hades.
Linda opened up her eyes and stared at the darkness. Wait, it had just been dark. She closed her eyes again and took stock.
We were going to that Bed and Breakfast Samantha found out in the country. We took a wrong turn or something and we stopped to ask for directions. There was all those roses, and that lady. What was her name? Miss Ashworth, yeah. We had some tea, then what happened? And where is Samantha?
She opened her eyes and sat up on the bed. The musty smell of little used rooms filled her nose. As the soft coverlet that had been wrapped around her fell away she noticed something important. Her clothes were gone. She looked around the room for some clue as to where they had gone and noticed an old fashioned dress, in blue, similar to what Miss Ashworth had been wearing, laid out on a chair near the bed. The small lamp on the table next to the chair was the only source of light in the room and it seemed to indicate that the dress was intended for her. After a slightly more thorough search of the room failed to turn up her clothes, Linda quickly slid the dress on and buttoned it up.
Once she was dressed the other questions reared their heads once again. What had happened to her, and where was Samantha?
Time for you to choose again! Leave a comment letting me know which choice you want-
Will Linda stay in her room and wait to see what happens?
OR
Will Linda venture out of the room to find Samantha?
YOU CHOOSE!
You have till wed to tell me what is going to happen next!
"Mockingbird Lane (cont'd)"
"C'mon, lets go up to that one on the left, the porch light is on so they may be waiting up for visitors."
Samantha led the way up the cobbled pathway that wound up the hill, through the rose garden. The light gave off a welcoming glow from the large wrap around porch that dominated the front of the house. In the irratic flashes of light from the storm the square tower would be briefly illuminated and the wind caused a loose set of shutters somewhere on the second floor to bang irratically against the side of the house, making Linda jump.
As her gaze roamed the garden they passed through she wondered how they go the roses to bloom this late in the season. The large blooms looked black in the rain but a flash of lightning revealed them to be a deep red. The porch light reflected off of small carved markers in each bed. She couldn't quite make out what they said and leaned closer to read one just as Samantha knocked on the front door.
I'll check those out on the way back to the car, she thought and hurried up to her friend just as she was lifting her arm to knock again.
"Give them a moment to answer." Linda told her, grabbing her arm to stop her from knocking just as it swung silently inward.
The girls looked down into the wrinkled face of a very old, very short woman. She was dressed in an old fashioned ankle gown, and even with her hair piled into a bun on top of her head she must barely have been four feet tall. The old eyes appraised them from behind a pair of thick round spectacles and slowly a smile spread, changing the web of wrinkles that covered her face.
"Hi. Sorry to intru-"
"Come in out of the rain my dears, you'll catch your death." She turned and began walking down the front hallway of the house, leaving the girls standing on the front porch staring after her.
They looked at each other then looked down the hallway, after the woman.
"Maybe we should go to the-" Linda began.
"Come along dears tea is waiting in the parlor." The woman called back to them and disappeared into a room on the left.
Linda looked at Samantha and gestured back to the car. Samantha shrugged and stepped into the hallway after the woman. Linda groaned and stepped in after her.
The hallway was dark, most of the illumination coming from the porch light behind them. Bowing to her ingrained sense of etiquette Linda reluctantly closed the door behind them to keep the cold night air out, cutting off that small bit of light. The hallway was oppressively dark, but as their eyes adjusted they noticed that there were old fashioned lamps hung from the walls with shutters on them letting of dull glows. The lamps only gave off enough light to allow them not to trip over the few pieces of furniture that lined the hallway. Picture frames lined the walls but it was too dim to see what they showed clearly. When they got about halfway down they came to the door they had thought the woman had gone in. There was a very faint glow around the door frame. Linda stopped Samantha as she reached for the door handle.
"This is really creepy. Maybe we should just go back and try the other house."
"Oh quit being a sissy, it's just a little old lady who isn't used to visitors trying to make us comfortable in the rain." Samantha pulled the door open and stepped into the parlor.
Linda gulped and followed her.
The room was softly lit by a flickering fire in the large hearth. Classic scrolled sofa's and old fashioned arm chairs were placed around the central rug close enough to the fire to share it's warmth as well as it's light. The woman was sitting in an arm chair facing the door. The firelight deepened the shadows in her wrinkles making her face seem almost a mask, and her glasses reflected as if they were two round mirrors where her eyes should be.
"Sit and I'll pour the tea." She gestured to the sofa across from her and lifted the teapot from the side table next to her. "Not often we get visitors anymore in our little town. Used to have people dropping in on us all the time, but lately it's been almost downright lonely"
As the girls sat she handed them both delicate cups and saucers filled with a hot liquid that smelled wonderful. They sat and sipped their tea politely while glancing around the room. It seemed to have dropped right out of another century. The slightly worn feel of the furniture gave the feeling that the furnishing were original. Samantha cleared her throat.
"Thank you so much for your hospitality. We were actually on our way to a Bed and Breakfast that is supposed to be not far from here but we took a wrong turn I think. I'm Samantha and this is Linda. I'm sorry but we didn't catch your name?"
"Oh I'm Miss Ashworth. Every one around here knows me. Family's been here for ages. This house was the first building in the town. Quite a nice little town we have here on Mockingbird Lane. Despite those riff-raff that built the house next door. Digging up my rose garden and howling at all hours. It simply is not done in polite society."
The neighbors must have a dog, Linda thought.
Now drink up that tea so you don't catch a chill from that rain. You poor girls are soaked through." As the girls dutifully sipped the tea on command, the grin sipped it's way up her face again.
"This is really very good, what kind of tea is this?" Linda asked.
"Why it's elderberry, deary. I make it myself. A very old family recipe." The little woman began to giggle softly to herself and rock in her chair. The giggle quickly grew in volume and the rocking increased in intesity.
The last thing Linda saw before the world went black was Miss Ashworth laughing and rocking in her chair, the round lenses of her glasses reflecting the fire light like her eyes were windows into the flames of hades.
Linda opened up her eyes and stared at the darkness. Wait, it had just been dark. She closed her eyes again and took stock.
We were going to that Bed and Breakfast Samantha found out in the country. We took a wrong turn or something and we stopped to ask for directions. There was all those roses, and that lady. What was her name? Miss Ashworth, yeah. We had some tea, then what happened? And where is Samantha?
She opened her eyes and sat up on the bed. The musty smell of little used rooms filled her nose. As the soft coverlet that had been wrapped around her fell away she noticed something important. Her clothes were gone. She looked around the room for some clue as to where they had gone and noticed an old fashioned dress, in blue, similar to what Miss Ashworth had been wearing, laid out on a chair near the bed. The small lamp on the table next to the chair was the only source of light in the room and it seemed to indicate that the dress was intended for her. After a slightly more thorough search of the room failed to turn up her clothes, Linda quickly slid the dress on and buttoned it up.
Once she was dressed the other questions reared their heads once again. What had happened to her, and where was Samantha?
Time for you to choose again! Leave a comment letting me know which choice you want-
Will Linda stay in her room and wait to see what happens?
OR
Will Linda venture out of the room to find Samantha?
YOU CHOOSE!
You have till wed to tell me what is going to happen next!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Travel Log 10-4: The First Installment
This year I've decided to throw an idea I've had for a while out there. I had such fun writing the serial I posted up here last Halloween that I wanted to do another story, but make it a little more interactive.
When I was growing up I really loved the "choose your own adventure" books. I really enjoyed the idea of a story that would change every time I read it. It was like having 10 books in one, and I was all about that. So I thought I would bring that same idea to my Halloween story this year. So we will be trying out my first "choose your own haunting" Halloween tale together!
So here we go, the first installment of-
"MOCKINGBIRD LANE"
"What was that?"
Linda glanced around the car uneasily as the thunder died away. Samantha was reclined in the passenger seat snoring softly. The swish swish of the wiper blades on the windshield created a soothing rhythm and Linda began to relax a little bit. The headlights of her compact blue sedan bounced off of tree trunks and bushes as she navigated their way along the deserted road, keeping a sharp eye out for woodland creatures making kamikaze dashes across the road.
What had started as a light rain earlier in that day had become a down pour after the sun had set. Under regular circumstances she loved a nice rainy afternoon curled up with a book and a cup of tea on her comfortable couch at home. Driving down a deserted road, in the middle of nowhere, at night, with the only person for miles asleep next to her was not her idea of a fun evening.
The thunder boomed.
Oh yeah, and now there's thunder and lightning she thought. I am so not doing this alone. It was her idea anyway.
She reached out and shook Samantha's leg until the red head opened her eyes and sat up.
"We're there already?" She said as she stretched in the passenger seat.
How did I let myself get talked into this? Linda thought.
Three days earlier.....
"C'mon it will be fun, and you need to have some fun. Get out of this apartment." Samantha's blue eyes pleaded with Linda to give in to her oldest friend one more time. Ever since they were kids Samantha had been dreaming up adventures and somehow finding a way to get Linda to join in. Ever since Linda's husband had died the year before she had been trying to get Linda to go on a trip. Her newest installment of the let's get out of town argument was a trip to a country bed and breakfast that she had found an advertisement about. The pamphlet she had brought promised a weekend to remember.
Linda shook her head, making her light brown bob swing. She didn't want a weekend to remember, she just wanted to stay in her comfortable little apartment. It was safer there, and comfortable. Why couldn't Samantha get that?
" Uh-uh. It's too late in the year to make a trip out that way, and besides I have too much to do here." She fussed around the coffee table that Samantha was resting her feet on.
"Look you've locked yourself up here ever since Allen died. It's time to get out, see the sunshine, hear the birds, smell some freakin' roses already. We're not victorian ladies. There is no forced mourning period. It's not like he was really worth all this devotion anyway. And you know I'll just keep bugging you until you go with me."
Linda scowled at her. "That was a low blow. " She sighed. "Fine, if I agree to go on this ridiculous trip of yours will you quit hounding me?"
Samantha jumped up with a cheer and hugged her.....
And that's how she gets me every time. She just couldn't hold out against Samantha's sheer determination to help her 'get a life'.
What is wrong with my life as it is. I like it.
The subject of Linda's mental ire finished stretching and shook out her long hair.
"That didn't take long. I told you it would be an easy trip"
Thunder crashed louder than ever and the lightening threw the trees into stark relief.
"No we're not there, but I can barely see two feet in front of the car. And that thunder is creeping me right out. This was your brain storm so now you can keep me company while I try to find that 'quant and picturesque lane' that's supposed to lead to this fantastic hideaway you found. Why you needed to do this during storm season I have no idea. I should be comfy at home right now." Patience had flown away with that last thunderclap.
Samantha grabbed the map off of the dash and flicked on the overhead light.
"The map says that we should be coming up to Bluebird Drive on the left in about 2 miles. So just make the next left and then it's a short two miles to the front door of the Valley View Inn. Simple." She tossed the map in the back seat and started to fiddle with the radio, looking for a station that would play in the storm.
Linda made her turn at the next road she came to and began creeping down the narrow gravel road crowded by the trunks of trees, standing like dark sentinels in the storm. A flash of lightning illuminated the streetsign the girls had driven by without noticing. It read Mockingbird Lane.
"See? Nothing to get worked up about. We'll be there in two more easy miles." Samantha grinned and poked Linda in the arm. "Scared of a little rain, huh? Think about how great you'll feel in that comfortable room you booked. A long, steaming bath will make you feel like a million bucks."
Linda stewed a little bit in her annoyance as they bumped along. Her mood began to lift when she saw the glimmer of lights ahead as they rounded a bend. The gravel road abruptly turned into a smoother paved road as they left the trees.
"How big was that bed and breakfast supposed to be?" Linda asked, a sudden sense of unease beginning in her stomach and she shot furtive glances at the buildings and houses lining the lane. They passed several quaint, multi-storied farmhouses, a general store, and what looked like an old livery stable.
"Not this big. I think we may have taken a wrong turn."
The road was lined with dark houses. The girls looked around them and saw no house numbers or markers to show what road they were on. Linda pulled to a stop at the end of the road, in front of the only two houses that had any lights on at all. They sat on the crest of a slight hill, giving the impression that they floated above the other buildings.
"This just about caps the night. It's raining, and we're lost in a strange little town, in the middle of nowhere, and there doesn't appear to be anywhere still open to ask for directions. What are we going to do now?"
"Oh lighten up a little. These two houses have their lights on, so lets go knock on a door and ask someone for directions." Samantha unbuckled her safety belt and jumped out of the car into the rain.
"Hell." Linda unbuckled herself and followed Samantha. "Well ok miss adventure-which house is it going to be?"
Do Samantha and Linda go to the three story Victorian house with the wrap around porch and antique rose garden and porch light glowing on the left?
OR
Do Samantha and Linda go to the two story colonial house with the trimmed hedge walkway and lit front window on the right?
YOU CHOOSE!
Just leave a comment with which one you vote for!
(you can find the second part of the story here)
When I was growing up I really loved the "choose your own adventure" books. I really enjoyed the idea of a story that would change every time I read it. It was like having 10 books in one, and I was all about that. So I thought I would bring that same idea to my Halloween story this year. So we will be trying out my first "choose your own haunting" Halloween tale together!
So here we go, the first installment of-
"MOCKINGBIRD LANE"
"What was that?"
Linda glanced around the car uneasily as the thunder died away. Samantha was reclined in the passenger seat snoring softly. The swish swish of the wiper blades on the windshield created a soothing rhythm and Linda began to relax a little bit. The headlights of her compact blue sedan bounced off of tree trunks and bushes as she navigated their way along the deserted road, keeping a sharp eye out for woodland creatures making kamikaze dashes across the road.
What had started as a light rain earlier in that day had become a down pour after the sun had set. Under regular circumstances she loved a nice rainy afternoon curled up with a book and a cup of tea on her comfortable couch at home. Driving down a deserted road, in the middle of nowhere, at night, with the only person for miles asleep next to her was not her idea of a fun evening.
The thunder boomed.
Oh yeah, and now there's thunder and lightning she thought. I am so not doing this alone. It was her idea anyway.
She reached out and shook Samantha's leg until the red head opened her eyes and sat up.
"We're there already?" She said as she stretched in the passenger seat.
How did I let myself get talked into this? Linda thought.
Three days earlier.....
"C'mon it will be fun, and you need to have some fun. Get out of this apartment." Samantha's blue eyes pleaded with Linda to give in to her oldest friend one more time. Ever since they were kids Samantha had been dreaming up adventures and somehow finding a way to get Linda to join in. Ever since Linda's husband had died the year before she had been trying to get Linda to go on a trip. Her newest installment of the let's get out of town argument was a trip to a country bed and breakfast that she had found an advertisement about. The pamphlet she had brought promised a weekend to remember.
Linda shook her head, making her light brown bob swing. She didn't want a weekend to remember, she just wanted to stay in her comfortable little apartment. It was safer there, and comfortable. Why couldn't Samantha get that?
" Uh-uh. It's too late in the year to make a trip out that way, and besides I have too much to do here." She fussed around the coffee table that Samantha was resting her feet on.
"Look you've locked yourself up here ever since Allen died. It's time to get out, see the sunshine, hear the birds, smell some freakin' roses already. We're not victorian ladies. There is no forced mourning period. It's not like he was really worth all this devotion anyway. And you know I'll just keep bugging you until you go with me."
Linda scowled at her. "That was a low blow. " She sighed. "Fine, if I agree to go on this ridiculous trip of yours will you quit hounding me?"
Samantha jumped up with a cheer and hugged her.....
And that's how she gets me every time. She just couldn't hold out against Samantha's sheer determination to help her 'get a life'.
What is wrong with my life as it is. I like it.
The subject of Linda's mental ire finished stretching and shook out her long hair.
"That didn't take long. I told you it would be an easy trip"
Thunder crashed louder than ever and the lightening threw the trees into stark relief.
"No we're not there, but I can barely see two feet in front of the car. And that thunder is creeping me right out. This was your brain storm so now you can keep me company while I try to find that 'quant and picturesque lane' that's supposed to lead to this fantastic hideaway you found. Why you needed to do this during storm season I have no idea. I should be comfy at home right now." Patience had flown away with that last thunderclap.
Samantha grabbed the map off of the dash and flicked on the overhead light.
"The map says that we should be coming up to Bluebird Drive on the left in about 2 miles. So just make the next left and then it's a short two miles to the front door of the Valley View Inn. Simple." She tossed the map in the back seat and started to fiddle with the radio, looking for a station that would play in the storm.
Linda made her turn at the next road she came to and began creeping down the narrow gravel road crowded by the trunks of trees, standing like dark sentinels in the storm. A flash of lightning illuminated the streetsign the girls had driven by without noticing. It read Mockingbird Lane.
"See? Nothing to get worked up about. We'll be there in two more easy miles." Samantha grinned and poked Linda in the arm. "Scared of a little rain, huh? Think about how great you'll feel in that comfortable room you booked. A long, steaming bath will make you feel like a million bucks."
Linda stewed a little bit in her annoyance as they bumped along. Her mood began to lift when she saw the glimmer of lights ahead as they rounded a bend. The gravel road abruptly turned into a smoother paved road as they left the trees.
"How big was that bed and breakfast supposed to be?" Linda asked, a sudden sense of unease beginning in her stomach and she shot furtive glances at the buildings and houses lining the lane. They passed several quaint, multi-storied farmhouses, a general store, and what looked like an old livery stable.
"Not this big. I think we may have taken a wrong turn."
The road was lined with dark houses. The girls looked around them and saw no house numbers or markers to show what road they were on. Linda pulled to a stop at the end of the road, in front of the only two houses that had any lights on at all. They sat on the crest of a slight hill, giving the impression that they floated above the other buildings.
"This just about caps the night. It's raining, and we're lost in a strange little town, in the middle of nowhere, and there doesn't appear to be anywhere still open to ask for directions. What are we going to do now?"
"Oh lighten up a little. These two houses have their lights on, so lets go knock on a door and ask someone for directions." Samantha unbuckled her safety belt and jumped out of the car into the rain.
"Hell." Linda unbuckled herself and followed Samantha. "Well ok miss adventure-which house is it going to be?"
Do Samantha and Linda go to the three story Victorian house with the wrap around porch and antique rose garden and porch light glowing on the left?
OR
Do Samantha and Linda go to the two story colonial house with the trimmed hedge walkway and lit front window on the right?
YOU CHOOSE!
Just leave a comment with which one you vote for!
(you can find the second part of the story here)
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