Fall is officially HERE...and you know what that means...get out those super cute Halloween Decorations and bring on the season at hand!

It's CLEAR...I am obsessed with the Movie "Hocus Pocus" staring Bette Midler...it's a timeless CLASSIC!  So..when I saw this adorable Wooden Sign that said "Welcome My Pretties" at my local Michaels Store...I knew I had to have it so I could add a little extra BLING to it!

These cute applique designs are from the Baby Kay's Website...be sure to check out my List of the Tools of the Trade (at the bottom of the blog post) for all the details of where to get everything I use to make this adorable project...

I just LOVE these little guys...or gals...whichever the case may be!  LOL!

I combined the two designs in my Embrillance Software...fit them accordingly to the size of the area I wanted to fill for the "added on" sign to the bottom of the actual wooden cauldron.  I had my Houston (aka...my Husband) cut me a piece of luan (because it is a thinner wood and I didn't want to it be too heavy) and then sanded it smooth and painted it black...

This piece of wood serves as my "backdrop" to adhere the actual design onto...

is that as clear as MUD?

I digress...

I am sure you have noticed by now...after staring at the picture above, that I reverse flipped the little ghost trick or treaters applique...so that they sat nicely (and symetrically even) on either side of the PUMPKIN kiddo applique!  

YES...my OCD is in control here!

Can I get an AMEN?

This is a fairly large design...finishing at 10.5" wide X 6.5" tall (approximately)...with a total of 27,296 stitches in it) and because of that I wanted to be sure to stabilize it "just right"...

So here is what I did...

I ironed a piece of "fusible fleece" to the backside of a cute Black with Orange Dots cotton fabric I got from my local Hobby Lobby...both the fabric and the fusible fleece are cut at least 5-6 inches larger than my finished design piece...I do this for two reasons...

ONE...so I can cut it down to the PERFECT size for my sticky board application...

AND...

TWO...so I have enough "extra fabric" to cover the front of the sticky board...plus around to the backside...to give it a nice "finished look"!

Once I have the design stitched out...removed from the frame...I cut the design down (centering it perfectly) and then adhered it to the front of the sticky board and then around to the backside.

I used Stitchy Tape on the backside to adhere the fabric to the backside of the sticky board...

You can use a HOT Glue Gun for this part...however...it's NOT my favorite method...

Apparently, I do not possess the skill it takes to handle a Glue Gun without burning my fingerprints right off!

LOL!

Let's MOVE on...

I then tore some 1.25" wide strips from the Purple with Black Dots Cotton Fabric (also from Hobby Lobby) and gathered it...using a long "doll making" needle and heavy thread...to make it fit nicely around the framed design.  I did use the "Stitchy Tape" again on the backside of the sticky board to stick the gathered "ruffle" to...as it gave me time to manipulate it in place without burning my finger tips off...once again...Glue Guns and ME do not get along!

Once my design with the ruffle was complete...I adhered the whole thing to that piece of Black Painted Luan...that Houston cut for me earlier.

I simply used a thin black wire...curled...to connect it to the bottom of the cauldron from the top of the Luan piece...so it hung nicely...

as if it had always been there from the "get go"!

Now...how is that for FABULOUS?

Kathleen

TOOLS OF THE TRADE...

-Kid Behind the Pumpkin Applique Design(5x7 size) www.babykaysapplique.com

-Little Ghost Boy Applique Design(4x4 size) www.babykaysapplique.com

-Fast Frame (I used the Full 8 x 12 inch size)

-Fusible Fleece (Hobby Lobby and Joann's)

-Perfect Stick Stabilizer (I used Floriani Brand)

-WSS (off Brand)

-Heat and Bond Lite Fusible (Hobby Lobby, Joann's, Walmart and On Line)

-Flat Flower Head Pins (used to hold the fabric down onto frame for an extra hold) (Hobby Lobby and Joann's)

-Fabric...Black with Orange Dots for Background of Design (Hobby Lobby) Purple with Black Dots for Ruffle (Hobby Lobby) Orange for Pumpkin Kid and Pumpkin Candy Buckets (Colorworks by PB Textiles) Yellow for Pumpkin Face (Big Pinwheel #LH04025 for Lakehouse Direct Fabrics) Blue for Pants (Blue Batik...Unknown) Purple for Shoes on Pumpkin Kid (Mottled Purple...Unknown) Lime Green for Pumpkin Stem (Zig Zag S#N7700 by Hoffman California International Fabrics) White for Ghosts (Swirly tone on tone...Unknown)

-Thread-Exquisite Brand...Purple #390-Orange #650-Green #983-Blue #413-Yellow #4117-Black #020 and White #010

-Sticky Board (www.fatquartershop.com)

-Stitchery Tape (www.fatquartershop.com)

-Large Doll Making Needle (Hobby Lobby)

-Luan for Base of Design (Home Depot-Lowes-Hobby Lobby)

-Black Spray Paint (Hobby Lobby-Home Depot-Lowes)

-Water Soluble Pen/Pencil for Marking Center of design