Halloween treats for 2009

Here are some glow-in-the-dark fridge magnets from eBay seller 'cool_frenchie'. There are 5 equivalents to the LS, including a rare spooked cat, though these seem to be of the 'fun' variety. There's also a nice haunted house and a rather incongruous 'Scream' mask. I'm assuming this set comes from a previous year, as I've only come across the one listing.

I've learnt from C.D. that the Wilco brand shapes I mentioned earlier are available again this year. These are the closest I've seen to the LS and deserve a second mention. Here is a picture of some of them (the LS equivalents), courtesy of C.D.

Halloween has become more commercial in the UK in the past few years (not a bad thing in itself, as it takes away some store space from unseasonal Christmas promotions). An example: Stewart tells me about an unlikely-sounding 'Scary Spuds' promotion by Walkers crisps, with a prize of a night for two in a haunted inn. No doubt this is an attempt to take some of the increased seasonal spending away from the confectionery industry. Anyway, it has a nice piece of artwork associated with it, as shown below (though I'd like to lose the logo).

Oddly, you can't navigate to the promotion from their website, which still refers to it being Summer time. Someone should point this oversight out to Walkers and perhaps earn themselves a year's supply of crisps.

On to other Halloween goodies: I've bought some lenticular pictures this year, including a 'Mona Lisa' and, appropriately, an 'American Gothic'. Depending on the angle they are viewed at, you see either a normal version or a spooky version of the picture, so for example, Mona Lisa sticks out a reptilian tongue when viewed at the 'right' angle. I suppose they are a bit like those Noddy ones from Kellogg's back in the early 60s, but bigger and scarier! I would include pictures of them, but I know they are going to be almost impossible to photograph well.

I've also bought a rather splendid werewolf outfit - well head and hands actually - that I'm looking forward to wearing. Think 'American Werewolf in London' rather than the Universal and Hammer films; picture to follow. I've resisted fog machines and animatronic props so far, mainly because of expense. Perhaps I should take the DIY approach, as shown at this wonderful American site. The 'flying crank ghosts' look great fun - now where did I put my old Meccano set?