Welcome to October! Can you believe there are only three months left in the year? One of my co-workers told me how many days are left until Christmas during a call this week and I had to ask her to never mention it again. Where has the year gone? I'm excited about the last three stitch journals I have planned. November is going to be hilarious and December is an experiment. More to come on both of these journals as October unfolds. This month's inspiration came from an odd place for me: Rob Zombie.
If you're not familiar with Rob Zombie, here's a little background for you. Zombie rose to popularity as the founder and frontman of the heavy metal band White Zombie. I was never a big White Zombie fan, but I enjoy anything a little macabre, so I always found them and their fanbase interesting and fun. He has also had a successful career as a horror film maker (I liked The Lords of Salem). My favorite of his movies is the charming Munsters movie that came out on Netflix last year. He and I share a love for the original show The Munsters and I hope he makes another movie. It was quirky and fun and just a touch spooky. That's the kind of Halloween movie I like best.
Anyway, I was driving home from the office a few weeks ago and Zombie's song "Dragula" randomly came on the radio. I haven't heard this song on the radio since it came out in 1998. It's from Zombie's first solo album; you can watch the video here. The song was inspired by an episode of The Munsters called "Hot Rod Herman," where Grandpa Munster and Herman drag race. Dragula is Grandpa Munster's car. The car body is shaped like a coffin, you know, because vampires need their coffins. It's not the car in the music video, but they look similar.
At the time I heard the song on the radio, I was trying to decide what to do for the October stitch journal. I knew I wanted to focus on Halloween stuff (very technical), but didn't have a unifying theme. Then my friend posted a "Live, Laugh, Love" embroidery piece on my Facebook timeline that featured Rob Zombie. And it all came together.
For the record, I hate "live, laugh, love" decor. If that's your jam, please enjoy it and embrace it, but don't expect me to display that in my house. It makes me think of Instagram feminism and people who are #blessed. There's something cult-y about it. Like if you bring one into your house, a group of white ladies in beige are going to show up and ask you about how much screen time your kids have and why you don't buy organic. There's a haunted vibe in those signs, but not my kind of haunted.
But I love the versions featuring lyrics from "Dragula." It's delightful and funny. The other thing that made me think of doing this is that the clothing item for this month, an orange and white striped beach cover up, makes me think of old time-y clothing like what the Munsters wore on the original show. I could see Herman wearing a dude's version of this cover up to the beach. So it all came together and now we have "Live, Laugh, Love with Rob Zombie."
I started with basic back stitch lettering and used water soluble paper for the pattern transfer. I'm planning on whip stitching the "Live, Laugh, Love" with DMC black etoile thread for some sparkle. Once the lettering is done, I'll use the rest of the month to add cats, bats, ghosts, spiders, pumpkins, and other Halloween stuff to the piece.
Here's this week's recap:
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| October 1 - stitched in Phoenix, AZ |
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| October 2 - stitched at the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport |
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| October 3 - back at home |
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| October 4 |
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| October 5 |
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| October 6 |
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| October 7 |
Some of the sketches for the rest of the month. There's going to be a group of bats and cats. I'm not sure where the ghost is going (or if there will be more than one) and the spider web has to find a home. I may not include the pumpkin; it depends on how long the other sections take to complete.
More from Phoenix and Stuff I'm Enjoying This Week
The rest of my trip to Phoenix was a blast. We went to The Dinersaur for cookies and Xanadu for coffee. We also visited the Desert Botanical Garden - highly recommend you check it out if you ever visit the area.
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| Now I have to learn how to make Italian buttercream frosting. It was so good. |
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| Good banana bread but my dad's is better. |
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| I wish I had taken my phone into the bathroom because there were roller skates on the wallpaper. Excellent coffee. |
We went to Oak Creek Vineyard on Sunday. My friend Emily is a member and it was such a lovely place to visit. She also told us all about Jerome, AZ on the way up and now I have to go back to visit. It has a very weird history.
Keely seems to have forgiven me for abandoning him for a week. I'm guessing my dad giving him chicken (probably every day) didn't hurt. He's been particularly interested in cuddles since I got back.
What else is bringing me joy this week? I got my 2024 planner from WTF Notebooks - it's amazing. The raccoon embroidery piece I ordered from the Savage Stitcher came too. It looks good with the random assortment of Nuggets, cats, and vases on my desk.
I got my COVID vaccine on Friday and got myself a little treat for being a good adult. Please make sure you get your vaccines this season.
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