I'm weird, at least that's what they tell me, and one of those things that makes me weird is that I actually like Valentine's Day and I'm single and I had a boyfriend on the actual day only once in my life....
To me, Valentine's Day doesn't have to be only about celebrating your significant other and I don't see it as "The Man creating a holiday for the masses to spend money", no when I think of Valentine's Day, I make it fun, I make it a holiday about friends and "thinking of you" type things. I even buy a box of fun cards and hand them out and usually people are happy to get a little something.
Now, don't get me wrong, if some guy wanted to send me a Valentine, I'd probably be over the moon lol as I wouldn't mind having an admirer, but anyway, why am I writing this blog?
1 - To tell you that you can like Valentine's Day and you can have fun with Valentine's Day and still be single.
2 - That you can totally spookify your Valentine's Day! There is another side of me that comes alive during this time of hearts and flowers, I don't know if it's the romance of it, or the red, black and white color scheme but I always ALWAYS think of Vampires and blood around Valentine's Day, and then I go throughout the aisles trying to find little ways to make a fun, gothically romantic holiday.
It's really a shame that my good friends have all moved farther out, because I would throw a sweet, sweet Vampire Valentine's Party!
So anyway, you CAN find ways to make you're own spooky Valentine's day. Heck, Valentine's Day can turn into Halloween's little sibling if you let it.
Here are some tips, items and ideas to help spookify your Valentine's Day.
Bloody Ribbon
Ribbon can be wrapped around treat bags, flowers, wine bottles, wine glasses, etc etc. If you want to stick with plain ribbon, adding black to your red or white always helps, but there is ribbon out there, yes it exists, that has blood drips or blood splatter on it! You can find it at your local craft store around Halloween but around this time of year, you'll have to peruse the net. (or plan ahead and stock up in October)
All you have to do is google search, etsy search or ebay search "blood spatter ribbon" or "blood splatter ribbon" and you'll find a few choices.
Treat Bags
If you're going to have a gathering or just feel like making your friends or coworkers a Valentine's Treat bag, consider this delightful blood splatter cellophane bag from Oriental Trading. It's got all the right colors.
www.orientaltrading.com/bloody-cellophane-bags
Blood Red Drinks
One of my weird hobbies is going to a liquor store and cruising the aisles for fun labels. Whether you're hosting a gathering or by yourself on Valentine's Day, walk up and down some aisles and look for fun spooky themed drinks and have fun with it! If you need a little assistance, here are some brands to get you started: You'll find sodas, wines, bloody mary cocktails and more!
Vampire Vinyards
Hope's End
Ravenswood Winery (try the besieged blend)
Cooper's Cave Ale - They have a strawberry soda called Dracula's Blood, email them and inquire.
Apothic Wine
Spooky Chocolates
Vegan Treats has a macabre themed box of chocolates every year for Valentine's Day, and it's vegan, so big PLUS!
http://vegantreats.com
If you're in the Burbank, CA area, The Mystic Museum also has a themed box of chocolates for the holiday, but you have to pick them up in store, they don't seem to be taking online orders for the chocolates.
BeardedLadysMysticMuseum
Candles
Candle's can be as simple as reds, blacks, purples, and whites. Spread some candles around your house, light em (safetly of course) turn off the lights and drink your bloody good wine.
If you'd like to add a little something extra special to your candle game, try some horror themed candles like the ones at Dark Candles or Laughing Crow Candle Company.
Horror Melts has some creepy Valentine's wax melts.
Flowers
In my mind, the flowers stay. What's more gothically romantic than a blood red rose? Or the white roses with red stripes? Or dark purple or black roses?
Find a red or black vase, tie some of that bloody ribbon around it and fill with any gothically gorgeous flower.
And if you can't afford roses, there are so many red, black, white and purple carnations and lilies. Really all you have to do is check out the floral section of your local grocery store or flower shop and find the flower that speaks to you.
Vampires in Pop Culture
Many vampire stories are love stories, so what I did once when I had a vampire themed birthday party one year, was buy posters from those shows and movies, put em in cheap black frames and hang them around to help set the mood. I had posters from Twilight, True Blood, and The Vampire Diaries. Use posters and art prints from Dracula, Buffy, etc, and heck i would even throw in a poster from "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" because the poster art is darkly cool and keeps the ambiance. True Blood even had a series of poster art that were more like advertisements for the drink, and it helped make the party look like a vampire tavern.
Vampire themed food!
Vampire food means, bloody good food. Dark themed food. Gothic themed food. Also remember that some vampire stories include other monsters, so it's fun to find a good variety in recipes when googling. I own 2 of the True Blood cook books; one is more entrees whereas the other is more cocktails and appetizers, and both books have some great stuff! If you can't get a hold of these books, pinterest if FULL of vampire themed food; all you have to do is type "vampire food" in the search bar.
Here is a link to my "Black, White and Blood All Over" Pinterest board.
https://www.pinterest.com/rachelheiress/black-white-blood-all-over/
Castellon's Kitchen and EatTheDead.com also have some great bloody themed, dark Valentine's recipe ideas.
Valentine Cards, Prints and Gifts
Believe it or not, there are many monster themed, spooky themed and Poe themed Valentine cards and gifts. One can always google or search on etsy but here are a couple of places to get you started. And FYI, #1 is my own etsy shop because I created 3 Poe-themed Valentines this year AND 1 Vampire card. I got sick one week with the flu and got the itch to paint. I turned them into Valentines and figured I'd throw em up on etsy and share! You can find them on my RedBubble and Society6 shops too.
AdventuresAhoy
GhostGirlGreetings
Spooksieboo
Rhode Montijo
KMSXCO
The Mystic Museum
Universal Monster Valentine Cards on Ebay
CraftyKByKirsty
Ghoulhish
Daemon237
necro_nomnomnomicon
Ectogasm
Spooky Valentine Bundles
There are many spooky themed variety boxes and bundles out there, check out these companies taking in the creepy Valentine's Day vibe.
GhoulBabe - Has a Horror Valentine Bundle
Sudsy Sirens - The Love Witch Box
Creepy Company - Offering a "Valentine's barf bag lined with treats, treasures and an exclusive pin"
Bath Products
Fill the tub with water, light your spooky candles and treat yourself or yourselves (if with someone) to a red or black bath with these bath bomb and soap companies that have readied themselves with horror themed Valentine bath products.
The MAD Bombers
Something Wicked Bath
Twisted Wonderland Perfumery
Music
Check out this Valoween playlist I found by Halloween Homemaker
Books! Books! Books!
If you're lying in a blood red bath, with your spooky candles all around and a glass of blood red wine at your side, why not also be reading some spooky novel too???
There are plenty of vampire or monster romances out there, heck there are even ghastly romances out there. And you could even switch it up for a spooky themed murder mystery like a book I'm currently reading called "Trick or Deceit" by Shelley Freydont. I would write a list of spooky romance or mystery novels but then this blog post would never end! I'd google the keywords for some inspiration or better yet, visit your local bookstore (we don't want to lose them!) and visit the fiction sections and browse a little.
In Conclusion...
I hope some of these ideas peak your interest, get your gears turning, and inspire you to have more fun with Valentine's Day. :)
-Rachel
SpookySprinkles
To me, Valentine's Day doesn't have to be only about celebrating your significant other and I don't see it as "The Man creating a holiday for the masses to spend money", no when I think of Valentine's Day, I make it fun, I make it a holiday about friends and "thinking of you" type things. I even buy a box of fun cards and hand them out and usually people are happy to get a little something.
Now, don't get me wrong, if some guy wanted to send me a Valentine, I'd probably be over the moon lol as I wouldn't mind having an admirer, but anyway, why am I writing this blog?
1 - To tell you that you can like Valentine's Day and you can have fun with Valentine's Day and still be single.
2 - That you can totally spookify your Valentine's Day! There is another side of me that comes alive during this time of hearts and flowers, I don't know if it's the romance of it, or the red, black and white color scheme but I always ALWAYS think of Vampires and blood around Valentine's Day, and then I go throughout the aisles trying to find little ways to make a fun, gothically romantic holiday.
It's really a shame that my good friends have all moved farther out, because I would throw a sweet, sweet Vampire Valentine's Party!
So anyway, you CAN find ways to make you're own spooky Valentine's day. Heck, Valentine's Day can turn into Halloween's little sibling if you let it.
Here are some tips, items and ideas to help spookify your Valentine's Day.
Bloody Ribbon
Ribbon can be wrapped around treat bags, flowers, wine bottles, wine glasses, etc etc. If you want to stick with plain ribbon, adding black to your red or white always helps, but there is ribbon out there, yes it exists, that has blood drips or blood splatter on it! You can find it at your local craft store around Halloween but around this time of year, you'll have to peruse the net. (or plan ahead and stock up in October)All you have to do is google search, etsy search or ebay search "blood spatter ribbon" or "blood splatter ribbon" and you'll find a few choices.
Treat BagsIf you're going to have a gathering or just feel like making your friends or coworkers a Valentine's Treat bag, consider this delightful blood splatter cellophane bag from Oriental Trading. It's got all the right colors.
www.orientaltrading.com/bloody-cellophane-bags
One of my weird hobbies is going to a liquor store and cruising the aisles for fun labels. Whether you're hosting a gathering or by yourself on Valentine's Day, walk up and down some aisles and look for fun spooky themed drinks and have fun with it! If you need a little assistance, here are some brands to get you started: You'll find sodas, wines, bloody mary cocktails and more!
Vampire Vinyards
Hope's End
Ravenswood Winery (try the besieged blend)
Cooper's Cave Ale - They have a strawberry soda called Dracula's Blood, email them and inquire.
Apothic Wine
Spooky Chocolates
Vegan Treats has a macabre themed box of chocolates every year for Valentine's Day, and it's vegan, so big PLUS!
http://vegantreats.com
If you're in the Burbank, CA area, The Mystic Museum also has a themed box of chocolates for the holiday, but you have to pick them up in store, they don't seem to be taking online orders for the chocolates.
BeardedLadysMysticMuseum
Candles
Candle's can be as simple as reds, blacks, purples, and whites. Spread some candles around your house, light em (safetly of course) turn off the lights and drink your bloody good wine.
If you'd like to add a little something extra special to your candle game, try some horror themed candles like the ones at Dark Candles or Laughing Crow Candle Company.
Horror Melts has some creepy Valentine's wax melts.
Flowers
In my mind, the flowers stay. What's more gothically romantic than a blood red rose? Or the white roses with red stripes? Or dark purple or black roses?
Find a red or black vase, tie some of that bloody ribbon around it and fill with any gothically gorgeous flower.
And if you can't afford roses, there are so many red, black, white and purple carnations and lilies. Really all you have to do is check out the floral section of your local grocery store or flower shop and find the flower that speaks to you.
Vampires in Pop Culture
Many vampire stories are love stories, so what I did once when I had a vampire themed birthday party one year, was buy posters from those shows and movies, put em in cheap black frames and hang them around to help set the mood. I had posters from Twilight, True Blood, and The Vampire Diaries. Use posters and art prints from Dracula, Buffy, etc, and heck i would even throw in a poster from "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" because the poster art is darkly cool and keeps the ambiance. True Blood even had a series of poster art that were more like advertisements for the drink, and it helped make the party look like a vampire tavern.
Vampire themed food!Vampire food means, bloody good food. Dark themed food. Gothic themed food. Also remember that some vampire stories include other monsters, so it's fun to find a good variety in recipes when googling. I own 2 of the True Blood cook books; one is more entrees whereas the other is more cocktails and appetizers, and both books have some great stuff! If you can't get a hold of these books, pinterest if FULL of vampire themed food; all you have to do is type "vampire food" in the search bar.
Here is a link to my "Black, White and Blood All Over" Pinterest board.
https://www.pinterest.com/rachelheiress/black-white-blood-all-over/
Castellon's Kitchen and EatTheDead.com also have some great bloody themed, dark Valentine's recipe ideas.
Valentine Cards, Prints and Gifts
AdventuresAhoy
GhostGirlGreetings
Spooksieboo
Rhode Montijo
KMSXCO
The Mystic Museum
Universal Monster Valentine Cards on Ebay
CraftyKByKirsty
Ghoulhish
Daemon237
necro_nomnomnomicon
Ectogasm
Spooky Valentine Bundles
There are many spooky themed variety boxes and bundles out there, check out these companies taking in the creepy Valentine's Day vibe.
GhoulBabe - Has a Horror Valentine Bundle
Sudsy Sirens - The Love Witch Box
Creepy Company - Offering a "Valentine's barf bag lined with treats, treasures and an exclusive pin"
Bath Products
Fill the tub with water, light your spooky candles and treat yourself or yourselves (if with someone) to a red or black bath with these bath bomb and soap companies that have readied themselves with horror themed Valentine bath products.
The MAD Bombers
Something Wicked Bath
Twisted Wonderland Perfumery
Music
Check out this Valoween playlist I found by Halloween Homemaker
Books! Books! Books!
If you're lying in a blood red bath, with your spooky candles all around and a glass of blood red wine at your side, why not also be reading some spooky novel too???
There are plenty of vampire or monster romances out there, heck there are even ghastly romances out there. And you could even switch it up for a spooky themed murder mystery like a book I'm currently reading called "Trick or Deceit" by Shelley Freydont. I would write a list of spooky romance or mystery novels but then this blog post would never end! I'd google the keywords for some inspiration or better yet, visit your local bookstore (we don't want to lose them!) and visit the fiction sections and browse a little.
In Conclusion...
I hope some of these ideas peak your interest, get your gears turning, and inspire you to have more fun with Valentine's Day. :)
-Rachel
SpookySprinkles
Stay Spooky
Comments
Post a Comment