The Halloween Art Of Hazel M.H.

Halloween may be over for another year, but the incredible artist inspiration continues! 

I just discovered the amazing art of Hazel M.H. and was immediately recharged with those sweet October vibes. A huge collection of 2-color illustrations that really hit that vintage style with just a twist of unique, whimsical grotesqueness.

Hazel's stylistic illustrations absolutely nail that classic Halloween spirit, and I can't wait to add a few of her pieces (available at the Violet Weatherstone Etsy shop!) to my collection.

Be inspired and enjoy!

All images courtesy of Instagram / Violet Weatherstone.

  

#pumpkindump2024

For my final act of Halloween defiance this season, I was able to get my pumpkins out for the eighth year in a row for my annual Pumpkin Dump!

Starting back in 2017, I decided that I wanted to do something more than simply tossing my post-Halloween pumpkins into the trash, and ended up covertly setting them up in a local metropark to much surprise and joy... and it has become an annual tradition ever since.

Every year I look for a new, creepy location to set up my jack-o-lanterns and extend the Halloween season for a bit longer. An Easter egg of sorts to anyone who happens to see them, and food for the local wildlife at the very least.

This year, I again paid homage to the Dump locations from 2021 and 2023. Shortly after successful pumpkin dumps, the old, abandoned houses were both completely torn down by the city, leaving only an empty dirt lot where the houses (and the pumpkins) once sat. Could I possibly make it three?

Luckily, there was still one more old, abandoned house left. Completely forgotten and overgrown, the derelict house sits close to the highly traveled road, lending itself to another perfect, highly visible dump location. And this one sits right next door to the Forest Of Screams, a local haunted attraction. The perfect Halloween offering! 

I loaded up all 21 pumpkins from this year's display and headed out. I calmly drove up what was once a driveway to the house, parked behind some overgrown bushes, and went to work. I quickly got some photos and videos of the setup, then slipped away completely unnoticed.

Another perfect Pumpkin Dump to end another really great Halloween season!

Please enjoy my annual submission to the Great Pumpkin Project, the Highbury Cemetery Pumpkin Dump 2024…

 

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: Legendary Haunt Tour

Okay, haunters! Here is the question: who will be attending this weekend's Legendary Haunt Tour?? This year, the Tour will be traveling around my home state of Ohio, visiting the top haunted houses across the state.

And I'm super stoked to announce that I have been given the chance to work the queue line at the world-famous Akron Haunted Schoolhouse & Laboratory for the event!! A HUGE thanks to Dave at the Schoolhouse for allowing me one more opportunity to stretch the Halloween season by another week and letting me get my haunt on just one more time this year.

I will find you...

This year's tour will be hitting The Dent Schoolhouse (please say hello to Pumpkin Smasher for me!), the U.S.S. Nightmare, The Factory of Terror, and the Haunted Schoolhouse & Laboratory. That's one heck of a lineup and tour goers are in for a great time at some incredible Ohio haunts!

If by chance you will be going, please be sure to find me at the Schoolhouse and say hi. I will be in the amazing, newly renovated queue line area, waiting for you in the shadows...

  

Highbury Cemetery, 2024

Year twenty one is now complete and another successful season for the Highbury Cemetery yard haunt is in the books! For once, the weather cooperated throughout the week leading up to trick-or-treat, allowing me ample time to set up, adjust, and perfect. Trick-or-treat itself, while down in total attendance a bit from last year (something I have noticed across the board??), went off without a hitch with perfect plumes of thick fog rolling across vibrant colors and shadows of a warm evening. All in all, 2024 turned out to be one of our better years.

So without further ado, I'll get to the good stuff... 

Ladies and gentlemonsters, boils and ghouls, I proudly present Highbury Cemetery, 2024. Enjoy!

When all was said and done, we ended up having 203 trick-or-treaters, parents, neighbors, and curious onlookers through the gates of Highbury Cemetery this year. A little bit lower than last year's total, but I'll still take it.

And before I end it, I can't go without giving a special thanks to everyone who helped put on the show this year. I couldn't do it without your help and your presence in just making the whole night a ton of fun. Special Highbury Cemetery thank you t-shirts go out to: Mrs. Highbury, Christian Highbury, Sharon, Karen, Laurie, Stacey and Vince, and Brother Scrapes. And an extra high five to the group of neighborhood kids who hung out around the yard and scared the other trick-or-treaters who came up. I think they all had a blast and I hope I'm sowing the spooky seeds for the next generation of haunters. Keep up the good work, kids!!

--- XXX ---

So there you have it. Halloween, 2024 is done and dusted and the Cemetery is closed for another year. Twenty one years of home haunting and still going strong. The success of this year again has me motivated to start on next year's display. As always, a few improvements on existing ideas and a few new ideas to add to the mix...

Only 363 days until Halloween. Are you ready?