Tag Archives: gothic

September 21, 2026 · 12:35 pm

Why I love the Paranormal )O(

Greetings darklings:

Mabon begins tomorrow. Mabon is my favourite time of year and the second harvest Sabbat of the three harvest Sabbats. The next turn in the Wheel of the Year is our beloved and darkly magical Samhain! Mabon is all about balance, the harvest and gratitude for the abundance we have. 

I love, love, LOVE this time of year! I am so happy it’s here and brings the rainy, cool days, autumn leaves and that creepy chill. I just finished reading Gothic by Philip Fracassi. Wow, what a novel. Gothic brims with nonstop dread, horror and characters that I really cared for.  The book shocked me over and over again, as a relentless and merciless horror stalks Tyson’s family. What price is Tyson willing to pay for great stardom as a horror author? You find out- and wish you didn’t. The whole novel feels like something you shouldn’t be reading, something feels wrong from the start and NEVER.LETS.GO. This book is not for the squeamish. If you are squeamish, you may not make it to the end. 

Now I know what to make my readers feel in my own upcoming horror novel. It is important to read widely in your chosen genre. I read what other authors have written because it helps me with my own writing. I would never copy or imitate then, but it does help me improve my own writing. 

I love the paranormal, supernatural horror. It calls me to like a siren song. Once the paranormal bug has bitten you and bites deeply, that’s it, you can’t resist it. It is like that for me. It is why it keeps creeping onto the pages I write, or the movies I watch. I have researched it thoroughly over the years. It tastes like fine red wine to me. I do love my red wine. Okay, anyway, I digress. I love supernatural horror. I am not much for slashers which seems like violence for violence’s sake to me. But some people can’t get enough of that. That’s okay if it works for them. I love supernatural. Now if it was a supernatural themed slasher, okay I might get interested. Including the fact that I am a Witch and able to see the dead. Those themes or ideas do turn up a lot in my writing. Haunted manors, monsters, witches, outsiders, ghosts, curses, demons, the supernatural, heroism, hope. I keep drawing on those ideas to plant in my stories. I created my own spooky oracle deck. The image above is the image on one of my oracle cards, a photo I took myself. That image is so eerie. I am so happy I took the photo. I  know I was never meant for anything normal or mundane. Nope. I hate romance novels with an all-consuming passion. But I did write a romance in the Cult of the Spider People, the relationship between Piper and Cory at the same time I was heartbroken over a guy. I wrote what came naturally and what served the story. You may surprise yourself at what you will create. It certainly surprised me. 

The novels Something Wicked this way Comes by Ray Bradbury and I am Legend by Richard Matheson are my favorites. That is the type of fiction I love to read, that I exist for to read. They are authors after my own heart. You can leave a comment below to tell me what your favorite genre is. I would love to find out!

I hope to achieve the same magic, the same dark magic that courses through Fracassi’s, Bradbury’s and Matheson’s own novels. 

Blessed Be, Spiderwitch )O(

 

 

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September 17, 2026 · 12:15 pm

The Arachnas of Arachnall – The Cult of the Spider People )O(

Greetings Darklings:

Mabon is almost here. The leaves are turning and a chill wafts in the air. The Cult of the Spider People is scheduled to be released on October 5th!  That’s three weeks away. Today’s post will focus on creature horror, the creatures from the book The Cult of the Spider People. It has already been published, but Baynam Books Press closed. (Sigh….). Now, Dreamweaver Press is taking on the authors’ books. It won’t be much longer before Cult of the Spider People weaves new thrilling webs on Amazon. 

I am stil not sure what inspired me to create such horrifying creatures. Well, I have a few theories. I distinguished each creature from the other. I wanted to really bring them to life. I even wanted to give them their own distinct language to speak, but I am not Tolkien. He was a master at linguistics and etymology, I am not. I gave each creature individual wants and needs and personality – and distinct markings. 

Roth, the Spider King, is the master of Arachnall, the alternate dimension or underground, where the Arachnas dwell. They crave blood and lure their human victims there to feast on their blood. They trap their hapless victims in these horrifying slimy cocoons that an adult human can fit into. If the moldy dampness of the cocoons is not enough to gross you out, then when they feast on human blood, it brings a whole new level of horror. They weave and repair webs. 

Arachnall is ruled by an overlord, the Spider King, greedy, beyond evil and possesed with a bloodthirst who makes Shelob from Lord of the Rings look like a pansy. Here is an excerpt from the book: 

“She didn’t want to look at him, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away. He was more awful than any she had previously seen. A face carved from death, painted with fresh blood, a body so terrible. Piper hoped to wake from this nightmare and closed her eyes for a second. When she opened them, he was still there and he laughed. Piper’s blouse was damp with sweat and mildew from the slimy cocoon. She cringed from the odor and the clamminess. Roth, the Spider King, bowed his head in greeting to the other creatures. His gaze penetrated through the grisly cavern. He sniffed the air. The creature’s eyes were twin orbs of true pitch-darkness. He wore a black crown of spiders. His cheekbones were sunken, and his hide was charcoal black. Dried blood matted his lower jaw. Eight bristly angular legs protruded from his cephalothorax. His sardonic laughter permeated the cavern.” 

Roth, the Spider King, covets Piper and he plans to make her his new queen. He has chained the Spider Queen, trapping her in her own lair which is even more deadly than the cavern. Aranya, the Spider Queen, refuses to share her pure blood/ venom with Roth and the other Arachnas. Piper has other plans. 

The Spider Queen Aranya is described as a black widow Arachnas. She has the colourings, markings and bloodthirst of a black widow. Her lair and her darkly beautiful but deadly appearance is described here: 

“If the corridor was not evil enough, the lair of the Spider Queen was a hundred times worse. An enormous black web spanned twenty meters swaying like a spectral ghost. The lair was replete with decrepit skeletons. Dead insects, humans and animals hung from the web like baubles. Spiderling Arachnas wove silk cocoons, eager for an unwary victim. The stench of blood permeated the lair. 

Something menacing rested above the web. The cocoons bearing dead and alive prey made her want to scream. Bones of every shape and size riddled the ground beneath the massive web. Blood coated everything. More of the strange Arachnall symbols were etched onto the cave walls. Lifeless eyes stared at her as she passed them. A spiderling crept out from the hollow mouth of a skeleton. Revulsed, Piper turned away and her gut clenched hard. /

The Spider Queen’s gaze pierced through Piper’s soul. Her body was stunning. Her lower body was of an Arachnas. Her black wavy hair hung down her front and her back. Horns curved down her head. Her alabaster skin was flawless.  She wore the symbol of the Arachnas on her forehead, and she bore no clothing. Her cephalothorax was black but bore a single large red spot shaped like an hourglass. Her razor-sharp ebony fingernails were blood-stained. Eight sinewy black legs arched high on either side of her body. The Spider Queen rose to her full height.”

Is that enough to make you scream and run for your life? I would think so. She is beautiful and deadly all at once. Quite fitting for a black widow Spider Queen. 

The creature that dwells in the Pit is not as merciful as the Spider Queen. “The Arachnas prowled to where they climbed the hill,, caught them and threw them to the ground. They yelled and tried to escape from its formidable grasp. A battle -scarred Arachnas loomed over them. She stared at the Arachnas’s scarred hide in disbelief and wonder. His thick horns curved like a ram’s. The beast gazed at them coldly, and his jaws dripped saliva. An iridescent blue streaked across his body. The eight legs were less sinewy than the others. The cephalothorax was bloated, and his face bore a jagged scar. He sniffed them both. Cory drew back in fear.” / “The monster leered, exposing several razor-sharp fangs. His pointed ears twitched, and the black bristles on his legs quivered with anticipation. “Oh, you look tasty, boy,” the Arachnas said as it leered and grabbed Cory by his shoulder. He turned away, unable to look. ” / “The aged Arachnas’s pedipalps twitched. He bent his spidery legs back, crouched low to lunge, and reared, exposing his deadly stinger. He hissed menacingly. Cory dodged the stinger in time and cowered behind the dead Arachnas.” Nightmare inducing, n’est pas?

The Cult of the Spider People was much effort to write, but I knew in my heart it was worth everything. I am glad I made each Arachnas distinct from each other. It made the bloodthirsty and horrifying beasts much more interesting and intriguing. They are terrifying and unstoppable. That makes them scarier. My friend, Nora Peevy, believed that the “Human Centipede would feel right at home”, in her review of my book The Cult of the Spider People. I believe she is quite correct. 

It may mean investing more effort into your own imaginative writings, but I hope you do choose to go that route. That is the difference between a boring, banal story or something brimming with imagination. It is worth it, trust me. I encourage you all to try and create your own underworld of dark creatures or werewolves or a zombie. Write the book only  you can write. Discover your own voice. Believe me, that is what all overworked, weary editors want to see. Something fresh and unique that sets you apart from a million other writers. Your. Story.In.Your. Voice. Only. That is the magical formula! 

Upcoming Releases:
The Cult of the Spider People – 2nd edition October 5, 2026
The Mourning Tide – October 2026.

Where to Find The Cult of the Spider People

The Cult of the Spider People is being republished by Dreamweaver Press, an imprint of Twisted Dreams Press, in October 2026. The new edition will be available through Amazon and other booksellers as it is released.

Follow my blog, The Paranormal Quill, for publication news, updates, and more dark and gothic delights. https://theparanormalquill.blog/

Until then, keep your eyes on the shadows—and whatever you do, don’t look up. 

Heddy Johannesen

Conjuror of Gothic Horrors

Gothic horror and cosmic dread from the ghostly shores of Halifax.

Bio: 

Heddy Johannesen is a paranormal enthusiast and long time student of the writing craft. As the Conjuror of Gothic Horror, she writes about ghosts, monsters, witches, and outsiders, exploring the shadows where fear, mystery, and the supernatural collide.
Heddy has been writing seriously since 2006 and has studied the craft through courses, workshops, and mentorships. Her published work includes horror fiction, short stories, poetry, and paranormal nonfiction.
She has always been drawn to the shadows, where the monsters live and their stories hunger to be told. For Heddy, horror is more than a way to frighten readers. It is a way to explore fear, grief, courage, hope, and the mysteries that exist just beyond what we can see.

Blessings, Spiderwitch )O(

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August 24, 2026 · 2:31 pm

Four things to know before entering Arachnall

 

Greetings Darklings:

Crows are causing a ruckus outside, perching on tree branches. My cat blissfully sleeps, either unaware or uncaring of them. The sky is overcast, a typical Maritime day. The overcast sky, fog and lively crows hint at fall’s arrival. The next turn in the Wheel of the year is the autumn equinox. Autumn is creeping in…

I updated my writing desk. I measured the length and width of the desk and bought a meter and a half of black broadcloth. I arranged it on my desk and I laid a lovely black spiderweb tablecloth on top. My skull who I call Hamlet, sits on my desk next to my pen organizers and my computer, coffee cup (used! of course), books, gemstones, and my keyboard and mouse pad. The desk looks more gothic now. I love it, and my witch broom from the Ukraine and my black bat figurine hang on the wall next to the window. A very inspiring writing desk area! I love it. 

Two months from now, Aracnhall will come to life again. Dreamweaver Press, the imprint of Twisted Dreams Press, is re-publishing my gothic spidery horror novella, The Cult of the Spider People. I am excited, knowing this horror story will once again be building spiderwebs on bookshelves or on Amazon! 

Before you open those pages, armed with a smoking hot coffee and a comfy spot to read, here are four things to know before entering Arachnall if you hope to leave alive! 

Four Things to know Before Entering Arachnall

Arachnall is accessible by first entering a portal

When Piper and Cory accidentally stumble on the spider-infested and horrifc world of Arachnall, Cory’s inhaler lies just past the portal, the black door. Piper is forbidden to enter the portal. When her father leaves town on a work trip for the weekend, she defies her father and learns the hard way what lies past the forbidden door. Then her and Cory must find a way to escape with their lives. 

Arachnall is a deadly and darkly magical world.

Forget Labyrinth or your favorite Grimm Brothers stories. Arachnall is a world where the Human Centipide may feel right at home. Here is an excerpt from Cult of the Spider People: 

“An enormous black spiderweb, extending twenty feet, reached across the cavern’s roof. Weird spidery creatures crept across the web woven of solid silk. They rebuilt and wove new webs and cocoons. More minor nets fastened to the central one. Viscious cocoons large enough to hold an adult human being hung suspended from the gruesome web. Piper gasped, frozen in fright. “It’s a hive,”. It’s a hellish sight and all I want to do is run.

Here is another excerpt from the book: “Something struggled in a cocoon above their heads. She wanted to run from the cavern but her limbs were leaden. The creatures beat the cocoon with their large, powerful legs. Piper’s heart lurched. Terrified screams rang out from inside the cocoons. She stepped forward but Cory restrained her. He pointed above them to where a cocoon swayed dangerously. She hoped the creatures would miss them. A pitch-black creature appeared above, suspended from a glossy strand of silk. They exchanged fearful glances, frozen in place. Piper held her breath, sure the creature  would hear the hammering of her heart. The monstrous limbs beat the cocoons. Its prisoner howled in terror. The movement rippled through the webbing and the cocoons rocked back and forth. Another cry rang out in the air.” 

Arachnall is ruled by an overlord, the Spider King, greedy, beyond evil and possesed with a bloodthirst who makes Shelob from Lord of the Rings look like a pansy. Here is an excerpt from the book: 

“She didn’t want to look at him, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away. He was more awful than any she had previously seen. A face carved from death, painted with fresh blood, a body so terrible. Piper hoped to wake from this nightmare and closed her eyes for a second. When she opened them, he was still there and he laughed. Piper’s blouse was damp with sweat and mildew from the slimy cocoon. She cringed from the odor and the clamminess. Roth, the Spider King, bowed his head in greeting to the other creatures. His gaze penetrated through the grisly cavern. He sniffed the air. The creature’s eyes were twin orbs of true pitch-darkness. He wore a black crown of spiders. His cheekbones were sunken, and his hide was charcoal black. Dried blood matted his lower jaw. Eight bristly angular legs protruded from his cephalothorax. His sardonic laughter permeated the cavern.” 

Roth, the Spider King, covets Piper and he plans to make her his new queen. He has chained the Spider Queen, trapping her in her own lair which is even more deadly than the cavern. Aranya, the Spider Queen, refuses to share her pure blood/ venom with Roth and the other Arachnas. Piper has other plans. 

No one emerges from Arachnall alive. 

“The lair of the Spider Queen was a hundred times worse. An enormous black web spanned twenty meters swaying like a spectral ghost. The lair was replete with decrepit skeletons. Dead insects, humans and animals hung from the web like baubles. Spiderling Arachnas wove silk cocoons, eager for an unwary victim. The stench of blood permeated the lair.” 

That is enough to give the most jaded horror fan nightmares. 

 Most of the unlucky victims find themselves in the portal and hardly remember how they got there. Then they are confined to cocoons, literally waiting for their turn to die. The way they die is well … you have to read the book to learn more. 

The Cult of the Spider People will be available in October 2026. Follow this blog for more horror and shivery dark delights!

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Blessings, Spiderwitch

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July 24, 2026 · 1:04 pm

Conjuring Gothic Horrors

Why I Conjure Gothic Horrors

Greetings, Darklings:

Today’s post will focus on why I write, or conjure, gothic horrors. I have always loved the shadows, the dark places that maybe others want to overlook or pretend aren’t there. I call those shadows home.

I have always felt like I never fit in. I have always been treated like an outsider. It used to bug me, but I guess I was never meant to fit in. Now I embrace my weirdness. I am glad I didn’t fit in. What does that mean, anyway? In today’s chaotic world, we need more nonconformity than ever. I love horror and the macabre, the dark, shadowy places few would dare to tread.

Being a Witch was a big part of me embracing my weirdness. That may not work for other Witches, but it does for me. It is personal to me. I’ve taken that outsider feeling and created characters in my stories that are outsiders, too, in their own way. Normal is relative, anyway. It is also boring.

Monsters can be, well, monstrous. I created vicious and deadly spider people in my published novella, The Cult of the Spider People. They are terrifying because they act like spiders even though they appear part human. They never think like humans. They crave blood, they are a monstrous size, far more powerful, and it is impossible to reason with them. They exist in darkness, hunt in darkness, and rip you from the light into their darkness, into smelly, moldy cocoons.

Their cave has a massive web where people are trapped in cocoons, praying to be saved, trapped in a world that does not care. That is so Lovecraftian. They speak a different language, they never consider the consequences of their ungodly actions, and they follow the Spider King. They live for the blood. Bones and skulls litter the ground. Sticky spiderwebs snare an unwary human. There is no hope of escape.

Monsters can embody our darkest fears. They can reflect fears back to a person. A monster can be anything, from the tiniest, most harmless spider to a giant squid crushing a submarine in the deep, dark ocean depths. Okay, for me, being trapped in a submarine at the mercy of a giant squid would give me nightmares. How the hell do you escape? How do you escape Arachnall?

By contrast, I wrote a novel that has a monster with a very different story, The Mourning Tide. The novel features a monstrous ghost. The townspeople shun him and act like he doesn’t exist. He is forced to exist with an unbearable loneliness until Rosemary arrives in the town.

She moves into his house. She is grieving the loss of her husband, Henry. She is heartbroken and yearns to be alone to dwell in her own grief. The neighbors are not helpful at all when she asks questions about the ghost Jonathan. Jonathan knows the truth: he was murdered. Rosemary is put to the task of finding the murderer, bringing him to justice, and setting Jonathan free into the light.

He is very human under all that seaweed he bears. He is cursed to carry his grief with him.

So what truly makes a monster? It could depend on what you perceive a monster to be. That can be a strange alien with tentacles or King Kong. If you had never seen a whale before, would you consider it to be a monster? Is an alien like the Greys a monster? Is a monster an embodiment of your fears, like in The Babadook? The Thing? A rattlesnake?

It could be anything that is alien or unfamiliar to you, something so odd and strange you do not know what to think of it. But is there sometimes something more to them, something tragic and human under all those scales or tentacles? Maybe the best monsters are the most sympathetic, such as Frankenstein’s creature. I like to think so.

A monster in your stories should not be just a monster. It can represent something, be symbolic. Show us our deepest, darkest fears when we most want to look away. Some monsters embody a sinister darkness, terrifying and omnipotent, and some are monstrous and yet there is something intrinsically human about them.

Piper is human in the novella The Cult of the Spider People, but at the end of the book, she is a monster—and yet a sympathetic monster.

A thread of hope runs throughout the whole novella, even when Piper is transformed. She is a sympathetic monster because she yearns to be human again, but that is now impossible. She made a huge sacrifice.

To find out more, you can buy the book on Amazon when it is released again in October, at the beginning of the month. I also have signed copies available. I can help pay for shipping if anyone wants a signed copy! The new edition will be released in October. That’s only a few months away!

A thread of hope runs through The Mourning Tide, my other horror story that will be released on October 5, 2026. Yes, I have the wonderful fortune of having two of my horror novels released in October. One more reason to love Samhain!

The publisher is home from the hospital, but she has to rest. The publishing schedules were shifted. Nothing could happen until the publisher was home from the hospital. She has to rest. I wish her the best, and I hope you can all wish her the very best, too!

The thread of hope in The Mourning Tide is that we root for Rosemary and hope she succeeds in her quest to help Jonathan cross over into the light, finally finding peace.

Here we have two stories, with hope and monsters and heart.

I am now working on a new horror novel. I will enjoy discovering the voices of the characters, the theme, the plot, the setting, and, of course, the monsters, be they human or horned!

Blessed Be, Spiderwitch

#monsters #humanity #ghosts #gothic #horror #hope #shadows #fear #light #darkness

 

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October 25, 2023 · 11:53 am

A Dark Inspiration

Merry meet all,

This post will focus on Samhain and my dyeing fabric project using acorns. Are you all excited? I am.

I foraged for a very big mullein stalk yesterday morning. The stalk was about six feet in length. I plan to use the mullein stalk to make hag tapers or torches with. I hope and hope the weather on October 31st will cooperate. I want to have the traditional bonfire. I always have my traditional bonfire. I will  prepare the mullein pieces, cut to size in a double boiler pot with melted beeswax. I will add herbs and oils. I want the beeswax to look black so I will add charcoal. An additive to make beeswax black can affect the way it burns. The charcoal is purely for aesthetic purposes. The popular herbs for Samhain can be used to enhance the beeswax and hag tapers. I would use aromatic herbs like sage, rosemary, wormwood, mugwort and rose. I can’t wait to make the hag tapers.

I’m making the dye bath with the acorns I foraged for earlier. I have treated the muslin cloth in a pot of water with the powdered album. I use the album to make the fabric take to the dye. I used a very large stainless steel pot and added the acorns. I have to ensure the water covers the acorns. I will continue to simmer the acorns for till late tonight and let the acorns soak in the water all night until about midday tomorrow. The longer that the acorns steep, hopefully the darker the color will be.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then I will strain the acorns and pour the dye bath back into the pot. The acorn dye bath has steeped overnight and I’m boiling it on the stove again. The dye has become a lovely dark brown colour. I know the dye will be three times lighter when rinsed and dried. That’s why I am steeping the acorns for so long, to achieve the darkest color possible. I will attempt to dye the fabric tonight and I may do a test patch too. I am excited to see how this turns out. The tannins in the acorns are what make the dye possible. Acorns are rich in tannins. It makes me feel so witchy, stirring a pot of acorns! The scent from the acorns is musky and earthy. 

Now I have to prepare for Samhain! I am sure I am not the only one. I pureed the pumpkin to brew pumpkin bread, perhaps some barmbrack bread and pumpkin soup. I may even try making powdered pumpkin and use my dehydrator. I want to harvest dandelion roots and dry them in my dehydrator. 

Fall is the season of abundance! I am sure the book I am binding will be beautiful. Last night, I worked on it some more. I watched a few videos about people who know how to bind books professionally. They sure knew their stuff. Some of it was a little over the top. I am binding the book to create a book for my horror poetry. I want to write another poetry book. I have a pdf of the Writing in the dark poetry workbook. I am not writing my rough drafts of the poems in that book. Of course the first poem I will put in the book will be the one I wrote and had published, about the cemetery, Encounter with Death. I want to stain the pages with coffee or tea and maybe other herbal infusions. Or dilute essential oils and add that to the pages. I want herbs to have a big role in the creation of this book. The acorns are already adding that energy. I did make three pages of paper. I added a few herbs to the pages too. I will tea stain those pages and add them to the front and back of the book. The covers and spine are cut to size. I cut a small rectangle on the back book cover so I can emboss that section. 

I also plan to include a photo of the headstone where I gathered the acorns by accident. I want to include a small note that I appreciate and respect the spirit for letting me gather the acorns. I’m putting the note in an envelope and storing at the front of the book. I thought of buying a taper logy set ( the decorative paper for making a junk journal) and dyeing the paper and adding it to the book. 

The fabric I’m binding the book with is muslin. I hope the colour will be a deep enough colour of brown for this to work. I want to attach a black velveteen strip to go over the front edges of the book. I also want to add 4 corner protectors. Most of the supplies are available at Michaels. I love that store. I want to also add an adhesive to the muslin once dyed to make the fabric stiffer and more durable. 

I considered making the paper for the book by hand. But I don’t have the fine art of making paper with a mold and deckle down enough. I plan to buy a pack of coloured paper at Staples and then tea staining it and trimming the outer front edges of the paper to add texture. I have a lot of plans with this project. Maybe this will finally make me write that book already! 

Golds, brown and black tones and shades will obviously work here. I originally wanted to use the davy board up. I had some remaining from my other project. I want to decorate the pages with crows, spiders and bats. This is supposed to be about horror after all. I will post more when the book is complete. I can’t wait and I can’t wait for Samhain. 

Blessed be, Spiderwitch

 

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August 26, 2020 · 5:50 pm

Cosplay Nightfell Herbalist

Merry meet all,

I’ve been busy sewing myself a beautiful cosplay costume, Nightfell Herbalist. Here is the photo of the costume: 

It has been so much work. I’ve returned to the project for two reasons. I want to finish it before October 31st. I also want to wear it this fall. The pattern consists of a long knee-length coat and a mock corset with a very gathered skirt that has a gathered ruffle. I have the veil, choker, and black lace gloves. My kick ass black lace up boots will look great with the outfit. 

I have a large beautiful blue button to sew onto the bodice. I can’t wait to add the trim. Here are a few tips to make a cosplay costume of your own- in time for Samhain! Do own a measuring tape and seam ripper. Remember: the seam work goes on the inside so the polished seams show outside. Measure twice cut once! That can save you lots of heartache. It’s better to have too much fabric than too little. 

I made the skirt for the costume. After three tries to gather the threads, I ended up sewing in an elastic waistband. The skirt is a deep blue color to complement the beautiful mock blue corset. I’ve included a photo of the costume so far:

The skirt was hard. It is a good idea to measure EVERYTHING! Measure the skirt before you gather the material to know how much you have. Measure how small or ‘gathered’ the skirt will be when you are all done and see if it matches your original estimation of fabric. You will then know if you are on the right track. I did it that way and my guess for how much fabric I had after it was gathered was the same as before. I ended up making an elastic waistband instead of a zipper. It was too hard to do the gathers by pulling the threads. But when I sew the ruffle ( which looks ten feet long), I have to gather. I gather it in sections, then match the ruffle to the center, side and back sections then pull the threads. I had to hem the skirt ruffles and that was a lot of effort. I didn’t do a narrow hem because it would hardly be noticed and it was serious effort. Then I sew on the waistband. 

The ruffle was a little nightmare. I had to make sure the wrong side was facing up on all the five sections-which is now 4 sections. They were all stitched together. One side was right side up so I corrected that with my seam ripper. They are so handy. Then I hemmed it section by section. I set the extra fabric over my ironing board or over a chair to hem it. My ironing board is my work space. Since all the sections were stitched together, it was trying. But slow and steady wins the race.

The ruffle sections were hard. One side of the five ruffle sections were notched. I knew then how to sew each section together. I cut tiny triangles in the seam allowance to know which side was which- and matched the edges together that way. I had to sew 5 sections together so the tiny notches were a great guide. 

I have sewn the gathers into the ruffle. The ruffle is so long. I can’t quite yet grasp how so much fabric is pinned and eased into the skirt hem. The skirt and ruffle are both dark blue. I stitched the gathers in, using 2 different lighter colors of thread. The stitches were a wide length and I left long thread tails for each section. See the photo below:

Gathers2

Here is a closeup of the gathers on the ruffle:

gathers1

Today I shall adjust the gathered fabric into the smaller skirt hem. After that, when I am satisfied with how it fits and the gathers are evenly spaced, I will sew on the dark blue wide scalloped lace over the seamline. 

The costume is supposed to have a petticoat. However, I am ever resourceful and thrifty. I have a knee-length black tulle skirt already. I cut it from a Baroness costume I wore once ( but paid $60 for). Sheesh. I donated the costume but kept the tulle skirt. I will stitch it in when I have to add the waistband. It will work just as well. See how I saved money and time- and tears that way? Yups. 

I have to finish the sleeves. The sleeves are in 2 sections. One is the sleeve with the armhole. It joins to a lacy ruffled section. I plan to finish that this weekend. The back of the jacket is a problem. I plan to stitch on a section of black fabric to the back and finish the raw edges. A zipper would normally be added but that is physically impossible for me to zip up. My arms don’t work that way. I will add a snap to the back and with the extra fabric concealing raw edges, it should look nice. When the fabric edges join where I would add the zipper, it seriously pulls on me and feels tight. I like to believe there is always another way to finish something. 

Sewing is tedious and repetitive. It does demand a certain level of dedication but I believe the results are worth it!

I have completely redone the sleeves from scratch. This time, they are sewn properly. I sewed the beautiful sleeves with black cotton and lining. The ruffle was the hard part. The ruffle has four layers to it. The ruffle is dark blue on the wrong side and black on the right side. The ruffle is very gathered. The four layers are edged with ribbon trim on all layers. But the bigger ribbon trim really does the ruffle justice. Here it is in the photo:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can tell that the ruffle is very gathered. The original size of the ruffle is about twenty-three inches in total to gather into fourteen inches. That is a lot of gathering. After I adjusted the gathers and was sure, and that my arms fit comfortably in the sleeves when I fitted it, I stitched on the bow and the small black button to the center of the bow. It looks so beautiful and feminine. 

I basted the back of the jacket and am now ready for the zipper. Once that is done, I shall sew on the sleeves. I have one or two spots to touch up then voila! Done!

Once that is all done, I can finally sew the button on the bodice. I shall add the veil, my lace gloves and witchy boots. I can’t wait to be done and wearing it in time for Samhain!

Update:

Well it turns out the cosplay costume is not ready in time for October 31st. I have sewn the sleeves onto the dress jacket. I also sewed lacy ribbon trim to the entire dress jacket opening edges. I shall sew a nice wide ribbon to the center back seam and stitch the zipper onto the ribbon. That will give me more room to fit in the dress jacket. I also need to adjust the mock corset to the rest of the jacket. I shall top stitch it to the dress jacket black fabric. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What they don’t tell you about sewing this costume!

The skirt has five sections but you can only match four sections of the ruffle to the four sections of the skirt. You can sew in the five sections of the ruffle. That gives you way more gathers. I went with four sections and it still looks great. The sewing quality has to be amazing. No room for error here. The stitches show whether they are perfect or not. It all counts! I had to redo the entire sleeves and ruffles because I realized early on the initial fabric was too heavy to take to being gathered. Oh- and do try multiple fittings as you work on this project t make sure it fits you perfectly.

The fabric didn’t want to gather as much as I would have preferred. The fabric on the back of the jacket near waistline. I still made every effort to gather the fabric and stitch it into the back waistline. 

The sleeve ruffle is very gathered but again, no room for error. Sewing the sleeves into the dress jacket took an entire afternoon. I basted and eased the sleeve into the armhole, I pinned LOTS, and I stitched the sleeves in twice into the armhole. The gathers show and whatever you do, take your time with this. It will turn out much better. Match up the ‘points’, for example, make sure that the top of the sleeve matches the top of the armhole point where it should meet. The same goes for the bottom armhole point then pin- a lot! Be sure before you begin sewing the right sides of the fabric are together. If you can turn your sleeve out and it is correct, then you sew. Then press/ iron it and try to tease out the fullness of the sleeve cap. Also, make sure that there are no holes or obvious puckers. 

Stay tuned for the next update!!

Blessings, Spiderwitch

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