When I was young, I didn’t particularly like Halloween. I found the concept of deception by means of costume a bit disturbing. For some reason, I found myself ill every year on the big day. Thinking back on it now it was probably social anxiety. Going to a stranger’s home, dressed in an awkward fashion and begging them for candy… Not my cup of tea!
In spite of that, I’ve always enjoyed the decorations. Especially the antique ones my Grandma still displays every year. Cat’s in masks and in top hats with monocles, old ceramic figures that emanate light from their eyes…
My Mom and I would sometimes make paper decorations to hang around the house and on the windows. Construction paper shaded with color pencils. That was always fun.
Many, many years later, my sister and I would do the same thing but because her birthday is so near Halloween, the holiday became a huge focus and we began creating extremely elaborate decorations, games and those *things you poke your head through so people can take funny photographs for our annual party.
One year we even made cardboard coffins that contained a skeleton noisemaker for the invitations. ELABORATE.
Then, as the parties cooled a bit, my sister and I began painting huge pieces of cardboard with Halloween themes for fun.
It was then that I painted the first Little Ghost Girl. I had already been drawing a smaller version I’d been calling snow ghosts but the Little Ghost Girls are significantly different.
I’ve painted one or two every year since. It’s an irresistible urge! The cool weather comes and I grab my paints.
This year’s ghosts:
Ghost Girl with Balloon
Ghost Girls October
Ghost Girls Halloween from the archives as postcards this year!
All available in my shop today.
Thinking of it now, my best Halloween as a child was when we lived in Baton Rouge during a big tainted candy scare. I dressed up as a fortune teller but stayed in to pass out candy to trick or treaters while watching The Blob on tv.
Perhaps if I had never been expected (socially) to go out and beg for treats, I would have enjoyed it much more. Somebody has to stay home to pass out candy, right?
*why is there no word for this??
