Creating a Halloween Mantle Display

This Halloween mantle creation is from the RAZ Hocus Pocus Collection. It uses the new Witch's Spell Book, battery powered orange pillar candles and Spanish Moss. These photos are used to give you ideas for creating your own Halloween masterpieces! The Witch's Spell Book is a fantastic Halloween decoration from RAZ and comes in 2-3 different styles. For a less expensive creation, the decoration could be created using a collection of old hardback books you already have on your shelf. Local libraries frequently have book sales and all sorts of books can be picked up for practically pennies Covering books is a great children's activity. Take some black construction or craft paper and set them to work making book covers and cutting out words to glue on the covers.

1. Use the wide black construction paper, you may need to tape or glue 2 sheets together
2. Place the book in the center of the paper and fold the lower edge of the paper up over the bottom of the book making a crease
3. Do the same thing for the top of the book, folding the paper downward and making a crease
4. Remove the book from the paper and and press at the creases, top and bottom, all the way across the width of your paper. You should have a strip of paper big enough to cover the book from top to bottom
5. Place the book back in the center of the paper. Wrap the paper across the front of the book from left to right and adjust the book position until the two ends of the paper are even.
6. Fold the overlap around the front cover of the book and make a crease. Then insert the front cover of the book into the slot created by the paper folded over at the top and the bottom. Slide the paper down over the book until you hit the crease.
7. Repeat Step 4 and do the back cover.
8. If the cover fits snugly at this point, you can quit. If it seems a little loose or the top and bottom folds are not lying flat, you can use small pieces of tape to pull the front and the inside flap together a little more securely.

Decorate the spine and front of the book with words made from construction paper, or print something on your computer that can be cut out, or a coloring page that has spooky words. Browse the web for free Halloween fonts and spooky words to decorate your books with. Stack your books on the mantle as shown in the photo and use some of the books to set your candles on so so they will be in staggering heights. Regular pillar candles will work, not sure I would light them though. Would be safer to use battery powered candles. Substitute Halloween tapers for the same effect. A bag of Spanish moss can be purchased at discount stores or craft stores. One bag will go a long way. We don't have the solid color orange candles at Trendy Tree but we do have some striped pillars coming in. Creating spooky book covers is a great rainy day project for kids, so start looking now for some old books to create your Halloween masterpiece! Note: Here a couple of books we made for our Halloween mantle. Took some old nursing books which are always thick and heavy. Spray painted the covers in a flat black. Some areas were not covered completely to allow the color to show. Lettering proved to be more difficult that I had imagined since I really can't freehand the lettering. I used Print Shop to print the letters I needed in a spooky looking font, printed that out on plain paper. Then used a sharp pencil to outline the letters on to the book, painted with silver paint and added glitter.