Craft Wars Episode 8 (Air Date 8/14/12)
Spooky Monsters & Pirates & Crafts, Oh my!
I apologize for my brief departure from Craft Wars coverage. I have good excuses, but I'm sure you would much rather get to reading about the Halloween Episode of Craft Wars. It was a good one... I was really excited because another one of my Twitter connections was on this episode!!!
The Contestants
Angela Daniels
aka "The Guilty Crafter"
(Web: http://angeladaniels.squarespace.com/, Twitter: @GuiltyCrafter)
Angela is from Reno, Nevada and is an upcycle pro -- she turns trash into treasure.
Mason Thorpe Calhoun
(Web: http://masoncalhoun.com/)
He is from Washington, DC and is a painter and builder. He works for the federal government -- so his craft time is his escape time!
Ashley Long
(Web: http://ashleyjlong.blogspot.com/)
Ashley is an elaborate costume designer from Los Angeles, and story board animation is her day job.
Pop Craft Challenge (1 hour timed)
This week's challenge was to create a Halloween themed pillow from stuff animals. The contestants were told to "slice, dice, shred or behead" the cuddly stuffed animals.
Ashley decides to create a classic wolf man pillow. Mason goes in a separate direction and wants to create a sleeping bag pillow, while Angela decides to create a Frankenstein. Unfortunately, Mason runs into problems with his sewing machine and Angela is warned by Tori to deal with her hot glue strings (the judges hate them!)
The judges evaluate the final Halloween pillows and weigh in on how spooky or spook-tacular they are... For Ashley, they like that she has re-purposed the pillows to be a wolf man but her execution was a little messy -- they could see hot glue strings. The judges liked that she had recreated a face, gave it personality but she could have done more stitching.
Mason ended up going with a Plan B -- his sleeping bag/pillow combo just didn't pan out. Instead, he made a back pack pillow out of felt and fur. The judges critique his choice to use felt -- the felt will not last and also the painted fur will dry stiff. Overall, his design in clunky (ouch!) but his yard stitching is clever. Let's be honest, this assessment does not look good for Mason. Plan B evidently has turned to Plan Bust.
Angela is praised for her kid friendly rendition of Franken-monster. However, her hot glue strings are not good. Judge Erica says that a more cohesive look was desired. Judge Stephen does praise her that she is the only one who used Halloween colors, but the stitching around the eyes of the monster is messy.
In the end, Mason is asked to hit the road with his back pack pillow. His skills are just not up to the Craft Wars par.
Master Craft Challenge (5 hours timed)
Next up, the contestants must create a big and spooky front yard display. They are given garden equipment to use as their challenge material including ceramic pots, rakes, wheel barrels and sprinklers.
Ashley creates a retro fun house monster goblin with an interactive element (translation = she adds a hand hole that will allow someone to spook unsuspecting trick or treaters!). The base of this display is made of wood, garbage cans and duct tape -- and she covered it all up with garbage bags. The face of the monster is even embellished with a glittery pink (fabric) tongue.
Meanwhile, Angela is creating a haunted ship wreck! She decides on a pirate theme, creating a sinking ship made of wood and pier. She also dip dyes a drop cloth to create an ombre coloring to look like water. She also created bat strands to hang from the ship. At one point the bats tangle and Angela cries "Son of a biscuit" (Did I mention that Angela is a very cool person to follow on Twitter -- @GuiltyCrafter is her handle. I may just be a little crafty-star struck by Angela...) She also adds red paint (translation = blood drips) for an eerie effect on the ship wreck.
The judges again take to their crafty rulings. As to Ashley's monster - Judge Jo says that the building is crafty however it got a little tchotchke. Judge Stephen likes that it's kid friendly and interactive, and Judge Erica says that the trash bags are sloppy and the entire display is too kitsch and hokey.
And for Angela - the judges also are (how do I put this diplomatically?) kinda harsh. Judge Erica says she loved the display, the ombre tarp is good and the spooky day of the dead dolls are a nice addition. Judge Stephen adds that it's not Halloween enough but her construction is good. Judge Jo likes the inclusion of the full moon however it might be difficult to see -- and she definitely dislikes the bloody elements of the display.
And in the end, only one display can be the winner. The judges decide that one is definitely more "Halloween" than the other. The winner is ASHLEY and her towering {trash bagged} goblin!!!
Are you enjoying these posts still? I hope so. Will you watch Craft Wars Season 2? If yes, please comment below on what you favorite episode has been AND like this page on Facebook to bring it back...
Happy Scrapping (and Haunting!)
- Rina
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