Halloween merchandise & a new book

Well, I think I have enough Halloween stuff in my store now. Who am I kidding, there's never enough Halloween stuff. . . The landlord was in on Saturday, and he panicked when he saw spiders and rats--that is, until he realized they were fake. * tee hee *

I just got copies of the book Celebrate Green. It's a great guide for ways to celebrate holidays with a lighter impact (or no impact) on the environment. There are tips ranging from decorating and entertaining to gift-giving, and lots more. I was pleased that many of the gifts they mention in the book are things that I carry in the store! They donate a portion of the proceeds from the book to charities, too (Treeswing and Healthy Child Healthy World). And of course it's printed on recycled paper! To read more about it, click the title of this post!

The bottle cap spider was a little trickier than I thought it would be. I was struggling with the legs. The wire I was trying to use was really flimsy and I couldn't figure out how to attach it to the body or wrap it with the electrical tape. Well, Hubby Jon came to the shop yesterday to install my security cameras, and he had all these little scraps of black plastic-coated cable. Just the perfect bendable black legs for my little spider!

You may be asking what's so green about security cameras? Well, they are cameras Jon salvaged from jobs--he replaces the old ones with newer ones, and they expect him to get rid of the old ones for them. Well, he did. And since most of his jobs are in big places, he always has shortish runs of cable leftover that are too short to use on those big jobs. The computer I have them hooked up to Jon's old one that he held onto, "just in case". I don't really know if I NEED security cameras, but it's nice that I can see what's going on in front when I'm in back. And I'm really interested in watching how people shop in the store--where do they look? What do they overlook? I think it will help me design better displays. And maybe seeing myself on camera all the time will make me dress a little better, lose some weight, and comb my hair (or at least I'll stand up straighter!). And, since crime is up all over due in part to the economy, it makes us feel a little safer.

One last thing--October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Fly Right Gifts and Audrey Gerdt have teamed up to raise money for this worthy cause. Audrey has made some pretty bracelets featuring a small dangle with the pink ribbon symbol on them. We are selling them for $15 each, and 100% of the money goes to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.