In this lovely short animation, Death finds a newly-dead soul and takes him on a journey to see “many things.” The film has won numerous awards and was shortlisted for an Oscar. (Barely NSFW for cartoon nudity.)

(via Neatorama)

Lou Lou P’s Delights – Bakery which produces all sorts of wonderful baked goods like internal organ-shaped macarons and–be still, my heart–a sculpted-sugar naked mole rat.

Snake Back Strap Dress – Attractive gown featuring a golden snake down the spine.

Elvira Will Return in Animated Television Series – Change that to “will probably return.” Cassandra Peterson was at the Boston Comic Con and announced that she was working on an animated Elvira series. No other details or timing, though.

Shark Bite You Earrings – Cute polymer clay earrings that make it look like a teensy shark is nomming your earlobe.

Canis Picta – Etsy shop specializing in pop-art prints and home decor, including some fun spooky stuff like spiderweb wall clocks, pumpkin throw pillows, and NMBC duvets.

We Hope That Helps – A couple of guys created a generic “Customer Service” Facebook profile and respond insultingly to complaints on various companies’ Facebook pages.

Unreal Estate – Series of glow-in-the-dark art prints of famous fictional buildings like Bag End and Ghostbusters HQ. I’m linking to an article about the pieces rather than the actual store/site because several of the links seem to be borked.

Electric Love Potato – A desktop assistant in the form of “an inappropriately large digital potato that throbs, looms and chirrups in the corner of your display for as long as you let it run.” BoingBoing discusses it here.

Scales of the Luckdragon – Neat handmade “dragon scale” necklace.

Jack Sparrow’s Favorite Socks – Free knitting pattern for stripey socks with a (reasonably) subtle skull-and-crossbones design on the cuff.

Christmas crackers are part of traditional holiday celebrations in the UK, Australia, and several other countries.* They consist of a cardboard tube filled with candy and novelties (usually including a paper crown and a fortune cookie-type strip of paper with jokes), a strip of thin cardboard containing the same chemical that makes popguns go bang, and a wrapping of tissue paper. When the ends of the tissue are pulled, the cardboard thingie makes a cracking noise and you harvest the treats inside.

There’s no reason why these things have to be limited to Christmas. I can think of another holiday that’s big on treats. Can’t you?

You will need:

• Cardboard tubes; empty toilet tissue rolls are the perfect size
• Cracker snaps (see below)
• Small novelties and candy
• Tissue paper (see below)
• Narrow ribbon
• Halloween-themed stickers (optional)

Cracker snaps can be purchased at some craft stores and online. I actually found a children’s activity kit on Amazon which included the cracker snaps, paper crowns, and jokes for cheaper than I could buy just the cracker snaps.

You can find all kinds of wonderful Halloween-themed wrapping paper meant for scrapbooking; I actually created this post as a way to use up some Halloween scrapbook paper I’d been given and…I can’t find the stinkin’ paper anywhere. So I just used plain tissue paper and you can too.

Click the thumbnails for larger images.
	Make sure that the cardboard tubes you use are short enough to let the cracker snaps extend out both sides. Toilet tissue rolls work great; if you have long tubes (like those for paper towels), cut them in half.
	Gather whatever small novelties and candies you want to fit in the tube.
	Place the cracker snap in the tube with ends extending out both sides, and pack the treats on top.
	Cut a piece of tissue paper wide enough to enclose the ends of the cracker snap and long enough to roll around the tube a few times. Roll everything up, and pinch in around the outside of the tube.
	Tie the ends with ribbon, making sure to securely enclose the ends of the cracker snap inside. If desired, decorate the outside of the cracker with stickers or other lightweight items.

And…done! The ends of my cracker are a bit wrinkly; for more precise edges with only a bit more work, check out Chica and Jo’s tutorial for making Christmas crackers.

These are easy to make and a pile of them would be a big hit at a Halloween party.

*But not in the US. When I was in fifth grade my dad returned from a business trip with a bunch of crackers for me to hand out to my classmates. My teacher made me wait until after lunch because he didn’t want everyone spoiling their appetites by eating them; he was deeply perplexed when I told him they weren’t those kind of crackers.

Long ago, an SF blog I ran had a monthly “caption this” contest: We’d post a screen grab from a (usually cheesy) movie and invite commenters to invent their own captions. This publicity still from the 1959 version of The House on Haunted Hill seems like a good candidate for such treatment; I love how stiltedly-posed it looks.

I will turn it over to your tender mercies: If you have a good caption, post it in the comments!

30 Minute Crafts has a cute tutorial for making an “in case of emergency” desktop plaque filled with candy. It’s easy to put together, and if you don’t feel like using glass-etching paste you can use vinyl letters as in this version.

It strikes me that this would be a fun Halloween-themed gift, either filled with candy corn for a more thematic version of the idea above, or with non-candy Halloween items. Change the message to something like, “In case of Halloween yearnings break glass” and fill it with plastic spiders, novelty vampire fangs, little skulls, or other spooky tchotchkes.

You could also use the same idea for an “in case of vampires break glass” plaque containing a small stake (a piece of sharpened dowel would work) and a plastic head of garlic. Make a “workplace voodoo kit” containing a little burlap poppet and some big hatpins. Or stick in some hair dye, black lipstick, and eyeliner for an “in case of pastels” emergency kit.

This would be a fun afternoon project to make a unique accent for a desk or bookshelf.

In this short horror comedy, a man returns to his hometown to discover that he’s the last person who’s not part of a huge network marketing pyramid scheme that is definitely not Amway. Can he rescue his wife and daughter from the clutches of the sinister corporation?

(via Laughing Squid)

This concludes the latest Link-Dump-o-Rama. Regular posting (and once-a-week link dumps) will return on Monday.

Nuclear Snail Studios – YouTube channel with lots of helpful advice for post-apocalyptic costuming. (via Propnomicon)

Velociprincesses – Laura Cooper, who draws the webcomic XP, has a side project where she draws various Disney princesses as velociraptors. The Cinderella one cracked me up.

The Mystery of Lewis Carroll – Spoiler alert: There is no real mystery. This is just a biographical overview of Dodgson’s life.

Why Bats Matter – The next time someone expresses distaste for bats, show them this. (Hat tip to xJane)

@samuelpepys – Twitter account which is currently tweeting the diarist’s entries from 1662 in real time.

Food Chain Friends – Set of plush toys. “They’re friends. They eat each other. It’s a complicated relationship.”

Kutuleras – Etsy shop full of the most adorably weird amigurumi, including many Cthulhu-themed ones. I’m not sure which one I like better: The Pikacthulhu or the brass-monocled steampunk version.

Les Poupées de Paris – Sid and Marty Krofft, of Saturday morning kids’ show fame, had a touring “dirty puppet show” in the 60s. I’m speechless. (NSFW for puppet nudity.)

Aurora Monster Scenes – retroCRUSH looks at the controversial model kits advertised by Aurora in the 70s. I fondly remember the ads for these in the back of comic books. There’s also a book about the models.

At the Funeral – Mark Twain’s advice for good manners at a funeral.

CHYRZA – A “flash-fiction horror story” game in which you explore a surreal desert watched over by a frightening pyramid. There’s a review here. (The author, Kitty Horrorshow, is also responsible for the creepy text game hornets.)

Harry Potter-Inspired Recipes – Roundup of recipes from various sites; there are some great ideas for Potter-themed party food.

Skull Playing Cards – You can never have too many skull-decorated things.

Real Monstrosities – This Tumblr full of bizarre animals is obviously deeply confused about the difference between “monstrous” and “awesome.” (via Bill)

Pumpkin Prouty – Etsy shop specializing in spooky nesting dolls with themes like the Addams Family, NMBC, and classic slasher villains.

Human Pelts – A look at the practice of preserving tattooed skin after death.

Digita Vaticana Oculus – The first fruits of the effort to digitize the Vatican Library’s collection is now online: 500 manuscripts and 600 incunabula. Business Insider has some images and more information about the project.

Newly-Discovered Peacock Spider – This new species has a gorgeous blue mask and an adorable mating dance.

Stefano Prina – Rings and decorative accessories made with taxidermy eyes.

8 Creepy Internet Characters that Became Urban Legends – A roundup from Urban Ghosts.

Watermelon Shark – Instructions for carving a “shark” from a watermelon, who helpfully holds fruit salad in his maw.

Spider Cup – Teacup with a ceramic spider in the bottom.

Mexrrissey – Tribute band which performs songs by Morrissey and The Smiths in Spanish with a mariachi twist. Here’s Everyday Like Sunday on Soundcloud.

Intimate Vestiges – Art installation featuring creepily anatomical design elements, like a throw rug composed of fingers. I sort of dig the eyeball curtains, though. (via Rattus)

With Sonar-Reflecting Leaves, Plant Lures Bats to Poo in it – This is…kinda what it says on the tin. A pitcher plant has evolved to encourage bats to roost in it rather than to eat insects directly.

A Brief Disquisition on the Existence of Butt-cooties – “Gentlemen, kindly avert your eyes.”

Catastrophe – Lovely ring composed of pearls carved into the shape of skulls.

Elder Scrolls Basement – Gorgeous rec-room makeover.

Final Notes – Set of blank notebooks inscribed, “My Legacy,” “Epitaph Ideas,” and “Deathbed Requests.”

The Avengers 2015 – deviantART member theDURRRRIAN did a wonderful series of illustrations which reimagine the characters from Avengers: Age of Ultron as dark fantasy warriors.

Meet the Hijab Lolita – Interview with Alyssa Salazar, who combines her love of Japanese-style Lolita garb with her religiously-required hijab.

To Drive Away the Vampires – Collection of folk music by Epirot, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Albanian, and Serbian musicians. (Hat tip to pdq)

You Approach a Dark Manor – “Haunted house” ‘zine in which each page depicts a different room imagined by a different artist.

A Mischievous Thorn in the Side of Conservative Christianity – Interesting look at how the two founders of the Satanic Temple are battling religion in politics.

Rites of Passage – Series of illustrations by Winnie Truong featuring skull-themed hairstyles.

How Bats Work – Stuff You Should Know’s podcast on bat physiology. (Hat tip to Bruno)

The Deck of Cards That Made Tarot a Global Phenomenon – Atlas Obscura has an interesting article about the origins of the Rider-Waite tarot deck.

T. rex Tricycle – Custom bike built to resemble a T. rex skeleton.

Monster Lego Minifigs – Lego’s latest series of collectible minifigs is due out in September, and they’re all monster-themed.

Eczema Angel Orifice – A compilation of the best of Porpentine’s weird text adventure games. There’s a discussion of them here.