It's happening!
Jul. 14th, 2024 08:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
impy*dances* Target's Halloween drop went about as well as I could have hoped for, as I knew there'd be something borked. In this case it was them having their Target card down so I had to make other arrangements, however I'd kind of already planned for that so it didn't super matter. I kind of ran through like a madwoman trying to find all the little subseries I love (you might recall my obsessive love for their take on the Halloween villages and I do try to nab a Featherly Friend when I can, plus their felt duos are always cute and I do love a black cat and you get the idea so I'll hush) while trying to outrun anyone else causing sell outs. It doesn't look like I needed to do so as word didn't seem to hit that the stuff was up until right as I was checking out (finally) but still.
So I'm trying to go back through now that I've nabbed the stuff I loved right away and see if I missed anything. It's a good thing their card was down because otherwise I would've missed that they seem to have done something odd with their mini mantle series, but we'll get to that.
I do want to know when Target made you jump through extra hoops to add things to your cart? I do know the last time I considered buying MH from them I couldn't seem to get it to work (I feel like a jackass because it's literally just hitting another button but still) and it took me entirely too long to realize that all the things I'd hit "add to cart" and then run to the next thing? None of them made it to the cart. Argh.
Anyway! So um. Bought some stuff and thought I'd also share some stuff in case you wanted to admire but didn't want to dig through however many pages of stuff.
First up, stuff I didn't buy but might remedy:
Creepy Translucent Plastic Phone will set you back $15.
If not for my absolute certainty that the sounds would drive me bonkers and that Widget would likely steal this, I would've bought this because who doesn't love buying something modeled after their childhood only now as a Halloween prop to make you feel old?!
If you like neon, I suggest going straight to their Throwback Collection.
I seriously debated this Bat Wreath but I have a lot of wreaths, all things considered, and I would want to make the moon metallic. But the more I look at it...
In a less subdued direction, we have the Twig and Tombstone Halloween Scene Wreath which is fun.
Briefly debated the Moth Garland but it's made of felt and I couldn't buy everything.
Anyway, if that's more your thing, I suggest the Midnight/Dark Forest Collection.
I would like to highlight this little weirdo where I love the IDEA but the execution has um... some issues. Twig Ghosts Halloween Scene. I think this is a case of take the inspiration and do it better yourself. Seriously, what is with the gauze wrapped around the bottom? That JOL knows what's up and is judging.
I was going to try and link you to the Traditional Halloween theme but they seem to have just thrown pretty much everything in there so maybe check back on the site later? I will say I didn't love this year's Featherly Friends (those are the birds) because they gave them weird mouths.
I did buy Hoodie because, well, the name makes me chuckle. (He's the Reaper.) I'm still not sold on this year's lineup but I missed last year's and it vexed me something awful.
Well, let's move on to the things I did buy but aren't village related.
There's this dapper fellow. There's always one thing a year that grabs me and I couldn't explain why. But look at him! I'm not much of a blow mold person but this year does seem hellbent on proving me wrong.
Kitty! So as I was just saying... But how could I say no? So cute!
And finally, I snagged this little guy because he will be outside and I am always in need of good outside decorations. He just looks so happy! ♥
I don't understand it. I've never had a problem saying no to blow molds before. Hell, I think I could count the number of them I've owned on one hand and still have fingers left over. I have one, that I got last year from my brother. Even if we assume that somewhere in my childhood we had one that I just don't recall (it's possible; Dad loved Halloween), we're still talking minimal here. Ah well. I love them all.
I did wind up buying one more thing before we hit the village or village adjacent things, and that was this Ghost wreath. Originally it made the cut because I wasn't sure if I'd need filler for my order or not but I kept it because a) I forgot it was there and b) I think it'll be easy enough to hang anywhere without having to worry about it going splat. Plus the ghosts themselves are adorable.
Now. Let's get down to business. Halloween Village, Target Style! There are five pieces I am absolutely sure should be added to my big post about them. Then there are *checks notes* two more I am willing to consider pretty much as good as the others, and then things get... weird? This year they introduced characters/pieces that don't even pretend to be properly scaled, but I think some of them are genuinely meant to go with these pieces and some I think are just about the same size/price point/construction but aren't really meant to be considered part of it. Sort of like there are two collections and in the middle we've got some overlap but they're not all meant to. I'd say you'll see but maybe you'll take one look at it all and go "uh, duh."
Let's start with the obviously part of the Mini Mantle series, as they carry the name and are very much in line with the previous stuff. Link to my big ol' roundup post about them from last year, if you're interested. Will need to update things but that'll take me awhile.
We'll begin with the Cemetery Gate, as Target does love their cemetery gates. This year's is the most colorful one yet, and the only one to include an actual tombstone. I love the purple and while the green grass is super stylistically fake looking, I mean... this is clearly going with my witch house so she can be setting off spells and causing weird grass wherever. This also marks the first year there's no real gate, just an arch.
Tree and Characters set brings us another tree, our cat, a tombstone that looks like it's been slimed, and a sassy skelly. Take note of that house as we'll be coming back to it. I don't 100% love this set, but there's always a character set I either skip or don't love, so that's this year's. I do think it'll grow on me and I like the neon which is much appreciated after how drab last year's collection was.
Meanwhile, this set I love! Would've bought it for the thumbs up ghost alone. It reminds me a lot of Bloo from Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and everything here is so bright and colorful and I LOVE it. I kinda wish I'd bought a second one.
Less sold on the Pumpkin House but I want to see it in person before I dismiss it. It's not helped by being paired with that witch whose hair is too drab for her.
Finally, we have the Scarecade, which was the first thing I put in my cart from this line. Mostly because it was the first thing I saw, but also because it is awesome. LOOK AT IT. ♥ ♥ I love the little details, from the skelly in the window to the ghost on the sign outside, and the ghost floating to the door is so cute! I'm not totally sold on the arm but it's still cute.
These are all the things marked as the mini mantle pieces. I'm fairly certain, though, that there are two more that belong to this year's set, though they aren't exactly labeled as such. Lemme know if you agree.
This one's labeled a Halloween Mantel House, and is house I told you to keep in mind from the background of one of the earlier sets. The colors are a little more subdued than everything else, but it still has the same feel as the other pieces this year. It's also a good way to bridge last year's collection to this year's without it being too jarring. I love the ghosts in the windows and how everything above the doors gives it a face. Kinda creepy, kinda cute, but nothing overt.
What is a Haunted House Halloween Decorative Sculpture? This house, apparently. This is more of a stretch, but not by much. The colors don't really go with the other pieces but they aren't out of place with the other house and this clearly goes with the rest of the things I'm gonna show you. Again, I like the ghost in the window, but the door feels too plain, especially with how bubbly and undefined the windows are.
Now, in the previous staged photo, you'll have noticed some characters. Before we get to them, I'm gonna throw these in as possible overlap pieces:
very plain tombstones, Sculpture tree, and spiderweb. Of those, I'd say only the tombstones don't really require much of a stretch. I didn't buy any of them, mostly because I don't love the tree and I didn't notice the other two until I'd checked out. I do like the spiderweb though. Just wish we weren't pushing felt so damn hard. God, I hate that fabric.
Now, onto the characters.
Pumpkin dude, semi theatrical vampire, witch who needs better hair, mummy with scarf, creepier the more you look at him skeleton, and my personal faves, the ghostly duo.
These are the ones where I'm torn. Are they meant to be part of the village? Are they just a semi-compatible line they released alongside it? There are no other actual trick or treaters this year, so if you want them, these have to be them. Of course, not every year had trick or treaters, so it's not like this is breaking tradition. But they're also HUGE comparatively speaking. These also led to me thinking, for half a second, that things like the giant skull that's pictured somewhere above were part of the grey area but decided nah, they fall firmly on the other side. Wooden/felt pieces, yes, but not village compatible. I did pick up the ghosts because I think they're cute as hell, but none of the others yet. *muse* So, do they go in the big post or are they like the tiny fairy garden line Target did one year but didn't repeat?
So I'm trying to go back through now that I've nabbed the stuff I loved right away and see if I missed anything. It's a good thing their card was down because otherwise I would've missed that they seem to have done something odd with their mini mantle series, but we'll get to that.
I do want to know when Target made you jump through extra hoops to add things to your cart? I do know the last time I considered buying MH from them I couldn't seem to get it to work (I feel like a jackass because it's literally just hitting another button but still) and it took me entirely too long to realize that all the things I'd hit "add to cart" and then run to the next thing? None of them made it to the cart. Argh.
Anyway! So um. Bought some stuff and thought I'd also share some stuff in case you wanted to admire but didn't want to dig through however many pages of stuff.
First up, stuff I didn't buy but might remedy:
Creepy Translucent Plastic Phone will set you back $15.
If not for my absolute certainty that the sounds would drive me bonkers and that Widget would likely steal this, I would've bought this because who doesn't love buying something modeled after their childhood only now as a Halloween prop to make you feel old?!
If you like neon, I suggest going straight to their Throwback Collection.
I seriously debated this Bat Wreath but I have a lot of wreaths, all things considered, and I would want to make the moon metallic. But the more I look at it...
In a less subdued direction, we have the Twig and Tombstone Halloween Scene Wreath which is fun.
Briefly debated the Moth Garland but it's made of felt and I couldn't buy everything.
Anyway, if that's more your thing, I suggest the Midnight/Dark Forest Collection.
I would like to highlight this little weirdo where I love the IDEA but the execution has um... some issues. Twig Ghosts Halloween Scene. I think this is a case of take the inspiration and do it better yourself. Seriously, what is with the gauze wrapped around the bottom? That JOL knows what's up and is judging.
I was going to try and link you to the Traditional Halloween theme but they seem to have just thrown pretty much everything in there so maybe check back on the site later? I will say I didn't love this year's Featherly Friends (those are the birds) because they gave them weird mouths.
I did buy Hoodie because, well, the name makes me chuckle. (He's the Reaper.) I'm still not sold on this year's lineup but I missed last year's and it vexed me something awful.
Well, let's move on to the things I did buy but aren't village related.
There's this dapper fellow. There's always one thing a year that grabs me and I couldn't explain why. But look at him! I'm not much of a blow mold person but this year does seem hellbent on proving me wrong.
Kitty! So as I was just saying... But how could I say no? So cute!
And finally, I snagged this little guy because he will be outside and I am always in need of good outside decorations. He just looks so happy! ♥
I don't understand it. I've never had a problem saying no to blow molds before. Hell, I think I could count the number of them I've owned on one hand and still have fingers left over. I have one, that I got last year from my brother. Even if we assume that somewhere in my childhood we had one that I just don't recall (it's possible; Dad loved Halloween), we're still talking minimal here. Ah well. I love them all.
I did wind up buying one more thing before we hit the village or village adjacent things, and that was this Ghost wreath. Originally it made the cut because I wasn't sure if I'd need filler for my order or not but I kept it because a) I forgot it was there and b) I think it'll be easy enough to hang anywhere without having to worry about it going splat. Plus the ghosts themselves are adorable.
Now. Let's get down to business. Halloween Village, Target Style! There are five pieces I am absolutely sure should be added to my big post about them. Then there are *checks notes* two more I am willing to consider pretty much as good as the others, and then things get... weird? This year they introduced characters/pieces that don't even pretend to be properly scaled, but I think some of them are genuinely meant to go with these pieces and some I think are just about the same size/price point/construction but aren't really meant to be considered part of it. Sort of like there are two collections and in the middle we've got some overlap but they're not all meant to. I'd say you'll see but maybe you'll take one look at it all and go "uh, duh."
Let's start with the obviously part of the Mini Mantle series, as they carry the name and are very much in line with the previous stuff. Link to my big ol' roundup post about them from last year, if you're interested. Will need to update things but that'll take me awhile.
We'll begin with the Cemetery Gate, as Target does love their cemetery gates. This year's is the most colorful one yet, and the only one to include an actual tombstone. I love the purple and while the green grass is super stylistically fake looking, I mean... this is clearly going with my witch house so she can be setting off spells and causing weird grass wherever. This also marks the first year there's no real gate, just an arch.
Tree and Characters set brings us another tree, our cat, a tombstone that looks like it's been slimed, and a sassy skelly. Take note of that house as we'll be coming back to it. I don't 100% love this set, but there's always a character set I either skip or don't love, so that's this year's. I do think it'll grow on me and I like the neon which is much appreciated after how drab last year's collection was.
Meanwhile, this set I love! Would've bought it for the thumbs up ghost alone. It reminds me a lot of Bloo from Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and everything here is so bright and colorful and I LOVE it. I kinda wish I'd bought a second one.
Less sold on the Pumpkin House but I want to see it in person before I dismiss it. It's not helped by being paired with that witch whose hair is too drab for her.
Finally, we have the Scarecade, which was the first thing I put in my cart from this line. Mostly because it was the first thing I saw, but also because it is awesome. LOOK AT IT. ♥ ♥ I love the little details, from the skelly in the window to the ghost on the sign outside, and the ghost floating to the door is so cute! I'm not totally sold on the arm but it's still cute.
These are all the things marked as the mini mantle pieces. I'm fairly certain, though, that there are two more that belong to this year's set, though they aren't exactly labeled as such. Lemme know if you agree.
This one's labeled a Halloween Mantel House, and is house I told you to keep in mind from the background of one of the earlier sets. The colors are a little more subdued than everything else, but it still has the same feel as the other pieces this year. It's also a good way to bridge last year's collection to this year's without it being too jarring. I love the ghosts in the windows and how everything above the doors gives it a face. Kinda creepy, kinda cute, but nothing overt.
What is a Haunted House Halloween Decorative Sculpture? This house, apparently. This is more of a stretch, but not by much. The colors don't really go with the other pieces but they aren't out of place with the other house and this clearly goes with the rest of the things I'm gonna show you. Again, I like the ghost in the window, but the door feels too plain, especially with how bubbly and undefined the windows are.
Now, in the previous staged photo, you'll have noticed some characters. Before we get to them, I'm gonna throw these in as possible overlap pieces:
very plain tombstones, Sculpture tree, and spiderweb. Of those, I'd say only the tombstones don't really require much of a stretch. I didn't buy any of them, mostly because I don't love the tree and I didn't notice the other two until I'd checked out. I do like the spiderweb though. Just wish we weren't pushing felt so damn hard. God, I hate that fabric.
Now, onto the characters.
Pumpkin dude, semi theatrical vampire, witch who needs better hair, mummy with scarf, creepier the more you look at him skeleton, and my personal faves, the ghostly duo.
These are the ones where I'm torn. Are they meant to be part of the village? Are they just a semi-compatible line they released alongside it? There are no other actual trick or treaters this year, so if you want them, these have to be them. Of course, not every year had trick or treaters, so it's not like this is breaking tradition. But they're also HUGE comparatively speaking. These also led to me thinking, for half a second, that things like the giant skull that's pictured somewhere above were part of the grey area but decided nah, they fall firmly on the other side. Wooden/felt pieces, yes, but not village compatible. I did pick up the ghosts because I think they're cute as hell, but none of the others yet. *muse* So, do they go in the big post or are they like the tiny fairy garden line Target did one year but didn't repeat?