Happy Howl-oween!
We finally made it! It’s Day 13 of our 13 Days of Halloween celebration.
We’ve had some treats, performed some tricks, shared costume as well as non-costume costume ideas, introduced new pack members (even if they both “meow”), celebrated Rosee’s 6th birthday, and remembered a beloved pet in honor of Dia de los Muertos.
All that’s left to do is to wish everyone and their pets a very Happy Howl-oween!
I think everyone needs a nap after this…
Its day two of costumes and these two ideas are extra special because they are group costumes. While not as simple and inexpensive as yesterday’s ideas, these two group costumes are definitely worth the extra effort. To begin with let’s start with the group costume that takes at least four participants.
Costume #1: S’mores
What’s even better than a dog costume, you ask? Well, it’s a group costume that dogs and their humans can wear together!
All you need is two large pieces of cardboard, two small/medium pieces of cardboard, some yarn/string, a brown marker, white fabric/cloth (this can be the same cloth from the ghost costume), and scissors.
Now, in my imagination of this costume two humans represent the graham crackers while one dog is a marshmallow and another dog is the chocolate.
First, measure the cardboard to each person and cut appropriately. Cut two holes at the top and thread a piece of yarn through and tie off the ends. This way each piece of cardboard can hang around each person’s neck comfortably. Then, take the brown marker and draw on the cardboard so that it resembles the markings of a graham cracker.
Next, to make the chocolate take the two smaller pieces of cardboard and fit them long ways on your dog, cutting appropriately so that they cover your dog, but aren’t too long. At the top of each piece make two small holes—one at the front of the cardboard and one at the end. String some yarn through the front hole of one piece of cardboard and connect the other end of the yarn through the other piece of cardboard, and then do the same with the holes at the other end. The idea is that the cardboard pieces will hang on either side of your dog. Then, using the brown marker, draw on the cardboard so that it looks like a piece of chocolate.
Thirdly, take the white cloth/fabric and simply wrap it around the middle of your other dog and secure it—I found a couple of safety pins worked well.
Finally, dress each person and dog in their respective costume and there you have it: a s’more!
Costume #4: Soap and Loofah
This is idea is another group costume, but I’m going to leave it to just the dogs for this one.
All you need is some tulle (I got a couple of rolls at the Dollar Tree), a piece of cardboard or two, some string/yarn, a marker, glue, and scissors.
First, to make a loofah costume, take some tulle and cut it into pieces. Take the pieces and twist them, and then wrap in a circle. Then, take these circles and glue them onto a piece of cardboard that is fit to the curve around the back of your dog. Cut holes in the front and back of the cardboard and string some yarn through so that when you fit the cardboard on your dog you can tie the ends of the yarn together. This way the cardboard will be more fitted to your dog and stay on.
Next, to make a bar of soap cut the cardboard in a similar way to fit your dog as was described in the previous costume when creating the chocolate costume (from the previous s’mores costume explanation). Except this time we are going to draw on the cardboard so that it looks like soap.
Finally, put both dogs next each other and the desired effect of soap and loofah will be achieved!
If you missed last year’s costume ideas make sure to check that post out here.
It’s that time of year again!
The weather is cooling down, the leaves are starting to change colors, festive holiday decorations start to make an appearance, and pumpkin spice seems to permeate the air everywhere you go. It’s the start of the holiday season, and it all starts with Halloween.
That’s right: It’s the start of 13 Days of Halloween here at Play Hard, Bark Often!
It’s our annual countdown to Halloween, which means for the next 13 days until October 31st we’ll be posting every day to share tricks, treats, and other Halloween-related and inspired content.
We’re kicking things off this year by dressing up our favorite blocky-headed dogs into our favorite “blockhead.” We may still have quite a few days until the Great Pumpkin makes an appearance, but what better way to start off the 13 Days of Halloween than dress up as the original character himself.
All you need to pull off this punny costume yourself is an old yellow shirt (I found one at the local thrift store), some black material (it could be another old shirt, scrap material, felt, or pillowcase), and some fabric adhesive.
Next, simply cut out the wavy pattern from the black material. Then, adhere the black material to the bottom of the yellow shirt. Finally, put the shirt on your dog.
I really like this costume because it’s a great way to usher in the season of the Great Pumpkin, and doubles as a fun, creative way to celebrate the “blocky-headediness” that defines pit bulls.
Thanks for being here for Day 1 of 13 Days of Halloween and make sure to check back tomorrow to see what’s in store for Day 2.
In the meantime, the annual search for the Great Pumpkin is on!
Ah, December…the most wonderful time of the year.
The holidays are upon us and that can only mean one thing: it’s time for our annual 12 days of Christmas!
Starting December 14th we will be posting everyday until December 25th in celebrating the 12 days of Christmas. You never know what’s going to pop up in our holiday celebration this year. So, make sure you check back every day starting the 14th to see what everyone here at Play Hard, Bark Often is up to. This year is especially exciting since we now have two new family members (cats: George and Artemis) to join us in our holiday celebrations!
In case you can’t wait until the 14th though, here’s a little something to hold you over…
Happy Pawlidays!
Halloween may be over, but the holiday season is just beginning!
And while I may not be quite ready for Christmas, I am definitely looking forward to Thanksgiving this year. Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. I mean there’s always great food, family, and I can’t forget about the pie. Even Simon and Rosee love Thanksgiving because it always means some extra special treats just for them. We all get to have a feast for the holiday.
So, in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday that is soon approaching (really, it’s only about 2 weeks away!) everyone, including both dogs and humans, here at Play Hard, Bark Often is going to share what we’re grateful for leading up to the big holiday.
To kick things off I have to say that I am grateful for Simon and Rosee. This year they both let me dress them up in multiple costumes for our 13 Days of Halloween celebration.
I mean, sure, they got a lot of treats out of it…
but overall I think I got the better end of the deal.
We’ve finally reached Day 13 of our 13 Days of Halloween celebration!
The candy is set out and the costumes have been put on.
All that’s left to do is have a spooktacular Halloween.
And if you needed any more holiday inspiration for next year check out the pictures from a Pumpkin Nights event we attended below. I mean, really, why have I never thought of carving a synthetic pumpkin before? It would last longer and I could reuse it.
So, from all of us here at Play Hard, Bark Often,
We’re wishing you and your dogs (or pets) a Happy (and safe) Howl-oween!
Halloween costumes, they’re not just for humans these days.
These days dogs can get it on the fun too, and there are so many options to choose from!
From hot dogs to Star Wars characters, to just about anything you could think of is available as a pet costume for Halloween.
So, in honor of Day 3 I thought I would share some Halloween pet costume ideas.
Now, if you’re going for ease when it comes to outfitting your pet a store bought costume is easy to find with numerous options to choose from. Simon and Rosee are partial to being a skeleton and lion, respectively.
Unfortunately, for bigger dogs, especially ones with larger necks it can be a bit more difficult to find a big enough size. The other downside to store bought costumes is the price. Like most things for your pets, costumes aren’t exactly cheap, and usually the bigger the size the more expensive it is.
Luckily, I’ve found some alternative costume ideas that are easy to put together and relatively inexpensive.
Simple costumes that require just a few accessories you might have in your home can also be good options. This way you save money and don’t have to buy anything extra.
Rosee here is sporting some groovy glasses and few flowered headbands I had lying around to turn into the grooviest flower child around.
Another idea for a simple costume is to visit your local dollar store for a few supplies to put together into a costume. This first costume requires a roll of white streamers or (what I found and thought would be perfect even if it was glittery) was decorative mesh. Then, all you have to do is wrap the streamers or mesh around your dog and you have created a monster! A monster! I’m just kidding, Simon was always a monster, but you have made your dog into a mummy.
I also like this one because it doesn’t require a lot of forethought or imagination, and always works, even if your dog wriggles around a lot.
However, if you are feeling truly ambitious about creating a costume for your dog all you need to buy is a bag of balloons, and a large plastic bag.
Actually from comments of other DIY costumers, because I adapted this idea from a costume idea for humans, a plastic shower curtain liner would work better because it wouldn’t break as easily as, say a gift-wrapping bag, which I would agree with. The plastic of the bag was too thin and broke too easily, but it worked for the moment.
And, what do you know, with just these two simple things you can turn your dog into… (imaginary drum roll)
A bag of jelly beans!
Whatever you choose to do with your dog for Halloween do try to keep in mind a few things:
Because you should never have just one Halloween costume
It’s not too soon, right?
I just found out that this week is National Dog Week.
Officially it started on September 18th and dates all the way back to 1928.
So, in honor of this very important week, I thought I would share what I love about being owned by dogs.
1.They always know how to turn a frown upside down
2. They’r’e good at appreciating the little things
3. They understand the true meaning of cruisin’
4.They never let me forget who’s the queen of this castle
5.They’re too smart for their own good sometimes
6. They’re good at putting up with their humans’ ridiculousness…no matter how many costumes we put them in
Don’t forget to share what you love about your dog or dogs in celebration of National Dog Week!
Play Hard, Bark Often 