Halloween crafts put people into the spirit

It may seem early to be talking about Halloween, but not if you're a crafter.
Craft expert Carol Field Dahlstrom has cooked up a cauldron full of projects to get creative souls into the spirit in her new book, "Halloween Fun." The book offers ideas for decorations, treats, costumes and party games as well as pumpkin decorating tips that turn jack-o'-lanterns into works of art.
Among the projects are a creepy centerpiece made of flea-market finds and dry ice for ghoulish effect, an edible haunted forest made with broccoli trees and hard-boiled-egg ghosts, and instructions for costuming trick-or-treaters as spiders, milkshakes and even trees.
The softcover book is published by Better Homes and Gardens Books and is priced at $15.95.
Crafters' alert:Here's place to go
The site: Craft Bits. The address: www.craftbits.com
Should the need for a homemade disco ball ever arise, we know just the place to go.
Craft Bits offers oodles of free project instructions for crafters, including the aforementioned standard of the '70s scene.
Most of the projects were a little more common -- jewelry, wedding crafts, kids' -- though we did get a smile out of the instructions for "Freaky Fingers," severed plaster-of-Paris digits perfect for hiding in candy bowls and scaring trick-or-treaters.
Craft Bits also has reviews of a limited number of craft projects, a craft chat area and a place for posing questions to a craft expert, a feature we haven't seen on other craft sites.