Stories
Literature
First published in The Children’s Book of Thanksgiving Stories in 1915, this French fairy tale by P. J. Stahl tells of a kingdom so obsessed with sweets that their king orders a colossal tart to satisfy them, only for indulgence to bring ruin. A gently comic lesson in moderation and gratitude.
In Fannie Wilder Brown’s The Thanksgiving Goose, a boy’s complaints about his Thanksgiving dinner lead him to a neighbor’s bustling kitchen, where a family with little to spare is joyfully making mince pies. Their simple gratitude teaches him a quiet lesson in thankfulness, just in time for the holiday.
Set in the damp heart of Providence, The Shunned House unfolds as both antiquarian mystery and metaphysical horror: a scholar and his uncle trace a lineage of decay to the cellar of an old home, where something beyond science feeds on human life. Lovecraft turns local history and rational inquiry into instruments of dread, ending with a quiet, corrosive triumph that feels less like victory than survival.
Myths & Legends
In this Victorianized Icelandic fairy tale, two fugitives find refuge on an enchanted island ruled by dwarfs and a sorrowful giantess, whose world unravels the moment a Christian blessing crosses the air. The result is a fascinating blend of Norse supernatural lore reshaped by 19th-century Christian sensibilities.
A sweeping look at Demeter’s evolution from earth-mother to goddess of agriculture, this excerpt traces her central role in Greek myth, from the abduction of Persephone to the origins of the Eleusinian Mysteries, revealing how ancient storytellers used her tale to explain the seasons, civilization, and the promise of rebirth.
In Perrault’s Donkey-Skin, the grotesque and the marvelous collide: a princess, pursued by her father’s delusion, cloaks herself in a beast’s hide and vanishes into obscurity. She keeps her splendor hidden until a ring, slipped unnoticed into a cake, reveals her secret and restores her to love, dignity, and a rightful place in the world.
History
A wry look at the stranger habits of early Puritan society, from extravagant virtue-themed names to the strict punishments and “Blue Laws” that governed colonial life. This excerpt, compiled by C. C. Bombaugh, captures the earnestness and eccentricity of a culture striving to legislate morality down to the last detail.
This text is a richly detailed catalog of traditional Cornish feast days, seasonal rituals, local fairs, and community customs, capturing how the region marked the year through celebration, superstition, and shared practice. It offers a vivid glimpse into Cornwall’s cultural life, part domestic tradition, part communal festivity, and entirely rooted in the rhythms of everyday people.
The opening part of Geronimo’s Story of His Life moves from an Apache creation story to memories of homeland, tribal divisions, games, medicine, and family, Geronimo’s own account of who his people were before war and conquest. Told late in life from Fort Sill, these chapters sit at the crossroads of myth, cultural history, and memoir.
Modern Ghosts explores how specters have adapted to the styles and anxieties of modern fiction, shifting from the sprawling Gothic novel to the sharper, more psychological short story, and expanding their powers from pallid wraiths to vivid, corporeal, and even humorous presences. No longer bound to castles or midnight hours, these ghosts haunt trains, bedrooms, and everyday lives, reminding us that while mortals fade, the ghost never goes out of fashion.
Parties
Autumn
Welcome to Widow’s Bay, where coastal charm meets curious traditions and something strange is always afoot. Bring the town to life with local fare, Sunset Cocktails, peculiar games and plenty of unsettling surprises.
Host an atmospheric Halloween gathering inspired by the elegance of old manor houses. From estate auctions and hidden clues to vintage-inspired décor and paper crafts, every detail is designed to encourage curiosity, conversation, and a touch of delicious uncertainty.
Inspired by the home-front gatherings of World War II, this collection celebrates the joy of growing, sharing, and coming together. With paper goods and party materials rooted in history and hope, it’s a tribute to self-reliance, community, and the beauty of harvest.
Food
Runny Anglesey Eggs layer buttery leeks, mashed potatoes and white cheddar sauce with softly baked eggs for a cozy, comforting Welsh-inspired dinner made for dipping with toast or your favorite bread.
This hearty southern Italian pasta combines orecchiette, Italian sausage, Swiss chard, garlic, and toasted breadcrumbs for an easy weeknight dinner that feels rustic, rich, and deeply satisfying.
In an era when most culinary works leaned heavily on European traditions and techniques, "American Cookery" was a breath of fresh air, emphasizing the unique bounty of the New World. This cookbook served as a testament to the culinary diversity of the United States, incorporating ingredients like corn, cranberries, and, of course, the humble pumpkin, showcasing their versatility in a myriad of delectable recipes.
In The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, the true haunting begins not in the woods but at the table, where roasted fowls and pumpkin pie seduce more deeply than any phantom. These buckwheat pumpkin slapjacks with treacle honor that harvest excess, with a whisper of foreboding in every syruped bite.
Handmade for the Haunting Season
Create a richly layered Halloween with crafts and décor inspired by haunted houses, windswept villages and old ghost stories.
Crafts
This hidden message portrait transforms an antique painting into an interactive piece of haunted décor. After a quick bit of assembly, a folded note peeks discreetly from the pharmacist's hand, inviting curious guests to investigate. Those brave enough to unfold it will uncover a cryptic warning:
"Don't Trust the Madame."
Display it on a gallery wall, bookshelf, or mantel where it can blend naturally into your décor before revealing its secret. It's a subtle prop that rewards observant guests and adds another layer of storytelling to your Halloween party or decor.
Looking to deepen the mystery? Pair it with the companion "Don't Trust the Pharmacist" portrait and let guests decide which warning, if either, they should believe.
• Sheet size: 24" × 36"
• Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
• Paper weight: 189 g/m²
• Opacity: 94%
• Paper is sourced from Japan
This is a downloadable item.
Transform your haunted house Halloween gathering into a mysterious estate auction where every heirloom has a story, and one hides a terrible secret. Guests inspect the final contents of the Blackthorn estate before each artifact is auctioned, while the host reveals its forgotten history aloud as the bidding unfolds. Only after the last item is claimed is the manor's cursed heirloom finally revealed, bringing the evening to an unforgettable close. Simply print, fold, display, and let the stories unfold.
What’s included:
20 estate object cards featuring antique-inspired artifacts with histories on the reverse, including one secretly cursed object
Use as many or as few objects as you'd like, adapting the game for small or large groups (up to 20 players)
1 "Please Look, But Do Not Touch" display sign to accompany the collection while guests browse before the auction begins
1 host instruction sheet explaining setup, gameplay, and the final reveal
1 sheet of Estate Notes, which can be printed as many times as needed and distributed to guests for bidding
This is a downloadable item.
Once a sentinel of grand entryways and stately homes, the lion-head knocker has watched over doors for centuries, a symbol of protection, strength, and welcome (or warning). From ancient Rome to the Victorian era, its steady gaze greeted guests before the threshold was ever crossed.
Now, you can bring that tradition to your own Halloween decor. This printable door knocker arrives as a high-resolution file, ready for you to print, cut, and mount. Whether on a door, mantle, or wall, it’s the perfect piece to add grandeur to your Halloween décor.
Design by Philip Johnson, 1936.
Part guardian, part apparition, the talismanic tiger prowls between worlds, its spiraling stripes more hypnotic than natural, its gaze at once comical and divine. In vintage Japanese folk art, tigers like this one were protectors, their exaggerated forms meant to ward off evil spirits and invite strength. Here, that same protective energy is rendered in soft polyester, a creature of both myth and domestic comfort.
Printed on one side, this 22-inch pillow retains the bold graphic charm of the original painting it’s based on, an emblem of good fortune and protection. Whether seated in an armchair or watching over a room, the tiger’s watchful eyes and curling form lend a note of the otherworldly to the ordinary.
• 22″
• Thickness: 3″–5″
• Printed on one side
• Sealed design without zipper
• 100% soft polyester
Spot wash with warm water.
Important: This product is available in the US only. If your shipping address is outside this region, please choose a different product.
The Halloween Shop
Few faces in art seem so alive to their own unease as the woman who haunts Edvard Munch’s The Sin. With her ungoverned hair and fever-bright eyes, she seems less a sitter than an apparition, one of those figures that flicker between desire and dread in Munch’s work. Painted in 1902, she embodies a turn-of-the-century anxiety: the sense that the self, like the soul, could be both illuminated and undone by longing.
On this pillow, her spectral presence is rendered in rust and ochre tones, an autumnal palette that feels equally at home among candlelight and shadow. The linen-feel fabric softens her intensity, but not her stare; she remains a reminder that beauty, in Munch’s world, was never free of consequence.
• 22” x 22”
• 100% pre-shrunk polyester case
• Fabric with a linen feel
• Hidden zipper
• Machine-washable case
• Polyester insert included (handwash only)
A little French exasperation for your morning coffee. This ceramic mug features a deep blue-hued “Sapristi!” an old-fashioned exclamation meaning good heavens, by Jove or, on particularly trying days, drat.
The phrase is mentioned in S. Baring-Gould’s ghost story “Jean Bouchon,” where a startled café waiter cries “Sapristi!” after learning that a long-dead colleague has returned to pocket yet another customer’s tip. Equal parts literary, ghostly and mildly scandalized, it makes a delightfully understated addition to the Halloween cupboard.
• Ceramic
• 11 oz
• 3.8″ (9.6 cm) in height, 3.2″ (8.2 cm) in diameter
• Dishwasher and microwave safe
This product is made especially for you as soon as you place an order, which is why it takes us a bit longer to deliver it to you. Making products on demand instead of in bulk helps reduce overproduction, so thank you for making thoughtful purchasing decisions!
Part guardian, part apparition, the talismanic tiger prowls between worlds, its spiraling stripes more hypnotic than natural, its gaze at once comical and divine. In vintage Japanese folk art, tigers like this one were protectors, their exaggerated forms meant to ward off evil spirits and invite strength. Here, that same protective energy is rendered in soft polyester, a creature of both myth and domestic comfort.
Printed on one side, this 22-inch pillow retains the bold graphic charm of the original painting it’s based on, an emblem of good fortune and protection. Whether seated in an armchair or watching over a room, the tiger’s watchful eyes and curling form lend a note of the otherworldly to the ordinary.
• 22″
• Thickness: 3″–5″
• Printed on one side
• Sealed design without zipper
• 100% soft polyester
Spot wash with warm water.
Important: This product is available in the US only. If your shipping address is outside this region, please choose a different product.
In Hallbeck’s chromolithograph of 1856, three small figures huddle beside a fire, their light no match for the vast Nordic night. The roar of the Lule River surrounds them; above, the aurora shivers through the clouds like a silent benediction. The waterfall Harsprånget, once the mightiest in Sweden, has long since been tamed by turbines, but here it exists in its untamed state: sublime, terrifying, and eternal.
This candle bears that image like a memory of wildness. As the soy wax burns, the scene seems to flicker with the same improbable glow, the human spark against the cold immensity of nature.
• Soy wax
• Cotton wick
• 3.76″ × 3.13″ (95 × 79 mm) glass vessel
• Product weight: 1.2 lbs (570 g)
• Unscented with a pleasant natural aroma


Add a touch of mystery to your haunted house or gothic Halloween party with this interactive hidden message portrait. At first glance, it appears to be an ordinary framed antique portrait, but tucked inside her book is a folded note waiting to be discovered by curious guests.
Simply cut out the portrait, slip the included message through the hidden opening, and display it on a wall, mantel, or bookshelf as part of your haunted manor décor. Throughout the evening, guests may notice the note peeking from the frame and uncover its ominous warning: "Don't Trust the Pharmacist."
For even more intrigue, pair it with the companion portrait featuring the conflicting message "Don't Trust the Madame." Together they create a fun conversation piece, leaving guests to wonder which mysterious resident of the manor, if either, can be trusted.
• Sheet size: 24" x 36"
• Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
• Paper weight: 189 g/m²
• Opacity: 94%
• Paper is sourced from Japan