Bills game day recipes; Skarekrow Dye to take on the Ravens (not food)

Wingin’ It is BACK! My first ever recipe came against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1 of 2018 where I made a “Chicken Box” to assert our wing dominance. Seven years later, almost to the day, and here I am innovating again. I bring you my first non-food recipe.

The universe was pushing for this. There’s been a running gag in my football group about us doing some sort of themed super fan costume set. I’ve always maintained I have a gimmick to uphold. This offseason my sister asked AI for a group idea and lo and behold it came back pushing a spooky theme. The universe and AI were nudging me toward fulfilling my gimmick. Sure, I may be Jeff. I’m also Skarekrow. Thanks to the nudge, the “other guy” is ready for his reemergence. If you’re at the Ravens game, maybe you’ll see me.

I’ll be easy to find. Just look for the dead lights. One, two, Skarekrow’s coming for you…

Skarekrow Dye

Makes: Variable as you’ll see
Active Time: 10-20 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes to two weeks depending on some pointers you’ll get here shortly

Ingredients

Water
Walnut husks
Rusty nails
Vinegar (optional)

You may need: Mask to prevent inhalation risks, tetanus shot (just in case), sandpaper, bucket(s), non-synthetic fabric to dye, old clothes in case you splash dye on yourself

1. Put water in bucket (for all of these steps, see tips below for each article of clothing I did to get an idea of quantities, times, etc.).
2. Put small chunks of walnut husks in bucket.
3. Put rusty nails in bucket (see tips for iron acetate below for darker dye).
4. Shake bucket.
5. Wait between 10 minutes and overnight.
6. Use dye on desired (non-synthetic) fabric.
7. Leave fabric in dye until desired color is achieved.
8. Allow fabric to dry.
9. Rinse fabric until water runs mostly clear.
10. If able to do so safely, launder normally (canvas pants yes, burlap mask, no).

Wingin’ It Tips and Prep Gallery

This is honestly really, really, really easy. Black walnuts on their own create a strong and pretty permanent dye for fabrics like cotton. Most of the below is just variations on quantities and concentration for desired effect.

The mask

I bought the pictured red chrome mask on clearance years ago thinking I might wear it to hand out candy. I’m the “nice guy” candy giver and try not to scare kids though so the mask has been in storage for some time. After the idea spark (see below for concept designs) it came up from the basement and right into the nightmares of Ravens fans. As a heads up, I saw this exact same mask on sale this year again.

The first image after the raw mask was right after attaching the burlap. Then I decided I needed a paint marker to make the teeth white. The following two pictures show the first stage or...