DIY Life

Batman kicks butt in his latest movie, The Dark Knight, a gloomy yet action-packed flick that scored big at the box office this weekend. A summer blockbuster has been born, to be sure. The stunningly cool vehicles used in the movie are attracting interest all on their own, especially the sleekly menacing Bat-Pod motorcycle.

It turns out the bike was a bit of a DIY job on the part of the film's creators. According to an article in Popular Mechanics, the 'Pod is actually a motorcycle-ATV hybrid, all wrapped up with plumbing parts and some creative duct-work. The entire exhaust frame was custom built especially for the movie, while those massive wheels suffered blow-out after blow-out until the steering was just right. Another cool little factoid: the footrests disguise the bike's radiator.

Speaking of The Dark Knight, the movie's star, Christian Bale, seems to have gotten himself into a spot of bother with the police. Read all about it at our sister site, Cinematical.

Bring a little edge to your personality. Make people respect you, dammit! Master the art of evil laughter, a timeless mannerism designed to shock and intimidate your foes into fearful submission. Beautifully concise instructions for the beginner can be found at wikiHow. Here's the basic procedure:

1. Cultivate an evil attitude. Yes, you're a very nice person, but for this to work you must look and feel convincingly evil. If you're really too nice to actually think evil thoughts, just pretend you're a famous movie bad guy/gal. Like Batman's nemesis, the Penguin.

2. Adopt the stance of evil. Cock your eyebrow and look maniacal. The latter is best achieved by acting as though anyone else in the room has disappeared. Fix your eyes on a distant point. Do not make eye contact with those around you. Remember: you're absorbed in evil thoughts right now!

3. Perfect pitch. Go for a high-pitched or low-pitched laugh. Choose one and stick with it for a convincing performance. Here's what you're aiming for if you're going for low-pitch: a throaty "Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha!" High-pitched laughers should do a hysterical-sounding "Me-he-he-he-he!" Got it?

4. Practice in private. Yes, perfect those moves in front of a mirror. Use hand gestures if you think it helps. Oh, and use the Web. Clips on sites like You Tube will be invaluable to practice along to. Like this one and this one, for example. Light relief: check out some of the baby evil laughter, like this one.

Now say it loud: "Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha!"

You have perused the aisles in every store looking for the perfect Halloween costume that your child must have, can't live without, and will just die if they don't have, right? If they have decided that they want to be a superhero or a princess, have no fear, you're in luck.

Jorja at Puking Pastilles has made the perfect reversible cape. On one side of the cape you can have Superman, the other side Batman. If you are making a cape for a sweet little girl, then how about a princess on one side of the cape, and Supergirl on the other side of the cape? With her easy step by step instructions and pictures, you will have the perfect accessory to go with the blue sweats or pretty princess dress you already have as part of their wardrobe. Such a cool cape is a sure way to get more trick or treat Halloween goodies.

This cool costume is ever cooler considering that the genius use of an old umbrella is pretty much all you need.

Check out this umbrella bat costume. The site has step by step instructions and pictures to help you along the way. The umbrella transforms into wide spanning, collapsible bat wings and tall pointy bat ears. All you need to do is pair it with black bottoms and a black hooded top and you're ready for Halloween.

This clever project sticks to the recycling theme we love so much at DIY Life, and produces a brilliant costume. What other costumes have you made that reuse household items in creative ways?

In case my blog title leaves some people a little confused, now is a good time to consider building and placing bat houses for our insect eating, night flying friends. Bat houses are very simple in design.

All bats need is an inverted enclosure with places inside where they can grasp with their little feet to hang upside down for some down time (or is that upside down time?) In any case, bats need places to roost and you can help to make it easy for them to find a home. Use this as an opportunity to teach your kids about the true value of bats.