Push the button see what comes out...

Hello Lovelies!

Well, as usual, things are busy over here in the mill. I have completed 2 paintings for my gallery that I probably won't submit for awhile, but here they are so you can see how they came out since I posted sketches last time. These are entitled Drink to me Only with Thine Eyes #1 & 2. I think they came out pretty well considering I was trying a new technique.

And, as I mentioned before, I will be putting some 1 inch buttons in the shop here shortly. The order has been placed and the buttons have been designed (see Ink and Chuckles below). I will be selling sets of 4 different designs to dip my toe in and if they sell, I'll design some more for you kids!

I have found 2 great artists that I'm sure some of you have already seen, but for the rest of you get set because this work is amazing. The first is Brandt Peters. Where to start really? I mean, he hits all of the themes I personally love; dark circuses, sideshows, popular culture, grit and he also paints on found objects and does sculpture, dolls and toys. I mean, really? You need to go to his website and check out his work. Wonderful stuff.

The second artist, Mike Shine, also touches on some carnival work as well as Nordic themes and old signage all on found pieces of driftwood etc. His site is amazing too, I love the way it flows and the dang random song he has on there and the creepy carny music?! Seriously. Check him out as well and don't forget to hit the Shack link... his house is amazing.

I think all of you have a pretty good sense of humor so I'm going to let you in on a gem of a website that literally makes me laugh out loud every time I go there. Awkward Family Photos is hilarious not just because of the photos (and those are pretty good, let me tell you), but the captions and the comments are also pretty chuck-a-licious. The 2 below are merely a taste of things to come...

And let's wrap up with some strange news, shall we? Did you read about the 2 families in a small town in Alabama who had been feuding for several years? (We don't know/care why...) Well, they had been feuding and apparently, someone shot out a window in the other family's house. This apparently led to a 150 person full-scale riot, with baseball bats, tire irons and whatever else they could get their hands on and ended with 8 people in jail. Now come on. You know most of those people didn't even know what was going on, but that didn't keep them from grabbing a broom and beating a neighbor! Nice. Sigh.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Baby Pools and Natural Disasters...

Hello Lovelies!

I hope you're all doing well. I have so much to share with you as usual.

First, I was featured in another blog that belongs to a fellow Maine team member and owner of Three Bridges Sewing Co. Thank you Peggy!

I have also added another character to the Cigar, Creeper & Dark Circus and Sideshow series. Madame Zora is my favorite so far because she's so dark, creepy and mysterious. Don't you agree? One more lady and then we start the men and they're going to be even more over the top. I can't wait to show them to you!

And I am doing my monthly paintings for the gallery. Here is a sketch to whet your appetite. I'm trying a new technique for this one, I'll be painting the background with acrylics and then I'll lay these little characters over the top in pen and ink on paper. Should be interesting, I'll post finished pics soon!

And I have found the most wonderful photographer that you need to check out. Lori Nix's work combines small models and dramatic lighting to create scenes that address catastrophic events and strange situations. They're amazing. My favorite is Bounty (pictured below) part of her Lost series. The other piece is fittingly entitled Blimp and is part of her Accidentally Kansas series. Lovely.

I want to recommend an author to all of you if you haven't heard of him yet. Steven Millhauser's work is pretty wonderful. I can't really put it into a category but if pressed, I would say it's fantasy set in the real world? I read The Knife Thrower and Other Short Stories and loved it. He's also written more famous novels like Martin Dressler: The Tale of an American Dreamer that won a Pulitzer. His books are quick wonderful reads, so go pick one up and let me know what you think.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Darkness...

Hi Lovelies!

I hope this Sunday finds you all doing well. I've been busy up in the mill as usual!

First, my Penelope the Sword Swallower piece was recently included in a great treasury put together by my friend Chrisy over at Sophism Press blog. She also has a wonderfully eclectic Etsy shop called Art Decadence that is definitely worth a look-see (I've always wanted to use that word in a sentence). Thank you Chrisy!

I have been finishing up a submission for the October show at the 6 x 6 Gallery in New York. I'm happy with how it came out. It's entitled She Wore a Pearl Necklace after the (was it ZZ Top?) song with the same title. Totally different meaning however because these little buggers are out to kill! (And of course, I couldn't resist my usual glitter/gold paint embellishments.)

Halloween will soon be upon us and since this is both my favorite holiday and marks the one year anniversary of Stapelia, I will have a Halloween section in my shop full of cards and random tidbits. One item I am especially excited about is the Circo de la Muerte 4-button set. Some of the preliminary sketches are below. The set will feature scandalous circus employees offing people in an attempt to either; gain money, gain power, gain love or all three! The 1 inch pin-back buttons will be nice on that coat or coffin cover and will come in a cute little package and the back story should be a hoot! Are you slathering for Halloween yet??? I thought so...

And speaking of slathering, as you all know, I collect antique and vintage items for the house and I wanted to show you the packaging on my latest find. This is the box for a set of Striptease drinking glasses. The basic premise is, you have glasses with clothed women on them, you put in a liquid, they strip. Except these are old and damaged apparently because they're nude... all the time. But it gets better because the box (shown below), depicts a group of men and women in someone's shag-carpeted basement laughing it up with Striptease glasses... like women circa 1975 would be caught DEAD with these glasses. Please. I personally find it hilarious.

Oh! And before I wrap up, this week, keep an eye out for the latest woman in my Cigar, Creeper & Dark Circus and Sideshow series... she's the best one yet!

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Full Moons and Kowloons...

Hello Lovelies!

Well, it's been a bit since my last post so let me fill you all in! First, a good friend was in town and we went to a restaurant I've been wanting to try for a long time. If you're ever in Saugus, MA for any reason, stop in and have dinner at Kowloon. It's an enormous Polynesian restaurant in the best 1940's Trader Vic's tradition. The food was great, the menu was overwhelming and there was seating in a catamaran for the love of Pete! The best part was when a car hit a power line outside and the whole restaurant went dark and they started giving out tea lights for the tables. Good times, I loved it.

Oh! And I was interviewed by my wonderful friend over at the Where Eagles Dare blog, go check it out! (And if you haven't seen K's shop yet... go here and take a look; beautiful tattoo-inspired work.) Thanks K!

And not one to rest on my laurels (or rest at all on anything for that matter), I have completed the latest art photo in the Cigar, Creeper & Dark Circus and Sideshow series entitled: Dahlia the Albino. I think she came out swimmingly, don't you? I will be posting the last of my ladies later this week and then it's on to the gentlemen so keep an eye out for that one.

The Stapelia Company finally has a website! Yay! I'm pretty excited about that. One place for all things Stapelia, which will make it easier on you Pets as well. There is a button on the right hand side of the blog that will take you there.

Oh, and have a discovered yet another wonderful Etsy seller for you Kids. Frankenkitty truly sells some nightmare-worthy photos including the two below, as well as some beautiful artistic shots. Plus, she's super nice so stop by and take a gander. She'll be happy you did.

So, I thought I would wrap up with a book suggestion for a change. My Sweetie picked up a copy of Zombie Haiku for me the other day and I didn't think I'd like it because it was so short. (I didn't think it would creep me out enough.) But let me tell you folks... it did. It's sort of a series of haikus that tell a story... about zombies. Eeek! It was good. So go check it out and keep your light on while you're reading it.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams!