Monsters...

Hello Lovelies~

I hope you are all doing well out there! This post is going to be chockful of monsters, so prepare yourselves.

First, (on a non-monster note), I have designed a brand new landing page on Facebook for you fans and non-fans alike! Go check it out, there are links galore and we have a really fun time over there together. Click here to peruse!

I have also listed a great new summery print in my shop entitled Green Canoe. I've already sold one, people seem to like it.

Oh! And I finally cleaned up all the bottles I found at that abandoned dump last weekend while camping. We found some neat ones, including a huge old Clorox bleach bottle. I can't believe they used such heavy glass back then and didn't even recycle... boggles the mind, really. Take a look.

Okay, let's get down to the monsters. First, I posted awhile back that I'd found a great old 1950's cake decorating kit junking. Well, I decided to use it with my niece and we made a skull carousel cake that was covered in clowns and bones and so, of course, I loved how it came out. More shots here.

If you don't follow Monster Brains yet, you need to get on that. It's a "never ending celebration of monsters" and that's no lie, Kiddies. Recently, I drooled over a post of vintage Dick Smith makeup photos. Take a look at this craziness... and I don't think he even used professional stuff, but it looks great.

Have you heard of Bill Tracy? No? Chances are, if you like amusement parks and scary rides you've seen his work. He was the king of "dark rides" between the 1940's and the 1970's, building spook houses, pirate ships, jungle rides and more with a ton of effects and scares. His site has a ton of photos and trivia. Great stuff.

Let's wrap up with a Monster Parade from the creative hooligans at Cloudy Collection, shall we? A great little limited-edition print set that's just full of monstery goodness. Take a peek or better still, buy a set!

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Lollipops and Clowns...

Hello Lovelies!

I hope you are doing well out there. I have a lot to share as usual. To start, I finally got my new business cards in for my photography business and I think they came out really well. I used a full bleed image on the front and very spare information on the back. I'm trying to keep it simple. What do you think?

And, I had more adventures in the studio this past weekend. I photographed two toddlers and while they were a handful and a half, I got some good shots and some really good experience. With most of the folks who model for me, I have an agreement where I will discount the sitting fee if they help me create pieces for my portfolio in addition to their shots. In this case, I shot these little guys in their normal clothes and then I put them in my costumes and shot a series of 4 photos you can see on my Flickr page. So much fun... Here's a teaser:

And speaking of babies, I went to a baby shower over the weekend and I put one of my clown cupcake toppers to good use as a present topper! I think it made the present... take a peek:

Also this past weekend, I got a chance to see the Shanghai Circus at The Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH. First of all, the venue itself is really fun and historic with old wooden floors and velvet curtains, it's beautiful. And the acrobats/performers?! Wow. I've never seen anything like it. I was blown away, literally. If you ever get a chance to see them perform, go.

And speaking of bright, colorful and inspiring things, have you seen the photo styling of Rebecca Thuss? First of all, her site is beautiful of course and apparently, there's nothing she can't do. She's a crafter, a photo stylist for Martha Stewart Living and Wedding among others, and she's a designer. Her photos are so bright and cheery, just go to the site and take a look, or take a gander at these:

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Clown Lion...

Hello Lovelies~

I hope you are doing well and that your holiday weekends were relaxing and enjoyable. Mine was delightful. My family came to town and we pretty much laughed, opened presents and ate delicious food for 4 straight days. Here are some pics from the weekend:

Champagne with Titanic ice... those cubes are a bear to get out without breaking.

One of my favorite records (it's blue), on my new record player. Best gift of the year!

Creepy clown lion (does my family know me or what?)

And clown cupcake toppers...

But don't think all that celebrating means I don't have wonderful things to share. To start, I am down to literally 3 Zom-B-Vex Calendars and I would love for them to find a home before January so I have dropped the price again: $10. That's right Folks! $10. Treat yourself to an after-holiday gift this year!

And I have started a new series of illustrations that I'm really excited about! I don't want to spoil the surprise so I'll give you a sneak peek of a sketch I'm working on. I'm pretty sure you'll love them so standby.

I have enjoyed an illustrator for awhile now who I wanted to share with you. Harry Clarke actually died in 1931 at the age of 41, so he's not a modern day illustrator. However, I think you'll agree that his style has influenced many illustrators working today. I love the dark richness of it, and the fluid movement as well. I aim to get a book of his works if one exists (because I love a challenge)... take a look:

And a movie recommendation. (More accurately, a series of movies.) I received part of the Charlie Chan DVD collection for Christmas and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. It's funny and dated and in many ways politically incorrect, but the mysteries themselves are clever and fun to watch. There are tons of different movies starring the fictitious detective Charlie Chan, and he was even played by several different actors, so I'm sure you'll find a couple to enjoy. Check them out if you have time!

Plus, the graphics are great.

Until next time: Unpleasant dreams...

Two-sided coin...

Hello Lovelies!

So, I'm a little late with the post this week because I went to New York to see the Tim Burton retrospective at MoMA. Wow. I was not disappointed. For a fan like myself, to see all those sketches and notes and original movie props was pretty amazing. Well worth the trip if you're close. They had this really cute balloon outside the exhibit so I took a pic:

I also stumbled across the neatest restaurant quite by accident while there. The Jekyll & Hyde Club apparently opened in 1931 and it's full of old artifacts and neat quirky decor. I didn't eat there (and I'm kicking myself), but I did take a few pictures. I will go back... And I will be adding some neat NY pics to the shop shortly.

And speaking of Jekyll & Hyde, my large painting is finally complete! I of course added my final touches of glitter and metallic paint to give it a three dimensional quality (and because I can't seem to stop falling in love with glitter). Here are some shots:

I posted sketches for my new product stickers awhile back and they are finally done and ordered! Take a look. These will be on your order if you place one. I think they're pretty cute.

I have found yet another great design firm with some clean, modern work. Oh, and I looove their logo. Ketchup & Mustard does a little bit of everything; illustration, type design, regular old design and it's all a lot cool. Take a gander at those coasters! I want one of each if I have to fly to the Czech Republic to get them... seriously.

That is all for now my Lovelies...

Until next time: unpleasant dreams.

Flower Clowns...

Hello Lovelies!

As usual, a lot is going on this week at the Mill. First, I thought I would show you some initial sketches of the new stickers I will be using for my packaging. I decided to combine bunnies with clowns to create a bright new design. One boy and one girl. I'll show the finished ones off next week. If you place an order, you may see them in person very soon!

I have added some new work to the shop this week entitled the Flower Clown Series. The first of the series entitled Chester is below. They combine vintage portraits I've collected over the years with floral photography that I've taken... with of course a dark twist as usual. These would make perfect Valentine's Day gifts for that art lover.

And those of you who follow my circus series, I am doing a photo shoot next week and I should have someone new to show you next post!

I mentioned last week my greatest junk find of all time and I told you I'd post it this week. Well, here it is as promised. I found this huge mantle on Craig's List of all things and it was in pretty rough shape when I picked it up. Almost a year later, I finally finished refinishing the entire thing and we have it in our living room. It is over 6 feet long, it has speaker boxes and space for record storage and a mini bar with a light. Solid oak. Grand total: $60. Crazy, huh?!

I have featured the work of Mike Shine on here before. He takes creepy worn carnival-inspired art to a whole new level and I love his color pallet. Well, he has a new show up folks called The Mike Shine Show and if the pictures below are any indication... it's fantastic. I love those wooden milk bottles!

On the carnival theme, I stumbled across an amazing carnival themed wedding on the blog Once Wed (which is a beautiful blog by the way). Some pics are below, but the barn? The cake topper? The yellow and white bunting? Not to mention the invitations. This looks like it was so much fun. The pictures are amazing, click on the link.

Let's wrap up with a funny news story, shall we? Did you read about the German teenagers who (during school?!?!) drank hot sauce that was literally 200 times hotter than Tabasco sauce?This of course, put them all in the hospital. YIKES. Ouch. And, as I'm typing this, I don't know if I'm more amazed that there's an actual scale for hotness (the Scoville Scale), or that Tabasco is in the Google dictionary... huh.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...