Shiny & New...

Hello Lovelies!

As promised, I have added holiday items to the shop. Cards, mini art photos and eventually several one of a kind ornaments should give you a nice selection of wonderful and unexpected gifts for the season. I think you'll particularly enjoy the Holly Go Lightly card set (yes, those are skulls instead of berries Lovelies).

I mentioned taking part in an ornament exchange a couple posts back. Well, I put together the little doozy pictured below to send to my "ornament buddy." I like to call it Santa Around the World (because of the globes and whatnot), but in fact, those globes are depicting the seasons. Attention to detail isn't my strong suit. Regardless, I think it came out just swimmingly, don't you?

I have found more artists that I think will interest you Lovelies. Louise aka Art & Ghosts is an amazingly talented artist out of the UK who uses a Wacom tablet and Photoshop to create amazing and haunting images of little girls and rainbows and teardrops and I really can't even explain it accurately. You just need to go to her site basically. Amazing work and I can't fathom how she makes such wonderful paintings with a Wacom, but she does.

And can we just talk about Justin Erickson next? Holy smokes. Not only does he design and creating art for Rue Morgue Magazine(!!!), he also has an amazing portfolio of horror-inspired work. His aesthetic combines 60's horror, amazing typography, photoshop effects, pencil and painting expertise that's right up there and design sense that basically almost made my head blow off when I first saw his stuff. Check it out!

And let's wrap up with a movie review as usual. I rented Tod Browning's Freaks (1932) the other night. To give you a little history, Tod Browning directed Dracula with Bela Lugosi and made many movies about the sideshow and circus so of course, I like most of his work. Freaks is a fascinating movie from several perspectives; it shows many of the sideshow performers of the day actually moving and talking, it has a somewhat scandalous plot, and people in the 30's hated it, but it still achieved cult status. Did people in the 30's hate it because it was exploitative? No folks, they hated it because it was "filthy and disgusting." Nice, huh? I think it's wonderful and you Kiddies need to check it out. I won't spoil the plot...

Until next time: unpleasant dreams.

Captain Pipsqueak...

Hello Lovelies!

The holidays are approaching and I am up to my ears in macabre goodies. I will be loading the shop up for the holidays Thanksgiving weekend. Also, I have finally uploaded a ton of paintings and photos to my site, go take a peek. If you are interested in any of my paintings for a gift or for yourself, please shoot me an inquiry. I am happy to gift wrap!

I have done another painting in the Icarus Series for one of my shows that I wanted to show you all. This piece is entitled Captain Pipsqueak, and it features pretty much every bell and whistle you could imagine; glitter, metallic paint, glass balls, you name it. I wanted this piece to feel dark and surreal but also innocent and fun. Let me know what you think!

Oh, and one of my photos was featured in a great treasury put together by MiaRosina. Take a look! Some great time-related pieces in this treasury.

Enough about me, I have found 2 great artists that you all need to check out. Jeremy Geddes is amazing. You want to know why? I'll tell you. He paints photo-realistically but instead of taking the boring path with this technique, he throws in elements/situations that are humorous and at times macabre. A couple of his pieces are below to give you a taste; he also has great work on his site. Love it.

The next artist is completely different and completely mind-blowing. Elizabeth McGrath is a sculpture, a painter and a musician. Her works, as you can see below, include both dioramas and sculpture that she paints. Her work is detailed and funny and fun. I just don't even know how she does her pieces. Really. I don't. How the heck does she do that?! Anyway, peruse her site and drool if you must.

Okay, let's wrap up with a movie review, shall we? A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled across a list of Rob Zombie's top 5 favorite horror movies and so I decided to rent them all and watch them. Some I'd seen, like Dawn of the Dead, others, not so much and uh, now I wish I hadn't. The fun little feature I watched last night was called Deranged. Heard of it? Well, the movie is based on the Ed Gein story (you know, the guy who also inspired the movie Psycho and Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs). The broad brushstrokes here are as follows: A man lives holed up with his mother, an invalid, his whole life. Mom dies. He loses it and proceeds to dig her up, talk to her, and then dig up bodies and murder young women in an attempt to "restore" his mother to him. What the hell? Yeah. The movie itself was slow and tedious, but CREEPY and I don't know where they dug up the male lead (no pun intended), but he looks like something out of Deliverance. Y-I-K-E-S. Anywho, rent it, it's worth it. Now... I'm off to watch Freaks.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Fly Guys...

Hello Lovelies!

Well, I hope this Sunday finds you all doing well. I have been busy in the Mill as usual painting and plotting and creating mischief. Some of you may recall the frames at the Goodwill that I was going to make into art. Well, I have completed the first piece in the Icarus Amusement series and I've started on the second and they're coming along swimmingly. Take a peek... More to come, there will be 5 in all.

I recently signed up to be part of the blogger ornament exchange over at the Pampering You blog. (The date for sign ups has passed, but it's an annual thing that seems pretty fun.) I'll show you my ornament when I complete it... the recipient won't know what hit them. Heehee.

And speaking of the holidays, I came across this Santa marionette in a catalog the other day and I wanted to share since it made me say "What the... why?"

Oh, and for you book lovers out there, do I have a site for you! I stumbled across the Folio Society website quite by accident when I saw the Sam Weber illustrations for their edition of Lord of the Flies. Beautiful books with beautiful artwork, I think you have to be a member to purchase them and some are quite expensive, but if you have a favorite and they've published it, you can't beat it. If they ever published Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury ( my favorite book of all time), I would sell my limbs for it. (Except my left hand so I could still paint of course.) And if you haven't read that book, go get a copy and give it a whirl, Ray is wonderful.

I am by no means a motorcycle rider, I think they're beautiful pieces of machinery, but beyond the aesthetics, I have no interest. So imagine my surprise when I happened upon Harley Davidson's patriotic ad campaign recently and fell in love. No, not with the bikes, though they're very pretty (can you call a bike "pretty???"), with the 1940's look of the campaign. It's beautiful; the bike, the model, the fonts are all impeccable. They really spared no expense; there's a pin-up calendar, postcards to the troops. It's beautiful stuff, go check it out.

Let's wrap up with a nutso new story because well, it's been awhile and well, this one is a doozy. So, did you Kids read about the 3 homeless men in Russia who in fact killed a man and ate him? But that's not the worst part... they also sold some of his body parts to a local kebab house where other people also ate him. What the?! How does this happen? And can you imagine unknowingly eating a person? You go in for lamb, and come out with Stan. Whew boy, yuck.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams

Dark things...

Hello Lovelies!

Another week has passed and I have juicy and wonderful things to share with all of you. In fact, this whole post is going to be about things you need to check out.

First, if you are in the Portland, Maine area and you like live jazz, you need to stop by Blue. I went there with friends last night to see a quartet and it was atop knotch. The atmosphere is dark and intimate, the acts they get in are amazing and they have a good wine list and menu. Check it out!

Funny anecdote for you all. In 2 weeks, I am throwing a roller skating party for my Sweetie's birthday and I'm making everyone wear 70's clothing. That's right. Well, we went into the good old Salvation Army yesterday to start putting some outfits together and I was shocked/surprised by the amount of polyester up in that joint! I thought it would be mainly 80's, but no, we scored some great finds. I will be taking many photos and will of course share with all of you, the vintage craziness... Standby for that. (And that's a photo from Roller Boogie, a 1979 classic starring Linda Blair. Seriously.)

Speaking of vintage clothing, if you like the retro look, you need to check out Plasticland. This site carries tons of really cute, unique retro clothing and accessories. Below are just a couple of items I'm personally coveting...

I have discovered a wonderful artist that I'm sure those of you who enjoy pulp art may already know. Phil Hale, is an illustrator and painter (who unfortunately, doesn't have a portfolio site) who utilizes a photo realistic style juxtapositioned with morbid and fantastical subject matter to create an atmosphere of silent and imminent dread. I love his work. Here are a couple of his paintings. Creepy, creepy stuff.

And, let's wrap up with a movie review, shall we? Of course we shall... I'm going to recommend a new one to you Lovelies because it's one of the better ones I've seen in awhile. Orphan. Holy smokes is this movie wack. This flick takes the typical sociopathic adopted child scenario to a whole new level. And the twist at the end??? I won't spoil it with too many details, suffice it to say I was pleasantly shocked. Go out and rent it... now.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams.

Heeeeere's the Winner!

Hello Lovelies!

First (because I know you've all been anxiously waiting to hear), the winner of the giveaway is Noella! She will receive the entire Alice in Wonderland print set free. Congratulations Noella and thank you all for entering, your movie and book suggestions will keep me busy through the winter.

More business to discuss then the fun parts. My Seahorse Palace photo made it to the front page this week, which is always a bit gratifying.

And, I have listed three new photos in the shop; Sky Full of Amusement, Onion Rings and Dark Car. These were all taken at the Fryeburg Fair up here in Maine that I mentioned a couple of posts ago. Fun stuff. (And yes, all of those rides were that close together, no Photoshopping there folks... crazy.)

So, I went thrifting today for a new project I'm starting for a gallery show I'm in this December. I've decided to repurpose old frames/plaques into new pieces of artwork. I'm really excited about these pieces and if it comes out half as good as it looks in my mind's eye, I think you'll like it too! Here are the pieces I will be converting to art. Yes, they look rough now, but you just wait...

And I picked up this totally neat old photo in a tin frame while I was out. Sweet isn't it? I swear everyone was stylish in the 40's... Sigh.

This new project I'm doing was partly inspired by one of my favorite artists; Mark Ryden. If you don't know his work, go to his site. Wonderful, whimsical, dark and funny. He gets it. Lovely work. Anyway, he has a new Blood series that's perfect as always (can you tell I'm a big fan?) and it uses old frames and small scale to make a big statement. So, I decided to create a series mixing old and new and small size to create a wall arrangement in the gallery. Here are some of his Blood pieces...

And let's wrap up with a little movie-related bragging on my part. A theater up here in Maine was showing The Shining on the big screen last week and I got to see it with friends. Talk about amazing. I'm not a huge Stanley Kubrick fan in general, and I like Clockwork Orange better, but on the big screen, you really get what he was doing with The Shining. It was amazing. Truly. If you ever have the chance to see it at a theater... go.

Until next time: Unpleasant Dreams...

Put on a mask...

Hello Lovelies!

So much to share as usual! First, this will be the last post before the post next Sunday (November 1st), announcing the winner of the giveaway! A ton of great suggestions so far... I'm glad you Poppets get it. For those just coming onboard, the giveaway that ends October 31st is for an entire set of my Alice in Wonderland photo illustrations ($65 value). All you have to do to enter, is give me a movie or book idea you think I'd like and leave your email or shop name so I can notify the winner. Less than a week left!

I went to a superhero themed costume party last night and how much fun was that?! We got all decked out. Here are some pics of us ready to go. (Mystique wasn't messing around, her costume was amazing.)

Oh, and one of the Sword Swallower pieces was featured in a great Treasury this week. So many other neat carnival-themed photos in there too. Love it.

It's no secret I am a big fan of the Morbid Anatomy blog. You wanna know why? Oh, because every post is sheer awesome and talks about things I've never heard of. Case and point, a recent post talked about Cabaret du Néant or Tavern of the Dead in Paris circa 1899. This tavern had a death theme down to the coffin tables and a meander through some catacombs guided by an undertaker. More details at Morbid, but how much does it make me wish I had lived in 1899, in Paris? Awesome.

And, let me wrap up with another favorite movie of mine based on a book by William March; The Bad Seed. The book is very good and pretty astute for its day (1956), and the movie is even better. Like so many movies about sociopathic children, it covers the various nefarious doings of one Rhoda Penmark. Wow. Really. Just watch it. Between the killings and the manipulation and the internal struggles of her mom and the acting, it's first rate gang. Truly. *Shudder* Enjoy.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Pulp Halloween...

Hello Lovelies!

As Halloween approaches, there is a whole lot of awesome going on at The Stapelia Company and just in general and I can't wait to pass it along! First, a reminder, that the 1 Year Anniversary Giveaway goes until Halloween (October 31st), and I will announce the winner November 1st. All you have to do, is comment on any blog post that mentions the giveaway with a book or movie you think I'd like and your Etsy shop name or email address so I can contact the winner. (If you're just coming over to play, the giveaway is an entire set of my Alice in Wonderland art illustrations.)

Ooo! I went to a pumpkin carving party last night and it was a blast needless to say. I was dared into making my own pumpkin design since I was "The only one in the room who could draw" so I went for the zombie... take a peek!

And, I just listed the third scratchboard piece in my Night Revelry Series, the Vampire Boy. He's fun, feisty and comes with a wonderful letter pressed matte from Yee Haw Industries! Perfect for that last minute Halloween gift.

I, like most people, really enjoy the pulp covers from the 3o's and 40's; they're colorful and bold and scandalous (just the way we like it here)... Well, imagine my delight when I came across a spread in Harper's Bazaar UK that features Claudia Schiffer as the young ingenue in various pulp fiction-inspired fashion shots. Here are just a few... needless to say. Wonderful.

And, another wonderful find for design enthusiasts in particular is the Grain Edit, a site dedicated to wonderful graphic design. My personal favorite was the interview with Hatch, a San Francisco based design team who makes wonderful things. I especially loved the paper ephemera and research and sketches they used to come up with the packaging for Jaqk Cellars, a wine label. Love it. Go take a peak!

Let's wrap up with a movie review because it's been awhile and it's October, the perfect month for Halloween movies. I want to recommend a personal favorite of mine; Elvira Mistress of the Dark. (Yes, that's both a movie title and a character name folks...) Why is this movie so great? Let's start off with the hilarious puns and sexual innuendos, then we can move on to the 80's era clothing and hairstyles (including banana clips, pumps with jeans, and of course, mullets), and finish up with the totally ridiculous plot and characters. Oh, and the ending is worth the price of admission... Love it. Own it. Recommend it. Now go find a copy!

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...