Small Dark Treats...

Hello Lovelies!

Winter is truly upon us here at the Mill. The wind is blowing through the windows and the bats are trying to get in left and right... okay, just one. I have been featured in two treasuries this week, both are beautiful. One has a Sherlock Holmes theme (my illustration was picked), and the little crocheted figure with the plaid coat is absolutely adorable!

As promised, I have added the first Little Betty Mini Art Photo set to the shop. Each set will work from a theme, and this first one is called Masks, (even though they're really just faces, not masks). Oh well. More to come, take a peek:

I'm not a big doll fan (unless they're creepy, starring in a horror movie, and killing people), but I stumbled across an amazing doll artist and I had to share. Noel Cruz takes pre-made dolls of the Barbie and Ken body type and repaints their faces and reclothes them to look like celebrities. Sounds weird, I know. But look at his Angelina Jolie and Robert Pattinson faces. Amazing...

I found an amazing photographer too this week. Unlike many photographers out there who go for imagery alone, Matt Barnes' work has an underlying narrative aspect that gets the imagination going when you're looking at it. Below are two of his more artsy pieces, but his portfolio has a ton work that just makes you ask "What is going on here? Why?" I love it all.

I'm not a big Vans shoe fan. They're not really my style, and furthermore, I don't like wearing shoes without socks just in general. Gross. But, Grant Gulliland's custom painted Vans makes me want to get a pair just for display. He doesn't have many on display yet, but I'm going to keep checking back because these little guys, are cute.

Any Norah Jones fans out there? How can you not be? Anyway, her newest album The Fall, not only has a beautiful and playful cover that I love, it also has the track December on it, which has quickly become my favorite. Take a listen...

Let's wrap up with some weird trivia, shall we? I just read about a man who went to the doctor complaining of irritation in one of his eyes. They gave him some meds for conjunctivitis and sent him home. His eye remained irritated. So, they looked at his eye under magnification and found 12 microscopic hairs in his cornea. Where did they come from, you ask? From his pet tarantula. No lie. Apparently, when tarantulas get scared, some of them can send a fine spray of abdominal HAIRS into your EYES. He will have hairs in his eyes permanently. Another reason to not have a spider for a pet, but if you insist, doctors suggest wearing eye protection when handling them... Dang. Yuck.

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

New Dark Deeds...

Hello Lovelies!

Well, a new year has begun and with it comes all manner of opportunity and excitement! I have been busy in the Mill as usual, on some non-Etsy related projects that I'm excited about. One is about to wrap up and I should be able to reveal it in the next post!

I will be adding new photography to the shop this week, including a new format I'm trying called Little Betty Photo Sets. The term "Betty" meant lock-pick in Victorian slang and these photo sets are not only small prints (2 1/2" x 3 1/2" or 6.35 cm x 7.6 cm) but they will be macro shots only, as if you're looking at the world through a key hole. Here is a preview of a couple you may see soon:

For you vintage and goth clothing fans out there, I have found a wonderful site with wonderful vintage-looking fashions. Blasphemina's Closet is full of wonderful one-of-a-kind Victorian clothing for the woman or man who loves the unusual. As you can see below, the pieces are impeccable. I'm not normally a clothes horse, but I would eagerly snatch up every one of these pieces. Truly lovely.

Some of you in the San Francisco area may be familiar with the site Fecal Face. It's a crying shame they named their site that because I bet a lot of people will be put off by the name without even perusing this resource of artist interviews, show listings and new work. Work that's wonderful. The first piece below is by RIPO, a graffiti artist residing in Berlin who makes poignant statements with his work. Or, the work of Faile, also pictured below, that actually looks easier than it is. The piece of wood is a hand-carved prayer wheel with slogans and pop culture icons on it that's then painted. The large piece behind it, isn't cut and pasted, it's also hand-painted advertising layered to look torn. Amazing. Truly. Check it out.

Funny little story for you, totally random, but you like that, right Lovelies? So, I own two beautiful Siamese cats who are... loco. No joke. As I type, one is getting into the cotton face pads in the bathroom and eating them because I think he has pica. Point is, the other night, my Sweetie and I were in the living room of the mill, which is old, and a mill and (we learned the hard way when we tore up our office floor) has bats. Anyway. As I was saying, the other night, we were sitting in the living room and one cat runs full tilt into the wall. She's freaked right out. We ignore it, because well, this happens daily... until we heard the high-pitched squeaking. That's right. A bat. We both jumped up and screamed. In the end, the bat was not in the actual house and it stopped but still... Scared silly. Yuck. When it flies, someone dies indeed...

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

The Week Between...

Hello Lovelies!

I hope you all had a relaxing and enjoyable Christmas holiday. I was busy working on a very exciting project that I can't reveal for a bit. I will share as soon as things are a little further along. Consequently, I was drawing all weekend. I can't wait to share!

In other news, my Pandora's Oculus greeting cards were featured on MyShoppingConnection with some other very attractive cards. Don't forget to thank all those people for their generosity this holiday season with the perfect card!

And speaking of shopping, I stumbled upon a wonderful site the other day that combines beautiful design with art. Their blog is great, they have a magazine that looks wonderful and a retail store. Uppercase Gallery has some wonderful products and I love their tagline: A Magazine for the Creative and Curious... aren't we all a little of that? Below are two of my faves; a book of William Shatner portraits by famous artists and illustrators and an Eclectonotebook. Stop by and take a peek!

Talk about an amazing illustrator; Ron Lewhorn's work combines clean vector portraiture with dynamic backgrounds and a vintage/aged patina to create a look that's both fresh and worn. I love his work. Below, are a Birthday poster and a portrait of Johnny Cash. Great stuff!

Let's wrap up with a show review, shall we? I'm sure you've all heard of the show Mad Men. It's pretty much blown it out of the water since it aired. But, if you haven't seen it yet, let me make a personal recommendation to check it out. The characters, the clothing, the glamour (not to mention the sexism, the constant drinking/smoking, and the stereotypical male/female roles), make this show by turns, fascinating, frustrating and addictive. There are so many unintentionally funny moments, it's worth your while to take a gander. If you're a fan already, let me know what you think!

See you next year!

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Violet for your furs...

Hello Lovelies!

Well, Christmas is almost here and that means bright decorations, cookies and holiday music. I am a lover of all things vintage and most of my decorations are old. Worn Christmas decorations have a special patina that you just can't find anywhere else. I found a few new pieces to add to my collection this season; Frosty and two random tinsel/aluminum things that I now love. Take a peek!

Yesterday I went to a cookie party (those are so much fun), and I did up the reliable sugar cookie recipe. Here are a couple of pics of those, I went all out with the decorating since the cookies themselves are somewhat simple. It got me in the holiday spirit.

Art news, I will be doing another photograph in my Cigar, Creeper & Dark Sideshow and Circus series this coming weekend with a friend who is visiting from California, so look for that early next week. I don't want to spoil the surprise!

I will also be offering some fun new products in the new year at the shop, including original ACEOs, mini photo series somewhat like the Christmas one I'm offering now, and maybe some original paintings. Exciting stuff coming!

I have a couple of artists to recommend as usual. Jamie Salmon is a hyper-realistic sculptor who creates amazing human pieces. I've seen a lot of work like this because I love it and he is one of the best. His site has some process shots that are fascinating. Here are a couple of his works:

Pieter Hugo is a photographer whose work runs the gamut from funny to very serious and eye-opening. Most of his subjects are from various parts of Africa and I found his Nollywood series wonderful. Apparently, Nollywood, is the third largest film industry in the world after, I'm assuming, Hollywood and Bollywood. Check out his work, it's moving.

Let's wrap up with some funny news, shall we? Of course. Apparently, a choir teacher in Arizona took 40 kids to lunch at Hooters after a concert. According to the teacher, it was the only place in Phoenix "big enough to accommodate a crowd that size." And here's the best part, the teacher is female. Yeah, she's spending Christmas on administrative leave.

Happy Holidays and unpleasant dreams!

Bumper Bunny Balloon Head...

Hello Lovelies!

Well, I hope you're all getting prepared for the holiday season and excited to celebrate it!

I have been rather busy in the Mill, finishing up my paintings for the RISE show that opens this Friday. (The info is below, if you're in the area, stop on by.) The proceeds will benefit Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Southern Maine (a great cause), plus there will be music and food and good times, you can't lose really.

The latest piece in my Icarus series entitled Bumper Bunny Balloon Head is below and it will be one of the 5 pieces I will be displaying at RISE. These pieces are really fun and they all come in vintage frames for a unique look.

I have discovered a non-living artist who was way ahead of his time who I think you may enjoy. Felicien Rops was a Belgian artist who died in 1898, but his work was way ahead of its time. As you can see from the paintings below, his work was surreal and sexy and somewhat mysterious and I love it. He also did some wonderful etchings and caricatures. There is a museum of his work in Belgium which I would love to check out at some point. If you're close, you should.

Moving in a completely different direction, Scott Radke is another artist whose work grabbed my attention this week. Radke is a marionette maker, and a large body of his work can be found here. (I didn't post pictures to comply with his copyright requests.) I had a ton of fun perusing his gallery as I'm sure you will too. I couldn't pick a favorite, all their little dark faces and humorous poses are pretty wonderful. I wish I could have them all as pets. Lovely.

And let's wrap up with a little bit of humor, shall we? There are no less than 2 whole radio stations up here in Maine dedicated to Christmas music 24/7 from mid-October until New Year's. Now, this may be a nightmare for some, but I like holiday music for the most part so it's fine by me. Except certain cringe-worthy songs and when they come on, I have to change the channel. You all have a good sense of humor, so I thought I'd post this year's Top 5 Worst Holiday Songs for your enjoyment. Go check them out... they're real bad. What is your least favorite and why? (Make it funny folks...)

1. Vanessa William's - Angels We Have Heard on High (This is a great song, but add early-90's synth, a saxophone intro and a crazy-town beat and you've got yourself a trainwreck.)

2. 3 of Hearts - Christmas Shoes (This song - any version - takes holiday corny to a whole new level and by verse 12, you'll be crying... for the song to stop.)

3. Lou Monte - Dominick the Donkey (Really? I don't think I need to comment on this one.)

4. Barbra Streisand - It Must Have Been the Mistletoe (The tempo and lyrics of this song - almost a cracked out waltz - are the parts that get me. Oh, and they play it all the time.)

5. The Muppets - 12 Days of Christmas (Holy. Smokes. This song is interminable and annoying anyway, but imagine Gonzo porking out 5 golden rings 8 times.)

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...

Candy Apples...

Hello Lovelies!

Hope you are all well. I have been working furiously on the Icarus series and I have the third piece to show you, it's entitled Candy Apple. I have 2 more paintings to do in this series for a holiday show at the RISE Gallery in South Portland, Maine December 17-23rd. If you're in the area during that time, stop by. A lot of wonderful artists, photographers and jewelers will be on display.

I submitted my Skydiver piece to Craftgawker recently and it was posted, which is neat. (From what I understand, it's pretty tough to be selected for that pretty picky site.) If you're not familiar with the site, it's worth your while to check it out, there is some top knotch stuff on there.

I found a really neat site the other day called Sketch Theatre. To start, there are the great sketch videos which show artists doing quick sketches. (I thought these were fascinating to watch.) Plus, if you're an artist, they have a monthly illustration contest for prizes. Pretty neat. (The image below is a video by the artist Apricot Mantle, who does some really neat colored pencil work.)

Well, the holiday season is upon us, and it's been awhile since I did a Covetable list, so I thought I'd do a Gift Guide instead. These are some of my favorites, and I mixed them up so there should be something for everyone. (There are shop links directly beneath the Guide.)

1. thesmallobjects

2. thecandythief

3. studiotempera

4. starforeman

5. letterpress

6. glasfaden

7. ethanollie

8. dollybirddesign

9. baroqueandroll

Let's wrap up with some crazy news, shall we? On a holiday note, a man in Georgia, dressed up as an elf, waited in line to uh, sit on Santa's lap and have his picture taken. But that's not the crazy part (believe it or not), when he got to the front of the line, he became a bad elf and told Santa he had dynamite in his coat and was going to blow him up. Whew. What the?! Well, he didn't have dynamite (luckily), and he was promptly arrested. I guess the holiday stress got to Santa's elf, eh?

Until next time: unpleasant dreams...