Enjoying the Fall Weather

The past few days have ushered in cooler temperatures to the Plains, and it has me anxious to do some fall decorating.  Hubby grew pumpkins this year, including some "blue" pumpkins so I'm hoping to have a few of those to place on the porch with the big orange varieties.  I'm trying not to get ahead of myself too much since it is only mid-September, but with night temperatures to be in the 30s tonight, it's hard not to think autumn is here.  Perhaps I need to calm down a bit and just have a cup of hot chocolate!    

The weather has also inspired me to finish up the pieces for Ghoultide Gathering.  Yesterday I finished the last time consuming piece for the show so I thought I would share a few photographs. 

There are four figures that surround the piece and this is one of them, a little witch figure, Willendorf Wicked.  Willy, as her family calls her, is still a child at heart and continues to carry her pumpkin doll.  She is a kindhearted witch, but a word of warning, don't let her her sweet face fool you, she is a prankster.

To Willy's side is Spidey Pumpkin.  He loves those eight-legged arachnids and plays yo-yo and web games with them daily.  His room would scare most mothers, but Spidey wouldn't have it any other way. 

The last photograph is the bottom of the orb.  I painted a little lumina pumpkin character placed against a night sky to finish the piece.  I love pumpkins so it just seemed to be the right thing to complete the work.

There is a night sky and two other characters not shown in this post...I want to have a few surprises for the collectors at Ghoultide to look forward to.

Hope your weather is feeling more like fall too!

Laurie

Hunky-Dory

This Saturday, September 10th, which also just happens to be my birthday, I will have one Halloween work available on PFATT Marketplace at 10 a.m. Pacific time.  His name is Hunky-Dory, because in his world everything is just hunky-dory, and karma seems to smile upon him.

He is only the fourth fully sculpted Halloween figure I have offered this year so if you are unable to attend Ghoultide Gathering, this will be the only other piece offered in September.

He has long sculpted fingers holding his candy bucket and carrying his jack-o'-lantern companion.  Hunky-Dory is just under 16" in height, and is made of paper mache, wood and wire and comes painted in acrylic paints sealed with a matte polymer varnish.

I have been in contact with a school counselor, and 1/2 of the selling price of Hunky-Dory will be given to a local elementary school that I think will benefit from the proceeds of the sale.  The staff at the school has repeatedly proven to go above and beyond for their students so I am thrilled to be able to help in a small way.  We are so blessed to have such devoted teachers and staff in our community.

I also want to mention that my thoughts and prayers are going out to all Americans suffering from the flooding and damage caused by Irene and Lee, and the drought related fires in Texas and California.  It breaks my heart to watch the weather related emergencies unfold on television, and makes me wish I had really deep pockets to assist more people in need. Lets all hope that the tropical depressions currently in the Atlantic do not find our shores.  

Have a wonderful weekend and here is wishing you all the weather that you need wherever you live.

Laurie 

Little Parker Pumpkin with Bailey Bat

I have finally finished the painting on two new sculptures, and this is one of them, "Parker Pumpkin."  As is normal with many of my figures, Parker has a story.  It seems as though Parker comes with a well-vined pedigree, with his family's seedstock traced back to at least the 1620s, when his ancestors were shared with the settlers of the Plymouth Colony.  Being native to North America, this little fellow's family roots run deep and proud.

Parker learned at an early age the impact his family had on the history of America, and he was raised to uphold the standards of his family tree, uh, I mean vine.  Parker had other ideas, however, after he overheard a group of young pumpkin boys discussing Halloween and all of the mischief and fun of the night.  The other little pumpkin boys shared their love of bats, spiders and bugs, and told him stories of spooky ghosts, witches and ghouls.  Parker decided he wasn't going to become food for the humans; he was going to become a jack-o'-lantern!



After Parker learned that most jack-o'-lanterns were carved and not painted, Parker carefully rethought the idea and decided instead to train Halloween bats.  Over time, what Cesar Millan is to dogs, Parker became to bats... he became known as the "bat whisperer!"

Parker is shown in this sculpture with a bat named Bailey, in his right hand, and uses this well balanced bat to teach other little nocturnal fellows how to get over their fear of jack-o'-lanterns.   After all, you can't have a bat afraid of common everyday Halloween folk. Not to worry, Parker hasn't failed yet with any of his bats, and it is partially due to the talents of Bailey!

Hope you like this silly pumpkin and understand his batty dreams.

Have a creative week!

Laurie

Painted Halloween Portraits

We have been having some Internet problems and I'm afraid my cute little neighborhood squirrels might be the cause...seems as though they like to chew on wiring that is placed above ground.  No wonder the cable company has buried as much of the cable as they can.  Anyway, sorry for the late post, but I didn't have Internet access.

One of the good things I discovered about not having Internet access was how productive I was without the distraction of running over to the computer to check email or Facebook.  (Maybe those squirrels are a good thing!)   I was able to put the finishing touches on this tiny little pumpkin boy portrait yesterday, which is on a 4" wrap around canvas.  I hope to get a few more done in the upcoming weeks to place on these small black wooden easels I found.  I think they will work nicely with other Halloween collectibles to enhance your arrangements of holiday objects.  Yes, I'm all Halloween already, and happy to be so!

Have a great week and St. Patrick's Day!
Laurie

Peek-a-Boo Pumpty

Halloween is now in full swing in the studio and I'm excited to return to the colors of orange and black...they are sort of like old friends to me.  Below is the first completed Halloween character for 2011, "Peek-a-Boo Pumpty", a funny little pumpkin boy wearing devil horns and holding a bird mask, playing peek-a-boo with us.  He has just thrown up his hands and uncovered his face to expose a suspiciously sweet little smile.   (I never completely trust these little guys as I blame them for the dust bunnies and cobwebs in my home...okay, maybe they aren't really responsible, but it makes me feel better to think so.)

Pumpty wasn't happy about his black and white striped unitard, but I explained to him that only real pumpkin "men" could carry it off so the muttering has subsided. 

This little fellow will be going to Ghoultide Gathering, September 30 and October 1, 2011, at Mill Race Village in Northville Michigan.  Check the link and look at the list of wonderful artists I have the great fortune of participating with at this wonderful Halloween festival of arts.  I feel so lucky to be included and know this will be another wonderful year at Ghoultide Gathering!  Don't miss it!

Have a great week!
Laurie

The Dumpty Pumpkin Boys

New to the Monkey-Cats Studio Halloween line up this year are two pumpkin figures seated on paper mache blocks that I have loving named the "Dumpty Pumpkin" brothers, "Lumpty and Humpty".  (They looked like they could fall off of those blocks and hence the names.)

"Lumpty Dumpty Pumpkin" is the first squatty little fellow shown and he is just tickled pink because a baby bat has landed on his fingers.  (Human children would be delighted by a butterfly, but in the world of Halloween a butterfly just wouldn't do, it had to be a bat.)  Being the youngster that he is, he grins with delight and puts his other hand up to signal his brother about the event.  If he gets too excited and doesn't pay attention that little fellow is going to take a tumble from his perch, and so begins their story that parallels another childhood tale.  

"Lumpty's" brother is "Humpty Dumpty Pumpkin", the elder of the two Dumpty Pumpkin brothers.  "Humpty" is a spider collector and is shown here with his favorite companion"Yo-Yo", named for his ability to go up and down quickly on his spun webs.  "Humpty" also adores his spider companion because he came with a pumpkin shape on his torso so he knew immediately that their relationship was meant to be.

The boys are headed to Michigan next week for Ghoultide Gathering.  Hope you like these silly brothers!

Laurie

Candy Containers.....

I am continuing to work on Ghoultide Gathering pieces and thought I would share with you some of the candy containers going to the show.  All six of these candy containers are open at the top so all one has to do is put a small amount of candy in them to make a "sweet" gift. 

There are two sculpted cat head candy containers shown, which are slightly different because I don't use molds in the sculpting process, plus in the top photo the cat has gold colored eyes and in the lower photo the cat has green colored eyes.

The smaller paper mache candy cups each have different figures painted on the front along with different painted trims so above you will see the skelly bat figure and pumpkin boy figure....

and a Monkey-Cat and Count figure in the second photo.  All of the containers have black twisted wire handles, with tinsel being added to the cat candy containers. 

I still have much to do so I am headed back to the studio!  Hope you enjoyed the peek!!

Laurie

Another Ghoultide Gathering peek

Wizards have always said that some pumpkin boys are grown on the vine, and some are hatched, but the pumpkin boys I have always known have all been vine grown.   I  have to admit I dismissed the hatching tale as folklore.  Imagine my surprise when I was told about "Hatch D. Lumina", a new pumpkin boy hatched from a jack-o-lantern.  Yes, that's right, pictures were taken showing the little fellow springing fully grown, clothed and carrying a JOL party mask for the upcoming Pumpkin Ball.

"Hatch", as his friends call him, has maintained his birthing jack-o-lantern and uses it to snuggle into during the day with his spider and other crawly friends.  Every evening he can be found popping back out of the cracked opening to locate his spooky companions of the night to prepare for an evening of fun and mischief.  He isn't terribly naughty, but when you see a worm floating in the Halloween punch, you don't have to ask who is responsible.

"Hatch" is really excited about his trip to Michigan to meet and party with the many mischief makers to be found at Ghoultide Gathering.  Hope you can come and introduce yourself to the him!

Have a great day!
Laurie

Making Progress

Painting, sculpting some final details and making some progress. I have finally learned I need to be painting on several pieces at once so that as I'm waiting for one surface to dry I still have another to work on. As you can see the heads and faces are one of the first things to be painted because the face tells me so much about what that figure's character is going to be like and what he or she would like to be wearing.

I still have a lot to get done , but I'm feeling much better about getting what I need to get done, done. With that said I better get some paint on the figures that still have too much white surface showing!

More peeks to come!
Laurie

Big Head Frankie

I had a weekend filled with painting and final sculpting on a few pieces and thought I would share "Big Head Frankie" with you. This little guy has a thing for Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack crew in Vegas so he was insistent on tuxedo style attire, but picked a silly pumpkin fellow for his bucket. Guess you can't always understand the mind, or should I say seed-pulp, of a pumpkin boy.

I've been using more glazes and experimenting on the finished paint surface of some of the more recent pieces and I think it may show in the close up of "Frankie". Hope you like the change. I'm particularly happy with how it is working on the heads and faces of the figures. Unfortunately, the camera can't pick it all up, but I still think it shows in a subtle way in the images of "Frankie".

Have a great week!! Back to the paint for me!

Laurie

EHAG Emporium

On Sunday, January 31, at 9 EST, the EHAG Emporium will have its debut!!! What is the EHAG Emporium you ask? Well, it is a new online opportunity for you to find original works of Halloween whimsy and art created by members of the Eclectic Halloween Artists Group. Click on the logo below and it will take you to this new site for you to get sneak peeks of some of the offerings on Sunday, as well as the list of artists participating this month. This is a "do not miss" opportunity!!! Great talent in this group!

Okay, this is a little self-serving, I am a member of EHAG and I am participating in this venture. Caught me!!

This is a sneak peek of "Jakey-Boo", my offering on the EHAG Emporium. Jakey is a little pumpkin head boy and Boo is his trusty-rusty skull headed scepter. Possibly another peek tomorrow, but you have to wait until Sunday to see the entire piece!

Have a great weekend and don't forget to come visit us on Sunday!

Laurie

SpookyTime Jingles Update!!!

Where is the time going to? It can't possibly be time for another SpookyTime Jingles update on Saturday night can it?!!!! Yes, it is time and luckily I managed to get some pieces done this month in the middle of the Christmas tree farm madness!!! Not everything I wanted, not everything I thought I would get done (I have exceeding high expectations), but I did manage to produce 4 pieces for the update!!! (This seemed to be a really SHORT month!)

First, is "Standish the Pumpkin Elf," that you already had a preview to in an earlier blog. "Standish" is one of Santa's "go to guys" at the North Pole and he is a Pumpkin boy loving his elf costume!!! He is shown grinning with pride and holding a paper mache teddy bear and paperclay candy canes. Hours and hours in sculpting and painting the hat and those boots, but so worth it!!! The jingle bells on his hat and boots are actually paper mache balls painted to look like bells.


Then, there are the jingles for the month of December, "Topper", "Siegfried and Bubo" and "Tosser"....the 3+ snowmen from Monkey-Cats!!!


"Topper" is a unique piece that functions as a tree topper, but I also designed him so he can sit on a shelf. He is the shortest and smallest of the three, but he looks adorable on top of a Christmas tree.


Next, is "Siegfried" with his wise little snow-fellow companion, "Bubo". "Siegfried" loves this little stack of snowball goodness and carries him lovingly where ever he goes. "Bubo" may be small, but he is loyal and has kept Siegfried of a hot water more than once...which is really critical to a snowman!! You might say they are made of the same....stuff.


The final snowman in the group is "Tosser." Tosser is a guy's-guy, and has the throwing arm of a major league pitcher. He is known to always have a spare snowball concealed on his body somewhere (literally), and in an instant can toss a snowball with such accuracy that any challenger doesn't stand a chance. One good thing about "Tosser"...he never throws the first snowball.


I hope one of these new pieces finds a place in your heart! They will be available at midnight tomorrow night!!!!
Time sure is flying!
Laurie

Fa-la-la-la-la La-la-la-la

Well, I just had a pleasant surprise. I went to Flickr to upload my images and much to my surprise I found this lovely holly frame to put around my photos. It is cold outside, snow possibly on Sunday, holly frames available to "Christmas-up" the figures...all is good with the world. (It doesn't take much to make me happy!!)

Below is the finished Pumpkin-Elf, "Standish". I need my head examined for putting the hours into sculpting and painting his hat and boots, but I just couldn't resist. Unlike last month's "Elf in the Ornie", this hat doesn't have real jingle bells, these are made of paper mache and painted to look like bells.

"Standish" is another one of my Pumpkin Boys that loves all holidays. He doesn't deliver presents on Christmas day, but he does help Santa with the distribution side of things up at the North Pole. He checks the names and packaging of each gift (along with a crew of "elves", if you know what I mean *wink-wink*) so that Santa successfully delivers each child the correct toy and gift. It isn't like it use to be at the North Pole as they have even gone to bar coding! "Standish" takes his responsibility very seriously to assure that Santa doesn't disappoint the children of the world and is shown here holding a teddy bear (also paper mache) and candy canes (paperclay) to be packaged for....oops, that would let the surprise out!

"Standish" is one of the more dashing of the Lumina family members and is never seen without his full elf costume except when he takes his January vacation to the Caribbean....then it is strictly island shirts and shorts for this little guy.

"Standish" hopes as Christmas approaches that you have a joyous and loving holiday season and that he doesn't see your name on the naughty list!!

Have a great weekend!
Laurie

SpookyTime Jingles Updates Tonight!!!!!!!

The November update for SpookyTime Jingles is tonight at midnight!!! I have one little jingle, Phineas the "Elf in the Ornie", and two little spooky-jingles....


the "Christmas Count" and "Pumpkin Claus." These three pieces will be available tonight at midnight on that very special marketplace!!

We can all use a little jingle in our lives... don't you think?! Hope to hear from you at midnight Eastern time (11 Central, 10 Mountain and 9 Pacific).

Have a great day!

Laurie

Rupert the Devil Pumpkin and Lothar His Skelly Scepter

I told you that Hephaestus had a Devil Pumpkin brother...his name is Rupert. Rupert is a bit less innocent than his sweet brother and chose as his companion the skelly scepter, Lothar. Lothar is a terrible influence on Rupert and constantly inspires him to do such things as letting the air out of bike tires, stealing children's' homework, letting dogs off of their leashes and then he lurks in corners to hear adults scold the young children accused of his doings. On Halloween night he has even been known to steal candy, scaring children and adults alike, and ringing doorbells and quickly hiding from the homeowner. He is just naughty!!!!!


This little fellow also has a pumpkin body as well as a pumpkin head. Don't let his smile fool you...he is pure mischief!!

Setting up this afternoon for Halloween and Vine...it all happens tomorrow!!!

Have a great weekend all!!
Laurie

Hephaestus the Devil Pumpkin With Horace

Tick, tick, tick....time is quickly approaching for the 14th annual Halloween and Vine this Saturday, September 26, at Hermann Sons Hall in Petaluma, CA. This little guy, "Hephaestus the Devil Pumpkin with Horace" will be one of 58 original works available for purchase at the Monkey-Cats Studio table. Hephaestus is one of two Devil Pumpkin brothers that will be making the journey to California...he is definitely the "cutey" of the two and adores his flaming pattern design on his base as well as across the bottom of his cape that covers his back. You might also notice he has a little devil tail...something this little guy was born with along with the horns sprouting from his forehead.

Not to fear, Hephaestus is a LITTLE devil and he only does small devilish deeds. (Okay, he has been know to fling a jack-o'-lantern or two, but only if they were already rotting and begging to be put out of their shriveling misery.) He is also shown with Horace, his Bat out of He-- (I didn't name him!!). It is actually Horace that you might have to watch...he has been known to fly off with a shiny thing or two, so if you adopt him and you can't locate one of your earrings, pretty pins or car keys (so naughty), you might want to check his favorite hiding spot, which is usually right over the top of your drapes. Of course when you go to look over the drapes he will have moved them and then put the object in plain site to make you feel pretty silly for not seeing them when you looked in the same spot the first time. Maybe you have already experienced the mischief of Horace!!

Well it is off to last minute details for me and maybe a margarita. Hope to see you Saturday!
Laurie

Bowl for Halloween and Vine

Well, Halloween and Vine is this Saturday and one of the items I will have on my table is a first for me. I created a painted a 14.5" paper mache lined bowl with Monkey-Cat figures filling the landscape. It is perfect for displaying in any Halloween collection and has lots of little details to amuse any Halloween collector.

It is much better in person and will be available on Saturday at the show in Petaluma, CA. If you aren't familiar with the show just click on Halloween and Vine and it will take you to the site for you to gather more information on the event, location and artists taking part in the show. Hope to see you there!!

Laurie