My Scary Bookshelf

If you're looking for some good reading material for the lengthening Autumn evenings, something to put you in the mood for the upcoming holiday, I've put together a Pinterest board to help you out!

My Scary Bookshelf is a collection of stories, art, how-to's and how-it-was-done's (if that's actually a phrase). I add to it as I discover (and sometimes remember) new books I've enjoyed and older books which scared me over the years. You can click on the images to be taken to Amazon to purchase them if you find you can't live without them!

Happy reading!

Inspiration: Artists at Work

I recently ran across a Pinterest board which sucked me in more than usual. By that I mean it made me simultaneously want to drop everything and run out into my studio to make cool stuff, and still sit and gaze lovingly at all the beautiful images.

The name of the board is "Pottery Studios," and features a number of different clay artists in their natural habitats. 

I like this board for several different reasons. First, it introduces me to other ceramic artists of whom I may not have heard, and allows me a glimpse into their worlds and their processes. Some are potters, some are sculptors, but all of them worship at the clay altar, just as I do. It makes me feel connected.

Second, I love to see the happiness and contentment on their faces as they're working away in their creative spaces. Again, it connects me to them because it's what I feel when I'm in the groove and making.

Third, I love to see, in the case of the potters, the rows and rows of greenware sitting on shelves, drying out and waiting to get into their first firing. I'm inspired by the pictures of soda or wood kilns, packed to the ceiling with glazed ware and waiting for the magic of the fire to transform them into works of art, into beautiful things for everyday use. 

It doesn't matter which country we come from or which techniques we use; we are all united by our passion for the clay and for making art. It inspires me to know these people are out there, pushing the boundaries of clay in order to leave something behind for others to use and admire.

It makes me happy to be one of them.

Screw You, Pinterest! Or, Hallowe'en Pinterest Fails

Oh, yes it's the Hallowe'en season, and Martha Stewart-esque aspirations are making your heart all aflutter and your mind race with endless possibilities and visions of the admiring and envious looks you'll get from your neighbors over your amazing execution of Hallowe'en everything!

Where to go for that perfect Hallowe'en-themed baby picture idea? The perfect spooky cake? The perfect trash bag spider web? 

Pinterest, of course!

You scan the pages of ideas for hours, re-pinning like one gone mad, until at last! You're ready!

And then this happens.

Pinterest vs. Reality. An epic battle taking place, even as you read this.

Beware, my dark darlings. Beware.

Other Pinterest fails are here.

The Dark Hallowe'en Art of Pumpkinrot

It's funny how, for hard-core haunters and Hallowe'en people, the beginning of summer is the beginning of the Hallowe'en season. There are only so many weekends and evenings before The Show (as my friend, Revenant, calls it), and those minutes and days are precious to us.

Planning is key, but before planning comes an even more important factor: inspiration.

I can't think, off the top of my head, of anyone more inspiring in the Halloween art genre than my brother from another mother, Pumpkinrot.

I know anyone reading this post in June already knows all about Rot and his constant inspiration and contributions to the Hallowe'en afflicted. I know this comment may come off as fawning, but it's truly the respect of one artist for another's work, techniques, and imagination.

Since I had a little time to putter around on the net while away on my anniversary trip, I put together a board on my Pinterest page, dedicated solely to Rot's creations. I hope you enjoy it.

Thank you, Rot, for the inspiration you give me and for making me push to do more with my art.

Just for Grins

Rot's new and creepy header...

...I did a quick search on Pinterest for "Pumpkinrot."

It's great to see such a talented haunter and artist be recognized for his fiendish genius. Way to go, my brother from another mother!

Pumpkinrot blog.