Grimm Fabrications- Photo Credit- Of' Storms Creative Studios

Friday 21 February 2014

New hoods and progress

Rawr! I'm a unicorn beast!


By which I mean I've been making hoods, and today I photographed a few of them. The above is a weird hood that I decided to make. I just felt like making something unicorn-ish. But it's not really a unicorn, because it has a lack of mane, and it has wolfish ears. It's delightful. And yes, in photographing it, I had to make a growly face. How could it be any other way?

This week, I finished the 'Hell Hound' hoods (Supernatural inspired hoods!), and I'm quite pleased with them. This is what they look like.
    

Pointed ears, silky black faux fur, and custom lining that I had printed by Spoonflower.com

Lastly, made a couple of grey hoods. Here is one.


I'm not sure what the makeup is inspired by. It was kind of arbitrary. I just felt like wearing black lipstick, and drawing on my face. I'm quite pleased with how it looks. Fairly tribal, while also being gothic-ish. Ish. Whatever the case... Happy with it! Also, I'm quite pleased with the hoods. I have about eight more to go, and I'll be done making hoods for the comic expo. Then I just have ears, some jewelry, shirts, and kimono shrugs. That sounds like a lot... but it really isn't. How weird is that?

Thursday 13 February 2014

Shirts


The fruits of my labor. Behold! Nine hand-sewn jersey t-shirts. They will be printed. Three of each design. I'm going to start small with shirts. All are same sizes, and a first edition run of three shirts each. Then we'll see how they do on Etsy and at the Comic Expo.

Fun times!

Wednesday 12 February 2014

Altar


I was playing around with imagery for photo shoots and documentation over the next couple of months. I was thinking about pagan altars, ritual, and arcane imagery. This image is my favourite photo that I took (and edited). I also created these two images, that kind of lean towards the overall imagery that I'm going to try to go for for the website and Etsy shop.

 


My personal favourite is the first one, that's kind of sepia-ish. Mostly because I'm pleased with the composition. The drawings on my hands are mostly alchemy symbols, with the exception of some astrology symbols, and one hobo symbol. Oh, and my usual three dot sequences. I'll probably incorporate drawing on my hands for the photo shoot and documentation. 

Square


Hoorah! I received my Square reader in the mail. This makes me even more excited for the Comic Expo. Might not see any action, but at least I'll have it in case someone wants to or needs to use it. 

Just a brief moment of excitement. That's all!

Carnivorous et carrion

I've been rather interested in strange botany recently. Particularly carrion plants and carnivorous plants. The shapes, colours, and.... well, the corpse-iness of them are fascinating. I've been reading about a few, and starting to sketch a few for projects later on. Here are a few of my favourites.

(Please note that all of the information is from my preliminary research, so if there's anything that you find to be inaccurate or untrue, please let me know. Learning is good!)


Amorphophallus titanum

Its name means 'giant misshapen phallus' in Greek. Who knows why they decided to name it that... (kidding). It is one of the largest flowers in the world, and can group up to 10 feet tall. It is found in the rainforests of Sumatra. Like most carrion plants, it is foul smelling, but unlike others, it is pollinated by both beetles and flies. Most amorphophalluses bloom once in every six years, and that is when the smell is most pungent.



Birthwort

Another foul smelling plant. It is a climbing vine, with heart-shaped leaves and poisonous tubular flowers. It is found in Europe, and used to be used medicinally for pregnant women. That was before it was discovered to cause kidney failure.


Dracunculus vulgaris

Also referred to as Stink Lily (and other names as well). It is a large flower, of dark purple colouration, and it smells like meat. It comes from Greece and the surrounding area, but in North American it is grown as an ornamental plant. Which, if you ask me is so strange. I won't lie, I would grow them, but I'd be so nervous about the rank insects, and.... Y'know. The meat smell.




Sarracenia

"North America Pitcher plant". This is a carnivorous/insectivorous plant. There are various types, and all of them grow around Texas, the eastern seaboard, and southern/eastern Canada. I find them very interesting. The leaves have evolved into a hood, which prevents rainwater from diluting the digesting fluids. They attract insects with their colour, smell, and nectar-like secretion on tip of pitchers. The top of the "mouth" has slippery footing, and (in the case of at least one species) the nectar is laced with a narcotic drug. This combination causes insects to fall inside, where they are digested.

Darlingtonia californica

This plant is also called 'the Cobra Lily'. It is the sole member of the Darlingtonia genus (side note: I love that name. Darlingtonia). It is designated as an uncommon plant, because it grows in bogs, and seeps with cold running water. When insects are inside, they are confused by large light speckles. The plant has thousands of fine hairs that grow inwards, leading towards the digestive organs. The hairs act a bit like a lobster trap, where insects can enter easily inside, but they cannot back up or turn around. The hairs force the insects to their doom.

Eastern skunk cabbage

Symplocarpus foetidus. This plant is a low-growing, foul-smelling plant that prefers wetlands. It grows in Northern and Eastern North America, and parts of Asia. The Eastern skunk cabbage is one of the few plants that exhibits thermogenesis. This means that it can generate heat! Which is really cool. It can heat to the point that it melts snow around it, blossoms in snow, and attracts insects in winter.

Nature is a curious, strange, thing. So many fascinating plants!

Monday 10 February 2014

Horns

I've been really into horns recently. They're such a great costume item. Simple or complex, they can be a fantastical addition to an outfit. Yesterday I decided to make my first pair out of clay. They turned out quite well, if I might say so myself. 



I'm hoping to eventually make a couple of sets out of resin, but for now I'll be making a few out of clay, and they'll be available the Comic Expo in April! Every set will be unique, just like real horns and antlers.

Sunday 9 February 2014

Changes


So here we are. The moment when I announce that everything is being put on hold until April 14th, 2014. This is a long explanation, and I decided that doing it as a video was best. I'm still going to be blogging and everything, but Facebook and Etsy will be not updated or added to. They are going to be revamped, and renewed, and refurbished... Here's why!


Everything will be back up and running (the way I want it) on April 14th. I don't want to feel confined or restricted, and while I might lose "followers", I will also gain more, and it'll hopefully be stronger, and more embracing of everything that I do. I want to be a prism, not a box, and this is the beginning of bigger, better, and more satisfying things. 

The Countess


I've been spending my Sunday morning working on projects, and watching a movie called 'The Countess'. It's really good. I enjoy drama that is historical and macabre... this one in particular. It is a film about Elizabeth Bathory. She is one of my favourite historical figures. She is the one who is rumored to have killed virgins, in order to attain their blood. The legends say that she thought the blood made her look younger. The stories are so creepy and macabre. I'm fascinated with the idea of cultures and individuals killing virgins for their purity. It's a bit arbitrary, and so... what's a good word for evil?

This film is fantastic. The costuming is absolutely beautiful, and there are so many moments in this film that cause the slightest cringe. I'm curious as to where the filmmaker got the idea for such scenes. A young Elizabeth burying a live chick, because she thought that it would grow like a seed. Instead, she dug it up to find a decomposed chick, covered in maggots. Later, she is heartbroken over her young lover. She cuts open a large, deep cut in her chest. She places a lock of his hair in the cut, and sews it up. Later, she finds a new lover who enjoys pain, and she discovers her enjoyment of inflicting pain (a very Venus in Furs kind of scene). Scenes of blood-drained young girls, disposed of in the woods, and being eaten by wolves. It's all very strange, very morbid, very macabre.... just so... subtly bloody. It's almost fairy tale like... At least the German fairy tales, in its gruesomeness. Elizabeth Bathory always makse me think of Bluebeard.

I'm finding this film to be very inspirational. Then again, I get a huge amount of inspiration from dark history, particularly the legends that may or may not be true. This film is particularly inspiring because of the small things (like the cringe worthy scenes mentioned above), and the costuming. Here are a few stills from the movie. It's such a stunning film. I'm sorry for the influx of photos. I'm in love with the costuming. You can click on the photos for larger views.





 

 

 

Absolutely lovely. I find that Renaissance costumes inspire me quite a bit. The detail is fantastic, and everything about it is just so beautiful. Just as Renaissance painting inspires me, so do the garments that the artists wore.

I highly recommend this film to anyone who loves costuming, or just likes historical films in general. It's beautiful, and creepy, and morbid. 

Saturday 8 February 2014

Zines


I have cool friends. Two of them have started making zines, and believe me, they are amazing. ZJournal and Fyrewillow: The Zine Edition. They are created by my friends Chelsea and Luna. The zines are absolutely delightful, and bring smiles to my face. 


For the first issue of Fyrewillow, I am the featured artist! Inside, I answer various questions about my art, and it's very exciting. I'm delighted to be a feature artist in something. Especially when in that something, I am asked about my favourite tea. 

Zines are a beautiful invention.

Thursday 6 February 2014

Black eyes

Played around with some make up today. After spending most of the day without any eyeliner on (which is a bit strange for me, to be honest), I decided to go full board and have some fun. Continuing on creating ideas for what kind of makeup I'd like to do for my photo shoot. 

I kind of did two versions. I did one, and then I added some more. The second version is a bit more exciting. 


Both versions are inspired by things I've been seeing on Pinterest. Vaguely Egyptian, also kind of witchy. The second one is inspired by these two images.

 

Who knows what I'll do next? Also... please let me know which make up looks you think are best!