tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-772131777945878322024-03-13T12:51:49.328-04:00Art by SaradaColorful fantasy, witch, fairy and Halloween art infused with a love of nature.artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.comBlogger189125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-620711632513756242018-07-22T18:10:00.003-04:002018-07-22T18:10:37.659-04:00Psychedelic visions, imaginary album art, and dark memories of dungeons. Necklaces, too.A big update is underway in my main Etsy shop this July, and one of the big things to know is that I've reduced the cost of prints, at least through the end of the summer, to $6 for 5 x 7 prints and $10 for 8 x 10 prints. I also tried to make sure that first class shipping is available for all prints. If you see it coming up as only priority mail shipping please let me know and I can adjust it down to first class. As always, international quotes are available on request, but require some extra time to pin down the exact cost.<br />
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I finally listed an oil painting that I completed late last year, with a gothic/alchemical theme. It's one of my favorites, and I'll be happy to offer prints on request but haven't made them just yet.<br />
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I also have a number of 8 x 10 and 11 x 15 paintings on stretched canvas that were done for art shows or just my own amusement...and pendants are now available! I have made 12 designs in total and have four more in my shop. Contact me if you're curious about the others and don't want to wait, but I will list the rest very soon.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/563302904/gothic-alchemy-dark-fantasy-forest-oil?ref=shop_home_active_11" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/563302904/gothic-alchemy-dark-fantasy-forest-oil?ref=shop_home_active_11" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1147" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-O4i-KuViOSg/W1SwvNq-bCI/AAAAAAAACCE/eR5Nx6HWij8X_bbFQ_XNL2LV-uDFaOcfQCLcBGAs/s320/alchemicaloilwatermark.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Original oil painting</div>
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"Black Swan Ritual"</div>
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9 x 12 inches</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630606639/unicorn-and-maiden-in-the-forest?ref=listing_published_alert" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630606639/unicorn-and-maiden-in-the-forest?ref=listing_published_alert" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1304" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TnlBe-2f1GU/W1THVfCa0zI/AAAAAAAACDk/EWVewSnyYxgkDVX6iavL9IWkb9IeV5MGACLcBGAs/s320/unicorndragonwatermark.jpg" width="260" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"The Golden Dragon and the Unicorn"</div>
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11 x 14 inches</div>
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This painting was inspired by a scene in a D&D module that I love, X2 Chateau D'Amberville. In the encounter, there is a woman with golden hair asleep in a grove with a unicorn, guarding a box. She is actually a gold dragon that has shapeshifted. You'd never know this is from a D&D module if you weren't looking for the reference, but just between you and me...that's where the idea came from! </div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/616751720/dungeon-wizard-cavern-dragon-original?ref=listing-shop-header-3" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/616751720/dungeon-wizard-cavern-dragon-original?ref=listing-shop-header-3" border="0" data-original-height="1310" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aViFX_CmHQM/W1Sw9KT6btI/AAAAAAAACCM/Nd9Sg3oe05UFna4yo5PgvgBARhTwshijgCLcBGAs/s320/alchemydragonwatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"Subterranean Summoning"</div>
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11 x 14 inches</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630478473/psychedelic-space-queen-original-8-x-10?ref=related-5" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630478473/psychedelic-space-queen-original-8-x-10?ref=related-5" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1288" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uPeeSC2SlQU/W1Sw9gTlbqI/AAAAAAAACCQ/NBN7ripEPbs9l2lXCvTT4G_1spcNKq-gACLcBGAs/s320/psychqueenwatermark.jpg" width="257" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"Beyond the Sea of Cosmic Memory"</div>
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8 x 10 inches</div>
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These two psychedelic paintings (above and below) were in a recent psychedelic art show at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/insomniaVGC/" target="_blank">Insomnia Gallery</a> in Houston. They have an art show every month on a variety of themes: gothic, gaming, horror, and plenty of other pop culture and art themes. We've participated in at least a half dozen of them so far, including their annual monster art show, cartoons, video games and other topics. The gallery also houses an incredible record store!</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/616744624/psychedelic-tree-art-eyes-mushrooms?ref=listing-shop-header-3" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/616744624/psychedelic-tree-art-eyes-mushrooms?ref=listing-shop-header-3" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1265" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SWr47LJXtwI/W1Sw8yktKII/AAAAAAAACCI/PsrfnIc8x2YQWTdjy96EIRaMoPArtivIQCLcBGAs/s320/psychtreewatermark.jpg" width="252" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"The Source of the Mushroom Vision"</div>
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8 x 10 inches</div>
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One other thing about these psychedelic paintings: I did them to resemble album covers I'd love to see. The first one in particular is a bit of a nod to the kind of album art that The Fool did in the 1960s for projects like the Incredible String Band's 5000 Spirits of Layers of the Onion album. Just as colorful as possible, with vague overtures toward cosmic and spiritual themes.</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630594109/luna-moth-crystal-painting-5-x-7?ref=related-1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630594109/luna-moth-crystal-painting-5-x-7?ref=related-1" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1093" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HqfC2NgcPOg/W1S0-YHK51I/AAAAAAAACCk/tZlpiT1hpzkXdBXejUCp1lY6yeLERfOJACLcBGAs/s320/lunacrystalwatermark.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"Luna Crystals"</div>
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5 x 7 inches</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/616760058/octopus-crystal-original-art-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/616760058/octopus-crystal-original-art-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1144" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oAlQPmq-_m8/W1S1gz2iwlI/AAAAAAAACCs/xnBpUAN_1FIg8hLnyeyDNJj0S_MmLVA-gCLcBGAs/s320/octocrystalwatermark.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"Octo Crystals"</div>
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5 x 7 inches</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630597225/ghost-bottles-alchemist-workshop?ref=listing_published_alert" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/630597225/ghost-bottles-alchemist-workshop?ref=listing_published_alert" border="0" data-original-height="1129" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yLTKwkNaBio/W1S1j3B50AI/AAAAAAAACCw/lIGZwTur23UMhrFUnX_4YrKlwconYD_1wCLcBGAs/s320/phantombottleswatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Original acrylic painting</div>
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"Accidents in the Alchemist's Workshop"</div>
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5 x 7 inches</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/577093247/dark-galaxy-unicorn-repro-print-5-x-7-or?ref=shop_home_active_13" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/577093247/dark-galaxy-unicorn-repro-print-5-x-7-or?ref=shop_home_active_13" border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="228" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_CsvAAZGFms/W1T4C0le5NI/AAAAAAAACDw/c5hIX6hz3I0C30QRB5ZnpQWDIzoCayv8ACLcBGAs/s320/galaxyunicorn57.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now available as a photo print</div>
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"The Unicorn Constellation"</div>
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5 x 7 or 8 x 10 photographic print</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/587646718/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=shop_home_active_9" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/587646718/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=shop_home_active_9" border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QwO0AnIdpTU/W1S-IBblEyI/AAAAAAAACDA/eznChYfeTC8OE6MslprcmYVFHu-HbbJpACLcBGAs/s320/crone4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"The Crone's Secret" </div>
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Glass tile pendant</div>
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1-inch square print beneath glass on a chain</div>
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I have wanted to make little glass tile necklaces for close to 20 years and finally broke down and did some. It is quite easy to do and they are very charming! Each pendant is made of a nice, sturdy, heavy metal and houses a teeny tiny 1-inch photo print sealed in place with a glass tile. I include a basic 24-inch gunmetal chain so you can wear it right away, but feel free to use your own instead. </div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/601436283/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=related-1"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/601437055/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=related-2" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wOYrXwZBEuo/W1S-JnycDaI/AAAAAAAACDE/hTa0wWB1jUYfSFuvuigp3XawfmVnK3PJwCLcBGAs/s320/owlcat1.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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"The Owl and the Pussycat Went to Tea"</div>
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Glass tile pendant</div>
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1-inch square print beneath glass on a chain</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/601434743/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=related-1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/601434743/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=related-1" border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5OVPJ-i_Ke8/W1S-M7k_xxI/AAAAAAAACDI/N6UsWXFS7684I2M9LQL4lcouTCc0eJsJACLcBGAs/s320/swirly1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"Le Coeur et le Serpent"</div>
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Glass tile pendant</div>
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1-inch square print beneath glass on a chain</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/601437055/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=related-2" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/601437055/handmade-glass-tile-art-pendant-necklace?ref=related-2" border="0" data-original-height="1168" data-original-width="1600" height="233" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PUgg8ZZ7AZ0/W1S-Rm_ppbI/AAAAAAAACDM/FVvyS92W0w4rO2sA9euNYz9MnCixXdajACLcBGAs/s320/witchgirl3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"Song of the Witch Girl"</div>
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Glass tile pendant</div>
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1-inch square print beneath glass on a chain</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W59I7zi7XuA/W1T73kxGXxI/AAAAAAAACD8/DkK4p1HXNY0L_cg_GhzLHQHUJBaBzWZ-ACLcBGAs/s1600/thornandmoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W59I7zi7XuA/W1T73kxGXxI/AAAAAAAACD8/DkK4p1HXNY0L_cg_GhzLHQHUJBaBzWZ-ACLcBGAs/s320/thornandmoon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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In March, I participated in the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thornandmoonmagickmarket/" target="_blank">Thorn and Moon Magickal Market</a> at Avant Garden in Houston, an event that grows every month, and is held the first Friday of each month. I hope to attend again. Prints and pendants were extremely popular there, and I have all of them available in my shop all the time. If you ever see that I am out of stock of something you want let me know and I'll make sure to make a new one for you!</div>
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I have lots more art on the way, it's just a matter of sitting down at a laptop and listing it, but who actually sits down at a computer anymore, right?</div>
artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-6787734920035319572017-09-24T17:10:00.003-04:002017-09-24T21:36:46.987-04:00Magical crystals, unicorn, witch flowers and dark omensIn the weeks before Halloween, I have a mixed bag of art and styles that isn't sticking strictly to the black and orange pumpkin theme. I've been through a few phases lately, so I present these here just as a sampling of some art that is currently available. Watercolors in shades of blue, pink and purple; unicorns; dragons, psychedelic and gothic ladies; and a new favorite style of mine which is to create a "cabinet of curiosity" style assemblage in a painting featuring bones, shells, rocks, crystals, insects, plants and other oddities and pleasantries.<br />
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Here are a few new items, both originals and prints (prints are available if the original painting sold) before I crack down on putting together a grouping of Halloween-specific items!<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560187327/blue-crystal-original-watercolor-9-x-12?ref=shop_home_active_2" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560187327/blue-crystal-original-watercolor-9-x-12?ref=shop_home_active_2" border="0" data-original-height="1282" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Lp29EO89V00/WcgdmM7vO9I/AAAAAAAAB-s/9xtx3tIU9d837Sd1DdMT_ax3TJbpOK3RwCLcBGAs/s320/watercolorcrystalwatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560189007/pink-unicorn-original-watercolor-9-x-12?ref=listing-shop-header-1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560189007/pink-unicorn-original-watercolor-9-x-12?ref=listing-shop-header-1" border="0" data-original-height="1162" data-original-width="1600" height="232" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X-F3QicYdgk/Wcfv_9YZ9iI/AAAAAAAAB-Q/NsyVRcDLuqE14BMHHusZN0acfDYc2r5jgCLcBGAs/s320/watercolorunicorn.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/546479294/rainbow-crystal-original-watercolor-9-x?ref=listing_published_alert" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/546479294/rainbow-crystal-original-watercolor-9-x?ref=listing_published_alert" border="0" data-original-height="1162" data-original-width="1600" height="232" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zO8NOLy1iZE/WchXg6MiSOI/AAAAAAAAB-8/aUbncbpzXQgJyE6YHGXEhROa9QLmC3sLgCLcBGAs/s320/watercolorrainbowcrystalwatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560253745/pink-purple-pegasus-horse-original?ref=shop_home_active_1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560253745/pink-purple-pegasus-horse-original?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" data-original-height="1162" data-original-width="1600" height="232" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-teBr4m8EvB4/WchcG18PDnI/AAAAAAAAB_E/EiEo7mdh40kwEq8GqkdNC2WC6C-4crRcwCLcBGAs/s320/watercolorpegasuswatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/545884639/witch-cabinet-botanical-insect-curiosity?ref=shop_home_active_8" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/545884639/witch-cabinet-botanical-insect-curiosity?ref=shop_home_active_8" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1192" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b1pD8P8sCH4/WXTEaKhKAaI/AAAAAAAAB84/zhSrUOWsst4x_C-GWWwXpwLVoEt0Qjp7wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/assemblage1watermark.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/521086874/gothic-cemetery-mausoleum-vampire-with?ref=shop_home_active_11" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/521086874/gothic-cemetery-mausoleum-vampire-with?ref=shop_home_active_11" border="0" data-original-height="785" data-original-width="570" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MwxBKL9DRo4/WXTFz-4ukyI/AAAAAAAAB8w/9B_82VHUG6AKiTXlcr6d6iwUNRu7dyQrwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/blogspot3.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/531644093/crystal-purple-dragon-fantasy-painting?ref=shop_home_active_13" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/531644093/crystal-purple-dragon-fantasy-painting?ref=shop_home_active_13" border="0" data-original-height="798" data-original-width="570" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PggOReFk5FQ/WcfvuPxQGuI/AAAAAAAAB90/ReVClnnNI8cuN8TdZn9jYHCRB-KmfR9bgCLcBGAs/s320/blogspot5.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/530351760/phantom-flowers-dark-gothic-botanical?ref=shop_home_active_9" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/530351760/phantom-flowers-dark-gothic-botanical?ref=shop_home_active_9" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1166" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jIJx473iKeM/WcfvuXAaoVI/AAAAAAAAB98/UQMIZ13NsIwezGFLSl9ZvQ1dKIBa0qKrwCLcBGAs/s320/darkflowerswatermark.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/546481290/aurora-black-unicorn-fantasy-painting?ref=listing_published_alert" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/560184111/gothic-aurora-black-unicorn-5-x-7-art?ref=listing-shop-header-3" border="0" data-original-height="1064" data-original-width="760" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--E0NPOxJ7vw/Wcfv2TyKA3I/AAAAAAAAB-A/EEhnB_bwC1UOLRF0Zue3m0bMnltVDF1EACLcBGAs/s320/auroraunicornprint.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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<br />artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-31563363069788939192017-09-04T15:24:00.001-04:002017-09-04T15:29:23.613-04:00Meditations on Twin Peaks: The Return, the nature of reality and ultimate evilI have enjoyed returning to the world of Twin Peaks for the past few months, and David Lynch's third season ("The Return") of this legendary show easily figures among my very favorite of his creations, from start to finish.<br />
<br />
Since I am still very busy with work-related activities stemming from the flooding that has spread across Houston and eastern Texas, I don't have a lot of time to chime in with online discussions so I thought I would present my initial response to the series finale here, for the enjoyment of my friends and casual passersby. I have only watched each episode once and I have pretty much just absorbed them along the way without prolonged commentary, but here are some of my thoughts, accompanied by a selection of Twin Peaks-inspired artwork I have done in recent months.<br />
<br />
TL;DR: I love it. <br />
<br />
<b>Reflections on Twin Peaks: The Return</b><br />
<br />
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Twin Peaks gained a large portion of its audience because of
its quirky characters and sense of mystery, but as we have known for some time,
its underpinnings are profoundly dark. Would a neat resolution and a
happily-ever-after coda do justice to the fact that the show is philosophically
rooted in the concept that mankind’s infinite capacity for malice and
destruction has threaded a new form of evil into the cosmic fabric?</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/552968417/original-fan-art-twin-peaks-the-return?ref=shop_home_active_2" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/552968417/original-fan-art-twin-peaks-the-return?ref=shop_home_active_2" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1123" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R3QBBYJTYUM/Wa2gCgFVqQI/AAAAAAAAB9Q/Y54yquoIPEoC_ENQpM8aOnDK7W_VWtAXQCLcBGAs/s320/bowiekettlewatermark.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Inspired by the Philip Jeffries sequences in "Twin Peaks: The Return"</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The show’s concessions to conventional narrative—tying up
some of its romantic plotlines and delivering on some audience-pleasing moments
of triumph and reunion in episodes 16 and 17—are almost a parody of the form
when viewed against the bleak and open-ended meditation which is episode 18. It
is another layer in a multi-layered universe that has already been revealed to
us several times during the show’s run, in moments such as Cooper’s
transformation into Dougie, the audience’s journey through modes of time and
reality in episode 8, or Audrey’s dreamlife and unresolved awakening in episode
16. This layering is explicit in the sequence where Cooper’s image is
superimposed over the concluding moments of episode 17’s “final boss battle”
and the subsequent events.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/531067238/twin-peaks-inspired-fan-art-this-is-the?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/531067238/twin-peaks-inspired-fan-art-this-is-the?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="752" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6hQtqjcvojU/Wa2gC8N1EWI/AAAAAAAAB9U/F2Kb6waVzpYK6iAKezrAXDPUk8MctKaHwCLcBGAs/s320/thisisthewater.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A bit of Twin Peaks catechism we will never forget.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When his image stares ahead after the big
battle at the sheriff’s office, is Cooper waking from a dream the way Audrey
does when she confronts her image in a mirror in a bright white room? Her
dreamworld was populated by intrigues and romance and battles, but they were
ultimately all shadows on the wall. She does not reappear in the last two
episodes because the point of her storyline has been made. It would be nice to
see her reunite with Cooper and lock arms to go out and fight evil together,
but is that what this show has ever been about? Was it ever going to end with a
freeze frame of everyone laughing it up in the sheriff’s office, hoisting
coffee mugs while the theme song plays? We were given that moment when Cooper
recovered in the hospital, but there is still a lot of activity backstage after
the curtain closes on the show’s narrative action. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Following the fast-paced events of episode 17, is episode 18
merely an hour of “nothing is happening?” I see the episode as germinative, which
by its nature requires a period of darkness and a length of time, but also
heralds a beginning, even if it is merely the latest in an infinite loop. In a
prolonged moment bridging two realities, Diane and Cooper in the motel
represent a moment not unlike that in episode 8, where the same music
accompanies the sleeping world’s invasion by uncanny and malignant forces. Nothing
will be the same afterward.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CrLNxjEmp0E/Wa2gXum5N9I/AAAAAAAAB9Y/wdg7Pn7COxk-akylE2ltBEVtiWVF8jACACLcBGAs/s1600/evolutionofthearmmini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CrLNxjEmp0E/Wa2gXum5N9I/AAAAAAAAB9Y/wdg7Pn7COxk-akylE2ltBEVtiWVF8jACACLcBGAs/s320/evolutionofthearmmini.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The evolution of the arm (SOLD)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cooper and Laura's long drive to Twin Peaks is not an action-packed
sequence full of satisfying narrative elements, but it does represent movement
and transition. The show as we knew it ended in 17 when Cooper walked through
that door. It makes me think about other long, meditative but seemingly
superfluous“driving” sequences. The first thing that occurs to me is the long driving
scene in “Solaris” (1971) before the main character leaves Earth for a planet
where reality is highly subjective. I found an excellent description of the
meaning of the 5-minute driving scene in that film, on this post answered in
<b>Quora</b> which I excerpt here:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://www.quora.com/In-the-Tarkovsky-film-Solaris-what-is-the-deal-with-the-overly-long-highway-scene-through-Tokyo-Is-there-some-sort-of-meaning-or-metaphor-that-I-am-missing" target="_blank">“This is a film about human perception and questioning ournotions of ‘real’ versus ‘imagined,’ but more importantly questioning whetherwe have a choice between those two things and whether the difference is perhapsitself merely a manifestation of human perception.”</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://www.quora.com/In-the-Tarkovsky-film-Solaris-what-is-the-deal-with-the-overly-long-highway-scene-through-Tokyo-Is-there-some-sort-of-meaning-or-metaphor-that-I-am-missing"><span style="font-family: "times" , serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></a><span style="font-family: "times" , serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Twin Peaks is a different animal, of
course, but it deals similarly with questions of reality and dream states, and
these long and silence sequences—in the motel, or on the road—seem to offer
both the seeding of a new reality and its slow and silent gestation.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The show was never about answering a question or solving a
mystery, as any viewer who has made it this far will know. It pulls back
layers, but it is clear that Lynch does not intend to provide a clear
explanation, for who can explain the nature of evil or reality? The concluding
moments of the show make it clear that we are still within the shadow of the
show’s main narrative—the whisper of Laura’s name, the flickering of the house
and her unforgettable, resounding scream show that this world is still anchored in another. Is progress ever possible, within this loop, or are we merely switching between different outcomes and different levels of experience? I think it would
be less satisfying to have this tie up with a well-explained happy ending, and
it would completely inappropriate for the themes Lynch has explored throughout. </div>
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wpWRTWCIfWY/Wa2gCULxG-I/AAAAAAAAB9M/VGj9Hl-FnAw6KgOSOfWesfHdH5G844owgCLcBGAs/s1600/dougie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1599" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wpWRTWCIfWY/Wa2gCULxG-I/AAAAAAAAB9M/VGj9Hl-FnAw6KgOSOfWesfHdH5G844owgCLcBGAs/s320/dougie.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Inspired by Dougie Jones' unforgettable coffee scenes</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
(SOLD)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lBr6t41gFnQ/Wa2gCpsrTtI/AAAAAAAAB9I/F61uMxjgs5UeghtLsD11ychr0BwbJRDAQCLcBGAs/s1600/room315.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1598" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lBr6t41gFnQ/Wa2gCpsrTtI/AAAAAAAAB9I/F61uMxjgs5UeghtLsD11ychr0BwbJRDAQCLcBGAs/s320/room315.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The Room 315 key at the Great Northern Hotel assumes a particular importance in episode 18</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-493pUD7ZoV4/Wa2gq8cjfhI/AAAAAAAAB9c/EspXfbuwHUIss2-nTla67_XX5vnbNNKeACLcBGAs/s1600/lauraface.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1597" data-original-width="1600" height="319" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-493pUD7ZoV4/Wa2gq8cjfhI/AAAAAAAAB9c/EspXfbuwHUIss2-nTla67_XX5vnbNNKeACLcBGAs/s320/lauraface.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
So many mysteries to be revealed (SOLD)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
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Thank you for reading and viewing. I am always open to doing some Twin Peaks-based fan art for individuals who share my enthusiasm, both in paint and embroidery.</div>
artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-42019308335901903472017-01-22T16:59:00.000-05:002017-01-22T20:19:15.171-05:00Fundraising art for 2017I like to offer up art for fundraising purposes, whether through a direct sale or to an auction, etc., whenever I can but this year I would like to make significant increase in the amount that I donate to the organizations that I support, and to donate to more organizations in general.
I will update this page regularly with artwork that I have for that purpose. Right now I am looking to bolster my donations to the ACLU and other groups. 100% of the sale price will go to charity and if you are in the US I will pay shipping if you purchase directly from me (as opposed to through Etsy, etc.). I will put some of these on Etsy to increase the number of people who might be able to see them.<br />
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I'm asking for a $20 or more donation for a 3 x 5 inch cat painting (the night cat has sold, but I can make more similar to it!) and a $25 or more donation for the 5 x 7 painting of the rainbow feminist unicorn which I would like to earmark for a Planned Parenthood donation as they have been the main place I have received annual cancer screenings for over 25 years. I haven't given these proper titles yet, but I think that describes them! These are on flat canvas board in acrylic paint.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xS7nxuWsFew/WIUIjmbqFTI/AAAAAAAAB6o/1QpIqWikLNgzqiROy2rmuyeDSlNeH844QCLcB/s1600/pinkcatsandunicorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xS7nxuWsFew/WIUIjmbqFTI/AAAAAAAAB6o/1QpIqWikLNgzqiROy2rmuyeDSlNeH844QCLcB/s320/pinkcatsandunicorn.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Then I have little 2 x 3 inch paintings on mini stretch canvases of kitty cats. The purple one is spoken for but I can certainly do more in that or any other color. I'm asking $15 or more donations for these.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JZLTfE74IpU/WIUI74qFedI/AAAAAAAAB6s/QUmPL-94OTYqU5FdexRks5AJXR7_5rz1ACLcB/s1600/DSC_0675.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JZLTfE74IpU/WIUI74qFedI/AAAAAAAAB6s/QUmPL-94OTYqU5FdexRks5AJXR7_5rz1ACLcB/s320/DSC_0675.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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If you want to see proof of donations afterwards I can certainly provide that! I'm hoping that by offering cute little pieces of art that I produce regularly, I can help to boost my donations. Please share with anyone that you think would like to buy some art for one of these causes or others. Repaints, variations and requests are welcome.artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-63018433860101410382016-12-26T22:46:00.002-05:002016-12-26T22:46:53.254-05:00Announcing my new Etsy shop, Crewel Sister!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's a little later than I had intended, but I finally launched my second Etsy shop this week, called Crewel Sister. I will be selling original embroidery creations, based on nature imagery and concepts in folk horror, or general occult/gothic imagery, along with anything else that catches my fancy. The 1960s/1970s retro look is a big inspiration, but so is more antique embroidery. We'll see what happens!</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/CrewelSister?ref=hdr_shop_menu" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/shop/CrewelSister?ref=hdr_shop_menu" border="0" height="79" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GZjq8cx6WnQ/WGHg4D2V5zI/AAAAAAAAB50/T7PzdRGx0N0yxdrV0P0d4HM1mMLgr9hJwCLcB/s320/crewelsisterbannertext.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here are the first few items that I have up for sale, incorporating some imagery that I found appealing. For instance, an all-seeing cosmic eye in a bare tree.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/487127994/cosmic-eye-embroidery-hoop-folk-horror?ref=shop_home_active_6" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/487127994/cosmic-eye-embroidery-hoop-folk-horror?ref=shop_home_active_6" border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eqNM0D8h_U4/WGHgrxdu9TI/AAAAAAAAB5o/l_TsnDUaId06JvxH37TbaqUMM9sCeFEjwCLcB/s320/DSC_0238.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Some gothic poisonous flower imagery, incorporating an antique looking design with a skull and a violet or pansy.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/487128146/violet-skull-flower-embroidery-hoop-folk?ref=shop_home_active_5" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/487128146/violet-skull-flower-embroidery-hoop-folk?ref=shop_home_active_5" border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jbVaaD0Xv3o/WGHgqRlWLtI/AAAAAAAAB5k/OJTUdlmZmKAoHee7Z8IcPFP2_jZUR1nmwCLcB/s320/DSC_0241.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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And of course, I can't resist a nod to my gothic paperback book covers, with a lady with long hair traversing a moonlit night with a candelabra...<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/487128338/gothic-candle-witch-embroidery-hoop-folk?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/487128338/gothic-candle-witch-embroidery-hoop-folk?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-d8p_P62a3Hs/WGHgsAXlfbI/AAAAAAAAB5s/jvgdrRj5ipYrinb79iuYAa3RoZwTxiOTQCLcB/s320/DSC_0273.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I'll be experimenting with some retro designs that make me think of the embroidery kits that I saw as a kid in the 1970s as well.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/500913607/retro-owl-embroidery-hoop-folk-horror?ref=shop_home_active_3" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/500913607/retro-owl-embroidery-hoop-folk-horror?ref=shop_home_active_3" border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uFsPPHHIU7o/WGHgtJmVHnI/AAAAAAAAB5w/KmimXiA1r_UwVz2eGOuMsV9eRtC2WlwxgCLcB/s320/DSC_0434.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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My favorite subjects right now are these little classic traditional embroidery icons, which nonetheless suggest something from a world of fantasy and magic.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/501263019/thistle-hare-and-mushroom-rabbit?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/501263019/thistle-hare-and-mushroom-rabbit?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YCsY0Ui_hPk/WGHh7ZzJu0I/AAAAAAAAB58/HXmJjzOQnGYnla-_pmSIKdrGaLT9GqwUwCLcB/s320/DSC_0442.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I will also offer custom work and commissions, within my range of ability, and on similar topics.<br />
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Please check back to see what else comes along, and "favorite" my shop on Etsy for more!<br />
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Through May 1, 2017 you can get $5 off your purchase with the code 5FORFRIENDS. If you're reading this, you're a friend!artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-51701441916125319752016-09-17T22:05:00.000-04:002016-09-17T22:05:08.420-04:00Freaks, mummies, wax and weirdness in TexasIt is halfway through September and we are doing our best to get into an autumn frame of mind. This week we visited a handful of places where one can see weird things, wax figures and taxidermy, without really planning it that way. It's nice to find this kind of seriousness weirdness in Texas - the kind of things I used to read about or see on travel shows on TV and think, I wish I could go there! Of course, being from the greater Philadelphia area, I've been to the Mutter Museum a few times, so these places had a lot to live up to, but I'm pretty pleased.<br />
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First, in Austin we have the <a href="http://www.museumoftheweird.com/" target="_blank">Museum of the Weird</a>. On E. 6th St., a $18 ticket will get you admission BOTH to this and its sister attraction, the<a href="http://sfanthor.bustis.com/" target="_blank"> Sfanthor</a> wax horror museum, which isn't very far away, over on S. Congress Ave.<br />
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At the Museum of the Weird, the assortment of bizarre taxidermied animals -- two-headed calves and the like -- sideshow and horror artifacts and a couple of wax figures, culminates in the unveiling of a true sideshow legend, the Minnesota Iceman. While they don't allow visitors to photograph this exhibit, they build up the suspense by screening an old "Unexplained Mysteries" segment on the beast and give some background information about how the museum's founder saw this exhibit back in the 60s and finally tracked it down and bought it. I won't give anything away, but if you want the full experience and mystique of this creature, don't google it any further -- let them tell you about it, and believe the legend!<br />
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The Museum of the Weird is joined to the Lucky Lizard curio and gift shop, which you can visit for free of course. They sell amazing horror t-shirts (I got a Tombs of the Blind Dead t-shirt, I'm happy to say -- they dig deep for truly excellent films on these tees!) an other fun stuff.<br />
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Over at the Sfanthor House of Wax you can see some beautifully displayed horror classics in wax -- mostly from old movies, but there's an Alien at the end as well (with a strobe light, so I had to close my eyes -- strobe-sensitive folks, be aware of this!). I can't recall ever being to a wax museum before so this was a treat.<br />
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Those exhibits are always open, and are open late -- but over in Houston for a limited time, the Museum of Natural Science has a wonderful exhibit called the <a href="http://www.hmns.org/exhibits/special-exhibitions/cabinet-of-curiosities/" target="_blank">Cabinet of Curosities</a>. Modeled after Victorian-era curio cabinets from well-to-do explorers and collectors, it is an interactive exhibit full of dozens of drawers you can open to reveal more wonders: feathers, bones, crafts from native peoples around the world, shells, insects and other delights.<br />
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It's a wonderful, unique exhibit and so much fun to just wander around marveling at all of the artifacts. Even if you're like me and don't care for taxidermy, in a modern context -- as a mostly-vegetarian for 30 years, I recoil at the thought of killing an animal just to put it on display -- the fact that these are older artifacts makes it something I can appreciate on a different level within a historical context.<br />
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I'm not sure how long this will stick around but it really does seem to fit in with the Halloween time of year, for me.<br />
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Of course, Houston boasts one of the most gothic of all museums next to the Mutter, the <a href="http://nmfh.org/" target="_blank">National Museum of Funeral History</a>, but we will save our visit to that for October. It's been two years since we last stopped by there, so perhaps there will be some new morbid things to enjoy there by now as well.artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-13718592312151967002016-09-13T18:03:00.000-04:002016-09-13T18:03:21.988-04:00The Halloween seasonI have not posted anything in a long time because of a new day job, but it wouldn't be right if the Halloween season got past me without a few comments! I'm busy working on some special projects this year rather than general random oddments and there's not a lot to share publicly right now<br />
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But here's something cool. The UK magazine <a href="http://www.shewhoknowsmagazine.com/" target="_blank">"She Who Knows"</a> requested to use one of my paintings as a backdrop in their Autumn 2016 issue. Please visit them and consider subscribing to this excellent feminist magazine full of nurturing and spiritual articles, art, poetry and wisdom.<br />
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One other small note for fall is that I will open a second Etsy shop soon focused on gothic, folk horror, fantasy and Halloween-themed embroidery work. Here is a sneak preview of a couple of items. I will be starting with just a couple of items this fall and will slowly add to it. The name of the shop is<a href="https://www.etsy.com/people/crewelsister" target="_blank"> "Crewel Sister"</a> because crewel is the type of embroidery I am aiming at (I'm still learning...I haven't done this since I was a kid!) and it also refers to the excellent English folk song "Cruel Sister." See what I did there?<br />
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I've gathered a few resources on the subject and will be working more on the themes and techniques in the upcoming months, as time allows. It's more of a project for my own amusement than a serious attempt to make a big pile of craft-related money, so I won't be doing commissions or anything right now. Time is too rare of a commodity at the moment, so I can only fit things in as it amuses me to do so.<br />
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Hoping to include more updates soon for the season...artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-35051731932460501322016-04-14T22:17:00.001-04:002016-04-16T01:01:49.294-04:00My very big and exciting album cover art announcement!I'm running pretty late on blog posts right now but I just have to get this in before Record Store Day, because it's kind of the most exciting thing that I have ever done, art-wise!<br />
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Last year I was asked by a good friend if I would be willing to do some special album cover art. Not just ordinary everyday special, but artwork for what happens to be my very favorite band, for the past 25+ years: the Legendary Pink Dots. Being asked to do some album cover art for your favorite band is kind of like...well, there's nothing else quite like it. When you've spent a certain number of years of your life writing your favorite band names on high school and college notebooks (or even on steno pads in township committee meetings if life has taken you in that direction), the opportunity to do this for the actual band is pretty amazing.<br />
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So, the details are: this is an unofficial Record Store Day release, and the inaugural release of the label Noise Noise Noise, based in California. It will be available in select independent record stores around the country, as well as at the store where the label-owners are based - Factory Records, 440 E. 17th St., Cosa Mesa, Calif. I've never been to the store in person because I haven't been in California in about 20 years, but they will definitely have copies there! They will also have them out where I am, at Vinal Edge in Houston (239 W. 19th St.) and I believe they will be at Sound Exchange in Houston as well (1846 Richmond Ave.). And many other locations around the country, so if you are interested in the LPDs, be sure to check the coolest, most independent stores that you know. :)<br />
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While you're at it, read the story of my friends' amazing label, store, and love in this <a href="http://www.ocweekly.com/music/the-return-of-noise-noise-noise-as-a-record-label-was-a-labor-of-love-7119123" target="_blank">OC Weekly article</a>. It made me cry!! And it's a solid piece of journalism. :D<br />
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So, here is the description of the EP from the label itself:<br />
<i>LEGENDARY PINK DOTS - A SCENTED CANDLE E.P.:<br /> All new material from
neo-psychedelic musical experimenters Legendary Pink Dots. Three
brooding, emotional, quiet, and lovely tracks from this beloved
underground Anglo-Dutch experimental rock band! 500 copies pressed: 400
for Record Store Day release, 100 for the band's upcoming tour.</i><br />
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And here is the front cover! <br />
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There is also a totally different back cover which I will post pics of when I receive my copy. It has the same hand-lettered, notebook-drawing kind of look to it. It was done in pen and colored pencil on Bristol board and based on some notebook doodles that I started last autumn.<br />
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I've never been in a record pressing plant, but it's one of those things I'd really love to do some day. My friends at the label took some pictures while this record was being pressed, so I am sharing those with their permission:<br />
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Pretty neat, huh? It's all very magical!<br />
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So here is another look at the cover, with some back covers scattered behind it (you can just get a glimpse of it here)...<br />
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And below, the inserts...<br />
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And here they are all ready to be put together and shipped out.<br />
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So if you're a Pink Dots fan, I hope you are able to snag a copy! A million thanks to Dave and Lisa, the folks behind the Noise Noise Noise label, for inviting me to be a part of this, and to the Legendary Pink Dots and Edward Ka-Spel, for allowing my artwork to be associated with their immortal music. It means more to me than words can describe, and I don't think it's ever going to fully set in that I was able to participate in this way. It's the kind of thing you want to go back in time and tell your 17-year-old self!<br />
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And whatever your musical tastes are, go out and buy some records on Saturday. :) Support independent music and independent record stores, and keep making and listening to amazing sounds.artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-80785619211963079002015-10-30T15:31:00.005-04:002015-10-30T15:38:29.562-04:00Before Crimson Peak: candles, dresses and haunted mansions in gothic horror<!--[if !mso]>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/130465630/haunted-spooky-ghost-woman-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_6" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/130465630/haunted-spooky-ghost-woman-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_6" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zen0ekgSkgY/VjPCgUhV0LI/AAAAAAAABzk/pwsaRMtSRBc/s320/bandwcandelabra.jpg" width="242" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A print of my painting "The Ghost of Skull Manor" </td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
The gothic horror genre has had few
new entries in recent years, so I felt very encouraged when images from Guillermo del Toro's new film "Crimson Peak" began to circulate earlier this year. The era of gothic romance in
the 1960s and early 1970s was a short one, as the well-established clichés began
to wear out their welcome, and people started to demand gore, shocks and
real-world horrors, instead of the subtle, atmospheric shudders produced by
these earlier films. Films like "Crimson Peak," or "The Woman in Black" (2012) revisit and celebrate this style, staying pretty faithful to the traditions of the genre while infusing it with new energy and opening it up to a new audience.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I would love to compile a list of all of the best films from
the 60s and 70s which feature gothic horror themes, particularly the great
nightgown & candelabra scenes, but there are so many, and they are all so excellent, I think the task is meant for a greater mind than mine. So
instead, I present five films that contain interesting variations upon the
Gothic theme – not all are ghost stories, not all are very good, but each presents a distinct facet of
the gothic genre. </div>
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<br /></div>
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For some, this means exquisite scenes of wandering around at
night with a candle, possibly in a crypt, a mansion or a castle. There are ghosts
in some, vampires in others; family intrigue and secrets; poisoning, illness
and revenge. There are FABULOUS DRESSES, dramatic lighting, dark and sinister
sets. To be sure, there are dozens or even hundreds of films that can be
considered for a list like this, so I'm not trying to choose the most successful or the
most representative – just a couple that come to mind, or which I have watched
recently, that fall within this very specialized category.</div>
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<br /></div>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">
<b>The Ghost</b></h3>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057522/" target="_blank">"Lo Spettro" (1963)</a> by Riccardo Freda, while not
the most well-known or lauded of the genre, is a great showcase of some of the
classic elements in a 1960s Italian gothic film. A séance, poison, and a mad,
wheelchair-bound Dr. Hichcock immediately set the mood for the film in a
suitably dark mysterious and candle-filled mansion. Barbara Steele's dark
beauty is an inevitable focal point of any film she is in, and she walks
through the wainscoted sets and down the skull-lined crypt passages as a living
special effect. Wearing black veils of mourning and drifting through autumn
leaves in a cemetery, Steele's presence is hypnotizing in the film – as are her
glorious, ornate black Victorian gowns.<br />
<br />
The film is mostly housebound, and
aside from the scenes in the cemetery it mainly takes place within the walls of
a particularly dark and oppressive mansion. The plot revolves around Steele's
love affair with a young doctor, whom she urges to poison her hateful husband
with the experimental substance they have been using to try to cure the latter's
paralysis. She is then seemingly haunted by the late Dr. Hichcock, who speaks
through the housekeeper – the medium at the séance – and who appears in various
ghastly forms to haunt her guilty conscience. A "sort of" sequel to
The Horrible Dr. Hichcock, it stands on its own and should satisfy anyone's
appetite for decadent Victorian décor and evil deeds.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pDeKqVWQJH0/VjPAIinV4OI/AAAAAAAABzA/Xa04EInIyPM/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-09-09-01h54m49s73.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pDeKqVWQJH0/VjPAIinV4OI/AAAAAAAABzA/Xa04EInIyPM/s320/vlcsnap-2010-09-09-01h54m49s73.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>The Innocents</b></h3>
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<b> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</b></h3>
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While it has been a few months since I last watched this
film, I don't think I could make even an off-the-top-of-my-head list of gothic
or ghostly films without including it. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057129/" target="_blank">"The Haunting" (1963)</a> would
also be a good entry in this list, as that is probably my favorite ghost movie
of all, but <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055018/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">"The Innocents" (1961)</a> is a little less widely known and shown. Based on
Henry James' <i>Turn of the Screw</i>, it is a perfect imagining of that tale, with a
gothic mansion, exquisite photography, and unusual, electronic music creating a
sustained atmosphere of gloom, suspense and mystery. If you are not familiar
with the plot of <i>The Turn of the Screw</i>, the short version is that a governess
is caring for two children in a remote country mansion, and is menaced by the
ghosts of a former governess and caretaker. The traditional and straightforward
premise, however, is steeped in a mood of menace, foreboding and encroaching
madness. Its beauty transcends the notion of a "horror" film and places it squarely with the realm of art cinema, in the tradition of Jean Cocteau's <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038348/?ref_=fn_al_tt_5" target="_blank">"Beauty and the Beast."</a></div>
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<b> </b></h3>
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<b>Lemora (A Child's Tale of the Supernatural)</b></h3>
<h3 class="MsoNormal">
<b> </b></h3>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q8W7VjzBvOs/VjO8hsDNDYI/AAAAAAAAByg/0WBmL-43_tE/s1600/lemora12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q8W7VjzBvOs/VjO8hsDNDYI/AAAAAAAAByg/0WBmL-43_tE/s320/lemora12.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070300/" target="_blank">Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973)</a> is the only film directed by Richard
Blackburn, who also acts in the film as a country preacher, but it stands as a
unique example of an independent horror movie. There is an eerie surreality to
this film, as young Lila Lee– the debut role for exploitation starlet Cheryl
"Rainbeaux" Smith – is drawn through a series of sinister events
which seem designed to corrupt her Alice in Wonderland-like innocence. The
"singin' angel" of the local church choir, Lila is the daughter of a
gangster who, at the opening of the film, is on his death bed and calls for her
to come to him. She obliges, dodging lascivious males at every turn, in a
Southern landscape in the 1920s or 30s. Even worse than sleazy guys, though,
she is soon pursued by slobbering zombie-like vampires, until the striking
vampire matron Lemora comes to her "rescue."</div>
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Lemora's cadaverous presence – with skull-like features and
tightly laced Victorian gown – is rendered even more surreal by the riotous
gang of madly laughing children which surrounds her in several scenes. The
progression of the plot is less important to relate than the somber, elegant
mood that the film creates with very simple tools. The predominantly dark, blue
lighting; effective, evocative costumes, carefully constructed gothic settings
and subtle surreal touches all serve to make this a unique and atmospheric
vampire film.</div>
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<b>Morgiana</b></h3>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cenmMx5LrDo/VjO8rw1ErSI/AAAAAAAAByo/hLAni3CzJwA/s1600/morgiana1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cenmMx5LrDo/VjO8rw1ErSI/AAAAAAAAByo/hLAni3CzJwA/s320/morgiana1.jpg" width="288" /></a></div>
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While not a horror film, this Czech gothic fantasy (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0124012/" target="_blank">"Morgiana", 1972</a>) is a
crucial bit of viewing for anyone who wants to luxuriate in the most amazing
costuming I think I've ever seen in a film from the era. The plot is very
gothic, but not supernatural. It deals with jealousy, love, inheritance, and
poison. The two main characters are played by the same actress – one dark
(Viktoria), one light (Klara). It is a dark psychedelic fairytale with the kind
of beautiful surrealism you see in other Czech films like <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066516/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">"Valerie andher Week of Wonders."</a> Morgiana is the name of a Siamese cat in the film, and
– don't worry, the cat is fine -- some of the film seems to have been shot from
cats'-eye view, which adds to its surreality. Although it appears to be set in
Victorian times, the costumes are far more over the top than they would be in
reality, and the overall tone reminds me of the Russian fantasy-fairytale films from around the same time period, like <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0254782/?ref_=fn_al_tt_3" target="_blank">"The Snow Queen" (1967)</a>, while the subject matter and setting are very different from those films. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRKVvnRHC2g/VjPBtkPmN5I/AAAAAAAABzU/mWjtXJpuWyU/s1600/morgiana3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRKVvnRHC2g/VjPBtkPmN5I/AAAAAAAABzU/mWjtXJpuWyU/s320/morgiana3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Blood</b></h3>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XvE0iqjB_tQ/VjO8w5BNTYI/AAAAAAAAByw/rznrmWJ7_WQ/s1600/blood.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XvE0iqjB_tQ/VjO8w5BNTYI/AAAAAAAAByw/rznrmWJ7_WQ/s320/blood.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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The most perplexing thing about Andy Milligan films, to me,
has always been why he has decided to film so many period pieces. In <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071232/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_7" target="_blank">"Blood" (1973)</a> actually
have all of the pieces of a good, old-fashioned gothic horror film here. We
have a young doctor recently returned to America from Europe, planning to
conduct his experiments in private in a rented house while he awaits the
settling of his father's estates. To make things even more gothic, his wife has
a horrible malady which causes her to become hideous and deformed if she is not
regularly supplied with blood – which in turn is supplied by ghastly
carnivorous plants. Add in a couple of assistants who are gradually losing
their limbs to the experiments, and a female Igor limping along with a hideous
grimace, and you have everything you could wish for in a horror film. He turns
up the volume even further when he reveals that the doctor is a werewolf and
his wife's malady is actually vampirism!</div>
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The complicating factor, as in all Milligan films, is an
extremely limited budget. One of the highlights of his films is watching the
creative ways in which he stretches that budget. He makes all of the costumes
himself ("costumes by Raffin<span class="_Tgc">é</span>"), which in some films means yards and
yards of tulle and fake flowers. In this film, he does a tolerably decent job
of making Victorian-era clothing, although some of the dresses are clearly
created by someone with a vague idea of what a Victorian-era dress might look
like. Heavy on the ruffles, and roses, roses, roses, everywhere. The fact that
the Victorian house they are in,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>clearly
is a mid-twentieth century home, complete with light switches, further
mystifies the viewer. </div>
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Was it really necessary to put the story in a 19<sup>th</sup>-century
setting? No matter – I'm delighted that he does. I love his ingenuity and
desire to get a story onto film, even when most of the movie is bickering
dialogue that sounds half-improvised. Watch an Andy Milligan movie and then ask
yourself – could you do any better with the same resources? I think we should
all bow to his resourcefulness. I want to make a gothic horror film at least as
badly as he did, and I'm nowhere near getting one done.</div>
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Thus concludes my strange selection. The world of the gothic horror film is almost bottomless, though I like to think I've managed to uncover most of the ones currently available on DVD, over the past few years, and will continue to draw from this wonderful well for future posts as well, since I never (ever) get sick of this stuff (ever)!</div>
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Happy Halloween!</div>
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artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-26038019413452821452015-10-10T14:41:00.001-04:002015-10-10T15:39:09.777-04:00On gothic romances, mortality and reading - with a mini book review<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 5"/>
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I've been thinking lately – and I swear I'm not being morbid
– about how many more books I'll be able to read in my lifetime. It's becoming
a real concern, because even the best scenario probably doesn't give me much
more than 50 years, if I plan on reading into my 90s. And while I read pretty
quickly, I also like long books, and I like to savor things a bit, so I average
about 50 books a year most of the time. </div>
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<br /></div>
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In other words, I can look forward to reading possibly 2,500
more books in my lifetime, if I am blessed with a long and healthy existence
(not counting any possible Brain in a Jar time that might come along in the future). </div>
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<br /></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_zI_YNQoJS4/VhlUIwo4jdI/AAAAAAAABxg/mTjIgm8rPaY/s1600/bookshelf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_zI_YNQoJS4/VhlUIwo4jdI/AAAAAAAABxg/mTjIgm8rPaY/s320/bookshelf.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few of our books. There are many more.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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But you see, we probably have at least 5,000 books between
us. So this is becoming something of a concern. There are a lot of things I
like to do besides reading, so I'm probably stuck with this 2,500 number, which
means I need to start being selective in what I read. That means I'm not going to
waste a lot of precious reading time with throwaway "light" reading,
"just for fun." Fun? Reading is dead serious around here. At its
best, grim and doom-filled, awash in candlelight and stirred by cracks of
thunder and lightning. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I admit, my 18<sup>th</sup> century gothic novels and penny
dreadfuls; the 19<sup>th</sup> century ghost stories and pulps of the early 20<sup>th</sup>
century, might have been "throwaway" in their time, but there is an
atmosphere and craftsmanship about them that still trumps the potboilers of
today, in my estimation. </div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XINK6XU5PZk/VhlR7Y9vCgI/AAAAAAAABxM/CVcZ2YOuYJE/s1600/prest%2Bthomas%2Bpeckett%2Bpenny%2BB20103%2B79.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XINK6XU5PZk/VhlR7Y9vCgI/AAAAAAAABxM/CVcZ2YOuYJE/s320/prest%2Bthomas%2Bpeckett%2Bpenny%2BB20103%2B79.jpg" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the British Library website: <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Ela the Outcast; or, The Gipsy of
Rosemary Dell. A romance of thrilling interest - See more at:
http://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/penny-dreadfuls#sthash.EwZ1RJCZ.dpuf</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
This is all a longwinded way of explaining why I am reading
a few of the 1960s and 1970s gothic romances that I have collected for quite
some time, simply for their covers, lurid titles and garish plot descriptions.
The writing in these books doesn't typically measure up to what I need from a
book – it's a little over-simplistic, and is still too recent to have acquired
that sheen of antiquity from obscure language and references. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/artbysarada/gothic-romance-book-covers/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HPYwugUBjJ8/VhlSxjZWVUI/AAAAAAAABxU/ZDScTsf32us/s320/gothicsquare.jpg" width="312" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/artbysarada/gothic-romance-book-covers/" target="_blank">Click here to see my gallery of gothic romance book covers at Pinterest -- adding to it regularly as I acquire more!</a></td></tr>
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But I'm giving it a try, so I will chronicle a few of these
adventures. These books are from the era which happens to also be my favorite
time period in cinema and they deal with the same subject matter: inherited
castles, or mansions and manors with family curses and decadence; heroines in
peril; witches and vampires, ghosts and satanic cults; and in general, the kind
of gothic soap opera material you might find in Dark Shadows, a show that I grew
up watching and deeply love, wobbly scenery and all. These kind of book covers have also inspired countless paintings that I've done, and plan to do, all with gowns and candelabras. <a href="http://artbysarada.blogspot.com/2012/02/gothic-heroines-in-distress.html" target="_blank">I wrote about this several years ago in greater depth.</a> Needless to say I am delighted that the forthcoming film "Crimson Peak" prominently features these items, and incidentally I plan to spend Halloween in a white old-fashioned looking nightgown that I made, with a candelabra.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/59761947/gothic-horror-art-haunted-castle-heroine?ref=shop_home_active_13" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/59761947/gothic-horror-art-haunted-castle-heroine?ref=shop_home_active_13" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sqvKtO37Tac/VhlVrtOElSI/AAAAAAAABxs/03NXvjwB5RQ/s320/redstaircase.jpg" width="242" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Terror in the Crimson Castle," a 7 x 9 original painting in my Etsy shop</td></tr>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These are also the
subjects beloved by the original gothic authors of the 18<sup>th</sup> and
early 19<sup>th</sup> century – the imperiled heroines of Ann Radcliffe's
sumptuous novels and her many imitators, exploring every permutation of book
title including the words "abbey," "castle" and
forest." Everything that I love about the old novels, with the addition of
go-go boots – what's not to love?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.valancourtbooks.com/the-castle-of-wolfenbach-1793.html" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.valancourtbooks.com/the-castle-of-wolfenbach-1793.html" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--iqkOojzlCY/VhlWNalVk1I/AAAAAAAABx0/i2eCET8cp7Q/s1600/wolfenbach.jpeg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Please explore the Valancourt Books site for reprints of these wonderful original 18th and 19th century gothics</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first book I tackled from my personal stash was
"Secret of the Pale Lover," by Clarissa Ross, AKA Marilyn Ross, the
author of the Dark Shadows novels. Ross was actually William Edward Daniel Ross,
and he wrote over 300 novels – mostly romances and gothics. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n6n9V-hCC4k/VhlO_7K2KWI/AAAAAAAABwc/MeGoUEtq8aA/s1600/romance4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n6n9V-hCC4k/VhlO_7K2KWI/AAAAAAAABwc/MeGoUEtq8aA/s320/romance4.jpg" width="182" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
The first page drew me in and I have to say, it was a pretty
enjoyable read, particularly when imagined as a novelization of the kind of
movie I would watch -- a wild student party in Paris dungeon in 1969 sounds like just the place I want to be, in my head.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vnO0SnQPPWA/VhlQlm2PmuI/AAAAAAAABw4/ir8uM_-mbwM/s1600/DSCN8830.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vnO0SnQPPWA/VhlQlm2PmuI/AAAAAAAABw4/ir8uM_-mbwM/s320/DSCN8830.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can't quite remember if the actual skeletal hands ever showed up.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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I imagine the main character played by an actress like the
beautiful Rosalba Neri, and the "hawk-faced" Count Henri Langlais who entices her to
his castle, is clearly meant to be played by Peter Cushing. She attracts his attention when she gets up on a table at the party and jokingly invokes Satan. As you do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IZvdhGOhack/VhlQQj4LthI/AAAAAAAABwo/HYhFHuBjsrA/s1600/99_women_rosalba_neri4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IZvdhGOhack/VhlQQj4LthI/AAAAAAAABwo/HYhFHuBjsrA/s320/99_women_rosalba_neri4.png" width="272" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rosalba Neri</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fzdAK4qw8vs/VhlQYRTWovI/AAAAAAAABww/I6ayffFHn2E/s1600/Peter-cushing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fzdAK4qw8vs/VhlQYRTWovI/AAAAAAAABww/I6ayffFHn2E/s320/Peter-cushing.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You already know this is Peter Cushing, but it's always nice to have a photo of him around.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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On the gothic cliché checklist, we have quite an admirable
assortment of devices to admire here as the plot develops. Eve Lewis is as good as imprisoned at the chateau after accepting Count Henri's invitation to further her occult researches at his library, only to learn that he wishes to have her as the bride for his pale, sickly nephew Leonard. She is administered medication by a doctor
who appears to have a double at the seaside resort where she first became
acquainted with the count and a young man who appeared to be his nephew.</div>
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While I was never completely convinced that there were actual supernatural forces at work, the novel builds a pretty strong case that vampirism is afoot in the chateau, and then we have fantastic lines like this, which occur once or twice without any seeming purpose except to excite us for a moment. </div>
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Throughout the book she is subject to various minor frights and spooky scenarios, such as becoming lost in the crypt beneath the castle, and terrified by strange happenings at night. Ultimately, she finds that the sickly nephew has a double as well -- a hired actor portrayed the young man at first when she met him and the count on her seaside vacation. The actor's job was to get her to fall in love with the pale boy, and then step aside as nature took its course. A heroic plot is launched to free her from the castle's grip and bring an end to the youth who is revealed as a vampire.</div>
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The ending was actually a bit of a surprise, as we see the
heroine seemingly happily brainwashed, overmedicated or hypnotized to her fate, with Rosemary's Baby-ish implications.</div>
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One of the weaknesses of this style of book, from the
perspective of a reader, is the way in which the authors constantly remind us
of the questions being turned over in the main character's head, with narration along the lines of: "But what
was the meaning of the mysterious symbol on the old book? Why did she seem to
recognize the strange man in the cloak? What did the housekeeper mean when she
told her to keep away from the basement?" Not actual quotes, but you get
the idea. The reader is handed everything in very obvious, distinct terms,
rather than given information and details from which to draw their own
questions and conclusions. I also find it intrusive in writing when character's
inner dialogue and motivation are spelled out in every line of dialogue.</div>
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This particular volume I would rate as pretty enjoyable, and
while not terribly well-written, the plot advances in an entertaining way, with
changes of scene and moments of dramatic impact. There were a couple of genuine
surprises, as well, with the actor showing up on the scene to save the day, and
then an unexpected twist in which the happy ending is actually a fairly
diabolical one.</div>
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I've read a couple of more of these recently and will attempt to write up a little about them as well in forthcoming weeks. The good ones are definitely worthy of a day or two of my reading time, to feed the monster in my brain that constantly craves this kind of imagery and scenario. </div>
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artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-43459277414677263942015-10-02T23:49:00.000-04:002015-10-03T03:39:02.113-04:00The forgotten pulp horror weirdness of Ramble House books<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tmIddN_xrJc/Vg9RrgbwFoI/AAAAAAAABwI/AxDJokdWjxg/s1600/IMG_20151002_225230.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tmIddN_xrJc/Vg9RrgbwFoI/AAAAAAAABwI/AxDJokdWjxg/s320/IMG_20151002_225230.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few titles in our own Ramble House collection</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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While you're likely to find me reading 19th- or early-20th century supernatural fiction at any time of the year, it is pretty inevitable that the ghost stories and menacing weirdness will hit their peak in early October.<br />
<br />
The best setting in which to read them, in my experience, has always been in the autumn woods as the first wave of color sweeps across the landscape. Well, that magical autumn feeling is a little different where I'm living now, but even if the color palette is different, and long sleeves and scarves probably won't happen until Christmas, you can still tell by the angle of the setting sun that it is time to amp up the reading of ghost stories and weird fiction.<br />
<br />
One of my favorite publishers to explore at this time of year is a glorious imprint called <a href="http://www.ramblehouse.com/" target="_blank">Ramble House.</a> While forgotten/neglected and rare crime fiction is the main thrust of their publishing, there are also a fair number of titles that fall under the heading "weird menace" -- stories from the horror pulp magazines of the 1930s and 40s. Some rare and unusual stand-alone novels also make an appearance at Ramble House, and I am guessing most people come across them for the same reasons I did... on a search for titles on the legendary <a href="https://miskatonicbooks.wordpress.com/2012/05/14/karl-edward-wagners-favorite-horror-novels/" target="_blank">Karl Edward Wagner book lists</a>. <br />
<br />
A number of titles on these lists -- famed for their inclusion of fairly obscure titles and authors -- were not available for decades, until reprinted in limited quantities by Ramble House's predecessor Midnight House in the early 2000s (Midnight publisher John Pelan heads RH's horror imprint, Dancing Tuatara Press). Take a look at this list of supernatural horror titles, for instance...four of them are available at RH (and several are still in print from other publishers as well).<br />
<br />
The Thirteen Best Supernatural Horror Novels:<br />
<br />
1. <a href="http://www.valancourtbooks.com/hell-said-the-duchess-1934.html" target="_blank"> Hell! Said the Duchess by Michael Arlen</a><br />
2. The Burning Court by John Dickson Carr<br />
3. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Alraune-Frank-Braun-Trilogy-Volume/dp/0987195395" target="_blank">Alraune by Hanns Heinz Ewers</a><br />
4. <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/darksanctuary.htm" target="_blank">Dark Sanctuary by H.B. Gregory</a><br />
5. Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg<br />
6. <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/makerofshadows.htm" target="_blank">Maker of Shadows by Jack Mann</a><br />
7. <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/yellowmistletoe.htm" target="_blank">The Yellow Mistletoe by Walter S. Masterman</a><br />
8. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Melmoth-Wanderer-Penguin-Classics-Charles/dp/014044761X/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8" target="_blank">Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Maturin</a><br />
9. Burn Witch Burn by A. Merritt<br />
10. Fingers of Fear by J.U. Nicolson<br />
11. Doctors Wear Scarlet by Simon Raven<br />
12. <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/echoofacurse.htm" target="_blank">Echo of a Curse by R.R. Ryan</a><br />
13. <a href="http://www.centipedepress.com/horror/medusa.html" target="_blank">Medusa by E.H. Visiak</a><br />
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<br />
I'm not going to attempt to give book reviews in this short space, or attempt to relate an unofficial history of the company cribbed from their website, but I am going to just give my wholehearted endorsement to weird old book lovers. <br />
<br />
There are several different "presses" under the Ramble House umbrella, and you can also view by title, author, series and recent releases. If you have trouble choosing where to start, here are a few quick recommendations. Also, I always order straight from the source, as they offer free shipping, and often will discount titles if you email them your order. Most importantly though it directly supports this wonderful publisher.<br />
<br />
All artwork below is copyright the artist, Gavin O'Keefe, and used with permission; the introductions are courtesy of the Ramble House website.<br />
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<a href="http://ramblehouse.com/shadowonthehouse.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://ramblehouse.com/shadowonthehouse.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LEiYODD4z_g/VgMKme__AsI/AAAAAAAABuo/FPGcOJsU_zA/s320/ShadowOnTheHouse315.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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"The Shadow on the House" was one of the first titles I read from RH -- the <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/shadowonthehousechapter.htm" target="_blank">Introduction </a>is available online. It would fall under the category of supernatural thriller or psychological horror most likely, but this moody piece from 1934 is full of gothic atmosphere, hints of madness and family curses/ghosts, and a series of strange deaths. The hints of an inheritance of evil and unexplained phenomena were very exciting to me while reading it, and it fits in perfectly with my early 20th century mystery and ghost reading.<br />
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<a href="http://ramblehouse.com/borderline.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://ramblehouse.com/borderline.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VKgrsIR3L4M/VgS1aLCrc1I/AAAAAAAABu4/qacA-_ojSGM/s320/BorderLine315.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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This 1937 book is
another excellent example of something that straddles the line between gothic
mystery, suspense, psychological thriller and supernatural/weird horror. From
the Ramble House site: "<i>Very strange things </i>are going on at Cold
Stairs, the country manor home of the Harman family. BBC correspondent Jack
Hartley has been there to report on the findings of the 'Committee of Three,' a
delegation of researchers from Psychical Research Society. All signs point to a
most bizarre haunting, and Sir John Harman is concerned for his household,
comprising niece Sybil, governess Mrs. James and her disabled son Eric, and the
servants." The cover gives enticing hints of some of the content of this book (as many of O'Keefe's wonderful cover illustrations do) -- as you read the book, the meaning of some of these images starts to unfold. A picture of a skeleton? A girl clutching a strange box? Sounds pretty exciting to me!<br />
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<a href="http://ramblehouse.com/tonguelesshorror.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://ramblehouse.com/tonguelesshorror.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lsumdkBldz4/VgS2JHne8sI/AAAAAAAABvA/I7dMaHZoSOw/s320/TongueLess315.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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You can read the <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/tonguelesshorrorchapter.htm" target="_blank">Introduction </a> here. I have not yet read all of these stories, but the titles should be enough to get you interested: in addition to the title story, we have "Satan Sends a Woman," "Song of the Dead," "Hours of the Vanished Boarder," "Satan's Thirsty Ones," "Village of the Dead," and Models for Madness." The title story is particularly lurid, and the themes are unapologetically supernatural, including grotesque imagery, generous use of evocative adjectives, and themes such as swamp-women luring men to their death (note the cover picture)...sound good? It is!<br />
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<a href="http://ramblehouse.com/reunioninhell.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://ramblehouse.com/reunioninhell.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XXQtihjcXxw/VgS3wGN-03I/AAAAAAAABvM/n8-kz0JTh4k/s320/ReunionInHell315.jpg" width="211" /> </a></div>
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The opening line of this <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/reunioninhellchapter.htm" target="_blank">Introduction</a> should whet the appetites of anyone whose taste in fiction runs along the same course as mine: "Among all the writers of weird fiction in the 1930s two authors shared the rather unique background of being accomplished poets with solid reputations established in the little magazines and limited editions of the time. The two men were Clark Ashton Smith and John H. Knox."<br />
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That, along with story titles like "The Thing That Dined on Death," should excite the adventurous reader. If you are already a fan of the "weirds," here's a whole new cavern for literary spelunking.<br />
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<a href="http://ramblehouse.com/darksanctuary.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://ramblehouse.com/darksanctuary.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fV-3Oqn32dg/VgS5t_GNWvI/AAAAAAAABvY/0WGvj1NqoPo/s320/DarkSanctuary315.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
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Here is the <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/darksanctuarychapter.htm" target="_blank">Introduction</a> to this fine volume. "Dark Sanctuary" is one of those Wagner list books, and quite an excellent one indeed. I read this one in a Midnight House edition, so I am delighted that it is still available from Ramble House. Published in 1940, this novel is dripping with occult atmosphere. Family curses and madness, an abbey on an island, a ghastly crypt -- it's all here. The RH site gives a good summary of some points to look forward to in this one: "<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The story opens with
Anthony Lovell, Sr., master of the ancient abbey of Kestrel and its like-named
island off the Cornish coast, raving in madness and fear over the ancient
family curse that 'dwells in the bowels of the abbey rock.' What has caused
his madness is unclear, but it is obviously linked to something seen or
experienced in Kestrel's ancient crypts." This book made the strongest impression on me of all of the Midnight/Ramble House books I have read.</span></div>
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<a href="http://ramblehouse.com/echoofacurse.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://ramblehouse.com/echoofacurse.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oPTpyWoRnH4/VgS5_fxsWHI/AAAAAAAABvg/WNiN5xN-q0o/s320/EchoOfACurse315.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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<br />
There is quite a lot to say about R. R. Ryan so I suggest reading the <a href="http://ramblehouse.com/echoofacursechapter.htm" target="_blank">Introduction</a> for more information, but suffice to say here that Ryan wrote a small number of truly excellent books that were all but forgotten until the Wagner lists resurrected three of the titles in collector circles. The identity of the writer has been up for debate for some time, and although I've read several definitive answers to who he/she is, I've honestly lost track of whether a final determination has been reached. Either way...it's great stuff. Ramble House is working on making all of Ryan's titles available again. "Echo of a Curse" is up there with "Dark Sanctuary" as my two favorites from these lists that I have read so far, with an engaging and fast-moving plot, involving everyone's favorite gothic plot point: the family curse. We have possible lycanthropy, a sideshow attraction, occultism in the family, babies switched at birth, and some very brutal behavior from a character you really come to despise.<br />
<br />
There are many more titles that I still need to explore that may prove excellent fodder for your Halloween season reading, particularly in the short story department. Here's a tiny sampling. But I strongly advise just getting anything that ignites your fancy. The rest of the titles in my picture at the top of the post are also of excellent quality.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.ramblehouse.com/talesofterror1.htm" target="_blank">Tales of Terror & Torment: Stories from the Pulps</a><br />
<a href="http://www.ramblehouse.com/corpsefactory.htm" target="_blank">The Corpse Factory and Other Weird Stories</a> (the weird tales of Arthur Leo Zagat)<br />
<a href="http://www.ramblehouse.com/hostessesinhell.htm" target="_blank">Hostesses in Hell and Other Stories</a> (the selected stories of Russell Gray)<br />
<a href="http://www.ramblehouse.com/foodforthefunguslady.htm" target="_blank">Food for the Fungus Lady </a>(see below...I mean seriously, that title. I can't live without it).<br />
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<a href="http://www.ramblehouse.com/foodforthefunguslady.htm" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.ramblehouse.com/foodforthefunguslady.htm" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p9gyFRWEj_w/Vg9NJhG-taI/AAAAAAAABv8/37zOf3KITOs/s320/FoodForTheFungusLady315.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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Since these titles are printed on demand, chances are that you won't find a lot of them in secondhand shops. The people buying them know what they want and know what they like and probably won't ever let them go! Get your copies now and cherish them as we enter that time of the year that is best for reading spooky stuff. Order now and by Halloween you can be knee-deep in 1930s pulp weird fiction that relatively few people living today have explored in depth.artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-76009559736721351052015-09-15T21:06:00.000-04:002015-09-15T21:06:14.044-04:00Perfume reviews: Violette Market Autumn/Winter Victorian Magic and Halloween LEs<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
I am a big fan of independent perfume etailers, but it can
be hard to find reviews of some of the scents I want to try,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>as not everyone reviews the kind of scents
that I like (woody, resiny, masculine) and there are so many places to look (blogs, forums, general google search) that it can be a time-consuming task. With that in mind, I'm going to start
reviewing some of my purchases or items I've received as gifts or samples,
without making it a major or regular feature of my blog, but just to put
something else out there for people to find. I'm not going to cover some of the brands which already have extensive public review forums, but
I will try to describe a few favorites of mine.</div>
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<br /></div>
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One of my very favorite perfumers is <a href="http://www.violettemarket.com/home.php" target="_blank">Violette Market</a>. I've
gone through a few binge purchasing periods in the past couple of years, buying directly from the seller and trying
to rack up everything I missed in after-market purchases on ebay, the
evil_enablers forum on Livejournal, in the sales section of the BPAL forum and
VM's own occasional sales on Etsy. My favorite series, historically, has been
State Fair, because she does these marvelous, complex scents that combine
sweetness and smoke, wood and fruit, and other surprising elements, in powerful
and memorable perfumes. Summer is usually a slow time for most of the perfumers
I buy from, so it's nice to have these wild, refreshing, colorful themed
perfumes to delve into. It's a wonderful feeling to go out on a humid summer
Texas night, watching the stars glimmer and hearing the insects hum, with a
smoky-sweet cloud of incense around you, suggesting everything from fireworks
to funnel cakes, cotton candy and a splash of tropical fruit.</div>
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<br /></div>
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New Violette Market offerings over the past year have included
Victorian Magic themes for <a href="http://www.violettemarket.com/home.php?cat=248" target="_blank">Autumn </a>and <a href="http://www.violettemarket.com/home.php?cat=330" target="_blank">Winter </a>2014/into 2015 and last year's "<span class="st">Madam Romanowski's the Greatest Undead Show on Earth" around
Halloween time. The <a href="http://www.violettemarket.com/home.php?cat=327" target="_blank">Romanowski collection</a> is available again through the
Halloween season, and for the moment the Victorian Magic perfumes seem to still
be available as well. Because the bottles can run as much as $28 each I thought
it might be helpful to put a few more reviews out there for people. </span></div>
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<span class="st"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="st">I'm also including some impressions of favorite old horror movies that some of these evoke in me...pictures included when I can find a suitable one. I tend to associate perfumes/scents with books I am reading, movies I'm watching and albums I'm listening to, so here's a tiny slice of my string of associations.</span></div>
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<span class="st"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span class="st">First, a couple that were received as
freebies. I will include the note lists in italics next to each scent
descriptions; each description is copyright of the perfumer and is
quoted here only for reference purposes.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Zombie Treats: Tattooed Heart</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Autumn oak trees, soft amber, white patchouli and dry
sandalwood encapsulated with bergamot, heliotrope, dry leaves, and a heart of
blackberry infused cassia bark.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This goes on surprisingly aquatic, light and perfumey. The
dry leaves and heliotrope might be giving it that airy, perfumey quality –
crisp, dry and just a little heady. I would expect this to have a stronger
incense quality based on the notes but that's not what I'm getting, either in
the bottle or on the skin. It dries down quickly to bergamot and blackberry in
a dusty soft base. There is only the faintest hint of cassia (cinnamon). </div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Zombie Treats: Nail in the Coffin</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Autumnal pies, tartlets, vanilla cream, candied cinnamon
sticks, and maple candies assaulted by weathered splintered wood.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Strong cinnamon – the classic "craft store autumn
spice" scent on a woody base. I can't really get anything beyond a strong cinnamon scent from this (the "candied" quality is
probably what causes this), but I dislike cinnamon so it's hard to see beyond
that.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Now, onto some of the scents from the Romanowski collection:</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0Tbs13_yOA/VfiqyWNfptI/AAAAAAAABsc/z54zu7YtnC8/s1600/DSCN8826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c0Tbs13_yOA/VfiqyWNfptI/AAAAAAAABsc/z54zu7YtnC8/s320/DSCN8826.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Mikaele, the Human Atlas Moth</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Warm hay, orange blossom honey, milkweed pods, sweet cream,
red raspberries, rhubarb jam, and silken butterfly wings darkened by an eerie
shadow of dry white sandalwood, the dark woods at twilight, and dark aged
vetiver spun into a human cocoon.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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A surprisingly soft, glowing orange-brown concoction, warm and
sweet but simmering with that smoky wood scent of vetiver, the bone-dry powder
of white sandalwood and the hint of fruit/citrus that orange blossom honey
imparts. While wearing this I didn't know the list of notes, offhand, but it is
really a brilliant combination. It brings to mind a stretch of woods I used to
frequent in Rancocas, NJ, where there are milkweed pods brimming with
butterflies in the late summer. There's a haylike scent of warm, dried grass,
and as you approach the woods, there is this drowsy, hazy summer aroma of
flowers and wood. This has an added touch of sweetness, but the
vetiver/sandalwood gives this a slow burning quality – a glossy core beneath
the floral dusting powder. </div>
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<br /></div>
<b>
</b><div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Opening Night Under the Big Top</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Glowing amber, golden patchouli, pink carnation, swirling
smoke from beeswax lanterns, mahogany costume trunks, tiny corsages of bergamot
blossom, pink jasmine, and orange flower, Indian incense, caramel kettle corn,
pink cotton candy and blue absinthe flecked with cinnamon dust.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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This begins with a very buttery popcorn scent and a good dose of sweetness. It's very much what you would expect from a batch of kettle corn cooking at a fair, though that wonderful smoky VM scent is winding through it. An undercurrent of incense, spices and hints of sugared fruit emerge as that initial popcorn scent burns off. I wouldn't normally like something "buttery" but the dry, smoky sweet popcorn scent is stronger than the butter, and the complexity of all of those other layers emerges almost immediately. Like all of the scents she makes with this smoky base, it has tremendous wear, though it changes a fair amount with time. Very reminiscent of her summery State Fair scents, but the amber and patchouli give it a much more autumnal feel. Wear it when watching your favorite circus-themed horror movie. I'll go with <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067924/" target="_blank">"Vampire Circus"</a> but you might also enjoy <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082427/?ref_=fn_al_tt_5" target="_blank">"The Funhouse."</a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-na1atzdxJ-A/VfiosIkVGeI/AAAAAAAABsE/J_MjdJBGFNA/s1600/vampire%2Bcircus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-na1atzdxJ-A/VfiosIkVGeI/AAAAAAAABsE/J_MjdJBGFNA/s320/vampire%2Bcircus.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Prairieland Ardor</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Sweet smell of sun-warmed grasses, bee balm honey, new hay,
chamomile flowers, old growth forests, patchouli leaf, white lavender flower,
golden moss, and dusty earth.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oh yes, high, grassy, sunny notes, dry herbs, which become just a bit powdery when they hit the skin. I think of straw, scarecrows, wheat fields in Van Gogh paintings, or families crossing the prairie states in a covered wagon as summer fades into autumn. It doesn't have a lot of sillage and staying power but it is quite lovely, and in the cool fall weather I can imagine it adding a wonderful subtle touch to a family trip to a corn maze or pumpkin patch.</div>
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<br /></div>
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As a childhood fan of "Little House on the Prairie" (the books, that is) I think we can say that I finally found a scent to suit my mood when in that mindframe. Especially in the fall -- which is such a homey, earthy and nostalgic time of year.</div>
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</div>
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<b>Zombie Cigarette Girls</b></div>
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<i>Pink bubble gum, sheer vanilla, golden honey, ruby red
cherries, cloven tobacco, dark green moss, black patchouli, and charred autumn
leaves.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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While the word "cigarette" initially turned me
off, this is one of the stars of the collection for me. The scent of incensy, earthy tobacco is nothing like the "cigarette" association you might make. A wonderful combination of sweets and smoke. High mossy notes definitely add an air of graveyard loam, with a dry, crackling underlayer of leaves. I do not smell cherry specifically but there is a fruity tone that blends in well with the tobacco. I could definitely see wearing this while watching <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054240/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">"Orgy of the Dead."</a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ihs5WDruhgw/VfipiGh3igI/AAAAAAAABsM/C1eElSOeyIY/s1600/orgy%2Bdead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ihs5WDruhgw/VfipiGh3igI/AAAAAAAABsM/C1eElSOeyIY/s320/orgy%2Bdead.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Julianna, the Haunted Amigurumi Doll</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Blueberry and black raspberry cream, almond milk, hollowed
hazelnut shells, wild raspberry preserves, candied white apricots, caramelized
pralines, British lemon curd, honey sugar, crumbled tea cookies, buttery
shortbread, and rose water splashed on white linen napkins. </i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Smells very strongly of cherry, though I see that is not one
of the notes – the almond milk and hazelnut shells may be adding a heady, boozy
note, though as it dries I can smell more of a rich, dark raspberry. The boozy
rush of that rich cherry smell burns off quickly and I imagine a daintily set
table in a tearoom with little cookies and paper lace doilies. My initial
impression that it is simply going to be a strong cherry scent, was unfounded,
and this is a much more light and complex blend of crumbly cookies and sugary
fruits, without becoming too much of a thick and foody scent. I'm not fond of buttery,
heavy sweet scents, but this is delicate and just a touch floral as it dries –
the rose water and fresh linen coming out to play as the heavier notes die
down. I'm not sure what instinct drew me to want to try this one, but it turned
out to be just to my taste for this kind of scent. A good scent for a haunted dollhouse or creepy porcelain babydoll, or for a movie like <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060794/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">"Kill, Baby...Kill" </a>by Mario Bava.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eqRA717eVqk/Vfir-zRe7II/AAAAAAAABs4/mWO-sSn3PQk/s1600/kill%2Bbaby%2Bkill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eqRA717eVqk/Vfir-zRe7II/AAAAAAAABs4/mWO-sSn3PQk/s320/kill%2Bbaby%2Bkill.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b>The Romanowskis</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b> </b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><i>With notes of dark black tea, dried
tobacco leaves, carved sweet oak, vanilla bean, soft amber, myrrh, bergamot
peel, cassia flower, white cedar wood, aged patchouli, and a hint of imported
leather softened from both time and handling. presented in a reusable sheer
pouch and a 5ml amber glass apothecary bottle.</i> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Tea (the bergamot gives it an earl grey character), blonde tobacco, pale wood notes and leather are my main impressions from this scent -- a gentleman's study, but a bright and lively one, not a dusty and dark place. Going from the description though I try to imagine a caravan of performers in a colorful wagon -- like the actors/jugglers in Ingmar Bergman's <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050976/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1" target="_blank">"The Seventh Seal,"</a> a lively and romantic vision of circus performers in a mythic time. Fresh and herbal along with those animalic leather notes. A touch of wood shavings and garments perfumed with old, faded incense. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bDdayvTfUBo/VfiqQzpBJEI/AAAAAAAABsU/NLvQjTIOo40/s1600/seventh%2Bseal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bDdayvTfUBo/VfiqQzpBJEI/AAAAAAAABsU/NLvQjTIOo40/s320/seventh%2Bseal.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b>Horned Balloon Handlers</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b> </b> </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of black vanilla, benzoin
resin, golden vanilla, a trail of molten lava, black resins, flame-filled glass
balloons that often burst unexpectedly, charred circus tickets, and a trail of
sweet smoke leading to the pyrotechnics demonstrated on the bows of young
girls, unattended bow ties, and straw hand bags that were at least three
seasons too old. </span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Another of these great smoky-sweet perfumes that reminds me of the State Fair scents. This one is pretty heavy on what seems to be a dry coconut scent though I don't see that listed in the notes. A powdery-dry undertone that makes me think of gunpowder, though the overwhelming impression is a resiny cherry-sweet scent with plenty of dry powdery smoke. I think After Dark might be the scent from VM this is reminding me of, but it is chaotic and colorful, with lurid red-gold notes amidst a puff of smoke and charred bone.</div>
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Next are perfumes from the two Victorian Magic collections (mostly from the Winter one, though). Note that on the dark-colored oils it is very hard to read the name of the perfume, but don't let that stop you from trying them! These are magnificent.</div>
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</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UvfbKi1IiTc/Vfiq5IdhTEI/AAAAAAAABsk/80F6bn9rAn4/s1600/DSCN8828.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UvfbKi1IiTc/Vfiq5IdhTEI/AAAAAAAABsk/80F6bn9rAn4/s320/DSCN8828.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Summoning Canis Major and Canis Minor</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: blue;"> </span> </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Through a veil of black amber, red
amber, incense smoke, offerings of red patchouli, and dry white wood carved
into the heads’ of canines. They ride in a pack, autumn leaves and patches of
dark earth lifted under their phantom paws. </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This immediately became an all-time favorite scent when I first tried it, and if you like patchouli/incense scents, this is a holy grail. It is strong, dark, sweet and smooth. Dark brown, earthy incense, which pours out of the bottle when you open it, as if you walked into a dark temple full of incense smoke and unspeakable rites. Smooth wood, gritty incense, and glossy resins. I do tend to reapply it when I wear it, though it is strong and has some staying power -- I just like that initial splash so much I can't get enough of it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This puts me in the mind of one of the many Paul Naschy werewolf films -- impossible to choose a favorite, but I guess "The Werewolf Vs. The Vampire Women" is in my top three. Most any werewolf movie will do, but bonus points for rustic European villages.</span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></i></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Illusion Produced By a Ride in the Swing</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: almond milk, East
Indian apothecary vanilla, amber incense, rose absolute, benzoin resin with
notes of balsamic plums and polished wood, Ceylon cinnamon bark, and
aged-curry-vanilla-bean paste in a base of organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Smelling this without looking at the notes, I immediately think of my Indian spice collection. I can practically detect the individual spices, it is so strong and precise. Cinnamon is there obviously, but not too strong -- cumin, very much in the foreground. Maybe even some turmeric and cardamom, but it is most definitely a curry paste. The almond is a little overwhelming and boozy. It dries down to a more pale and powdery blend but it still smells overwhelmingly of Indian spices. The amber incense and rose do not come out so much, but perhaps I catch a hint of rose among those boozy undertones, offering up a pink powdery finish. The scent puts me in the mind of an Indian horror movie like this one - <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandh_Darwaza" target="_blank">Bandh Darwaza </a>-- though the name of the scent conjures to mind something more Victorian.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-otjZJt1sN2U/Vfi2RBm0uLI/AAAAAAAABtw/FF4bVRKNOZI/s1600/darwaza.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-otjZJt1sN2U/Vfi2RBm0uLI/AAAAAAAABtw/FF4bVRKNOZI/s320/darwaza.jpeg" width="226" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: smoked sandalwood,
Russian sage buds, Australian sandalwood, Virginia cedar wood, Clary sage
absolute, and aged white pepper in a base of organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Incredibly woody scent, but it is not a sawdust or pencil shavings wood. This is a vital, fresh, invigorating fresh-hewn wood, strewn with bundles of soft sage, with its sharp, herbal bite. It is not so much "smoked" smelling as fresh and natural. Think of new wood growing in a glade where fire once ripped through and now everything is reborn. Magnificent, one of the great outdoorsy wood scents I've ever tried. Very masculine but not cologney. Perfect for walking in the autumn woods.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Although it not smoky outright, I'm still going to pair it with the Wicker Man, since this extremely natural-smelling, fresh-cut wood makes me think of the lively pagan community of Summerisle, and the dry, masculine sensibility is one I associate with Christopher Lee.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TTLkmrx9GPc/Vfi8ihHg8FI/AAAAAAAABuU/FAZ_Zoo2pxY/s1600/wickerman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="172" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TTLkmrx9GPc/Vfi8ihHg8FI/AAAAAAAABuU/FAZ_Zoo2pxY/s320/wickerman.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: black amber, copal
incense, dark beeswax candles, smoke, red amber, and a dusting of ash in a base
of organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One of the best perfumes in my
collection, by any perfumer. Very rich, sweet and resiny. It has that distinct
scent of a dish of resins set smouldering atop a coal, but it is not overly
smoky, and it quite pleasantly sweet with a rather honeyed aspect to it. This
clings in my hair when I apply it behind the ears and I can smell it for hours.
Perfect for a crisp autumn nice or a chill winter day. Another "holy grail" scent for incense lovers. If those candle and smoke notes appeal to you, pay close attention. It smells like a room in which incense has been burning, without overly smelling of smoke itself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Wear for your favorite haunted house or ghost movie. Mine is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Haunting_%281963_film%29" target="_blank">"The Haunting"</a> (1963) based on one of my favorite novels, which I read around October of every year for a while.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-y9Ifzg4tjd4/Vfi5FGg2CiI/AAAAAAAABuI/AXvtHufTwPU/s1600/Thehaunting1963.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-y9Ifzg4tjd4/Vfi5FGg2CiI/AAAAAAAABuI/AXvtHufTwPU/s320/Thehaunting1963.png" width="223" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Stage Setting for Black Art</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><i>With notes of: wispy vanilla whispering long-lost secrets beyond the
parted veil, red musk, petigrain leaves sharp and biting, once innocent
jasmine, and sinister pink rose in a base of organic jojoba oil.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Surprisingly to my taste, as I didn't expect to be crazy about it, but that splash of jasmine and rose is a perfect counterpoint to the darker red musk undertones. To compare to another perfumer company, it reminds me of Desire from BPAL. I keep coming back for that surprisingly appealing sweet floral blast of heady jasmine and romantic rose, propelled forward by a long-lasting breath of vanilla and a smouldering red musk. This brings up a million associations but for some reason I need to pair this with some 1970s ladies in shroud-like dresses involved in some kind of secret cult activity and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0177226/" target="_blank">"Sisters of Death"</a> springs to mind, mixing the mysterious and the overly feminine.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H39n6DLCRGg/VfixOfD4kSI/AAAAAAAABtQ/T8bJj3mPZdA/s1600/sisters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H39n6DLCRGg/VfixOfD4kSI/AAAAAAAABtQ/T8bJj3mPZdA/s320/sisters.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Disarticulated Skeleton</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: antique cedar wood,
Blood cedar wood, raw coconut meat, amaretto brandy, and saffron threads
burning slow over a charcoal disk dispensing threads of serpentine smoke in a
base of organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I don't have a sample of this on-hand any more but I remember that when I tried it, it was very satisfying -- coconut was strong, with a boozy undercurrent, anchored by dry wood. A good solid glossy wood base, nothing too powdery or dusty, but the strong coconut notes tend to dry a bit in the powdery direction, and overall I think it's very similar to a lot of other scents in this series -- just a bit boozier.</span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The movie for this would have to be <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051744/" target="_blank">"House on Haunted Hill"</a> (1959) with Vincent Price -- a film I was delighted to see at the Alamo Drafthouse not too long ago on the big screen.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4XywMI4e5zs/Vfi3VIbXNNI/AAAAAAAABt8/bcuaaLNDqDo/s1600/hauntedhill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4XywMI4e5zs/Vfi3VIbXNNI/AAAAAAAABt8/bcuaaLNDqDo/s320/hauntedhill.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Explanation of the Decapitation Trick</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: unfiltered honey, beeswax melted into unrefined coconut
oil, black amber, frankincense resin, neroli, orange blossom, and
cardamom seeds in a base of organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This scent is a lot lighter than I expected, as the orange blossom, neroli and cardamom are front row center for the blend. Cardamom is very bright and suspended in golden honey in a way that brings Indian desserts to mind, but perhaps it is the beeswax-in-coconut oil that gives me the strongest impression, which is one of the kind of oily suntan lotion I remember people wearing in the 1970s. In other words it has a very sunny, outdoor, beach feeling to it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I don't have a movie for this one exactly, but there are a lot of decapitation scenes out there you can take your pick from! Or see my next entry below for another decapitation themed scent.</span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b>The Sawed-off Head</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I got a free sample of this and
liked it enough to get a bottle.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: wood vanilla, smoked
blond woods, vanilla cream, Cognac vanilla bean, smoke and ash in a base of
organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">While initially it seems very similar to a lot of other scents in this series, it distinguishes itself with a very strong cedarwood that is softened by vanilla (whatever "wood vanilla" is, I like it). The notes didn't lead me to expect it to be this cedary. A wood-panelled room in which seances are held. While vanilla notes are all over this, it really doesn't strike me as "Vanilla!" when I am wearing it, but that soft sweet simmering note keeps it glowing and warm without ever becoming too sharp. Really gorgeous and I had to wear it for a while to fully appreciate the subtlety.</span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Even without smelling it, I was ready to associate this scent with the 1970 Herschell Gordon Lewis movie <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066578/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2" target="_blank">"The Wizard of Gore"</a> (though the 2007 remake with Crispin Glover is also highly enjoyable!). A perfect match.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b>Zombie Ball</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I took this to mean "A ball
attended by zombies" but it actually means "a stand-up/stage effect
where a metallic globe seemingly floats on its own under the cover of a
foulard."</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">With notes of: wispy vanilla smoke,
dark vetiver, bitter amber, black myrrh, West Indian golden vanilla, coconut
husk, nag champa, and an antique brass ball suspended in the humid air of a
Southern evening in a base of organic jojoba oil.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I don't have this one on hand any more but I remember my impressions were positive -- the coconut was not very strong, but neither was the nag champa. Just enough to be a dry, resiny, incensy scent with a hint of vanilla. For those who do not care for vetiver, I don't remember smelling it in this blend but it often acts as an earthy "anchor" for a scent without asserting itself too much. I would have sworn there was something either fruity or floral in it, in my recollection, as there was a distinct faded "pink" note but perhaps that was just the play of coconut and nag champa.</span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Perhaps it goes without saying that the "floating metallic globe" brings to mind one particular<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079714/" target="_blank"> film from 1979</a> that I can probably leave a picture for without comment.</span></div>
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And that is everything I have for now from the collections currently available from Violette Market! </div>
artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-61358076743099638382015-09-07T17:40:00.001-04:002015-09-07T17:40:44.007-04:00Pre-Halloween sale through Sept. 21!<br />
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For the next two weeks (until the clock strikes midnight as the day turns to Sept. 21, central time) I will have a 20% off sale in my Etsy shop. The coupon code is HALLOW2015 and is good for any amount, any number of times.<br />
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Here is a sampling of some Halloween themed items in my shop, though you can use the coupon on anything. Both originals and prints are available of many items.<br />
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The first item below is a new painting -- an 8 x 10 inch acrylic on canvas. I sketched this last year when the Halloween Artist Bazaar did a "dark hollow" theme. I did two paintings on that theme last year but saved a couple of my ideas for this year, so I just finished it up -- a fox, some luna moths and some pumpkins in a twilit grove. <br />
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Stay tuned for more Halloween stuff throughout the next two months! My first selection of ghost stories for the year incidentally is "In Ghostly Company" by Amyas Northcote. Don't know how this one got past me before but it's definitely time to read it now!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LHvpDmg-1x0/Ve4A552CyoI/AAAAAAAABqw/F-5-b1DmXUQ/s1600/foxwoods1600watermark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LHvpDmg-1x0/Ve4A552CyoI/AAAAAAAABqw/F-5-b1DmXUQ/s320/foxwoods1600watermark.jpg" width="253" /></a></div>
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Twilight in Fox Hollow</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/103640807/ghost-lantern-blue-witch-and-white?ref=shop_home_active_9&ga_search_query=halloween" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/103640807/ghost-lantern-blue-witch-and-white?ref=shop_home_active_9&ga_search_query=halloween" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u-lHFg8q10k/Ve4BOEG8XJI/AAAAAAAABq8/1dXrH656PdM/s320/bluelanternetsy.jpg" width="235" /></a></div>
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"Flames of the Ghost Lantern"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/198305456/halloween-painting-original-8-x-10?ref=shop_home_active_5&ga_search_query=halloween" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/198305456/halloween-painting-original-8-x-10?ref=shop_home_active_5&ga_search_query=halloween" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--_UT2c_1Adk/Ve4BOO0hfJI/AAAAAAAABq4/qmXtxw2Bd5M/s320/bunnylanternetsy.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>
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"Lost in the Dark Hollow" </div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/33092682/owl-and-cat-halloween-tea-party-art-5-x?ref=shop_home_active_3&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bcat" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/33092682/owl-and-cat-halloween-tea-party-art-5-x?ref=shop_home_active_3&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bcat" border="0" height="236" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W1XMPj3kVI8/Ve4BOI2E4GI/AAAAAAAABq0/ypgxIeDmJmg/s320/catowlteaetsy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Owl and the Pussycat Went to Tea</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/198311443/halloween-painting-original-8-x-10?ref=shop_home_active_2&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bbunny" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/198311443/halloween-painting-original-8-x-10?ref=shop_home_active_2&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bbunny" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-deoDaW1qLIE/Ve4BOS3p3eI/AAAAAAAABrA/CFIfxFBIRFc/s320/cauldroncrittersetsy.jpg" width="252" /></a></div>
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"Cauldron in the Dark Hollow"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/189610808/gothic-ghost-crypt-sisters-original-art?ref=shop_home_active_4&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bzombie" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/189610808/gothic-ghost-crypt-sisters-original-art?ref=shop_home_active_4&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bzombie" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5DkuHfY7SoU/Ve4BOvZwOsI/AAAAAAAABrE/Slp10CQlh38/s320/cryptsistersetsy.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
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"Sisters of the Crypt"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/81043393/silent-grave-halloween-print?ref=shop_home_active_1&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bzombie" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/81043393/silent-grave-halloween-print?ref=shop_home_active_1&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bzombie" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wAz2M8HJ_vc/Ve4BO75LYsI/AAAAAAAABrc/3YTu1EH_6V0/s320/silentfilmetsy.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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"The Silent Grave"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/33260520/gothic-victorian-woman-with-skeleton?ref=shop_home_active_10&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bvictorian" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/33260520/gothic-victorian-woman-with-skeleton?ref=shop_home_active_10&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bvictorian" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v7Kb1CdH4pQ/Ve4BPGquI5I/AAAAAAAABrI/0poQnXj6sKw/s320/victoriankeyetsy.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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"Keeper of the Keys"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/81044384/halloween-zombie-girl-horror-art-print?ref=shop_home_active_3&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bzombie" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/81044384/halloween-zombie-girl-horror-art-print?ref=shop_home_active_3&ga_search_query=halloween%2Bzombie" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q3gGajrAGLc/Ve4BPQ2EPYI/AAAAAAAABrQ/vYeXttJw0eo/s320/zombiegirletsy.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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"Tower of the Zombie Girl"</div>
artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-54770729775672823082015-09-05T14:38:00.001-04:002015-09-05T14:39:13.415-04:00Halloween Trick or Treat Giveaway and an autumn interviewTwo groovy Halloween things to announce...first, the annual <a href="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/2015-trick-or-treat-give-away/" target="_blank">Trick or Treat Giveaway</a> is under way from the Halloween Artist Bazaar! There is a crazy amount of really cool stuff available and it's really easy to enter. Just click the link and follow the instructions, then sit back and wait for the spooky goodies to roll in! I have a print available as part of the package. Basically, you just need to check out and "like" the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Halloween-Artist-Bazaar/150448468402288?sk=wall&filter=12" target="_blank">HAB Facebook page</a>, send a "trick or treat" convo to one of the participating Etsy sellers and fill out a couple of fields in a form on the giveaway page. Couldn't be easier! You have until Oct. 20 to do all this, but click now so you don't forget! ;)<br />
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<a href="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/2015-trick-or-treat-give-away/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/2015-trick-or-treat-give-away/" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3jbIq1q3OvI/VeszES2ptoI/AAAAAAAABpk/ElyoJTS5Z10/s320/Trick-or-Treat-2015.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/31053012/gloomy-gothic-halloween-autumn-witch-art?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/31053012/gloomy-gothic-halloween-autumn-witch-art?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NHI-zXBIOKg/Veszj8-aigI/AAAAAAAABps/iKeZykfbubQ/s320/darkanddreary.jpg" width="221" /></a></div>
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"A Dark and Dreary Day," above, is the print that I have included in the giveaway.<br />
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Also, the folks at HAB were kind enough to feature <a href="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/featured-artist-interview-september-2015-art-by-sarada/" target="_blank">an interview with me</a> on the site this month, talking about Halloween and
what it means to me.<br />
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<a href="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/featured-artist-interview-september-2015-art-by-sarada/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/featured-artist-interview-september-2015-art-by-sarada/" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-j0Gl7TjArno/Vesz5xKeJII/AAAAAAAABp0/nuqvANV6nkE/s320/Art-By-Sarada1-e1441309640957.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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At the moment I'm mostly working
on some black and white sketching and pen and ink stuff for my own
amusement, but I will have more new seasonal art up before long, as well
as some of these pen and ink drawings, most likely. The doodling started when I had jury duty on Monday (I didn't get picked) and I spent the whole time working on learning tatting, and drawing. I plan to keep on doing both of those things, of course. <br />
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My Autumn reading this year includes, so far, the book "Black Magic" by Marjorie Bowen, an occult/supernatural novel from 1909 that already promises to be one of the finest of the genre. Pictured is an original cover but I am reading a public domain ebook. I can't say enough good things about the availability of previously scarce texts. I'm linking below to manybooks.net, which is a safe and reputable site, but make sure you click on the link to the book and not onto an ad! They have a whole category for occult writing from pre-1923. What could be better? Also on my reading list are some more works from <a href="http://www.ash-tree.bc.ca/eBooks.htm" target="_blank">Ash Tree Press</a>, which I also obtained in ebook form though I also enjoy collecting their paper editions. But for $6.99 each if you need as many ghost stories in your life as I do, the ebook route is probably the most affordable. I get as many of both variety as possible, to ensure year-round ghost story coverage.<br />
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<a href="http://manybooks.net/titles/bowenmother100605181.html" target="_blank"><img alt="http://manybooks.net/titles/bowenmother100605181.html" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bBHz8jqFPHM/Ves1e-JY7hI/AAAAAAAABqI/y-n4GULkS94/s320/bowenmother100605181.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
<br />artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-26588422007194069712015-08-16T01:56:00.000-04:002015-08-16T01:56:08.946-04:00A glimpse at what's new for Halloween -- cats, tentacles, ghosts and vampiresThe skulls are on the shelves in the craft stores, so it must be time to get a few more Halloween-friendly items out there into the world. This post is just a chance for me to round up a few new items I have on Etsy this month!<br />
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I started a few little (3 x 5 inch) canvas panels with black cats on them a long time ago and only just now finished them up for the season. It might be a little bit obvious who my models are, at this point.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244158912/black-cat-kitten-halloween-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244158912/black-cat-kitten-halloween-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6ajUVmWzFDc/Vc2a4ePT0yI/AAAAAAAABoA/qrDCYEIeleI/s320/autumndoorcatwatermark.jpg" width="207" /> </a></div>
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"The Door to Autumn"</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2ZhdkT-sAxA/Vc52kJK_GuI/AAAAAAAABo4/g89ZjLb9pvs/s1600/1374238_10200633567107702_587806955_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2ZhdkT-sAxA/Vc52kJK_GuI/AAAAAAAABo4/g89ZjLb9pvs/s320/1374238_10200633567107702_587806955_n.jpg" width="295" /></a></div>
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This is Angelique, who turned 3 this year and is the most wide-eyed, excitable cat I've ever met. Her eyes are always ROUND and every object is a potential toy or prey. I'm not sure what she was looking at in this picture...oh no wait I do, she was listening to a Keiji Heino record, actually. So I guess she was trying to figure out what to do with those fascinating dissonant sounds...<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244159328/black-cat-halloween-original-art-3-x-5?ref=listing-shop-header-2" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244159328/black-cat-halloween-original-art-3-x-5?ref=listing-shop-header-2" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wl417woXrH8/Vc2a4aMQRbI/AAAAAAAABoQ/xrf1UDajldk/s320/catpairwatermark.jpg" width="229" /> </a></div>
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"Playful Pair"</div>
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And here we see Shinobi -- age unknown but he's probably at least 8 by now. He's on a diet these days, since hitting about 24 pounds, so there's a lot of cat going on here...but stoic and bulky as he is, he's a real sweetheart. When we play with them with the laser pointer, Angelique (and the other cats...unpictured) zoom around the room, limbs scampering and paws flailing. Shinobi waits for it to come close and he just steps on it with his paw and sniffs it. He's a pretty cool customer.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PZ-Jy83KY7k/Vc52v0PTa8I/AAAAAAAABpE/qFvTmOGQ_mM/s1600/390281_3932970848806_684341262_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PZ-Jy83KY7k/Vc52v0PTa8I/AAAAAAAABpE/qFvTmOGQ_mM/s320/390281_3932970848806_684341262_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I've also added one to my revolving collection of "ghosts in bottles" -- the first ones I've done in color, so that's fun, right? Yay!<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244159980/ghost-gallery-original-miniature?ref=listing-shop-header-0" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244159980/ghost-gallery-original-miniature?ref=listing-shop-header-0" border="0" height="319" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a2EQyMZDwbg/Vc2a41zjy3I/AAAAAAAABoI/FXiCnQmWNpw/s320/rainbowghostwatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"Ghost Gallery"</div>
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And I've added one to my "traumatized pumpkin" collection as well - this time it's blue tentacles making everything weird and alarming.</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244159666/blue-tentacle-octopus-pumpkin-art?ref=listing-shop-header-1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/244159666/blue-tentacle-octopus-pumpkin-art?ref=listing-shop-header-1" border="0" height="319" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_pzpRVqeZhs/Vc2a4R3tSYI/AAAAAAAABoE/0t1uW-61Ap8/s320/bluepumpkintentacleswatermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"Entangled"</div>
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Finally, for now, there is an 8 x 8 painting I did for some album art, but I am offering it up for sale on its own now. Inspired by images in films, along the lines of Hammer from the early 1970s, the long red cloak trails off in a surreal and symbolic gesture of a river of blood.</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237564293/gothic-horror-vampire-painting-full-moon?ref=shop_home_active_7" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237564293/gothic-horror-vampire-painting-full-moon?ref=shop_home_active_7" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GoN3wnMTRmg/Vc2a5WAl01I/AAAAAAAABoY/XJkobQfluwU/s320/redcloakmoon%2Bwatermark.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>
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"Ascent to the Haunted Peak"<br />
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Thanks for looking, if you are looking...more Halloween and haunted art coming soon!</div>
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artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-16657302111635241562015-06-14T14:36:00.001-04:002015-06-14T14:36:43.800-04:00Dragons again! Also, surreal and psychedelic prints newly availableI'd like to say that a childhood steeped in museum visits and gifts of lavish art books inspired me to start painting, informed by a classical education, but the truth is that old D&D modules and copies of Dragon magazine were probably what got me interested in art. That probably isn't too surprising though given that my favorite subject matter is fantasy-oriented, albeit on the whimsical side thereof. I'm not a student of the style of art that comes up when I google "fantasy" art images, obviously -- while all expertly done, it's a little glossy for my taste (and, er, my ability, which is nowhere near that of the professionals). I like to see the individual artist's touch and brush strokes. I especially like the look of the D&D art from around 1979-1981, where the figures are not always proportional and muscular, the colors are bright and garish, with oozy shades of green slime, crimson capes and glowing orange eyes. I like the drawings that look like elaborate notebook doodles and paintings with bold, clear strokes of color.<br />
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Behold, the formative influences. The colorful mushrooms, otherworldly lighting and details and stiff poses of the classic fantasy figures on "In Search of the Unknown" light up my brain in ways that cannot be articulated.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Kg-VuEJ-k3w/VX3F2REtd-I/AAAAAAAABnc/XrgZrcoWI34/s1600/DSCN8465.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Kg-VuEJ-k3w/VX3F2REtd-I/AAAAAAAABnc/XrgZrcoWI34/s320/DSCN8465.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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With that in mind, I'm applying myself to some more of the detailed dungeon work that I liked to do when I was in my teens. Here's my newest offering in that spirit, a 12 x 16 acrylic painting on flat canvas board. Any time I can put a small pile of jewels around a dragon's feet, I'm happy.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/235263615/fantasy-dragon-12-x-16-acrylic-painting?ref=shop_home_active_19" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/235263615/fantasy-dragon-12-x-16-acrylic-painting?ref=shop_home_active_19" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A0geiJ8cp9E/VX3DLjpHJSI/AAAAAAAABnQ/O4lZp6ubDsE/s320/stonedragonwatermark.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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"Cave of the Stone Dragon"</div>
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I've posted a few examples in the past of my late 1980s paintings, but I don't think I posted this one below before. I'm terribly proud of that dragon; I think my dragon skills peaked around age 16.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6xuJWZigQvU/VX3HqQdeY8I/AAAAAAAABno/r2NlzWm31OU/s1600/sea%2Bdragon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6xuJWZigQvU/VX3HqQdeY8I/AAAAAAAABno/r2NlzWm31OU/s320/sea%2Bdragon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Also newly available this week are some prints of paintings I did in the
past. First here is a 5 x 7 print of a painting that I sold last month.
I can make larger prints of this one on request, up to the original size (12 x 16). Oh yes, and clusters of crystals are even more satisfying than piles of jewels.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237042434/purple-crystal-amethyst-dragon-5-x7?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237042434/purple-crystal-amethyst-dragon-5-x7?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bSZ568H00bA/VX2_XuYfZII/AAAAAAAABms/izGusAHpQTo/s320/amethyst%2Bdragon%2Bstitch%2Bwatermark%2B%2528931x1280%2529.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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"Night of the Amethyst Dragon"</div>
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Also, a trio of psychedelic paintings I did in 2009. These first two have some kind of Tarot influence to them, but I can't say exactly what it is. The first was inspired by a dream; the second is just a collection of things that I like. The third piece is one of my lonely ice landscape paintings. Now that I am not living in a place where it gets quite as cold and lonely, I don't do a lot of those any more, but I DO spend a lot of time reading about early 20th century Arctic/Antarctic explorers.</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237046608/psychedelic-surreal-goddess-tarot-art-8?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237046608/psychedelic-surreal-goddess-tarot-art-8?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yLum78kpHBY/VX2_auIn1AI/AAAAAAAABm0/B4e2NP8mI9I/s320/mushroomfish1500.JPG" width="231" /></a></div>
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"Vision of the Cosmic Rift"<br />
Available as an 8 x 10 print </div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237046608/psychedelic-surreal-goddess-tarot-art-8?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/237046608/psychedelic-surreal-goddess-tarot-art-8?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nBkpjTzCWJE/VX2_yR0at_I/AAAAAAAABm8/wOmyeVzwWaI/s320/crazy%2Bpeacock%2Blady.jpg" width="254" /></a></div>
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"Astral Peacock Empress"<br />
Available as an 8 x 10 print <br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/35606521/the-secret-surreal-fire-and-ice-art?ref=shop_home_active_3" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/35606521/the-secret-surreal-fire-and-ice-art?ref=shop_home_active_3" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bmeYcV6Ts38/VX2_yUe9NXI/AAAAAAAABnA/0VC-onJyB9w/s320/solitude%2Bice.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
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"The Secret"</div>
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Listing is for 5 x 7 print</div>
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also available as 8 x 10 on request</div>
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Thanks for looking! Coming soon are some perfume reviews and Halloween in June musings, if I get my act together.</div>
artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-59112204501793678722015-05-26T21:28:00.002-04:002015-05-28T14:25:10.082-04:00Everything is A-OKJust in case any friends are wondering if we're OK here in Houston after the flooding, I wanted to post something to let everyone know that everything is fine here on the north side of the city limits. It did rain pretty hard, but other than the power flickering, it didn't even mess up my plants. I can see from news footage that it looked pretty bad on the highways and heading downtown, earlier today, though. Any plans I had to head in that direction were immediately postponed, and it's business as usual here -- for us, at least. Not everyone has been that fortunate, but there are some ways to help out in the communities that have been affected:<br />
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<a href="http://www.redcross.org/tx/houston" target="_blank">Red Cross - Gulf Coast Chapter (Houston) </a><br />
<a href="http://www.redcross.org/tx/austin" target="_blank"><br /></a>
<a href="http://www.redcross.org/tx/austin" target="_blank">Red Cross - Central Texas Chapter (Austin)</a><br />
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One of my favorite local charities is:<br />
<a href="http://www.houstonfoodbank.org/" target="_blank">Houston Food Bank </a><br />
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And in Austin:<br />
<a href="http://haysfoodbank.org/" target="_blank">Hays Food Bank</a><br />
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While we've been staying in to avoid the bad weather, I've been working on some medieval illumination-inspired art this week. This first piece already sold but a couple more have already come along in the meantime.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/transaction/1033339863" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/transaction/1033339863" border="0" height="156" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FgD0zKLQ_c4/VWUdc8OoWeI/AAAAAAAABlo/rBjj_cGd0GI/s320/img045.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I can't promise I'll make it through the whole alphabet any time soon but I thought these little 3 x 3 inch canvases would be perfect for illuminated letters! The first is A is for armadillo, which I don't think any medieval monks would have seen, but if they did, they might draw them something like this:<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234836579/medieval-inspired-illuminated-letter-a-3?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234836579/medieval-inspired-illuminated-letter-a-3?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="311" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BJrc4SPAkNU/VWYRzGKxApI/AAAAAAAABl4/v9xtLp5fG1Y/s320/img048.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And another colorful dragon, this time being battled by one of those rabbits with a sword you sometimes see in these drawings...<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234855890/colorful-medieval-illumination-style?ref=shop_home_active_2" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234855890/colorful-medieval-illumination-style?ref=shop_home_active_2" border="0" height="156" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-M9WiUfqD6GU/VWYRzGBxd0I/AAAAAAAABl8/F2_-SBpy7yk/s320/medievaldragon2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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These are a lot of fun, so more are coming soon!artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-53549095786070033532015-05-21T15:44:00.000-04:002015-05-21T15:49:26.563-04:00Sci fi surrealism, rust monsters, and a few more unicorns.Aside from working on a lot of oil paintings recently, and waiting for them to dry, I have a sort of unthemed mixed bag of things to share for the moment.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zHU88oxv6Zc/VV4tRFMa2UI/AAAAAAAABlA/u_UVYkiN9uo/s1600/IMG_20150503_151639.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zHU88oxv6Zc/VV4tRFMa2UI/AAAAAAAABlA/u_UVYkiN9uo/s320/IMG_20150503_151639.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Earlier this month I contributed a piece, "The Sea Corridor," for a greyscale art contest at Jerry's Artarama in Houston. I got a nice set of oil paints for my efforts, and the painting (18 x 24 inch on a gallery wrapped canvas) is taking up a big chunk of art closet real estate here now, in case anyone within driving distance of Houston is interested in making an offer on it. :) Blurry photo with glare courtesy of my perpetually poor lighting conditions and lack of a professional grade photo studio.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5gD98YV9tRA/VV4wpvq7WII/AAAAAAAABlM/_CKOyMuZ_ZA/s1600/DSCN8386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5gD98YV9tRA/VV4wpvq7WII/AAAAAAAABlM/_CKOyMuZ_ZA/s320/DSCN8386.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The "fish-owl" was inspired by a couple of lines in the book "Babylon" by Rene Crevel, and there are tiny little fishes budding off of the branches that were inspired by lines in "The Goose of Hermogenes" by Ithell Colquhoun, unless I'm getting my surrealist novels confused. I tried to put some of my favorite elements in this -- woods, corridors full of billowing curtains, gliding down a passageway like the famous scene in Jean Cocteau's "Beauty and the Beast"...just some things that I like, blended into a sort of collage.<br />
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I also have prints available of a colorful, surrealist-inspired painting I did a few years ago and kept in my personal collection. This is a 5 x 7 print for sale but I can also make 8 x 10 (or 9 x 12, even) on request.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232890223/colorful-surreal-psychedelic-5-x-7-art?ref=shop_home_active_11" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232890223/colorful-surreal-psychedelic-5-x-7-art?ref=shop_home_active_11" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LVqwnITZrQ0/VV4q6lSwpPI/AAAAAAAABkM/q3m5xmr2kK4/s320/hoopgirl57watermark.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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"Beneath the Green Sky"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232921560/fantasy-dungeon-art-8-x-10-photo-print?ref=shop_home_active_21" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232921560/fantasy-dungeon-art-8-x-10-photo-print?ref=shop_home_active_21" border="0" height="256" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fq7kLrz1iVM/VV4q8bzGyTI/AAAAAAAABkU/56sI2-oK-qk/s320/dungeon810watermark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"The Lair of the Rust Monster"</div>
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On a completely different note, I'm slipping an 8 x 10 print of another of my "personal stash" paintings into the mix this week -- I love D&D module covers from the early 80s, which was my formative era. I liked the art more than anything else really, since I rarely got to play with other people. In fact, check back for a post about those soon. </div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234191200/gothic-surreal-weird-horror-art-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234191200/gothic-surreal-weird-horror-art-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bgzOU1y4OUM/VV4q_FYoBaI/AAAAAAAABkc/pcOlohzIhtw/s320/weirdfishthing57watermark.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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"The Shadow and the Candle"</div>
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Back to surrealism, this oil painting is also in my personal stash, just a stream-of-consciousness piece I did, of whatever came to mind at the moment that I wanted to see. Subconsciously inspired by my love of Leonora Carrington, in ways I can't quite put my finger on. I'm keeping the original of this, but 5 x 7 prints are available at the link above, and 8 x 10 can also be made on request.</div>
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Finally, I have prints up now of a couple of the unicorn paintings that I did last week.</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234149202/purple-unicorn-5-x-7-print-reproduction?ref=shop_home_active_3" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234149202/purple-unicorn-5-x-7-print-reproduction?ref=shop_home_active_3" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aPZ_CI0kUJo/VV4rDviiFBI/AAAAAAAABkk/6T0qm0g2fxU/s320/unicorn1watermark.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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"Beneath the Purple Unicorn Tree" 5 x 7 print</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234122317/purple-unicorn-pink-lava-lamp-groovy-5-x?ref=listing-shop-header-1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/234122317/purple-unicorn-pink-lava-lamp-groovy-5-x?ref=listing-shop-header-1" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9H7DSMdSw1g/VV4rF2ddr0I/AAAAAAAABks/WSfhiWiZ33w/s320/unicornlavalampwatermark.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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"Groovy Unicorn Room" 5 x 7 print</div>
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And soomehow when Easter rolled around I think I neglected to post this picture, that I did for the season. But really, aren't moonlit bunnies suitable year-round?<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/225221971/gothic-purple-blue-moon-bunny-ghost?ref=shop_home_active_14" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/225221971/gothic-purple-blue-moon-bunny-ghost?ref=shop_home_active_14" border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wqRYh7CBaHU/VV4ri5o8IgI/AAAAAAAABk0/_YpjXA55HZU/s320/bunnymoonwatermark.jpg" width="262" /></a></div>
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Thanks for looking, and I hope that my next update will be a little more focused, but really, what's so great about focus?artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-12765943523376706332015-05-12T23:13:00.001-04:002015-05-13T16:09:07.156-04:00A dream of lavender unicorns and lava lampsLike many 13-year-olds in 1986, I'm sure I had my share of unicorns around the house. I know they were all over my school supplies. Glowing white unicorns on a purple background simply cannot be resisted, though I think I was mainly a dragon girl. Looking over the paintings I did in my teens, I only have a couple of unicorns represented, but I have many, many dragons. Here is the best example of a unicorn painting from that time period (1989) that I have on hand:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zxOeqznXVA8/VVK7hUtNkDI/AAAAAAAABi8/nNirCMBEkaM/s1600/unicorn1989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zxOeqznXVA8/VVK7hUtNkDI/AAAAAAAABi8/nNirCMBEkaM/s320/unicorn1989.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Edited to add: Another unicorn painting from that time period, which my mom just photographed for me since it is up at her house in NJ. ^_^ <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PvHMnWZit04/VVOudKN9s7I/AAAAAAAABjw/xeTAR447mjI/s1600/unicorn%2Bwith%2Bwaterfall%2Bpainting%2B002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PvHMnWZit04/VVOudKN9s7I/AAAAAAAABjw/xeTAR447mjI/s320/unicorn%2Bwith%2Bwaterfall%2Bpainting%2B002.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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I was a huge fan of the movie "Legend" which came out when I was in 7th grade, and had some of the glitteriest unicorns ever filmed, even though their horns bounced a bit. But they were pretty, especially filmed among pink flower petals and dandelion fluff. It remains one of my favorite movies from that era (and I don't like much of anything made after 1975 to begin with!...)<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5kao4CxST00/VVK9oiz7zqI/AAAAAAAABjQ/FIREYetgq9c/s1600/legendunicorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5kao4CxST00/VVK9oiz7zqI/AAAAAAAABjQ/FIREYetgq9c/s320/legendunicorn.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dZ6R6NoQrgs/VVK9T5jAuxI/AAAAAAAABjI/Z8R3ap4tsV8/s1600/legendunicorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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One thing you will never see from me are any of the tongue in cheek "unicorn poo," "unicorn fart" or "barfing unicorn" images that I know are incredible popular these days. Look, I take my unicorns seriously. I like them pretty, pastel and magical. I like them pink and purple and covered in glitter.<br />
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With that in mind, I've started a mini campaign of doing some unicorn paintings with simple, colorful images that appeal to that part of my brain. This first one below is already spoken for, but will be available as a print soon. <br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232947131/reserved-for-megan-purple-unicorn-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_9" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232947131/reserved-for-megan-purple-unicorn-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_9" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6pGp8rg5I48/VVK3aAYhcBI/AAAAAAAABio/C3N0LWeTxtI/s320/unicorn1watermark.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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"Beneath the Purple Unicorn Tree"<br />
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And here we find one in its natural setting, among butterflies and a fairytale tower (the kind from which I can imagine a long golden braid spiraling downward):</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233231952/unicorn-fantasy-art-magic-tower-fairy?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233231952/unicorn-fantasy-art-magic-tower-fairy?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FPjKcdepxRw/VVK3aCInlbI/AAAAAAAABik/gCQQvtRiPR4/s320/unicorntowerwatermark.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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"Unicorn Tower"</div>
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Now that we're on the subject of unicorns, let's talk about lava lamps. While unicorns might call to mind an 80s girl's room or notebooks, surely lava lamps were a staple of the 70s....and also the 80s for people like me who lived (and continue to live) in a psychedelic past. I was fairly well obsessed with getting a lava lamp, but they were prohibitively expensive when I was in high school, at over $40 if you could find one. One of the first things I bought when I finally had some spending money, was a lava lamp, because I wanted to make sure to have one in my dorm room. </div>
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One of my most-viewed items on Etsy is my lava lamp ghost painting/print, so I know that other people share this interest. In later years one of my moments of glory was managing to have something like four or five lava lamps going in my office at work. I think when I reached that pinnacle, it set the clock ticking on my workplace folding, because once your environment gets that groovy, it can't last for long...<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/90103520/psychedelic-ghost-lava-lamp-gothic-art?ref=shop_home_active_9&ga_search_query=lava%2Blamp" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/90103520/psychedelic-ghost-lava-lamp-gothic-art?ref=shop_home_active_9&ga_search_query=lava%2Blamp" border="0" height="253" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-awazacJJsdM/VVK__ZsvelI/AAAAAAAABjc/tL30njBPRKo/s320/lavalampprint.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"Spectrum of Psychedelic Spectres"</div>
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At any rate, here are six miniature paintings I've prepared on 2 x 3 inch canvas, each with its own personality and name:<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232954923/mini-blue-lava-lamp-lite-miniature-2-x-3?ref=shop_home_active_6" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232954923/mini-blue-lava-lamp-lite-miniature-2-x-3?ref=shop_home_active_6" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-umSCedYux68/VVK3WI9pZuI/AAAAAAAABh4/8QdhDNm635Q/s320/minibluelite.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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"Blue Goo"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232954631/mini-green-lava-lamp-lite-2-x-3?ref=shop_home_active_7" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232954631/mini-green-lava-lamp-lite-2-x-3?ref=shop_home_active_7" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6PoLkOj7vgk/VVK3WMcoGpI/AAAAAAAABhw/MorOTjAnagw/s320/minigreenlite.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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"Emerald Ooze"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233208076/mini-pink-purple-lava-lamp-lite-2-x-3?ref=shop_home_active_3" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233208076/mini-pink-purple-lava-lamp-lite-2-x-3?ref=shop_home_active_3" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-coyIe73VWqA/VVK3WNV9DGI/AAAAAAAABh0/lTetl1EIO7k/s320/minipinklite.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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"Purple Pixie"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232984150/mini-red-lava-lamp-lite-psychedelic?ref=shop_home_active_8" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/232984150/mini-red-lava-lamp-lite-psychedelic?ref=shop_home_active_8" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--MKbTyR0qaY/VVK3WroNL7I/AAAAAAAABh8/7zjsHhfGHwk/s320/miniredlite.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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"Flame Phantom"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233207152/mini-yellow-red-lava-lamp-lite-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_5" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233207152/mini-yellow-red-lava-lamp-lite-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_5" border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-To7GBIrqgUE/VVK3W3KNFYI/AAAAAAAABiI/TI4F1IAwVeE/s320/minisunsetlight.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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"Sunset Daydream"</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233207658/mini-blue-white-lava-lamp-lite-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233207658/mini-blue-white-lava-lamp-lite-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fX4ZW6v7Ltw/VVK3W4nuXeI/AAAAAAAABiA/9Qh3kARerHA/s320/miniwhitebluelite.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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"Ghost Globules"</div>
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And here is the moment where it all comes together -- the culmination of everything I could have wished for, and still do -- the moment when a unicorn and a pink lava lamp collide beneath a bead curtain. I'm so thrilled by this idea that I couldn't even come up with a good title for the painting! It's dubbed "Groovy Unicorn Room" until I can come up with something better. </div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233209198/purple-unicorn-pink-lava-lamp-groovy-5-x?ref=shop_home_active_2" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/233209198/purple-unicorn-pink-lava-lamp-groovy-5-x?ref=shop_home_active_2" border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W4UTEvBkss4/VVK3Z0zkhHI/AAAAAAAABig/CjwXNhV-NtQ/s320/unicornlavalampwatermark.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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I hope that someone's Google search for "unicorns" and "lava lamp" brought them here, because if it has, we are obviously meant to be friends. artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-42959695275913864162015-05-06T15:58:00.001-04:002015-05-06T15:59:05.679-04:00Solo album - Dorothy's Ghost, and more musical newsLast month saw the long-awaited release of some early recordings of mine on the UK label Reverb Worship. These were recorded on 4-track under extremely lo-fi conditions in the late 1990s and cassettes were given to a few friends. Now available in a limited edition on cd-r, it includes color cover artwork and matching label art, and can be purchased directly from the label through their <a href="http://www.reverbworship.com/" target="_blank">website </a>(they accept orders via email, see below) or on <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/SARADA-HOLT-DOROTHYS-GHOST-CD-STONEBREATH-/261827259986?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3cf61eee52" target="_blank">eBay</a>. I hope to get myself together technologically in the next few days to post a track or two as listen-only selections on <a href="http://saradamusic.bandcamp.com/releases" target="_blank">Bandcamp</a>. At the moment I just have some tracks from my experimental project, White Gloves & Party Manners, up there, but check back and before long I should have more...<br />
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<br />
From the Reverb Worship site:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PuTTd1lMbZU/VUpndL98QwI/AAAAAAAABgo/rzTpPj6JxSo/s1600/dorothy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PuTTd1lMbZU/VUpndL98QwI/AAAAAAAABgo/rzTpPj6JxSo/s1600/dorothy.jpg" height="248" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;">"Over
the course of time, it occurred to me that one of the artists who I
really liked a lot, and I wanted to release some music by was Sarada.She
has provided some rather lovely vocals to music from a variety of
Timothy Renner's musical projects (Stone Breath , Breath Stone and Crow
Tongue) plus her own music too.She is also a superb artist and
illustrator. Having done a fair amount of "backtracking and musical
digging" (more on this subject later on in the year), I eventually
asked Sarada if she would be consider doing some music with me.I am
delighted to say that she agreed.When the master arrived through my
letterbox I was very pleased indeed. Sarada has sent me one of her
earliest solo recordings which only appeared on a self released cassette
which only got handed out to a small amount of family and close
friends.The music on this cassette contains eight wonderful tracks which
were recorded by Sarada in the corner of her living room in four track
in 1998-1999.What we have here is a real slice of hazy psychedelic
wyrdfolk of the very highest quality.It sounds like one of those "lost"
recordings that could have been created anytime in the last thirty years
or so, and people "get all freaky" about.To compliment the music
Sarada has allowed me to use one of her paintings for the cover
design.As a added bonus Sarada has also done a drawing for the cd label.</span><br />
<div align="left" style="font-size: xx-large;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This
cd is available now in a hand numbered edition of 50 copies with
artwork printed onto 160gsm bright white card.This cd comes with my very
highest recommendation.</span></span></div>
<div align="left" style="font-size: xx-large;">
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"> UK = £7.00 <br /> Europe = £9.00<br /> USA = £10.00</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"> Paypal to roger.linney@btinternet.com<br /> <span style="color: red;">PLEASE EMAIL BEFORE SENDING PAYMENT."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/SARADA-HOLT-DOROTHYS-GHOST-CD-STONEBREATH-/261827259986?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3cf61eee52" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;">Also available on eBay.</span></a></span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">Reviews have been posted on several sites as well:</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://active-listener.blogspot.com/2015/04/sarada-holt-dorothys-ghost.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">At The Active Listener</span></span></span></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">and</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.blissaquamarine.net/albumreviews29.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">In this issue of Bliss Aquamarine</span></span></span></a><br />
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<a href="http://stonebreath.bandcamp.com/album/the-shepherdess-and-the-bone-white-bird" target="_blank"><img alt="http://stonebreath.bandcamp.com/album/the-shepherdess-and-the-bone-white-bird" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6MCr_XegdWY/VUpyADvMNwI/AAAAAAAABg4/PkEGqPm1FvM/s1600/stonebreath.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">And as a final note this week, on the <a href="http://stonebreath.bandcamp.com/album/the-shepherdess-and-the-bone-white-bird" target="_blank">Stone Breath Bandcamp </a>page, </span></span></span>"The Shepherdess and the Bone-White Bird" BOX
SET (includes 2CDs + 5" record + booklet - lots of material not
available as digital downloads) is available for 20% off. Enter this code at checkout:
firewheel<br />
<br />
Thanks for looking, and remember to check back with my bandcamp page for some new tracks in the near future! <br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"> </span> </span></span>artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-30198751503861009682015-03-06T15:10:00.002-05:002015-03-06T15:10:48.207-05:00Haunted carnivals in the fogSometimes an image will linger with you for a while, and quietly percolate in the back of your mind as it shapes itself. About a year ago, a carnival was set up down the road in a bank parking lot. At this time of year, February/March, there tends to be a lot of fog at night, as the temperatures and humidity struggle to sort out the seasons, and what may seem like a nice evening for a stroll can quickly turn into one sliced through by biting wind, or muffled by thickening mist.<br />
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It goes without saying that a late night drive in the fog has an otherworldly, ethereal atmosphere. If you've watched enough horror movies it may seem as though a shambling figure might burst through the shifting mists, arms outstretched, clothed in shredded garments from the grave. Add an empty carnival in a parking lot and you begin to feel a little post-apocalyptic. <br />
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This isn't a tutorial but I wanted to show how experiences and viewing other works of art can act as inspiration, over time, as I started a foggy painting back on that night over a year ago but I never filled it in until recently.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/225033829/gothic-haunted-fog-carnival-original-art" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/225033829/gothic-haunted-fog-carnival-original-art" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CeYOY0BF4xs/VPn9ElQWhuI/AAAAAAAABfg/Ot7i-rHWeEY/s1600/carnivalwatermark1600.jpg" height="320" width="231" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
"Carnival in the Fog" is available as a 9 x 12 original acrylic painting on Etsy<br />
or by request as a print</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vPsVfGkgf9Y/VPn7ifClztI/AAAAAAAABeY/rMNwbcdrhME/s1600/carnival2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vPsVfGkgf9Y/VPn7ifClztI/AAAAAAAABeY/rMNwbcdrhME/s1600/carnival2.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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There is something unspeakably haunting about an empty carnival at night. Countless horror films, and a few video games (I'm thinking of Silent Hill 3, since I haven't played any new games in the last 10 years) use this as a stage for creeping, lurking characters and creatures to stagger and slink from out of the fog.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kFZNwYv3lrs/VPn7iSYJndI/AAAAAAAABfU/yw-3KV5XXA4/s1600/carnival3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kFZNwYv3lrs/VPn7iSYJndI/AAAAAAAABfU/yw-3KV5XXA4/s1600/carnival3.jpg" height="236" width="320" /></a></div>
You can tell that the colors are bright and festive, but they are muted and dampened by the darkness and oppressive, damp mist. Even the streetlights are diffused and distant, hovering like landing UFOs in the background. The machines of amusement are poised robot-like, painted clown colors and raised in threatening positions around the perimeter.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e5kuiPgw_hI/VPn7jDb8JBI/AAAAAAAABec/jYpD07dBjoI/s1600/carnival4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e5kuiPgw_hI/VPn7jDb8JBI/AAAAAAAABec/jYpD07dBjoI/s1600/carnival4.jpg" height="320" width="258" /></a></div>
A ferris wheel could almost be a torture device, against this misty monotone, creaking in the dampness, swaying uncomfortably.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fFch1TX02Mo/VPn7jX-p8eI/AAAAAAAABeg/f-7TqrjGmmQ/s1600/carnival5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fFch1TX02Mo/VPn7jX-p8eI/AAAAAAAABeg/f-7TqrjGmmQ/s1600/carnival5.jpg" height="251" width="320" /></a></div>
A pendulum cage hangs still and silent, painted with gaudy colors, waiting for daylight to bring it back to life.<br />
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In other words, it all puts me in the mood of a film like 1962's "Carnival of Souls," which speaks to this same surreal, nightmarish mindset, and captures a solitary, drifting journey through the horrific wonders of the abandoned pavilion.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9N_d1lhN1Co/VPn7jrwwAJI/AAAAAAAABek/v1hjnLttvCQ/s1600/souls1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9N_d1lhN1Co/VPn7jrwwAJI/AAAAAAAABek/v1hjnLttvCQ/s1600/souls1.jpg" height="242" width="320" /></a></div>
That feeling of being lost, alone, disoriented, and in a dream state, is one that no romantic-minded person can resist when coming across a bleak, abandoned landscape.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YEQBGzebdTM/VPn7kEFw12I/AAAAAAAABe0/h9xqMhhlXRo/s1600/souls2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YEQBGzebdTM/VPn7kEFw12I/AAAAAAAABe0/h9xqMhhlXRo/s1600/souls2.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
In filling out my own thoughts and impressions, reflecting on my favorite scenes of abandoned amusement and surreality, images like these flashed through my mind, of lost and haggard figures, stumbling, emerging from swamps and lakes, hung with seaweed, moss or the clothes they were buried in.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e6ZGmPAnYrQ/VPn7kllCqvI/AAAAAAAABe4/wmn40rEeZ2o/s1600/souls3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e6ZGmPAnYrQ/VPn7kllCqvI/AAAAAAAABe4/wmn40rEeZ2o/s1600/souls3.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
Sometimes the threat is palpable, and discernible...<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RC1RiLE7mag/VPn7lCk8iTI/AAAAAAAABe8/ezR3o08Hg_8/s1600/souls4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RC1RiLE7mag/VPn7lCk8iTI/AAAAAAAABe8/ezR3o08Hg_8/s1600/souls4.png" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
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Sometimes a shadowy figure merely lurks in the doorway or at the edge of vision, and you can't be sure if it is friend, foe or a reflection.<br />
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I think I had my carousel in the fog looking at me for months as I wondered what to place around it. I thought about the photographs of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_defunct_amusement_parks" target="_blank">abandoned amusement parks around the world</a>, that I've come across online over the years, such as this one in Pripyat, Ukraine, that has been well-documented:<br />
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<a href="http://allday.com/post/935-pripyat-amusement-park-where-the-ghosts-of-chernobyl-play" target="_blank"><img alt="http://allday.com/post/935-pripyat-amusement-park-where-the-ghosts-of-chernobyl-play" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xee1DnlS8EE/VPoH9GEefyI/AAAAAAAABfw/mICBhQy7Qi0/s1600/Pripyat01.jpg" height="237" width="320" /></a></div>
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Photo from Wikipedia, public domain</div>
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While images of shattered carousel horses, grimacing clown faces, broken bumper cars and forgotten snack stands, festooned with popcorn garlands and tiny colorful flags and lights, were all appealing features to consider, at the end I just wanted a few balloons, and a couple of ambiguous figures. Like the shadows I see outside at night, moving around in the March fog, they could simply be fellow wanderers, or perhaps they are something much worse.</div>
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I hope your own experiences and viewing habits help to inform your personal expression and creativity, as we look around and within for inspiration in all manner of places, but strange and familiar.</div>
<br />artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-467242644890198112015-02-28T02:46:00.003-05:002015-02-28T02:48:44.995-05:00A few things for spring, and a new websiteAll this week I've been working on bringing my little art web page up to date from 1999 to...well more like 2005. I'm not much for web design, to the point where I've been nostalgically content to leave things there the same way for over a decade. But as long as the tools are available that even someone like me can make something semi-pleasant to the eye and only 10 years out of date, as opposed to 15, I might as well utilize them.<br />
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So far I only have artwork up in Gallery 1, which is Halloween, gothic and horror art, with a couple dozen paintings represented, along with links to the items which are available for sale. I'll be adding more including many images that have been hiding in my vaults for ages. The custom page has information for new original art and repaints of previously painted images.<br />
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I know that personal web pages are about as relevant as landlines at this point in time, but it's still nice to have a little place to call your own, right?<br />
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<a href="http://www.artbysarada.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Art by Sarada" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-neIbqEgvxBc/VPFkjVBaLtI/AAAAAAAABb0/5p6D-vmhIX4/s1600/webpagefront.png" height="252" width="320" /></a></div>
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Meanwhile, with spring around the corner (in some places more than others....I realize it doesn't feel like spring in many places) I have some Easter/Ostara and spring-friendly prints and paintings ready for the season, for decoration or gift-giving. First up is a new version of a painting from about a dozen years ago that I resurrected from the vaults...<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223587873/easter-spring-witch-original-art-8-x-10?ref=shop_home_feat_4" target="_blank"><img alt=" Ostara's Basket" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-38vAuo--NjQ/VPFkobMG0FI/AAAAAAAABcE/cfKCua9LcME/s1600/ostaraetsy.jpg" height="320" width="256" /></a></div>
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"Ostara's Basket" available as an 8 x 10 original painting</div>
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or a <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224376323/easter-spring-witch-art-photo-print-5-x?ref=shop_home_active_3" target="_blank">5 x 7 photo print</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224377185/spring-pink-witch-rose-garden-photo?ref=shop_home_active_2" target="_blank"><img alt="Spring in the Witch's Garden" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8RP1Xaa2x-k/VPFkolw3hsI/AAAAAAAABcM/RRJBxhQXRWc/s1600/springwitchetsy.jpg" height="320" width="255" /></a></div>
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"Spring in the Witch's Garden" is now available as an 5 x 7 print</div>
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and <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/121265331/spring-pink-witch-rose-garden-original?ref=shop_home_feat_1" target="_blank">the original is still available</a> as well.</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224349472/purple-dragon-with-witch-magic-wand?ref=shop_home_active_5" target="_blank"><img alt=" Stardust and Dragon Dreams" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eLrYwnnFvF0/VPFkoJWwzTI/AAAAAAAABcA/3gy8926coKU/s1600/dragonetsy.jpg" height="320" width="228" /></a></div>
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"Stardust and Dragon Dreams" is available as a 5 x 7 print. Not spring specifically, but the pastel colors are very appropriate for the season!</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224356955/mermaid-art-photo-print-reproduction?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224356955/mermaid-art-photo-print-reproduction?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RIHfS2WAMVE/VPFkoLr8UEI/AAAAAAAABcY/G6qurIhu50Y/s1600/mermaidetsy.jpg" height="320" width="259" /></a> </div>
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"Sleeping Among the Seaweed" is available as a 5 x 7 print. Mermaids put me in the mind of summer, but it's not too early to think about that, now, is it?</div>
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224373308/gothic-ghost-crypt-sisters-5-x-7-photo?ref=shop_home_active_1" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/224373308/gothic-ghost-crypt-sisters-5-x-7-photo?ref=shop_home_active_1" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-as6-vZGEyN4/VPFkn4CtZ6I/AAAAAAAABb8/Ry4xttVEDNs/s1600/cryptetsy.jpg" height="320" width="255" /></a></div>
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"Sisters of the Crypt is now available as a 5 x 7 print</div>
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and <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/189610808/gothic-ghost-crypt-sisters-original-art?ref=shop_home_active_10" target="_blank">the original is available</a> as well. Because it's always Halloweeen...</div>
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Even when it's St. Patrick's Day. Which has its own charming lore and traditions as well, which have absolutely nothing to do with drinking (despite what every store on earth would have you believe in their 'holiday' section this month...geez...). Click the link below for some haunted crafts for non-Halloween holidays....or follow the suggestion to find them on Etsy! Happy spring, whenever it comes!</div>
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<a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/category/holidays/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/category/holidays/" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ftVXU6nAE6I/VPFxzRxBWyI/AAAAAAAABcs/LSFk38WWhGE/s1600/attachment-0001.jpg" height="320" width="198" /></a></div>
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<br />artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-81119691388528732632015-02-21T18:14:00.000-05:002015-02-21T18:18:17.698-05:00Antarctic travels, and lost paintingsMy last post here was Halloween, as the winter holiday season is typically a time that I try to step away from the computer for as much as possible. While it's a brutal winter back home in the Northeast, I've been living my own version of the frozen wasteland, by reading a lot about Antarctica recently.<br />
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There's a classic travelogue of Capt. Scott's journey to the South Pole (with special focus on a side trip to gather penguin eggs) by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, written in the 1920s but taking place in 1910-1913. It's available free as a public domain text from all the usual places (I got mine from <a href="http://manybooks.net/titles/cherry-garrarda14361436314363-8.html" target="_blank">Manybooks</a> because those are always formatted nicely). The writing style is humorous at times, and at other times gets bogged down in a lot of description of coordinates, numbers of ounces of pemmican consumed at various meals, etc.<br />
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One of the most delightful things I learned in this reading was that one of the members of the expedition, Dr. E.A. "Bill" Wilson, did watercolors throughout the journey, some of which have been preserved. These photos from the Terra Nova expedition can be seen at various places online -- I am borrowing a glimpse of them from the <a href="http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/History/Robert_Falcon_Scott_pictures.htm" target="_blank">Cool Antarctica</a> website. It lists them as courtesy the NOAA. I love the soft colors and the otherworldly quality of these paintings -- they were done under extreme, freezing conditions, with the few materials he had at hand, and that is part of why I love them so much.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aqqMpLpAx1A/VOj1Rmgl-7I/AAAAAAAABas/xPpDfpXZ1qQ/s1600/irid_cloud_lg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aqqMpLpAx1A/VOj1Rmgl-7I/AAAAAAAABas/xPpDfpXZ1qQ/s1600/irid_cloud_lg.jpg" height="203" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">by Dr. E.A. Wilson</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"> "Scott's Last Expedition" 1913</span></h3>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wUdVa4Ke404/VOj1aFZQYkI/AAAAAAAABa0/8FrsuaZvRO8/s1600/paraselene_lg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wUdVa4Ke404/VOj1aFZQYkI/AAAAAAAABa0/8FrsuaZvRO8/s1600/paraselene_lg.jpg" height="320" width="223" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">by Dr. E.A. Wilson</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"> "Scott's Last Expedition" 1913</span></h3>
The past few years have been full of "Scott of the Antarctic" related news, in fact....in 2012 <a href="http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112677151/terra-nova-ship-sunk-081612/" target="_blank">they found his ship, the Terra Nova, off the coast of Greenland</a>... and incredibly, one year ago they <a href="http://scottexpedition.com/" target="_blank">finished retracing the Scott expedition</a>, a wondrous event I wish I had been following in real time. <br />
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At any rate, whatever the reason for my interest in Antarctic (and Arctic, which I also want to read up on) exploration, I like doing paintings of icy world landscapes as well so here is my contribution to the genre for now, "Penguin Peak" -- <br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223460238/antarctic-frozen-winter-penguin-art?ref=shop_home_active_7" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223460238/antarctic-frozen-winter-penguin-art?ref=shop_home_active_7" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DkgSh3i0vvY/VOjzK0AnvUI/AAAAAAAABaQ/X5bcYg2QqTY/s1600/penguinpic.jpg" height="227" width="320" /></a></div>
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I made a special trip to the aquarium pyramid at Moody Gardens in Galveston to meet some penguins in honor of my recent interests.Unfortunately, there is not a "swim with the penguins" option.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-evatdNPiRvM/VOkK7ZNCeQI/AAAAAAAABbE/LiZIrC5Cpek/s1600/DSCN7902.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-evatdNPiRvM/VOkK7ZNCeQI/AAAAAAAABbE/LiZIrC5Cpek/s1600/DSCN7902.JPG" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here are a few other things new in my Etsy shop. First, a new version of a painting I originally did in 2003, but I wanted to recreate it and eventually make prints from it as well. I don't have hi-res pics of my paintings from that far back, but I also like to repaint, and hopefully improve upon them. "On the Green Moon" is available as an original painting for a mere $50 for a limited time.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223454193/green-moon-alien-space-witch-girl-cute?ref=shop_home_active_8" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223454193/green-moon-alien-space-witch-girl-cute?ref=shop_home_active_8" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EWAP9_91y3U/VOjzIqeN4HI/AAAAAAAABaI/KpgiId1_ydc/s1600/greenmoonpic.jpg" height="320" width="263" /></a></div>
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I also uncovered some older paintings that I haven't had up for sale anywhere in a long time. I kept them in my personal stash but I'm willing to put them out there, for now....if there are no takers I'll put them back in my personal stash. :)<br />
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This butterfly fairy is 9 x 12 and only $60 for the duration of this listing. She is based on a vintage postcard photo but I added all the fairy and butterfly elements.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223313695/gothic-butterfly-flower-fairy-original?ref=shop_home_active_9" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223313695/gothic-butterfly-flower-fairy-original?ref=shop_home_active_9" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-29Z5HlWvfPc/VOjzN3HutEI/AAAAAAAABaY/sj_qXLhzhwE/s1600/fairyfacewatermark.jpg" height="320" width="232" /></a></div>
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And finally, a D&D inspired piece showing some classic dungeon monsters taking a coffee or tea break. Also at a special price and for a limited time. I can make prints of any of these on request but I haven't specifically listed prints on their own yet.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223065418/dungeon-monster-original-art-horror-sci?ref=shop_home_active_10" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/223065418/dungeon-monster-original-art-horror-sci?ref=shop_home_active_10" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M7N-8bJDZso/VOjzYxsurGI/AAAAAAAABag/12Vruk8AZlM/s1600/dungeonmonsterswatermark.jpg" height="320" width="232" /></a></div>
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We do, however, have some of the most popular prints back in stock right now...including ghosts, banana slugs, cloaked witches and this, possibly my most popular piece...these always sell out quickly when I get a few in stock!<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/34239861/unicorn-ufo-fantasy-sci-fi-art-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_4" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/34239861/unicorn-ufo-fantasy-sci-fi-art-5-x-7?ref=shop_home_active_4" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JHBXYGdvN9A/VOkQ3r1axMI/AAAAAAAABbc/SJSdAIVMupY/s1600/unicornufowatermark.jpg" height="320" width="231" /></a></div>
<br />artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-24450725559894664182014-10-29T23:34:00.001-04:002014-10-29T23:38:11.717-04:00A few colorful horror movie picks for Halloween<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e-31J0_FOG4/VFGym9zJOEI/AAAAAAAABZk/rLnChpfDmaM/s1600/fascinationcastle.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e-31J0_FOG4/VFGym9zJOEI/AAAAAAAABZk/rLnChpfDmaM/s1600/fascinationcastle.JPG" height="190" width="320" /></a></div>
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This week the Internet is knee-deep in Halloween horror movie lists, and TCM is running its annual marathon of classic horror, so the world is very much where I like it to be right now. I feel compelled to join in the list-making, but I don't have a definitive favorites list, really. If I was asked, I'd say my favorite horror film visually is "Shiver of the Vampires" by Jean Rollin and my favorite "serious" horror film is "The Shining," but any attempts to make a top ten list just fragments into endless sub-lists by genre.<br />
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What do I like? In a sentence: visually compelling 1960s and 1970s gothic horror with lots of color and psychedelic flourishes, and a great soundtrack. To be clear: things like plot and acting are not important to me. I don't need things to make sense. I just like the progression of haunting imagery from certain times and places, and the atmosphere these films create. Decrepit mansions, haunted castles, ruins, lush decadent interiors, gorgeous gowns, statuary and portraits, forbidden rituals. I do not think these films are "funny" or "cheesy." I love them deeply as moving works of psychedelic gothic art and I love the dream logic present in many of them.<br />
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Here is a random handful of a few colorful favorites of mine. I'm not going to try to write a plot synopsis or a review...not this moment, anyway. For me, just seeing a still image from one of these was enough to make me want to see it, so that is mostly what I'd like to share right now.<br />
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<b>Curse of the Crimson Altar (The Crimson Cult) - 1968 </b><br />
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This image right here is pretty much all I need to know, to want to see this. Barbara Steele is blue, and has a rams-head headdress? Why yes, I'd be interested in that.<br />
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And things just keep getting better. Christopher Lee is a reason to see any film, but the promise of occult rituals and masks in a film from the 1960s is irresistible. Not pictured, incidentally, Boris Karloff also appears in the film...his last film appearance, if I'm not mistaken. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8DHm7_tXAa8/VFGbYbznn7I/AAAAAAAABWs/N84YVxUTXgk/s1600/crimsoncult3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8DHm7_tXAa8/VFGbYbznn7I/AAAAAAAABWs/N84YVxUTXgk/s1600/crimsoncult3.jpg" height="189" width="320" /></a></div>
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Once you have people in animal masks, I am pretty much there. This film is supposedly based on HP Lovecraft's "Dreams in the Witch House," as it involves dreams of a witch cult, but the connection is pretty tenuous. Tigon released it, so if you enjoy British horror, this might be one you haven't seen before. It is on Youtube as "The Crimson Cult," which was how I initially saw it on late night cable, some years ago.<br />
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<b>Vengeance of the Zombies / La rebelión de las muertas - 1973</b><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hNj3vLOc2mE/VFGf1AUlgkI/AAAAAAAABXA/_Xkub8yUs-U/s1600/Vengeance-of-the-Zombies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hNj3vLOc2mE/VFGf1AUlgkI/AAAAAAAABXA/_Xkub8yUs-U/s1600/Vengeance-of-the-Zombies.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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One of the many fantastic Paul Naschy/León Klimovsky films. I'll just go ahead and append the imdb summary, as it gets the job done: "An Indian mystic uses magical chants to raise women from the dead, then sends them out to perform revenge killings for him." The main thing that I retain from my viewing of the film are Paul Naschy's bizarre roles here. First we have, well, the devil. And he plays the Indian mystic, of course, because...for whatever reason, movies did things like that in the early 1970s. It's worth suspending your disbelief, in this instance.<br />
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You also get these lovely ladies.<br />
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The film also had a jazzy score that seemed out of place, but added to the charm, if I recall. While "The Werewolf Vs. the Vampire Women" (aka Werewolf Shadow) is probably my favorite Paul Naschy film, this one made quite an impact on me as well and I need to go back and view it again.<br />
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<b>Fascination - 1979</b><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rhMHKtzZUMc/VFGkjAL_QBI/AAAAAAAABXg/hnE6H5OdK-k/s1600/fascination.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rhMHKtzZUMc/VFGkjAL_QBI/AAAAAAAABXg/hnE6H5OdK-k/s1600/fascination.jpg" height="175" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b> </b>My favorite director, Jean Rollin. It might be his best, although it's not my tippy-top favorite of his films (Shiver of the Vampires gets that distinction) or the most visually out of control (La Vampire Nue might be that one), this image, among many others, has made a lasting impression. It has one of the most fantastic movie posters of all time as well.<br />
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Set just after the turn of the last century, a group of women lure men into a fog-shrouded chateau and drink their blood, amidst lush, decadent and surreal surroundings. Trying to write one or two sentences about the complete aesthetic experience that is a Jean Rollin film, may be beyond my abilities, but Halloween would not be complete without a re-viewing of one of his films.<br />
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Murderous, bloodthirsty Victorian women in white, in a foggy chateau, or waltzing on a stone bridge to the tune of an old phonograph...Rollin is simply the master of atmosphere.<br />
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<b>Messiah of Evil -1973</b><br />
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Another dreamlike film, this one American -- and for some reason it took me forever to get a DVD copy that didn't have a flaw that caused the film to stop a little over halfway through. Remembered perhaps most for its scene of zombies in an eerily empty supermarket, gnawing on meat, or filling in all of the rows in a movie theatre around a single living patron, one of my personal favorite things about the film is actually the weird setting in an artist's house full of pop art murals on the walls.<br />
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I called them zombies but they're not zombies the way we normally think of them. They are denizens of this strange town, under the malevolent influence of the Blood Moon.<br />
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Above, one of the interesting murals, this one on the bathroom wall. Whenever a horror movie has an artist as a part of the plot, it is extra interesting, because you have a chance to see some really interesting artwork. See also: Juan López Moctezuma's "Mary Mary Bloody Mary" which contains artwork by the surreal artist Rosa Rosenberg. Here is an example of her work....very grateful to that film for making me aware of her!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NyUMlS4mbAs/VFGqakPBWbI/AAAAAAAABYU/89PvVVLP6Do/s1600/RosaRosenbergsPaintings001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NyUMlS4mbAs/VFGqakPBWbI/AAAAAAAABYU/89PvVVLP6Do/s1600/RosaRosenbergsPaintings001.jpg" height="281" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>The Blood Rose - 1970</b><br />
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Let's make this a five-movie list and come back another day for some more. I haven't seen a lot of people talk about this film, but <b>"</b><span lang="fr"><i><b>La Rose écorchée" </b></i>by Claude Mulot is as stunning and decadent as they come. Just look at this picture.</span><br />
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This scene is at a costume ball, but once you paint someone gold, you have my interest. The film is one of the genre wherein a mad doctor's wife is disfigured, and others have to die to restore her beauty. The madman in this case is a botanist/artist which is even better for my purposes, because that means we get: lots of plants and flowers, and a very arty environment.<br />
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Oh yes, and you get these two guys...<br />
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And candelabras...<br />
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Oh so many nightgowns and candelabras. <br />
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This concludes my small attempt to capture a few images that inspire me from 1960s and 1970s horror films, though I would like to write a more proper summary and discussion of them other than "Oh my god there are so many candelabras in this movie, you HAVE to see it!"<br />
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But for a sampling of a few that probably aren't going to make the rounds on cable this year...look for these on Youtube, and some may still be available on DVD in some form or another. artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77213177794587832.post-87025294747332595012014-10-05T13:59:00.000-04:002014-10-05T14:33:26.762-04:00Candelabras, jack o' lanterns and by the way I like horror moviesI'm watching giant dragonflies, and tiny lizards, all over the patio garden. The dragonflies are so large they seem almost prehistoric. The lizards, well, aren't quite as big as they used to be in the same era. I think the lemon tree is almost ready to start ripening, but I really have no idea when that is supposed to happen...I'm just thrilled at the idea that they are growing outside. So that is how I try to wrap my head around autumn, after a week in which it was in the 90s for a couple of days, and I lost my spooky momentum.
This is the time of year that I should be watching candelabra movies (see my recent posts on <a href="http://artbysarada.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> for a slew of those)... Typically, Jean Rollin & co., Mario Bava, the usual 1960s and 70s European horror suspects. Now...now it's finally feeling like candelabra weather.<br />
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<a href="http://artbysarada.tumblr.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://artbysarada.tumblr.com" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5-kN3IDQcC0/VDGDzMeq3wI/AAAAAAAABWE/mr6JDs_-xMI/s1600/shiver1.jpg" height="193" width="320" /></a></div>
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What I REALLY want to do right now is watch Dark Shadows, but all of my DVDs are in NJ and I can't remember where I left off. I think in the early 500s (volume 8 or 9 of the old DVD boxes). Adam was lurching around...I think Cassandra was in some serious trouble. At any rate, speaking of candelabras....this isn't from the series, it's from one of the movies, Night of Dark Shadows (1971) but WE SHALL NOT SPEAK of any later incarnations of the series, as I only live in the 1960s and 1970s, and very occasionally the early 80s.<br />
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Speaking of which, my tastes have gone a little bit more into the modern era recently. I've been feeling in the mood to watch early 80s slasher films. Basically, anything in which lots of teenagers don't fare very well. Nothing against teenagers, per se, it's just good fodder for a movie. The look and feel of 1980s things has acquired more of a vintage sheen now that the world in many ways no longer resembles it. When you watch something wherein everyone talks on land-bound phones; the hair and clothing are distinctly of another era; the music is synthesizer-based in a very specific way that you don't hear any more; and the clichés are being cheerfully driven into the ground....there is a certain charm in that. Even moreso in the Shot On Video VHS tape films like those I've been lucky enough to see at the Alamo Drafthouse recently ("The Abomination," et. al.). But more on that later perhaps.<br />
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I'm actually not here to talk about candelabras or horror films at all, I'm here to talk about jack o' lanterns. I have quite a few of them in the ol' Etsy shop and I try to use this blog to show off all that art stuff, so let's get on with it. Here is my most recent little Halloween painting.<br />
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<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/205016448/halloween-tarot-owl-with-jack-o-lantern?ref=shop_home_active_12" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/205016448/halloween-tarot-owl-with-jack-o-lantern?ref=shop_home_active_12" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AOK9DAqTUe0/VDF0yTcx4fI/AAAAAAAABVA/hqsdxd6Z1RQ/s1600/tarotowlwatermark.jpg" height="320" width="241" /></a></div>
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It was done to be a part of a month-long Halloween jack o' lantern promo over here...<br />
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<a href="http://www.halloweenartistbazaar.com/jack-o-lantern-display/" target="_blank"><img alt="https://www.etsy.com/listing/205016448/halloween-tarot-owl-with-jack-o-lantern?ref=shop_home_active_12" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4Q-lWS7iuPw/VDF1aHYLDNI/AAAAAAAABVI/_f9HoH5uMIA/s1600/Jack-O-Lantern-Display-2014.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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For an ever-growing assortment of jack o' lantern themed Halloween art and crafts for sale this month, check the link above...and visit the <a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/" target="_blank">Halloween shop </a>on the site as well. I have five originals and 15 prints for sale on that site, with postage included in all prices in the US...but there is lots of stuff by other artists as well!<br />
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<a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/dark-lanterns/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/dark-lanterns/" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FzlVdytdo4Q/VDF1tAAXJ0I/AAAAAAAABVQ/q3lfvJkWgZg/s1600/darklanternssarada.jpg" height="320" width="219" /></a></div>
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There's lots of stuff newly available in the <a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/category/decorations/" target="_blank">Halloween Artist Bazaar shop</a> with the postage included in price, including 5 x 7 photo prints of one of my most popular paintings, "Dark Lanterns"... also available in my<a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/85224123/dark-lanterns-purple-pumpkin-fairy?ref=shop_home_active_3&ga_search_query=dark%2Blanterns" target="_blank"> Etsy shop</a> along with the <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/83247201/dark-lanterns-halloween-art-purple?ref=shop_home_active_2&ga_search_query=dark%2Blanterns" target="_blank">original</a> from which the prints were taken. The first time I did a version of this painting was around 2001, and I have had several custom commissions for it as well. I always take commissions for repaints in any size, or variations on previous paintings I've done...or completely new works that are within the scope of my themes.<br />
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<a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/guardian-of-the-pumpkin-woo/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/guardian-of-the-pumpkin-woo/" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HO5Ep3Wdi2Q/VDF3YIGzsgI/AAAAAAAABVk/_YpTlbX7TVc/s1600/pumpkinwoodsarada.jpg" height="320" width="252" /></a></div>
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"Guardian of Pumpkin Woods" available as a 5 x 7 photo print at the link above, and also at <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/34240422/halloween-pumpkin-black-cat-gothic-woods?ref=shop_home_active_2&ga_search_query=pumpkin%2Bwoods" target="_blank">Etsy</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/black-lantern-spell/"><img alt="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/black-lantern-spell/" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dxYDYR8TEKI/VDF34tmXbxI/AAAAAAAABVs/lcHcrTv3AEM/s1600/blacklanternspellsarada.jpg" height="320" width="228" /></a></div>
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"Black Lantern Spell" available above postage paid, or at <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/81042327/black-lantern-spell-halloween-witch-art?ref=shop_home_active_3&ga_search_query=black%2Blantern" target="_blank">Etsy</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/alice-in-the-dark-woods/" target="_blank"><img alt="http://shop.halloweenartistbazaar.com/alice-in-the-dark-woods/" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D433L9bOPm8/VDF34mcDteI/AAAAAAAABVw/uC1Emp1f6P4/s1600/darkalicesarada.jpg" height="320" width="232" /></a></div>
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One more for now, "Alice in the Dark Woods" prints can be found above postage paid, and also at Etsy with variable shipping options as an <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/111361732/gothic-halloween-witch-art-striped-alice?ref=shop_home_active_2" target="_blank">original</a> or a <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/171235620/gothic-halloween-witch-art-print-striped?ref=shop_home_active_1&ga_search_query=alice%2Bdark%2Bwoods" target="_blank">print</a>.<br />
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Meanwhile, though it's only barely feeling like the end of summer now, we did get a bit of atmosphere in recently at the giant bug display at the Houston Zoo...needless to say my favorite critter was the tarantula. I miss having these little guys around!<br />
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More soon on other things of a creepy nature.artbysaradahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02568096601265225799noreply@blogger.com0