Haunted Dollhouse Video & Gallery by DollzMaker

Well, I found another spooky miniature artist on DeviantART today! Andie aka Dollzmaker is the name. She put together just the coolest movie of her collection of haunted houses, complete with screams and moody music. I am thrilled!!! So cool.

The video:
http://secure.smilebox.com/ecom/openTheBox?sendevent=4d6a4d324e7a59344e413d3d0d0a&campaign=blog_playback_link

Her gallery and profile:
http://dollzmaker.deviantart.com/

Her web site Mizfit Dolls, not your average rag doll...
http://mizfitdollz.com/

She creates custom one of a kind Haunted Dollhouses, miniatures, and unusual ragdolls. I don't collect ragdolls myself but I'm tempted... Andie describes herself as an Outside Artist and seems to have sold mostly on ebay. I can't find any new listings but she takes commissions, making one doll at a time. She has several beautiful dolls in her Deviant gallery and these are 2 of my favs.

Nature's Castles: Miniature Fantasy Homes by the Schramers

While surfing Etsy for hidden treasures, I typed in 'fairy' and dug through 20+ pages. Amid all the baby tutus and charm bracelets, I discovered this absolute wonder of a dollhouse in a shop called 'Sunflowerhouse'. I was in awe and keep looking at the pictures... the artist Debbie Schramer likes to go on nature walks and collect treasures with her husband Mike, who is also an artist. They have over the years collected a huge amount of drift wood and other earthly treasures. With all of this, they went to work building two of the most magnifiscent dollhouses I've ever seen. Although they are built in the spirit of the now popular organic 'fairy homes', these two pieces are much grander in scale and design. These are truly fairy castles and mansions!

The couple's websites:
www.artmajeur.com/debbieschramer
http://beautiful-art.blogspot.com/
http://www.michaelschramer.com/

THE FAIRY TREEHOUSE
About their Fairy Treehouse, Debbie writes:
"This is the most amazing, magical, intricate work of art. My husband and I created this house in 1995 when we lived in Washington state. We always have loved going for walks in the mountains and by the sea and have collected so many incredible materials in nature over the years. We've always wanted to build our own very different, unique house (to actually live in) so I think we put many of our dreams and ideas into this house (the first fairy house we made).

This house is 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide. It has 14 rooms (all completely furnished with little chairs, beds, tables, etc., dishes, books, sculptures, paintings, brooms, shoes, etc., also made from nature). We have used everything in nature you can imagine.....driftwood, branches, roots, vines, twigs, leaves, moss, flowers, stones, shells, seaweed, kelp, leaf skeleton, wild grasses, herbs, pods, the list goes on. We gathered nearly all of the materials we've used in the house as well.

It took us 6 months to make this house; towards the end of creating it, we worked 12 hour days quite often. Our Fairy Treehouse was exhibited at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland in 1995 for a year and was chosen the 4th favorite work of art out of the 400 artworks in the museum's inagural exhibit.

There is an observatory at the very top with telescopes, a sculpturing table and clay, pots to plant flowers, and little chairs. There are stairways that wander all throughout the fairy treehouse; there are nearly hidden little rooms, balconies, windowboxes, sleeping hollows, garden rooms, little ladders leading to separate little overhanging rooms and just endless, amazing detail that captivates a person for hours... Endless surprises everywhere"

Additional pictures and purchase details available on Etsy at:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/51064598/the-fairy-treehouse

THE FAIRY CASTLE
Debbie says about the castle, "My husband and I made this fairy castle 6 years ago. It is made from all natural materials.....driftwood, branches, vines, twigs, leaves, moss, shells, stones, leaf skeleton, flowers, pods and just really everything in nature. We gathered nearly all of the materials ourselves.

It is 2 1/2 feet tall; there are wonderful stairways waundering all throughout the house that lead one on a magical journey to fairyland. Your imagination goes wild. Even after seeing this house millions of times, I never tire of spending time looking at it. It is truely amazing. There are little bedrooms with beds made from flowers and leaves, a living room with shelves of books, a chess set and little twig chairs. There is an art tower with a painting and sculpting studio and an art library. There's even a mud room with a sink and pots for planting little flowers. There's a bathroon, nearly hidden behind shelves of lotion bottles and perfumes. My favorite area though is the laundry room with it's ironing board and iron made form stems and pods. There's even a little wash tub and a package of (fairy) soap. A little mailbox is filled with letters and a newspaper. And there are three towers made of stones at the top of the fairy castle. One of the towers is atop a little hermitage cottage; one can barely see in through the door to the tiny furniture inside. There are tiny dishes, paintings, sculptures and other amazing detail, all created from nature"
Additional photos and retail details are available in their Etsy shop at:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/51061672/the-fairy-castle?ref=v1_other_2

Moving on in life... my latest listing isn't a miniature!

Although I spend most of my artistic energy on miniatures, I do work in other mediums. I like to make jewelry, wreaths, collages, water color, alter books and clothes and dolls... basically I'm always collecting things and making messes. I have a lot of porcelain dolls in various states of usage. About a year ago, I played with different surface treatments on these. I gessoed heavily and dry brushed to pick up the texture. I did a matte spray and then inked. I then tried a combination of crackling with 2 colors. About 2 days ago, one of my taller dolls, a 16" porcelain beauty caught my attention. I had painted her a base of deep red then crackled on a pale gray. I was going to make her a vampire but never finished.

I have an article in the free AIM magazine about my altered art dolls, Issue May 2010 on page 72. http://www.scribd.com/full/30774876?access_key=key-2l20kuni9h3qddn6sz5f

Now, you all know I love to Steampunk! My wheels and gears are turning... I had the cutest pair of brass and dark glass doll spectacles that I picked up at a doll fair in the Spring. I also have a collection of miniature hats in different shapes and I really like my black felt top hats. Hmm, also have some vintage watch pieces and new charms to use. Well, it all came together and the nameless doll has become "Steampunk Sally" !

I imagine that she is a little orphan ghost who walks about collecting trinkets, talking to crickets, and generally minding her own business - although your watch might come up missing if she passes by! She is a bit lonely and so I gave her a pensive pouty look, using ink and acrylics over the crackle base.

All of Sally's trinkets, clothes, and hat can be removed so her outfits can evolve. I spent quite of bit of time playing with her attire. The dress has been soaked in a combination of dark cocoa and chicory for a deep rusted color... they still smell delicious! I added layers of vintage lace and polka dot fabric, fraying edges and adding stiches for a distressed look. Her brooch is removable and able to be worn. It is an assemblage piece with a tiny vintage doily, a black cherub in a cloud of pearls, and streamers of ribbon and charms. The hat is a felt base. I wrapped silver and black knit on the brim, applied 3 layers of veiling in the back, and finished with a skeleton band, mushroom sprouts, and clock bits. I made little striped stocking to match. Sally has brown leather shoes tied with satin ribbon, a little bouquet of moss and mushrooms, and her spectacles.
Steampunk Sally is available in my Etsy shop at: http://www.etsy.com/listing/49937547/steampunk-sally-ooak-altered-porcelain

I'm being followed by an Art Thief: Is she following you?

Hmm... that is selling well, people like that. Wow, it's sort of expensive and I could make that way cheaper. I'll just move this little piece here instead. Oh the original artist is offended? Hey I made this with my hand so it's handmade. Look angry miniature artists, you don't own the idea of a 'magical mandrake table' or other WITCHY concepts. I'm making money and you can't stop me!

Now I'm going to start following all of your blogs and mass advertising my shoddy knock off work and you can't stop me! You can't stop me haha! In fact, I'm going to advertise my work as original, ooak, and truly an expression of my own inner creativity...

Uh-hum... Most of us figure this out as children.

The picture above was taken and submitted to DeviantART by 'skullberries' at http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=§ion=&q=dumb+girl#/d2m8k3z I give her credit, no matter how simple the idea is- because it's HERS! If I were to like this idea so much that I would take a picture of the word dumb tattooed on my own lip, I would be COPYING !!! Then if I were to try selling it on the very same sites she advertises on I'd have just the biggest pair of testicles EVER!

I know who you are.

In fact, we ALL know who you are.

I know how you have blatantly made poor quality copies of work belonging to other miniature artists in the Spooky & Fantasy genre.

I know that you have decided to follow my and many other miniature art blogs recently.

I know that you dress yourself up as a witch.

I am a Witch, lady... and I am pissed off. I do NOT appreciate you following my blog or pretending to be an original artist.

You have been warned many times in a friendly manner to stop copying other people's work. You have responded with nastiness and distain. You have NO INTEGRITY !!!

Just remember, whatever you do to others will come back to you, whether you call it Karma, Threefold Rule, or the Golden Rule. I support my community of miniature artists and original handmade art. You have lost your place in this and are a tainted HACK.

http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=§ion=&q=art+theif#/d1b3otc

-An article on how to approach someone who has stolen your art:
http://news.deviantart.com/article/22971/

-Your full legal rights as an artist can be found in the BERNE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF LITERARY AND ARTISTIC WORKS (Paris Text 1971)
http://www.law.cornell.edu/treaties/berne/overview.html

-10 Big Myths about Copyrights:
http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html

NOTICE !!!

I only personally follow blogs of original artists that I respect. Just because someone is following my blog, does not mean I support their work or want to be associated with them. As a collector and a creator myself, supporting the artistic community in all mediums is very important to me. I cannot stop someone from following my blog, stealing my pictures, or even physically copying my work. However, I can refuse to buy their work, follow their blog, and put the word out about them in my own artistic guilds and groups.

If you are visitng my blog as a shopper and collector, please consider the fine artists I have provided links for. Their work is a bit more expensive than mass produced items because they put so much time and thought into making them. Unique, One of a kind, Original

This actually means something.

My Gypsy Wagon Project Is Underway!

Confession 1: My art room is trashed again but I've been making minis like mad!
Confession 2: I've gained weight from sitting on my butt painting things or in front of the computer too much.
Congession 3: I bought a Tai Chi video and just need to do it.

Between my many other projects (Steampunk, Spooky, Alien) I've been working my way through my first Miniature Gypsy Wagon Project! I have several themes in mind but began with a Blue Celestial magic wares wagon. After much thought I will offer these custom wagons stocked with goods but without a driver or yoked animals.

Below are my first pictures of the Blue Celestial wagon. I began with a vintage wooden wagon kit that I greatly altered with wire, additional wood pieces, pressed aluminum to mimic carving, and found ojects and jewelry findins. After all the main components were in place, I spray painted it flat black. Then I gave it the basic acrylic blue, pale green, and a hint of lilac acrylic colors. This was then washed over with more blue and then drybrushed with the light green. Who knows what will happen next?

Here is the Snake Charmers Wagon still under construction. The cage will be removable so you can put whatever beastie in you want!

Creation out of chaos... hey I know where everything is!

Tallulah Belle's Celebration! ... Your Chance to Win Beautiful Miniatures and Help Give Children Clean Drinking Water

Wonderful Idea to celebrate her 200th Follower on Blogspot !!!
Visit Tallulah Belle's blog to see her beautiful creations, more information on her passionate support of a project to give children safe water worldwide, and how to enter the drawing for one of her lovely plants! http://networkedblogs.com/3zhah

Concerning the event, she writes, "As I mentioned in my previous post, this is a giveaway which a difference. Yes you will get a chance..or more...to win something but you will also be making a huge difference to the lives of someone much less fortunate than yourselves".

Did you know....
Every day more than 4,000 children in developing countries die, simply because they don't have clean drinking water.

* Contaminated drinking water is a major problem. More than one billion people do not have access to safe water.

* Diarrhea caused by drinking contaminated water remains a leading cause of illness and death among infants and children in the developing world.

* About 1.8 million children die every year due to diarrheal diseases.

* More children die from diarrheal illnesses like cholera and dysentery than from HIV/AIDS or malaria combined.

* It is well documented that simply providing safe, clean, drinkable water can reduce deadly diarrhea and other devastating diseases by about 50%.

The miniature plants she is offering in a drawing for those who donate a minimum of $2.

Not So Fresh Fairies!

It might be Springtime but I'm still spooky. So what do spooky girls play with during the year's greening? Dead fairies, spider webs, and moonlit tea parties - oh my! Now, are these fairies the ghostly spirits of long deceased sprites or are they the collected corpses of unlucky tinker wannabes? Let's look at how various artists portray the matter... and yes I did find many tackling the oddball topic.

Brassnbedlam's Curious Taxidermy
Some of the most realistic and truly creepy Dead Fairies I've come across are by the Steampunk artist Brassnbedlam. These are meant to look like actual scientific specimens complete with notes. They look a bit gooey and still have some fleshy parts like their ears... ick. I'm fascinated by the psuedo scientific approach to fairies as a candidate for cryptozoology.
To see more of her work on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brassnbedlam/3295328455/
Above is her Welsh Blue Fairy, mummified and mounted in a shadowbox frame with real butterfly wings.
"Speckled English Fairy, mummified and mounted in a shadowbox/ frame with real butterfly wings, made by my fair chap, a lovely handmade creepy and macabre steampunk specimen, a dead fairy and comes with historical notes"

VooDoo Willy's Fairy Art Sculptures
This dark fantasy artist on Etsy produces some of the most interesting pieces I've seen. Each is a one of kind creation from the 'dark corners' of his mind... A keen sense of humor with a heavy dose of gloom has lead to the sculptures below. To see his shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/VooDooWilly

Below: "The Battle"

Below: "Morbid Martini"

Below: "Stopping to smell the roses"

A Well Crafted Hoax?
"A CRAFTSMAN IN England has posted on his website photos of what he claims to be a mummified fairy located in Derbyshire, England. What is unusual about the photos compared to the usual paranormal images, either of live or of dead cryptids (unknown animals) is that there are many of them, in full color, from multiple angles" giving the appearance of realism. Apparently this guy tried to pull off that he had found actual fairy corpses. Ok.

A few days before April 1, 2007, Dan Baines, a 31-year-old illusion designer for magicians from London, posted on his website images of the "corpse" of an unknown eight-inch creation. The unusual corpse was claimed to be the mummified remains of a fairy which was discovered by a dog walker at Firestone Hill in Duffield, Derbyshire. Read more below:
http://paranormal.about.com/od/othercreatures/a/aa033107.htm

Below is another attempt at fanciful fairy taxidermy, artist unknown.Below is a project page for how to make your own Dead Fairy prop, by Shadow Manor
http://www.shadowmanor.com/blog/?page_id=4666

The Fancifully Morbid works of Etsy artist Fairy Garden:
Fairy Garden's dead fey are a bit more fanciful, with bouquets and tutus. I love her 'Fairy Trap' which uses a large crystal as bait- what fairy could resist! Below are a few of my favorites examples.
Visit her store: http://www.etsy.com/shop/fairygarden

Visit her flickr portfolio: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fairygarden/3009172298/

What has happened here? Blame it on the trolls or the ogre?
Above is a fairy trap baited with a tempting crystal! Below, the Sugar Plum Fairy rests so serenely...
Ahh, where have all the fairies gone?

Hauntingly Elegant Miniature Interiors: Inspiration & Resources

A shimmering lady in white came gliding down the luxoriously carved staircase, drawn by the smell of rich pipe tobacco wafting from the library. Once, so long ago, it was her husbands... Who is this strange man sitting there in her house, the house she had so lovingly filled with treasures and laughter? Once so long ago. As she circled behind his chair, the gentleman suddenly froze and looked about him. 'Is anyone there?' he asked. 'Why, I am sir', the lady in white answered. To her annoyance, the man seemed to be looking right through her. She reached out and gripped his wrist. With a start, the stranger jumped from his chair dropping his pipe on the floor. 'What have you done!' the lady lamented and a gust of cold air blew the nearby curtains about. The gentlman fled from the room and all was quiet again.

Many times ghosts are said to be attached to the material items they once so treasured in life. I often imagine a haunted mansion of that era being watched over by the head mistress who is unable or unwilling to leave her carefully crafted home. The Victorian middle and upper classes spent a tremendous amount of thought and resources on interior design and furniture.

Below are a 2 examples of my own Victorian inspired spooky miniatures: a haunted mirror and a gothic gargoyle hearth.

I found a wonderful example of ostentatious Victorian interior design. Below are photos of the Linden Towers James Clair Flood Menlo Park home in 1878. Featured are the Grand Entryway, a bedroom, a parlour, and the Dinning Room. To see more photos about this magnifiscent residence and family, visit: http://www.flickr.com/groups/942580@N24/

Looking at this, what type of elements would you need to add to your dollhouse to develop a similiar mood? Patterned wallpaper, ornate molding and columns, patterned rugs, large paintings in gilded frames, intricate doorways, mantles, fireplaces, and lighting pieces... basically a lot of layered bling!

You can find fairly inexpensive molding pieces at Hobby shops and also another overlooked resource, your local Home Depot or Lowes! Check in the cabinetry and molding aisles. There are many smaller pieces that can be adapted to dollhouse scales. Also consider jewelry bits and do a search for 'charms', 'cameos', and 'findings' online. Visit the dollar store for inexpensive picture frames: the smaller ones can be used for wire hung paintings while the larger ones can be glued directly to the ceilings as molding details.

An artist that I especially like for such a project is Jim Coates! He produces handmade high quality moldings from his own designs. These can be purchased bare or prepainted. His line includes picture frames, fire places, mantles, and columns. His work is beautiful and well priced!

Examples below are available at: http://stores.ebay.com/JIM-COATES-COLLECTION