One of the things I love about running this blog is that people send me interesting stuff I would otherwise miss. Intrepid reader Jean-Robert recently dropped me a line about Mimosa Greer of Understory Pottery:
She makes ceramic cauldrons and pumpkins as coffee cups or up to the size of soup tureens. She also has a line of “cephalo-pots” that are octopus or squid themed.
You had me at “cephalo-pot.”
Her designs tend toward the naturalistic, with lizardy plates and luna moth bowls and yes, more cephalopods than you can shake a stick at. Given the prices on the few items currently in her Etsy shop, they’re also quite reasonably priced. She takes custom orders, so I’m betting something Cthuloid or bat-adorned wouldn’t be out of her range.
In addition to Etsy and her main site, she also has a Facebook page which features lots of additional photos of her work. I particularly like the cauldrons.
Krampusnacht is December 5, so order early if you want to make sure you have sufficient pocket-sized Krampuses on hand to properly celebrate. Assuming you’re the sort of person who would put a Krampus in your pocket.
The shop also sells several other spooky felt ornaments, including teensy skeletal elves, cheerful Yetis, and goofy little bats. Its other main offering appears to be hair accessories, like this “bubble ghost” headband (I have to find some of that fabric) and this cute ribbon spider.
The whimsical little ornaments would be a great “spooky, but not too spooky” holiday decoration, and the prices are quite reasonable. Check ’em out!
(Thanks, xJane!)
*And if, “That’s a Krampus of a different color” doesn’t immediately become part of your vocabulary there’s something wrong with you.
Victor the Undertaker used to offer a line of six artisanal hot sauces under the Haunted Hot Sauce brand. He’s recently simplified and re-branded as Halloween Hot Sauce, offering Spider Venom (mild jalapeño), Bloody Bat (medium cayenne) and Grinning Skull (hot habañero) varieties. He’s–sadly–ditched the little coffins they used to come boxed in, but the labels and packaging are still splendid. He’s currently taking pre-orders for shipping in mid-September, and it appears that he ships worldwide.
Reviews of the previous line (such as here and here) seem to be quite positive, so this is one of those rare items where you don’t have to sacrifice quality for spookiness. These would be perfect for a Halloween party or as condiments at a Dia de los Muertos-themed dinner. They’re also inexpensive enough that a trio of flavors would make an attractive hostess gift.
Since he’s a small operation I wouldn’t count on these being in stock for long, so if you’re looking for highly-thematic hot sauces you’d better order soon.
Everyone is probably abundantly aware that Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie is due out in early October. There’s also a soundtrack of music from the movie, which will be released September 25. Yeah Yeah Yeahs vocalist Karen O contributed “Strange Love,” which will play over the end credits.
Tim wanted an unconventional unconditional love song. My music inspiration came out of the same era of B-movie fright film references, sprinkled throughout the film. I went in the direction of exotica and calypso stylistically, because it’s quirky, good vibes music of that era and when you throw in a theramin solo it’s a marriage made in heaven. I remember Beetlejuice introducing me to the genius of Harry Belafonte’s calypso record so I wanted to give a nod to that too.
Here’s 30 seconds of the song. You can listen to the entire thing at Pitchfork.
Hey look! It’s another place to spend entirely too much money! I need to stop finding these.
Fivehands Curiosity Shoppe specializes in “strange medical devices, Victorian oddities, macabre and dark antique items, scarce erotica, bones, cemetery, occult and more. Strong focus on a dark design element is key.” If Morticia Addams decided to open an antique store, it’d probably look a lot like this.
They don’t appear to have a brick-and-mortar location, so sales are handled through their Etsy shop. Some of their pieces like this Victorian humidor are (for obvious reasons) fairly spendy, but they have other items like this vintage cast-iron candle holder that are wonderfully appealing and shouldn’t blow your budget.
In addition to the shop they’ve also got a Tumblr site, blog, and Facebook page where they discuss some of their acquisitions in more detail. There’s also a main .com site which is rather sparse, although it does include a small gallery of interesting items (I particularly lust after the Victorian dissection kit).
If you’re looking to build a collection of unusual vintage items, this is a great place to browse.
One of the wonderful things about the Internet is the freedom it gives niche businesses to reach a wider audience. A company peddling the odd collection of goods found at The Curio Emporium might not have enough appreciative customers locally to buy their coyote skull nightlights, brass telescopes, and Gorey parasols, and that would be a great pity.
Their stuff is wonderfully eclectic, ranging from taxidermy to corsets (I’m particularly taken with their Ripper and Halloween models), and their prices seem quite competetive. They do ship worldwide (with the usual exception of natural/taxidermy items), and their “free shipping” policy doesn’t appear to have a geographical limitation.
If you’re looking for an especially unique gift, or just want to drool on the merchandise, this is the place for you.
Fiber artist Jennifer Strunge makes unique monsters, heavy on the eyeballs, out of recycled clothing and linens. They’re made without a pattern, so each one is unique.
Her monster “breeds” include Watchful Eyes (which can be hung on the wall to stare at you), Bottom Feeders, and Space Bugs; many designs include a hidden pocket in their mouths for storing…whatever one would store in a plush monster’s mouth. According the the FAQ, although they may pretend to eat your arm, they prefer broccoli.
Her site lists a couple of brick-and-mortar places in the U.S. that sell her designs, but it’s probably easier to find them in her Etsy shop. She also has a blog where she writes about her monsters and lots of other crafty stuff.
Working from a series of scans, graphic designer Jon Heilman has created a replica of the “time portal” map from the movie.
The newest DVD of Time Bandits contains a small foldout of an actual screen-used map. It’s very beat up, has lots of weathering and seems to have been poorly assembled from multiple scans (probably made by simply placing the map on a flatbed scanner) so that some details are lost or misaligned. Also, the clock panels are completely cut off. However, this scan combined with a couple images from books I have plus every screen capture I could make served as enough reference material to create a very accurate replica.
The maps are printed on canvas and measure 40″ x 24.25″. The artist is selling them for $100 on Etsy, where he also peddles some other interesting “fake” documents.
Although there are lots of Lego “haunted houses” custom-built by hobbyists, this is the first “official” version. I have to say, it sounds rather splendid.
Includes 6 minifigures: 2 glow-in-the-dark ghosts, Vampyre, Vampyre’s Bride, Zombie chef and butler
Features unique ‘crooked’ design featuring boarded up windows and working front gate.
Haunted House opens to reveal detailed interior with 3 floors.
First floor features fireplace that swings open and displays a ship in a bottle on the mantle.
Cook up a ghoulish meal with the Zombie chef in the kitchen complete with old-style stove, jars and table.
Write letters from the Vampyre’s haunted office.
Pull the lever hidden in the chimney to release the drop down staircase and access the top floor.
Top floor features gramophone, records and newspaper LEGO® elements.
Customize the Haunted House with new stickers for wall hangings, spider webs and curtains.
Kotaku has a closeup look at the included minifigures, and here’s the official walkthrough video:
The kit includes over 2,000 pieces and suggested retail is US $179.99. Sounds like a holiday wishlist item to me.
I’m not entirely sure what the name means, but the concept is certainly intriguing.
Among the Sleep is a first-person horror game in which you play the role of a two-year-old child. After being tucked into bed one evening, nightmarish things begin to happen. Accompanied only by your faithful teddy bear, you have to fight your way through a surreal world to survive and return home.
Krillbrite Studio, the game’s indie developer, recently released a gameplay teaser video:
I really like the conceit of playing as a toddler. Not only would it make routine tasks interestingly complicated, the idea of being so small and vulnerable makes the threat extra-spooky. (Of course, as a commenter pointed out on BoingBoing, you can easily win the game by just hiding under the covers until morning.)
The game will be available for PC and Mac next year. You can follow its progress on the Krillbrite blog, where they have some neat time-lapse videos of concept art creation.
One of the things I love about running this blog is that people send me interesting stuff I would otherwise miss. Intrepid reader Jean-Robert recently dropped me a line about Mimosa Greer of Understory Pottery:
The fabulous xJane dropped me a line about Etsy shop 
Victor the Undertaker used to offer a line of six artisanal hot sauces under the 
Hey look! It’s another place to spend entirely too much money! I need to stop finding these.
One of the wonderful things about the Internet is the freedom it gives niche businesses to reach a wider audience. A company peddling the odd collection of goods found at 
Fiber artist 
…because 
