Now that summer is nearly here, the toads are emerging from their lairs and many of my evenings are spent chasing them around so I can pick them up and pet them. (Meanwhile, Shadow Jack trudges stolidly behind, wondering how he ever wound up saddled with a lunatic who pets toads. But I digress.)

In addition to being cute, toads are also a fantastic natural pest control for the garden. I like to encourage organic, pesticide-free gardening, so here are some gothy creatures to help keep out the bad bugs:

Toads eat all kinds of insects, grubs, and slugs, and they’re supposed to be good luck. Provide them with some water to drink and to lay their eggs (it doesn’t have to be a pond; anything that doesn’t dry out will do). Give them shelter, both in the form of rock piles and vegetation where they can hide and a cool, damp “toad abode” where they can get out of the sun and away from predators (you can buy elaborate toad houses, but a clay pot turned on its side and halfway buried in the ground is fine). Avoid spraying pesticides or other harsh chemicals; toads and frogs are very susceptible to poisoning. Keep cats under control to prevent them from snacking on toads (both for the toad’s sake and the cat’s; some toads are poisonous).

Lizards eat a variety of insects and can be attracted by giving them places to hide (such as a rock pile or a stack of logs), a shallow water source near the ground, and some flat rocks to sun on.

Snakes will be attracted by the same conditions that lizards like. Although they might eat helpful species like lizards and toads, they also eat rodents. (I think the tradeoff is worth it; there’s nothing that ticks me off more than finding a mouse’s nest in a basement storage box, and I love seeing the occasional shed skin that lets me know our snakes are on patrol.) It should go without saying that you shouldn’t try to pick up a wild snake, and make sure children and pets won’t be bitten.

Bats are nonpareil bug-eaters, and nothing could be gothier. I’ve gone into detail about attracting bats here.

Read the rest of this entry »

There’s been a recent stir in the news about a 17th-Century “witch bottle” unearthed in England (read about the find at Times Online and MSNBC); although over 200 have been found, this is the first one that’s intact.

The discovery is interesting, but I’m also much taken with the bottle itself. It’s described as “salt-glazed stoneware,” and I love the imposing bearded face on the neck. A bit of online digging led me to the fact that many witch bottles were made of salt-glazed stoneware flagons known as “bellarmines” after the feared inquisitor Cardinal Roberto Bellarmino, whose face was traditionally embossed on the neck. (So that’s not some ancient pagan god on the bottle, it’s a really uptight Catholic.)

Original bellarmines are reasonably easy to find, but expensive (I found a couple on eBay for around $600). Fortunately they apparently lend themselves to lots of reproductions: Moonstone Pottery has them, as does Hudson Claypotter. There’s also a lovely one at Colony of Avalon, but it’s a bit pricier than the others.

A bottle like this would make a lovely display piece, especially considering the history of what they were used for.

The new movie 9 (produced by Tim Burton, which should come as no surprise given that image there) involves a ragdoll who comes to life in a post-apocalyptic world where maniacal machines have killed off all of the humans. 9 finds a small community of others like him and tries to understand what’s happened to the world whilst avoiding the killer robots.

The Seamstress is one of the robots, and she’s pretty fantod-inducing.

[Director Shane Acker] was inspired by the mythological Medusa in his creation of this serpentine hunter. Fashioned with a doll’s head, grasping prehensile arms, an intricate thread-spool mechanism, and hypnotic eyes, the Seamstress lures her prey out of hiding and stuns them into submission before sewing them up within herself.

Dread Central has more information about the Seamstress (and the movie in general), and io9 has a clip of her in action.

I like her. She’s what I expect the Goddess of Gothic Crafts would look like.

LOLCthulhu – Mind on Fire presents a collection of entertaining Cthulhu links.

The Six Creepiest Abandoned Places – I think “creepy” is a matter of opinion, but I have to sort of agree with his assessment of Hellingly Asylum.

The Hammer – Blackwork pattern for fans of “Dr. Horrible.” This makes me giggle.

Being Human – io9 reports that the BBC series about a vampire and a werewolf who move into a haunted apartment is finally coming to U.S. audiences. Yay!

Cartoon Skeletons – I’d seen this link previously, but it took a post by Creepy Cupcakes to make me realize how lovely these would be as framed art.

Shark Attack Hat – This is brilliant. I want one to wear to formal events.

Rock Hyrax – This is a science “photo of the day.” Its little fangs make it look like the world’s cuddliest vampire.

RunPee – The worst thing about seeing a movie in a theater is the lack of a pause button. This inspired website tells you the best time to go to the bathroom during various movies.

When Love is Strange – An overview of “paranormal romance” novels.

Can Zombies Be Sexy? – The end of the article in the previous link states that zombies aren’t sexy. io9 begs to differ.

Claw Shoes – This is just a prototype, but they’re completely awesome.

After running across this rather arresting–but artistic–warning sign, it occurred to me that it and similar signs would make attractive and unusual decorations.

A quick search should turn up quite a number of them, but you can also check places like Safety First! for loads of examples. These vintage radiation warning posters, this “mental hygiene” sign (from the University of Minnesota collection) and “dangers of unkept hair” warning (from this site) would all be attractive artworks. Copy shops like Kinko’s can print good-quality oversize pictures, so you could have these blown up to poster size and framed.

You can also find similar pictures commerically available, particularly propaganda-style posters from WWII. This “Consider the Consequences” print is attractive, and this German poster is definitely eye-catching.

If you want something a little more spare and modern, look for unusual examples of the type in the thumbnail above (that one came from a chipper/shredder warning). symbols.net and freesignage.co.uk have some good resources.

You could even do a collection of prints, all on, say, a VD-awareness theme. Unusual and educational.

This one isn’t original; Maggie did a version based on this one, but since I used a different method to make my flowers I figured it was worth posting a tutorial.

I wanted to make the jacket as a classy wardrobe piece for Shadaughter, but unfortunately she refused to let me make it in black. (She really is the Marilyn to the rest of our family’s Munsters.) So it’s a springy mint-green color, but you can close your eyes and pretend it’s black.

The tutorial for making the flowers is here. I made the jacket out of a lightweight “linen-look” material, but you could also use something heavier like velvet. I’d recommend using a solid color instead of something patterned, and also keep the jacket itself rather plain; that way the ruffles really draw the eye.

The flowers are a good project to work on in front of the TV or whenever you have a few free minutes, and they came together much faster than I expected them to (I made the whole jacket in a weekend). They’re also a nice embellishment for hats, and a small cluster of them could be used as an accent for lots of other clothing.

Pretty! Easy! Go try it!

How cute are these vein stockings from French company UpFactory? If you prefer, you can also have your legs crawling with ants or slit up the back.

At 41€ ($58) I’d have to be a lot less prone to running my nylons to pick up a pair of these babies, but it might be fun to see if something similar could be done with cheap stockings and some fabric paint.

(via BoingBoing)

Delfina Delettrez Fendi (fourth-generation Fendi heir) is an up-and-coming designer with a touch of the macabre. She unveiled her jewelry collection during Paris Fashion Week, and there’s some simply gorgeous stuff. Pieces include gold cobweb cuffs, the lovely skeleton hand shown here, a gorgeous and intricate dragon, and even a diamond-encrusted skull.

There’s a slideshow of some of the pieces at WWD, which is a little macabre in itself in that all of the pieces are being modeled by taxidermied animals. WWD doesn’t list prices, but I’ve seen a couple of other sites list the skeleton hand for a mere $25K. Save your pennies!

(via Neatorama)

Tattoo artist extraordinaire Chris Conn retired from the industry in 2006 to devote his time to other media. A combination of some financial bad luck and the desire to retire a little more formally has prompted him to offer 10 gift certificates for one of his amazing tattoos.

How Is This Going to Work?

on june first, i will begin to release the 10 gift certificates on ebay. i will release one certificate per day, and each one will be on the auction block for 24 hours. after the bidding is over on one certificate, the next one will be released, until all 10 certificates are sold. each gift certificate is good for one person, on one specific date. if you win a certificate, that date is yours, and you have the entire work day (8 hours) with me. this includes consulting, drawing and tattooing. during this day, you will get my undivided attention, which means i won’t be consulting with other customers, taking phonecalls, etc. i will spend the entire day (minus an hour for lunch) focusing on the work at hand, slowly and patiently, and with a minimum of distraction.

His site says that he resides in San Francisco, so you’ll probably want to take the location into consideration if you plan to bid.

More information at his Tumblr site, and samples of his work at his dot-com.

(via Cabinet of Curiosities)

Need plans for the weekend before Halloween? Now you’ve got ’em.

Thrill The World is an annual worldwide simultaneous dance of Michael Jackson’s Thriller. It started in 2007 to celebrate the 25th anniversary (zounds!) of the Thriller album, but now they do it annually.

Volunteers organize events in cities worldwide. Then everybody gets together and dances like zombies. It’s even got its own Guinness World Record category. You can see the 2009 schedule here or learn about starting an event in your own city here.

Clear your calendar!

Link (Hat tip to Haunted Wolf)