Cauldron Stirring Guy completed

It has been a productive day here at the Farm. My first Cauldron Stirring prop of the year is now complete. At the suggestion of a good friend, I added a stiff collar which led to the addition of a shirt and tie. Very dapper, don't you think? According to Mrs. Dave the Dead, his name is Luther. ( I'm not sold on the name, but Luther hasn't suggested any other options) Video of Luther in action can be seen here.

Another project ticked off my list can be seen in the background...a set of small shelves that I will use to display my wares at upcoming shows. The shelves are made from reclaimed cedar fence planks, and make a perfect backdrop for the creepy little characters that inhabit The Shadow Farm.

Next on the agenda are more small ghouls, some lanterns that I am converting to use LED tealight candles, and at least two more Cauldron Stirring props.

Stirring Cauldon Sculpt In progress

This guy is the start of a series of Cauldron Stirring figures I have planned for this year. I have some finish work yet to do, but have proven that he is mechanically sound by running him off and on for hours at a time over the last week or so. The sculpt is mostly paper mache with paperclay as a topcoat to give the final texture. The figure has a small electric motor mounted inside the cauldron that revolves slowly, his jointed arms following the stirring stick. Overall size is approx 21 inches. Finishing touches will include some crazy hair, a large stiff collar, and some paint and texturing on the cauldron. When completed, this figure will be available to purchase on Etsy or in person at Great Lakes Fright Fest.

Wendell, Pumpkin Orphan

Poor Wendell needs a home. He was born and raised in the pumpkin fields of The Shadow Farm, but now longs for something more. His low set, sad eyes and sickly skin tone tell a tale of loneliness, as all his "normal" brothers and sisters with bright orange colors have already been taken to new homes to celebrate the upcoming Halloween.

Wendell is one of the very few 'intentionally cute' pieces that I have made. It was a fun challenge to apply a sickly, unwholesome skin tone and red swollen eyes while still maintaining a certain quality that begs to be picked up and hugged. Wendell is available for adoption on Etsy with free shipping.

The Pumpkin Baby

Early this spring I was on a college visit with my son and encountered a small statue on the campus of Ball State University. The piece is called "Frog Baby". Something about it instantly captured my imagination. The child is shown in a pose of absolute rapture, smiling and raising her eyes to the heavens, completely oblivious to the plight of the two frogs that she is holding on the brink of death. I stewed over this image for a few days, and began building my version which I have called "Pumpkin Baby". This was my most difficult piece to date, involving many hours of trial and error in pose, sculpt and painting.

Nigel Skullsworth Pennington

The folks in town say there used to be a cemetery somewhere on the Shadow Farm, but ages have passed and the exact location is unknown. It is said that when there has been enough rain to loosen the soil, the long departed souls can inhabit any life that touches the remains. Such is the case for Nigel Skullsworth Pennington. You see, the roots of the pumpkins have run unusually deep this year, working their way into the mouldering remains. We see Nigel in the moment of realization that he has escaped the bonds of death and now inhabits a new form. Nigel Skullsworth Pennington is ready for mischief.

What's In a Name?

It is interesting to me how some folks give their Halloween props and artwork names. It is even more interesting some of the names people come up with. I am a big fan of naming my props. I find that it helps me to give them character and emotion. Sometimes I will start with a name already firmly planted in my mind and build a piece around the name. Other times, the prop comes first and the name follows. I jokingly have said that there comes a point when the prop will whisper its name to me. My newest piece is truly a case where the prop has decided what his name needs to be. I have been working on this little guy off and on for a few weeks, and yesterday when I opened the door to the shop the name popped in my mind as soon as I looked at him.
Allow me to introduce you to Nigel Skullsworth Pennington. Little Nigel is a work in progress, and will be offered up for adoption on Etsy when completed.

Geezer

There is something horribly wrong with the pumpkin crop at The Shadow Farm. Perhaps the legends are true that there used to be a cemetery where the garden now stands. The pumpkin crop has grown very well in the dark, rich soil. The plants have grown strong with deep roots, but every harvest there are no fruits left to pick.

It almost like they are just walking away.



Geezer is currently available to purchase on Etsy.

Poe

Sarah Jenkins dreamed of having a daughter. She dreamed of tea parties and frilly dresses, but despite her efforts she could not get pregnant. Frustrated with the small town's doctor who seemed more interested in collecting a fee than helping a desperate young lady, Sarah was willing to accept help wherever it would come from. She heard rumors of a mystic who could be found wandering the alleys in the dark chilly nights, and when she could no longer stand the longing and frustration, sought out help from the bottle lady.

"Of course I can help you child, " the bottle lady whispered. She reached into her leather pouch and held up a single seed. "This seed was collected a year ago on the mourning after the new moon, harvested from a pumpkin heavy with frost" She turned the seed reverently between her dirty fingers. "Swallow this seed tonight at midnight, and seek me out at the cemetery on the night of the full moon. I will midwife the birth of your daughter."

Something seemed amiss. Sarah had heard the legends, and had been prepared to give the bottle lady some strange token in return. Nothing was asked of her. "No matter," Sarah thought."If this will give me my daughter, so be it." She did as instructed, and was amazed to wake the next morning with rosy cheeks and a slightly larger belly. Over the next month, the pregnancy progressed rapidly, and when the moon rose full and blood red in the sky, Sarah was waiting at the cemetery.
"Come child, come. Lay down on this stone and let's begin." The bottle lady smiled, and Sarah did as she was asked. As promised, Sara Jenkins gave birth to a baby girl that night, but died before she could feel the joy of motherhood.

"Thank you child," sneered the witch to Sarah's lifeless body as she held the infant up to the full moon.

"Welcome Poe, my child of sadness."

Bedlam

Jay Bedlam had an inferiority complex. All he ever wanted was to be important...to be looked up to by the townspeople. Then one day he heard that a local conjuress, the town's crazy bottle lady, had the ability to grant wishes. "Bring to me in two day's time the left wing feather of a crow" she hissed in the still dark night, "and by the next full moon you shall be put on a pedestal". Jay Bedlam didn't know a crow from a duck, and figured one feather was as good as the next.

The Bottle Lady was displeased.

On October 31st, 1802 his wish was granted.

Crackerjack

Sometimes a prop turns out nothing like it was originally conceived. No matter how hard you try, something just isn't quite right. Crackerjack was one of those props for me. He was inspired by the story in my previous post, "The Fallen Tree" and was the answer to the question "what played with those toys in the crawlspace?" I knew I wanted him to be grub-like, but my first attempt ended up looking like something that would be attached to an exterminator's truck roof. It was an utter failure as far as creepiness goes (unless you are scared of big termites). After several more chapters in the story, the concept in my mind evolved, and then one day inspiration hit in a most unlikely spot...a toothpaste smear on my shower curtain was staring at me, and looked just like my vision of Crackerjack. The rest, as they say, is history.

a bizarre, twisted history.

Icharus

Poor Icharus.....all he ever wanted was to be accepted and loved, and yet his master was a singularly cruel individual. Under the guise of acceptance, Icharus willingly submits to increasingly aberrant surgeries and implants. What sort of maniacal monster could have done this to the poor creature? What evil purpose do these abominations serve?

Darwin

Darwin is not a happy creature...you wouldn't be either if you were pulled out of a nice watery home, shoved into some sort of rusty metal reverse-scuba apparatus that doesn't even fit right, and forced to take part in the evil bidding of a demented master. He has a right to be grumpy.

Ephram Vessell

He is the groundskeep of the small church cemetery situated just up the road from the Shadow Farm. Ancient, feeble, mute, and mostly blind, he was given the job and a small shack out back to call his home. He is often seen taking handouts of a most unusual variety from the local crazy 'bottle lady'...what he does with these strange objects remains a mystery.

the Bottle Lady

Most of the townsfolk thought of her as just the crazy old bottle lady. She would show up in town a couple of times a month, and wander around in the shadows, occasionally stopping strangers on the street and mumbling incoherent phrases. To those that believed in majik, she was sought out as a very accomplished conjuress. It was said that she learned her trade from the indians, but it was more likely that the indians learned from her. She would wander into town on the evening of the new moon, bottles, sticks, and bones tied together and slung over her shoulders. Those who knew what she could do would secretly meet her and ask her for a potion capable of fulfilling whatever wish they desired. "All I ask is a token in return'," she would cackle, and instruct the person on how to obtain a seemingly ordinary item. "In two days time, bring to me a stone from the bottom of a stagnant pool. It must be collected by moonlight and with nobody as witness. Do exactly as I say and you will have your wish by the next full moon." Her token requests were always strange, but easily obtained...the skull of a raccoon, a tortoise shell, the foot of a black rooster, nettle roots pulled out in a thunderstorm. It was assumed that these items were used to make the potions, but in fact they were used by a group of mystics to foretell the future. All the tokens were worthless, unless collected by an unknowing soul.

The Hatchling

My most recent fascination has been with pumpkin creatures. The Hatchling has been artistically the most challenging piece I have made yet. The base of this monument is made with plywood that I coated with a thin layer of celluclay. It is much heavier and more durable than Foamboard, which is a staple in the world of making tombstones. The Pumpkin and emerging creature are made with pulp mache and celluclay. Real pumpkin seeds were used along with stretchy spider webs to make the pumpkin guts.