Twas the day before Indie....

And all through the house

were piles of folk art

enough to frighten a mouse

Lol, ok, I guess I sorta lost it there on that last verse. But there is an awful lot of folk art getting packed up and ready to head out tomorrow. I'm sure if you were a mouse afraid of folk art, it would be terrifying ;)

Just did a last count, and I will have 16 original paintings, 8 (or nine if she gets finished) folk art dolls, about 50 prints, beaucoup little glass tile necklaces and tons of post cards ready for Indie Emporium. I hope its enough for one little table!

This will be my third year as a vendor. A little bird told me that I will be placed beside my good crafting buddy Beth and I am so excited to see everyone! This is always a good show for me, the vibe and atmosphere are so positive and creative, and there's always a good crowd. People literally line up around the building to be one of the first to get in.

Lately I've been doing the little odds and ends that shows require- making price tags and signage (my sales tax sign this year cracks me up, I am not above making my own self laugh) and getting in that weird pre-show mode where I think "What have I been making? I don't even remember! Surely its not enough! What have I been doing for the last few months??" But I know enough now to know it'll all be fine and pan out :)

If you're local, I hope you can make it out! Remember to bring a canned food item and you'll get in for $5 instead of $8. And a free goody bag will be given to the first 50 shoppers in the door! The even starts friday at 7 pm and lasts til 10 pm. Doors open again on Saturday at 11 a.m. and lasts until 5 p.m. Then at 8 doors open again for the fashion show featuring clothes by local designers!

Oh, and before I go I wanted to show you some things I just finished that I'm going to debut at my November show--- santa dolls!

I've got so many ideas for santas and winter themed dolls! Hopefully I can get them all done in two weeks, because that's when my next (and final!) show of 2010 will be! What do you think?

Anyhow, I'll see you on the other side of Indie Emporium! Have a great holiday weekend....

h

Tasha Tuesdays Post # 38

"We made a lot of Halloween. Ghosts were supposed to leave their graves and float about and frighten people. But I don't mind ghosts. They're very friendly and delightful things like mists rising out of the fields."

- Tasha Tudor, The Private World of Tasha Tudor

Boo! And a happy Halloween inspired Tasha Tuesday! Hope you have a wonderful holiday on Sunday, with lots of treats and few tricks. Have you ever had a spooky encounter? Ever seen a ghost or a headless horseman? I have stayed in a haunted hotel a time or two (especially around this spookiest of times!) and its one of my most favorite places.

Enjoy the last fleeting days of October! And may all the ghosts that cross your path be benevolent ;)

Happy Spooky Tasha Tuesday!~

Heather

Who's Tasha? Why, my favorite artist of course! Read here to find out more about her.

Georgiana

Sometimes inspiration is a funny thing. Like take for instance my latest painting that I love. It came about with the viewing of this:

paired together with some conversation and googling of this:

Which then resulted in this:

Do you follow? lol. This new painting is called "Georgiana" and yes she was inspired by Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire. She was quite a fascinating character-- I'd never seen this movie when it came out a couple of years ago but its now on netflix instant queue and you know I love some 18th century fashion!

Georgiana has been described as 'a woman before her time but distinctly of her time.' She lived in 18th century England and married a duke, which in the hierarchy of the times and place is just one rung down from royalty. Her family was mind-boggling wealthy (her father's weekly allowance was more than most people lived on for an entire year) then at 17 she married the Duke of Devonshire whose income doubled. Her wedding trousseau included 65 pairs of shoes, 48 pairs of stockings and 26 'and a half' pairs of gloves. Those are pretty epic numbers even 200 years later! (info from Amanda Foreman's book "The Duchess" from which the film was adapted and which of course I am now reading! Because I'm like that, you know ;) )

Famous Gainsborough portrait of Georgiana with her signature picture hat. Georgiana was one of the era's biggest fashion influences, and ushered in the era of the big epic bouffant ;)

Georgiana was spunky, vivacious, loved to be the center of attention but ultimately kind hearted. She was passionate about politics and was said to be her party's most influential woman-- in an era where women were not allowed to vote. She lived in an era of sweeping change--- her country's politics were changing and reshaping, while at the same time the colonies declared themselves free (something actually that her party, the Whigs, supported) and France had its revolution. She was actually very close friends with Marie Antoinette as well.

But her life was sad in many ways....her husband was said to be 'the only man in London not in love with his wife' and later her husband decided to take her best friend as his mistress (hello MTV reality show craziness!) and they all lived together as a sort of strange extended family (as a woman, though she was a duchess, she had no authority to order the woman out of her house.)

That didn't cripple Georgiana though, and she actually declared that if her husband was to have a mistress, she would like a boyfriend. And boy did she ;) She was also known as an extraordinary mother (she even raised her husband's daughter born out of a fling with a working class woman) and advocated breast feeding in an era and for women who usually passed off their children to wet nurses and nannies.

Her descendants are now still very much part of Great Britain's current political celebrities. Lady Diana was a descendant through her niece, and Sarah Ferguson (ex wife of prince Andrew) is a descendant through her daughter Eliza, who was born out of her affair with the second Earl Grey (who later became Prime Minister).

Now don't you feel like you've had a little mini history lesson? ;) I say all that because I wanted you to understand the appeal of her and the fascinating times of that era. And then you combine that with all this talk about hedge hogs (which are sooo adorable, don't you think? Just look at that tiny face!) and voila! My painting Georgiana is born!

Prints of this are now available in my shop. I will also have some available at Indie Emporium. And speaking of Indie Emporium---- I had my picture in the paper and was part of an article on the show in the Sunday paper! Goodness gracious! A photographer even came to my studio to photograph me and everything ;) it was fancy! You can see the article HERE

Now off to start the day! Have a good week! And maybe I'll see you at Indie Emporium this weekend? Come say hi!~

Note from the past

The other day I randomly flipped open an old book I have and this little note was tucked inside, with a dried carnation:

It's a little painting of a potted flower and reads: Elsie Pisell age 11. Date March 11, 1922

And on the back it is addressed to a woman named Ada Bell in sweetly loopy writing. And then also dedicated: To Mamma.

I love this.

Eliza and the Fox

Good morning! It is a cold and dreary one out this morning. The gal and I are headed out early today, but before we go I wanted to share this painting with you. Its a pretty large one--- 16x20", which is a rare size for me if I'm not doing a commission. It also features my first fox :)

I dont know if you can tell or not, but after I painted Miss Eliza and her fox, I sanded the canvas down so that it looked rough and worn and then aged the whole thing to be a little more brown tinged and aged looking. I wanted to this to look like someone had just pulled it out of an old steamer trunk, that perhaps it had crossed the prairie in a covered wagon and the trip hadn't been easy.

I'm having fun trying new animals--- I asked my friends on the Audrey Eclectic Facebook page what animals they'd like to see, and I got a few calls for hedge hogs! And since those little guys are so adorable, I'm going to give it a try ;)

Now, I better scurry off, we've got a big day today....

~H

Tasha Tuesdays Post # 37

It's a very stormy and rainy tuesday this morning. It's been weeks since we've enjoyed a day like this, and I'm glad its here! Too bad I have errands to run...I'd rather stay in and cuddle up!

It is Tuesday though, and you know what that means! It's Tasha Tuesday!

Tasha Tudor as a young woman in a vintage frock, perhaps in the 1930s?

I thought it would be fun to talk about Tasha and her passion for clothes this time around. Because while today there are hundreds of blogs dedicated to the love of vintage fashion and the wearing of them day to day, Tasha seems to be the absolute original when it comes to the concept. Even as a young girl, Tasha was collecting (hoarding?) old frocks that were antiques in the 1920s and 1930s! Items that are now considered museum quality became her every day wardrobe.

Tasha has been quoted as saying: "My antique clothing collection is a great folly of mine. The majority are from the 1830s, but I have examples from every style and decade from 1770 to 1870. It's very common for a friend who tries on one of my old dresses to feel transported to another time. It gives a different perspective on life." (The Private World of Tasha Tudor, Richard Brown)

What an interesting concept on clothes, don't you think? Sort of 'dress for the state of mind you want.' I personally love clothes. In fact, if you've read my recent post on Mama Says Vintage, you'll know that I've been trying to get back into fashion (or at least out of the gym clothes) and I can see Tasha's point. There's something about clothes that either make you feel frumpy and uninspired, or beautiful and of another time. And I can't help but find it ironic that most of us are drawn to clothing fashions of Tasha's era, an era of fashion she all but rejected in an effort to conjure up fashions of another century all together ;)

In this day and age, it's a bit impractical to fully embrace 19th century fashion as Tasha did. Although, really, how practical was it for in the 1930s? I know she had said that her family, namely her mother and brother, were distressed that she had no interest in modern fashion or cutting her hair or being a debutante. Tasha grew up in the era of Jean Harlow, Marlene Dietrich, Claudette Colbert....can you imagine? Tasha with a permanent wave? It just wasn't her style I guess ;)

However, Tasha said of her style: "I feel much more at home in an old frock. There's no feeling of dressing up; they just feel right! I've collected everything: stays, corsets, bustles, hoops, parasols, gloves, wristers, muffs, bonnets, and even an Empire "barnyard cape" made of peacock and pheasant feathers, which was all the rage when Jefferson was president." (The Private World of Tasha Tudor, Richard Brown)

Without a doubt, Tasha loved fashion. It was just the fashion of 100 years before her time ;) Which, now, is becoming all the rage. There is something so appealing about vintage fashion currently, and you'll find everyone from thrift store explorers to high-end fashion designers getting inspired by the clothes of days gone by. I am no exception. I have found myself really loving the classic fashions of the 50s/early 1960s. Mainly because the classic look is more tailored and timeless and can still look modern.

Is there an era of fashion that you love? Or a particular time period that influences your style? Are you as passionate about it as Tasha was for her love of vintage style? Or would you like to be, if you could get away with a crinoline at the office? ;) I'd love to hear about it.....

Happy Tasha Tuesday...

H

For more information on Tasha Tudor, who she is, and her art, visit her family website

Forever Mother's Girl

I thought it would be sweet to do a mother/daughter piece. Where you can see the resemblance so strongly, yet one is an elegant mama and the other is a sweet little girl. I was thinking of the late 20s/1930s when I made this. I've had it painted for a while, but it wasnt completely aged up and sealed until last night.

I'm working on some larger scale items now for my big craft show in November. I usually find that people only want small pieces at shows, but since this is a big time craft show, I thought I'd take a chance and offer some statement pieces. I just finished a girl holding a fox. She's pretty darling. I'll share her with you soon....

Hope you're having a good weekend!~ Tonight I have an old friend's wedding at a big fancy mansion. I'll put on a pretty dress and some dancin' shoes.

Maybe I'll think up a good painting while I'm there....

~H

More little dolls

They just keep multiplying!

Up front are two of my newest dolls. I love how crackly and gritty they came out. The girl on the right with the dark bob reminds me of Liza Minnelli ;) I think she's the cutest!

And also...oops...I completely forgot about Tasha Tuesday until about 10:30 last night! So I suppose I had a little hiatus yesterday ;) Sorry about that! I've had a cold since saturday and been a little bleary and sniffly since then. Still got a stuffy nose but hoping I'm on the upswing now!
I'm going to offer these girls for sale at the upcoming Indie Emporium. It's only a couple of weeks away! I'm just glad that I've gotten the cold now and not in the middle of doing a show. Right? ;)

What are you up to this week?

~H

Oct 11

I love this pastoral scene just out my back door. The farmer who owns the field beyond my fence line has been mowing and bailing his hay. It's a sure sign of autumn.

I haven't been feeling well the last few days. But I managed to get some dolls made. There's nothing I hate worse then not being able to get done all that I want to get done. But I think they turned out rather sweet and I can't wait to show them to you. One looks remarkably like Liza Minnelli ;)

Oh, and the winners are in for the ebook giveaway! The winners are Andria and Theresa! Congrats girls! I'll contact you and get you in touch with Lori. And many thanks to Lori for giving away two copies of her deliciously spooky book!

Til next time...

~H

PS: I was interviewed at Folk Reveries today! You can read it HERE :)

Fresh Prints!~

Good morning!~

I just wanted to let you know that I have some fresh prints listed at my shop, never offered before! The first is of a painting I just finished yesterday--- another western flapper girl! This is Sedona Sally:

I love how these folk art paintings are coming out as prints! They are so bright and crisp, and even my husband thought they looked like originals instead of copies. Love that! Of course all my prints are made on heavy artist grade paper. The type I use is slightly textured and enhances the 'original' feel.

This little beauty came out especially well, LOVE her crackle!~:
Polly's Pumpkin is really one of my current favorite little girls! I still have the original in my shop, but if you're in the mood for prints I made one up of her as well. It's HERE. I can't wait to offer these new prints at my shows! It's gonna be so fun!

And also--- dont forget to enter the giveaway for the free eBook in the post below!~

~Heather

Author Interview: Ghost Hunter

There's nothing like the month of October to inspire in you a love of ghost stories. All the changing and falling leaves....chilly brisk breezes...grinning jack o'lanterns and spooky ambiance that you never see any other time of year just gets you in the mood.

I thought this would be the perfect time to interview author Lori Brighton about her new book--- Ghost Hunter. It's an intriguing story filled with romance, mystery, paranormal elements, and of course--- lots of ghosts!

I thought you might like a chance to hear about Ghost Hunter, now available as an eBook and have the chance to win a free copy! Lori has graciously offered two free electronic copies of her novel to two lucky readers! (note: this book contains adult content) So grab a cup of cocoa or cider and curl up to hear a little bit more about this exciting and spooky tale....

Tell us a little about the premise of your new book "Ghost Hunter."

Sure! The Ghost Hunter is a contemporary paranormal romance. Here’s the blurb:

When Ashley Hunter inherits the Inn where her father mysteriously vanished years

ago, she jumps at the chance to finally uncover the truth about his disappearance.

But soon after taking ownership of the decrepit building, Ashley realizes she’s in for

far more than she bargained. Not only has she inherited answers to many sought-

after questions, she’s also inherited spirits, demons and even fallen angels! Then

Cristian arrives, a gorgeous man who insists he merely needs a room to rent. She

believes him, until one by one her ghosts start disappearing...

As a fallen angel destined for a life of servitude, Cristian Lucius is relegated to

protecting earth from unwanted spirits. But he can’t accomplish this daunting task

alone. He requires assistance from the very woman who frustrates him as much as

she intrigues him. Cristian is determined to ignore his intense attraction for Ashley,

and focus on his mission. If they don’t work together, they won’t have a chance in

hell of defeating the demon threatening their lives. The problem is getting Ashley

to trust him. No easy task, considering Cristian is the very man responsible for her

father’s disappearance.

Your previous books have dealt with Victorian England or the Victorian time period,but this particular story takes place in the modern era. What inspired you to switch time periods?

I can’t decide on one era or genre so I’ve given up and have decided to write

whatever I want J Writing historicals is great fun; being transported to

another time, the romanticism of it all. But sometimes I just want to be in the

modern era. For one, the research is a lot easier and it feels a bit more natural.

Author Lori Brighton

This story is perfectly peppered with spooky and paranormal elements, from the

old English Inn to the various creatures that inhabit the area. What is it about these paranormal places and people that inspire you to write?

I’ve always liked the paranormal; the mystery of it all. When I was a child

we lived in a house that I’m pretty sure was haunted, or perhaps I just had

a big imagination. lol. Thoughts of the afterlife are a pretty universal theme.

Like you, I love autumn and Halloween so it’s the perfect time to read the book! In

fact, I came up with the idea while on the ride, The Haunted Mansion, at Disney

World. It takes place in England because I find the history there so fascinating and

layered.

Can you describe the dynamic between your hero and heroine? Who came to you first when thinking up the story--- Ashley or Cristian?

Ashley was first. A plot always starts with a “what if.” And while I was on that

Haunted Mansion ride, I wondered what if a woman inherited a mansion that was

haunted?

As for my hero and heroine, Ashley and Cristian are supposed to have a

professional relationship, but obviously it morphs into something more. Both

characters are basically trying to escape their lives, but in the end have come to

accept who they are and appreciate what they have.

A common thread in your stories are definitely lots of romance, intrigue and mystery.How would you, as the author, describe your work?

Perhaps romantic and suspenseful. I crave that adventure and mystery. I definitely

like action and suspense in the novels I read. When I was younger, I loved watching

movies, which is harder to do now with a child constantly interrupting. The movies

I always enjoyed were also action-packed and suspenseful. I loved the Indiana

Jones movies. And I think I have a little of Indiana Jones in my books. It’s that

whole going places and experiencing things you wouldn’t normally in real life.

I love a good ghost story and this particular story is brimming with ghosts! How do you get in a spooky writing mood, and do you have any favorite haunts (couldnt resist!) that you have visited that have inspired your love of the paranormal?

I do enjoy watching the Ghost Hunting shows on T.V. Although, have you ever

noticed whenever they see something really weird it’s never caught on camera?

Kind of suspicious. And I definitely love to go on Ghost Tours in different cities.

Just recently we visited St. Augustine, Florida. The third most haunted city in the

U.S. Even if you don’t believe in ghosts, taking a ghost tour is the perfect way to

get into the mood for the paranormal and you learn a lot about the town’s history.

Do you have any other modern paranormal stories up your sleeves? What’s next in your writing adventure?

Well, I’d like to write a second book in the Ghost Hunting series, staring Devon,

who is a secondary character in The Ghost Hunter. I’m also working on another

contemporary paranormal. And I have a Young Adult book I’ll be doing something

with soon.

My second historical with paranormal elements, Wild Desire, will be out in print

and ebook format in March of 2011.

LoL, all paranormals! I do write books without paranormal, just haven’t published

any yet.

Where can readers find out more about you or find your books?

I have a website and a blog:

http://www.loribrighton.com/

http://www.loribrighton.blogspot.com/

Right now I have two books you can purchase on Amazon and one you can

preorder:

The Ghost Hunter, available in Ebook format. And just to let you know, even if you

don’t have a Kindle you can still download it to your computer:

http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Hunter-Paranormal-Romance-ebook/dp/

B0042P5GOO/ref=pd_rhf_p_img_1

Wild Heart, available in print and as an Ebook:

http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Heart-Zebra-Debut-Brighton/dp/1420108654/

ref=pd_rhf_p_img_2

Wild Desire, available for preorder:

http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Desire-Lori-Brighton/dp/1420108662/ref=sr_1_3?

ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1286246810&sr=1-3

Thanks so much for having me here!

********************************************************

And many thanks to Lori for taking the time to share with us about her book and for the chance to win a book! If you'd like to be eligible to win a free copy of the eBook "Ghost Hunter" just leave a comment here on this post!

Contest ends Sunday Oct. 10

Tasha Tuesdays Post # 36

Sometimes all we need is a simple reminder:

This precious little embroidered piece was a birthday gift from my good friend Holly at Sweetheartville. It's lovely to have such good friends who support your obsessions!~ ;)

And what a pretty little reminder--- one I always need, and perhaps you do too....

~Take Joy~