Christmas Shackles for Halloween

My hope this year is to create at least one Halloween prop a month till the season gets closer and I get into full mode. Well, I can check January off thanks to my Mom and aunt Ellen. A little while back I talked about my family passing me the packing tubes that secured my aunt's Christmas gifts to all. Mom started it by saying I could probably make something out of them.

So I did...


Although my shackles are not technically accurate to real ones, they work visually and should look pretty good hanging somewhere come Oct. 31st. They where very fast and easy to make, being done while waiting for glue and paint to dry on another project I had going.

I split each tube open removing about a 1/4" creating a gap...


For the protruding... latch detail? Not sure what to call it, but I think you get what I mean, I used some beat up scrap foamcore. I cut pieces to fit and roughly curved the edges and made holes for the chain. The shackles are old and rusty so the imperfections in the cutting give it character and an aged feel. Then glued them on the tube...


I split the end links on a short length of black plastic chain and slipped over the latch and into the holes. I filled in some seams and finished giving it all a thick faux rust paint treatment...

Messy New Job

I've started prop work on a new TV kid's show. Take a wild guess what network it will be on from these photos...

By Crom's Will It Was Painted!

Age 14 - Conan the Barbarian -18" x 24" watercolor.

In 1980 as a freshman in high school, I started to get serious about my "art". I worked to learn professional mediums like oils, pen and ink, pastels and watercolors. Yet, my subject matter remained not so serious. Much like today.

I was deep in my barbarian period then. I dreamed of being a comic artist like my favorite at the time, John Buscema. I even dared to imagine, being a fantasy illustrator rivaling Frazetta one day. My copy of "How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way" and all my "Art of Frazetta" books were falling apart. The bindings had deteriorated from compulsive repeated reading and referencing.

I have sense memory of working on the above - hunched over, carefully painting the blood drips and slowly building the color up in thin layers, like a real artist would. I felt great accomplishment once done. It was a bit of a milestone for me. I found a real love of watercolor which became my medium of choice. Sad to say though, these days, my paints remain very dusty being distracted by Photoshop. I really should find time for both. Maybe even take another stab at my favorite barbarian.

A few months ago, I discovered a fun Conan fan blog, CROM! Enough barbaric nostalgia there to fill all of Cimmeria.

The Tooth Fairy Cometh

Niece Devin is losing her baby teeth. Many conversations about the legend of the Tooth Fairy have been had. Just recently, there was a family artist's portfolio created of what she (or him) looks like.

By Devin...

By Aunt Monica...

By Uncle Dave...
Monica's wonderful version is available on gift items at her Fog Shop!

Is My House Haunted? Is My Niece a Medium?

See anything odd in this picture taken tonight of my Dad and niece Devin at our house?

Look closer...

See it now?

This is no photoshop trick on my part. The rational explanation is dust or light reflection on the lens, right? You have to admit though, the odds of it appearing exactly where is does are astronomical. It does weird me out a bit. My future sister in law claims to have seen ghosts in our house while visiting once. I've personally had a strange spooky encounter living elsewhere. I tend to believe in the possibility of paranormal events. I will not be sleeping easy tonight.