Happy Holidays!

The mad rush is over for me and I am off from work until Jan 4th..finally. I can say that now I am ready for the Holidays . Friday we had a big snow storm move through the area leaving us snowed in our houses until Monday because of how much snow fell ...over 18 inches and most of it in one night! The town literally stopped moving as a white blanket was laid down and a peacefull silence came over our area. It was quit beautiful and for the first time since living in VA did I really enjoy the snow without fear of "Oh, I have to go out and drive in this " It was the weekend, the pantry was full and I was with my husband and little girl snowed in ..no other place I'd rather be :) I am sharing a few snaps I took that Sunday, snow had started to melt but still was so lovely .

I have a few more presents to wrap ,spruce up the house from flying ribbons, bows and wrapping paper scattered about by kitty, then off to a Christmas Eve get together at my sister- in -laws house come the afternoon. Then afterwards tonight there are plans of games, egg nog, lots of eating and tracking Santa will begin and I can't wait to have my little angel open up her gifts from Santa come Christmas morning ! Can't believe this will be the last Christmas just the three of us as next year we will be four! :)

So I certainly will be taking lots of pictures , sitting back and taking it all in memory as more precious moments are made tonight .

Wishing you and your family a most wonderful and memorable Holiday !!

Nina.

Winter Inspirations

I have been in the holiday spirit and wanted to make a few things to incorporate my festive mood. Though I love Santas and Snowmen and vintage Christmas decor my art does not really follow the path of holiday playfulness as that of so many artists that I admire . So I will admire from afar and leave it up to those who specialize in Christmas to make such lovelies and instead bring forth my own creations that capture ghosts stories on a cold winters night ,a Charles Dickens type of Victorian christmas and mistletoe mischeif. It is a bit of winter and holiday whimsy, with a touch of dark spookyness. I have three new dolls listed this week on eBay and will be adding two more before the holidays along with some ornaments that I have been meaning to list but just are not happy with the results yet so it is still a work in progress. I am my own worst critic!

Enjoy!

Nina.

New dolls and ornies

This weekend I listed some new dolls and ornies . I have been so inspired by Victorian Spiritualism here latley that I have many projects lined up with this theme. The seance doll and tarot dolls are actually ornaments, they came out quite small the first time in making them but I plan on making these again in a larger size of 15-18 inches tall with clay feets and hands.

So happy to have my art muse back! She had been gone for a while but now things are really rolling again . Drop by Etsy and Ebay to see these dolls if you like:)

Nina.

I will be in the kitchen cooking this morning ,enjoying time with my family and some time off from work whoo hoo!!!. Later we will put up the tree and deck the halls of the house as we make our way into the Holiday season...how fast times flies!
May you and yours have a wonderful Thanksgiving and I shall be back this weekend to add some new creations for Ebay and Etsy so do check back . I am so very excited to show you what I have been working on :)

The Poison Widow Shop

A few months back I had created on Etsy another shop just for my poppets that are not one of a kind, ones that are recreated again and again . I called the shop "The Poison Widow House of Curious Dolls and Poppets." I decided to open it back up and offer what I once made again to all no need to wait on auctions and such . These doll bodies are premade and kept instock then painted and upon order. I was to incorporate this with my GSb Art shop on Etsy but thought I would keep the two separate as one is for one of a kind art and the other is for recreations. So drop on by to get some old favorites!

New Dolls on Etsy

Finally had some time to list two new dolls on my Etsy Shop drop by when you can to view the newbies!

Nina.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

May you and yours have a wonderful Halloween! Beware the ghosts and ghouls and scary things that go bump in the night!

Life's Li'l Suprises

Look carfully at the tea leaves and you shall see ..Oh what does the future hold for me? Yes, life is full of suprises indeed.

For the heavens and stars they threw me wink, and the life path I was on was now gone in a blink.

And the images seen in the tea cup that day, told glorious news of another baby on the way!

So I share with you this announcement today, that I anxiousely await a baby in May :)

Finally all moved and a Fresh Start

My goodness what a loooong almost 2 months!

Well we are finally settled in the new house after many unforseen delays in moving in , still some issues with the house being older especially plumbing as we woke one morning to find that we had a sauna for a toilet! We found the hot water and cold waterlines in the house were crossed and caused all sorts of busted pipe problems EEEKKK , but we are working through them and everything should be normal soon . The last of the moving and renovating happened this Saturday, and I still have yet to set up my office the way it needs to be but it is for the most part unpacked and semi -functional . I have so many little doll projects unfinished I am dying to have a moment to sit and work on them . Another reason I have not really set up my office is that I after long hours of debate with my self I am to be closing VMB, so to organize all the bath and body supplies to me right now is not really worth doing.

Yes , I will be closing shop because with a new start you see things differently and with events and health situations in my life right now it has left me with the hard decision that I must stop stressing myself out, spreading myself to thin in every way and really start to spend more time with my family ...that over all is more important to me than anything I am doing right now. What once was a happy hobby has now become a burden of stress and chaos :( So when you lose the heart to do something you must let it go . It is sad because it took 5 years to make my business with blood sweat and tears but then too what a breath of fresh air this will because there is no more made to order , no mad rush for turn around times and no dealing with delays of suppliers , and yes ...no holiday rush!! I will begin to focus my energy and creative thoughts toward my art and dolls so here in the next few weeks will be adding some new projects up for sale on etsy and ebay and finally being able to keep up with fellow bloggers , My Space and eventually FaceBook and Twitter! A lot of change in my life but for the better! Not only for my family but my own sanity and I look forward to more tranquil moments from now on. Like... a full 8 hours sleep instead of 4 or 5, baking, gardening, curling up to long talks on the couch with my hubby, and tea parties in the back yard on a blanket with my little girl before she grows up and tea parties with mom are just a little girl memory.

Here is to New Beginnings!

~Nina.

Gone for a while :)

Just dropping in to say I will be gone for a while. During this time I will be moving to a new house and trying to set up my studio again which I am excited about and can't wait to show pictures! Packing right now is such a task as I am a bit of a pack rat and am having difficulty deciding on what goes to the new house and what goes to the curb... eeek.!
I plan to return to making dolls and opening up shop for VMB again around Sept 10th... so until then Dark Kisses and see you soon!
~Nina.

Etsy Shop now open!

I opened an Etsy shop a while back but never listed anything. So finally I got around to making a few ornament dolls and listed them this morning . It is a start, as I get more stock and add more lovelies you will see more of my pin cushions and boxes rather than dolls like what I sell in eBay . This shop is perfect for the what-nots I make every now and then that I don't want to list on eBay so you will get some ooak things at a buy it now price with no waiting on an auction to end. Do drop by and view the ghost doll ornaments Lilah, Lily, and Lenore all great to add to your Halloween tree! Simply click on the same image you see on this post but in the right side bar of my blog under my eBay listings picture.

Masquerade Doll

I love to play around with different sculpting material, from making my own home made clay or using a local artist friends (Through the Sea Gate )recipe of old fashion bread clay ,to paper clay and paper mache . This time I used paper mache and found that the bumpy texture that is the finshed product is quite unique and does very well when trying to give an aged look to your work . So in playing around in the wee hours of the morning this past weekend, I created a few doll busts and set them on candle stick holders and old vintage bottles ..even wooded dowels for fun Halloween and Spooky sceptors. The first to be finished was a doll stand called "Halloween Masquerade" now on ebay .

She turned out to be quite a lovely piece and wonderful to set upon your table tops and mantles to add a little gothic Halloween Masquerade touch to your decor this season . I have her on top of my piano where I display most of my dolls and take my pictures as it makes for a wonderful dark back ground.

Oh which by the way,I don't think I ever mentioned that my piano was a new addition to my home decor a few months back . Up above is a picture of when we first got it. I bought it for a mere $25.00 and it is and old 1950's or 60's cherry wood ,Stratford Piano that took 6 men to bring into the house one rainy afternoon . My husband was one of the men behind the brawn that brought it into the parlor and often teases me by saying " if we ever move the piano is staying with the house!" Ha ... think not! It took me 13 years to get another piano to replace the one I left in Texas that I had since I was 9.. not going to part with it any time soon!

I so enjoy playing it when all is quiet and everyone is asleep up upstairs. It is another creative release of mine outside of making art, I create and compose my own songs where I escape into yet another world filled with music. I find it good to have a choice in of doors in which to open and escape from one world to the next when you find that you need a break from things.

New kitten and our other fur babies!

Here she is, little Luna! The little stray cat we took in recently and a fuzzy and playful addition to our family . I finally got her to sit still long enough by having her focus on a rubber band above her... Geeez she is active! I love her coat, it's a smokey, mystic color with a silver sheen to it and she is sort of fluffy ... has a tail like a squirel ...he-he . She reminds me of my old cat I used to have in Texas who was grey as well, we called him "Church" ... yep you may have guessed it, it came from Stephen King's Pet "Pet Cemetary". She is so very shy around other people but when all is still and you are on the couch she comes to you for some love'n. Things are still new for her but she will come around and soon enough I will have her posing with pumpkins and witch hats for cute Halloween pictures...I know, I am a big geek ;)

Well, I could not take pics of just one fur-baby with out showing the rest so here are some li'l snaps of our other darlings .

Here is our 12 year old cat , she is old and wise and has a very regal pressence to her we call her "Seis" because she amazingly has six toes on each front paw!

Here is my mama's boy Boston mix dog "Sméagol "( remember we are big Tolken fans;) who loves to smile at you with is massive underbite , sometimes he looks like a little bat or gremlin with his toothey grim :) He crouches when he walks .. poor thing , a habit he has from being insecure and fearful as we he was abused at one time .We rescued him from our local human society and fell in love instantly. I never was a dog person until we adopted him and now he is my sweet little furry shadow who follows me where ever I go .

I do hope you enjoy these! :)

Halloween Bat Girl

"Halloween Bat Birl " now listed on eBay , a perfect little gal to add to your Halloween decor that is for sure. I had a hec of a time making and wrapping the clay candy and lollipop to add to her little jack-o-lantern ( tiny items can drive a person to drink I tell ya ) but it worked out in the end ..and the drinks too ;)
I have about 3 more dolls to list this week and still working on some items for my etsy shop as well ...not to much to start with but enough . I am having so much fun I tell ya I feel I could just burst with Halloween joy and oh ....only 73 more days til then!
I also have to tell you about the new addition the family,.... a sweet little grey kitten we took in that we named "Luna". We named her that because of the gorgeous , silvery, grey fur she has ...I can't wait to show you ! I will have pictures of her up her soon, as I have not had a chance to take pictures of her while she is cat napping or lounging, which is not often as she is very active and all I can get are blurred pictures of her running by . It does make for a cool and spooky picture though :) More to come !

Halloween Art and Purple Witches

The last two doll I created were indeed the last of the poisoned summer themed dolls that I will make until next year, now on to Halloween and Haunted Art ! Oh yes , it is my fav-o-rite type of art as I have so much fun creating for the season . I have listed now on eBay a "Purple Witch Spell" doll complete with her familiar cat and spell book to kick things off and will be listing a bat doll , another cat doll and some oujia ladies.. also a few ornaments. I have had my mind on creating some topsy turvy dolls since it has been ages since I created one of those so this weekend I will play arond with some ideas. Also toying with the idea of opening an ETSY shop for small dolls and ornaments but more info on that as the days go by. Do drop by for a spell and visit the new gal on ebay, you will find her quite enchanting :)

Poison Berry Jam

I am sharing the story behind my new doll, "Poison Berry Jam" now listed on EBay. Though I am in no way a writer what so ever as my punctuations and what-nots leave something to be desired, I just thought it would be fun to share the story lines that I come up with while sewing and creating something new. Enter a bit in to my strange mind if you will...and enjoy!

Poison Berry Jam

~Every year Mable wins first place and takes home the blue ribbon prize for her jam at the county fair. "Everyone knows it is the best around," she says ,"and there isn't any competition I can tell you that !" But when the new neighbors decide to enter their home made jam made from an old Amish family recipe, dear Mable begins to worry . To secure her place and reigning title she had to do something ! So when no one was around the tasting table, she secretly added arsenic to the neighbors jam jar. "Just a tablespoon but not too much," she thought ,"just enough to make them all ill then blame their ailments on the neighbor's jam...then every one would see that mine is the best!" But before she could get just a little bit on the spoon she was startled by the loud noise of firecrackers the local kids were foolin around with and spilled most of the bottle into the jam jar! "Oh Biscuits!" she grumbled, for she knew it would be too much. But now the judges were heading toward the tent so she just started stirring as fast as she could , threw the spoon under the covered table and placed the lid back on."Whew, that was close!"she thought,"I think it was way too much but oh well, I can't undo the deed now," so off she went to freshen up ."

So when Mable was calm and refreshed , she headed back to the tents as the tasting had started and first up was the neighbors jam. The first judge took a taste, smiled and nodded then on down the line it went , but by the time it got to the third judge the first one started to loosen his bow tie and sweat just a bit, and then by the time the jam was to the fifth judge, the first judge fell face forward onto his clipboard..not a sign of life in him. " What was in that jam?!!" the crowd yelled , "who's jam was it!?" Mable very helpfully, yet dramatically yelled back," I think it was the new neighbors jam, my goodness what kind of a recipe did they use?" As the shock and confusion buzzed around the gathered crowds and siren sounds echoed through the county fair, Mable drew back into the crowd of on lookers and watched as the new neighbors were being questioned and giving responses in tears . She felt sort of bad for them but she still felt she had to do it, having worked hard so many long years to achieve the perfect recipe and it was an accomplished title she was not going to give up easily.
Some would say it's insane, but to Mable it proves a point and goes to show them all that her recipe is the best around, because sadly sometimes in life that's all you got.

Virginia Apples

Johhny Apple Seed Statue at Johnson's Apple Orchard

"Virginia Apple" now on Ebay

mmmm..homemade blueberry jam and mischief!... sneek peek!

With Autumn just round the corner here in Virginia, I get excited for apple season and of course the turning of the leaves with breath taking views along the Blue Ridge Parkway .Every year we make a little family day trip and go out to the Peaks of Otter Winery and Johnson's Apple Orchard to pick our own apples straight from the trees . I always feel like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz and can't help but to imagine the trees coming to life and pulling on my hair in objection to me picking their fruit ;)


I come home with another year of fun summer memories with my husband and daughter and wonderful home made cider and fruit preserves , apple butters ,chow chow and of course divine local wine.
The past week I have been working on about 5 dolls .Three so far have come to life and two are creations from the country summer feel I still have in mind from my recent trip or just taking in the local southern atmosphere. Oh, but yet they are never short of added wicked little twists and stories of wrong doing.
I am working on Halloween and Fall dolls out of the five but the first two I mentioned that were done will appear on eBay this week, actually one already listed I call VIRGINIA APPLE, the other by Wednesday .No name yet for that one but I will give you a sneek peek... something about prize winning blueberry jam and a secret added ingredient.. he-he!

I had this doll body made about 3 months ago but never knew what to do with it except for adding a picture of Poe perhaps ..but it just did not seem fitting. So after searching the internet for folklore and poems here is what I came acrross.

Crow or Magpie Augery is the a type of divination or fortune telling practice that involved the counting of crows .How many crows you saw at any given time foretold of events to happen. There is a rhyme I found out about, that I am not quite sure of the origins of, but there seems to be many versions of it . One version that I particulary liked and the one I chose for my latest eBay listing of a crow doll I call "Counting Crows", is this one below. The dark reference to sorrow and death is what drew me to it, thou other versions can be seen at the following link 7th crow.com. I found it quite fitting for what I was looking to capture.

One for sadness, two for mirth,

Three for marriage, four for birth,

Five for laughing, six for crying,

Seven for sickness, eight for dying,
Nine for silver, ten for gold,

Eleven a secret that will never be told.

I wonder what the secret never to be told would be if ever I see eleven? But just seeing so many at one time in itself is a beautiful and yet ominous sight... for it is a "murder " of crows after all .

"Vampires of New Orleans"

Through the years I have always been a big Anne Rice Fan and just adore her creative way of bring to life the dark under world of Vampires into the social sceen, who among the upper class and aristocrats mingle and mix. Never suspecting that the new aquaintances who are into the finer things in life and dress in the latest fashion of the day... are the undead ...and that they being human merely prey.

A new creation came out of my fondness for Anne's writing I call "Vampires of New Orleans ". A doll that tells the tale of a secret Vampire Society in New Orleans , who's names are only known among thier own kind and kept in a book which she holds, only for vampire eyes to view and unlock with a key she wears around her neck . To make public the names in this book would be scandalous and for those who try to posses it , it would be deadly.