Triple Trouble

I’ve been feeling all kinds of nostalgic these days. I miss my family, my friends, New York City, and weirdly enough, the 80s and the 90s. Those were simpler times when I could wander around the street without making sure there are hand sanitisers in my pockets first (they didn’t even exist then).

To combat all these weird emotions, I reached into the deep archives of my music catalogue and unearthed the soundtrack of my formative years. I painted to Nine Inch Nails, White Zombies, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains…with a bit of Squirrel Nut Zippers, Oasis, Fiona Apple, Alanis Morrissette, Tori Amos, Bjork, Taj Mahal…etc. It reminded me of that one hot afternoon I spent on Randall’s Island at the Tibetan Freedom Concert organised by the Beastie Boys and that had propelled me further down memory lane.

Anyone growing up in the 80s and 90s, especially in NYC, will tell you something nice about the Beastie Boys. Think long hot summer days biking around the hood or walking down the street with songs like “Sabotage” or “Intergalatic” or “Ch-Check It Out” blasting in the background like it’s our own personal soundtrack. An ex boyfriend had scored us some tickets to the Tibetan Freedom Concert and we made our way to Randall’s Island and basked in the sun and watched with wonder at all the biggest names in music play on the same stage that day. Those had been some of the best times of my life and I am slightly miffed at myself for not realising it then.

I’d been mulling over the possibilities of painting another Beastie Boys set, but I wanted it to be something unusual and fun, just like them. After rummaging through my drawers, I decided to do another Shake ‘Em Out set. I gave it some thought and tossed around some possibilities and I finally got my act together and narrowed all the ideas down to two, and then managed to squeeze it in all together.

This set is based on “Triple Trouble” off the Beastie Boys’ To the Five Boroughs album. I had wanted to include all the fun scenes (via costumes) into the set but due to size constraints I picked the best two. This one also features Mixmaster Mike, who was the coolest cat in the music video.

While I was at Lincraft during the height of the pandemic, trying to be considerate and not touching every bottle of paint on display (even though I had squirted a massive amount of hand sanitiser upon entering the store), the idea of incorporating the actual DJ table hit me. So I ran home and organised that as well, feeling pleased because everything was coming together so nicely.

The original goal was to paint the fur on the Sasquatch, but then I would have a bit of trouble with the trick or treat costume. I turned to my big bin of felted wool and quickly piled some fibres onto the creature. The husband and I talked about using different fasteners to keep the vest and chaps on and in the end I opted for snap buttons, which promptly got lost inside the wool as soon as it was sewn on. Since I wasn’t planning on selling this set, I figured it wasn’t a problem. Until it was. Before I even finished painting it, this set was snatched up, so I had to create a little instructional card to go with it so the buyer can successfully find the snaps!

I felt joy and peace whilst working on this set. It’s one of the first sets I painted during the pandemic that got me out of a deep dark funk. I think it had a lot to do with playing around with that day glo green!

The Munsters

This set had been on my wish list for years. It’s been so long that the ink I used to write down the Munsters set idea on was completely faded! Someone had proposed the idea and I quickly agreed. There were several challenges to meet for this set and I’ve met all but one, unfortunately.

First off was Herman Munster’s head. Keeping a round dome wouldn’t do. I decided to go ahead and paint all of him and come up with an idea at a later time. When that time was up, quite on a whim, I popped this little round platform I use to stand the shorter dolls on to paint on his head and problem solved! The Hubs designed and 3D printed the flat top head for Herman and I finished the rest. Done and done!

Woof Woof was not in the original brief, but I remembered wanting that doll as a kid so in he goes.

There was also a request to paint Spot the Munsters’ pet. I vaguely recall just seeing his eyes and mouth emerging from the stairs but don’t know what sort of beast he is. After some intensive research I managed to find some photos. At the time I was also working on some Beastie Boys sets and had neon green paint handy for his eyes! The nose was sculpted on because, like Herman’s head, it wasn’t working out initially.

Lastly, the request was “somehow work 1313 Mockingbird Lane into the set.” I had initially thought about turning the biggest doll into the house but architecturally it would not work. Then I thought about turning it sideways and make it into a box of sorts with roofs and domes sticking up. It’s going to run into a lot of money and time and effort in terms of supplies so I think I’ll have to nix the idea altogether. It’ll be made at another time, I suppose. But it might not be a bad idea to just paint the house on the back of Herman for now.

I did a mock up of the house. This had taken 2 hours to make and it’s not even finished…so I can’t imagine how much more time I’ll need to make the actual house. Perhaps if there are an extra 8 hours in a day…or if I don’t require sleep…!

 

Hedwig Revisited

Boy, I have never experienced so many emotions all in one day and for so many days running and the sad thing is, I am not the only one feeling this way. Nothing unites us globally like a disaster of epic proportions. We are fortunate enough to have the option to stay home and wait this out instead of being out in the wild fending for ourselves and I am glad to see a lot of my friends and their friends doing constructive things with their time while keeping themselves and their families safe.

Right before everything went awry, I was asked to paint another Hedwig and the Angry Inch set, which I did between staring dumbly at the wall and crying and processing all sorts of unfamiliar emotions surging through me. I myself have nothing to worry about since I’m practically a shut in and I have had hoarded supplies in the past as a habit so I didn’t have to go out and grab things I didn’t need and deprive others who truly needs them, but I worry about my family and friends and my husband, who all of a sudden is deemed an essential worker after years of having his job maligned and laughed at by the more elite members of society. I am so proud of my husband for being out there every day making sure everyone gets what they need while making sure those who work under him are protected and looked after and ensuring they all hold on to their jobs in these uncertain times. It doesn’t stop me from giving him a stern talking to when he trails bits of grass and bark all over the house but I am very well aware of his incredible ability to see things in a broad scope and implement it the best he could.

I made this Hedwig set with much sadness, but the music buoyed my spirits once I got going. If nothing else, we’ve always got art, don’t we? Please stay safe because the outcome of this devastation is going to be more spectacular than the life we’ve known before.

This new version of Hedwig has two new additions: The Menses Fair look which I adore because it’s so feminine and the look John Cameron Mitchell rocked when he did the “Return to the Origin of Love” tour a few years back.

And let’s do that. Let’s all return to the origin of love. Use this time in isolation to really think about what important in our lives and what we can do to help ourselves be even better human beings and from there we can help others as well as this planet that had been so good to us for so very long.

 

Beetlejuice Mega Set

I painted a Beetlejuice set a while back after unearthing some lime green batten wool in my supply closet. It had originally been intended for a member of The Misfits from “Jem and the Holograms” set I never got around to painting. Funny how one thing morphs into another in the game of babushkaring. I was asked to paint this nine-piece set of Beetlejuice just as I was about to bury my father so I was pleased to have this to look forward to when I return. I was also pleased that my idea of putting Lydia Deetz in her red wedding gown was okayed. The gown is reminiscent of a dress one of my friend’s bride had worn in a lavish Chinese banquet but of course, at the time, I didn’t have the heart to point that out to her. That wedding had been in Canada and my family had driven all the way up there to attend and had a blast. Painting this set had made me remember one of the many fun family trips we had embarked on and I was grateful to be able to reminisce about it fondly.

This set includes Beetlejuice, Lydia, Adam and Barbara, Delia Deetz, Otho, Charles Deetz, Juno, and an itty bitty Miss Argentina.

She’s only tiny, but I managed to squeeze her name into the sash because I had plenty of practice writing as tiny as I could when I was a kid…a skill my mom had claimed would amount to nothing. Boy, was she wrong on that front!

Cursed Toys

In my humble opinion, there is nothing scarier than toys that are designed to maim and kill. It’s because of the movies solely based on cursed objects that I was never really into dolls other than Barbies. Here is a collection of some of the dolls featured in a few favorite horror movies of mine.

Here we have the titular character from “Annabell,” a movie about the most evil doll in the world. IRL the said doll was actually a Raggedy Ann, which, aesthetically, does not look like a conduit of pure evil. Then there’s Brahms, who is technically not evil in any way, but still creepy tho. There’s Billy from “Dead Silent.” I don’t think I have ever seen a ventriloquist doll that is NOT evil looking. Then of course there’s Chucky, whom I’ve painted before but I cannot leave him out from this group. And can we ever forget what that clown doll try to do to little kids in “The Poltergeist?” Last but not least there’s Talky Tina from the hit TV series “The Twilight Zone.” She is more of an avenger for abused little kids so I approve of her murderous rampage.

Well, there you have it.

Happy Halloween, y’all!

Ghosts and Monsters

I did three Halloween themed projects this year, this being the main one, an idea I’d been toying around for years now. It is basically a little sampler of a grander scheme of things, and I’m grateful I had time to churn it out.

As my longtime readers might know, I am a fan of horror movies and literature. Naturally I ate up every single movie Guillermo Del Toro has ever made. It took a while for me to figure this one out, but once I sat down to have a good think, everything just fell into place.

The first creature is of course, Hellboy, quickly followed by Pale Man from “Pan’s Labyrinth,” and of course the Amphibian Man from “The Shape of Water.” I painted him realizing that in the movie, he seemed to glow if he’s scared, angry or horny and decided to try my hand at glow-in-the-dark paints. It’s one of those things I don’t know how to photograph, so just know that the blue bits on the Amphibian Man does pop once the lights go out!!

Although I am a fan of the horror genre, I’m not particularly crazy about ghost movies…to me it seems like a cop out. However, “Crimson Peak” was so well made in every aspect, from the stunning visuals to story telling, that it is currently on the top of my favorite ghost story movie.

The same could be said for “The Orphanage,” which I also loved, especially the ending! Maybe next year I’ll be able to paint a full set from each of these sampler dolls!

Belchers Family Halloween Special

I don’t know when it became a thing, that I have to do a Bob’s Burger themed set around this time of year. Instead of painting them in various Halloween costumes, I decided a mash up of the Belchers and the Addams family. It’s not the most original mash up ever, but I did have loads of fun painting these!

As this was a quick one-off, logistics dictated that I paint a diminutive 6-piece set, otherwise I would’ve love to include Mort and Aunt Gail!

Here’s Thing with a spatula. I’m sure Bob would appreciate an extra hand in the kitchen, if not to help him flip the burgers, but to talk to like he talks to inanimate objects.

Tina and Cousin Itt are my spirit animals so it’s natural they’re mashed up in this world.

I thought it would be fun for Gene to play a mini calliope organ, something he would probably not touch in the Belcherverse, but definitely would in the Addams family.

In Louise’s fever dream “Flu-ouise,” her beloved Kuchi Kopi was disfigured, something Wednesday Addams would definitely appreciate.

Happy Halloween!

Spinal Tap STONEHENGE

I’ve been dying to do another version of Spinal Tap for a L-O-N-G time now. They’re so ridiculously fun to paint that I’ve decided to add two more elements to the trio. For the first time, my Spinal Tap guys also come with a mini Stonehenge and a dancing Druid!

Isle of Dogs (And About Time Too!)

Okay, I am ashamed to admit it, but I actually started painting Wes Anderson’s hit stop motion “Isle of Dogs” over a year ago and got nowhere with it fast as life kept interrupting The Process. Fortunately a Wes Anderson enthusiast expressed interest in it which lit that ebbing flame under me once again and I was able to create this set just for her. There’s another half painted version languishing in my closet and I am hoping that now that I’ve gotten my feet wet, I am more motivated to finish it!

I’ve been painting a lot of dogs for the past few months so jumping into this set hadn’t been much of a problem. Believe it or not they are a little more difficult to paint than the human dolls due to the sheer amount of fur action they’ve got going on. I can’t even tell you how many audio books I’ve burned through whilst painting this set. I’m not complaining, though. Have you read Blake Crouch’s mindbending “Recursion?!?!”

This set consists of Chief, Boss (my favorite because of his little outfit), Spots, Duke, Rex, King, and of course, teeny weeny little Atari.

 

This One Really Goes to Eleven

It’s really wonderful to see Spinal Tap is still popular after all these years. Why shouldn’t it be? I got around to painting a different version of it last year and am really looking forward to doing yet another one! This one comes with a mini amp. The amp is so tiny that I wasn’t able to paint little number 11 on it for this particular set but I did in a subsequent one, except I’d forgotten to take a photo of it. Like they say, if it’s not photographed, it’s didn’t happen. Luckily I’ll have another opportunity very soon to do so!