Day 61 - Does This Pumpkin Make My Butt Look Big?

While uploading photos to place on our new Facebook Pumpkin Lady Fan site, I ran across this picture. Didn't I tell you that Spinner was crazy for pumpkin? We had made a plain backdrop to take some photos to use in our pattern instructions. When I turned to grab the camera, Spinner decided to grab the pumpkin and help himself! A few seconds later literally half the cat was in the pumpkin! Talk about someone having a big ole pumpkin head!

Day 60 - Tasty GOOdness

Every year for the past sixteen years we began pumpkin season with a Giant bowl of pumpkin goo...for the cat! Spinner was completely addicted to pumpkin goo. He'd sit by the pumpkins, patiently, and sometimes not so patiently, waiting for a nibble. I'd sit down beside him on the floor, and carve open the top of the pumpkin so I could scoop out his favorite treat. Before I could set the top down on the floor, he'd stick his head in and start nibbling. If I waited more than three seconds, I'd find HALF of Spinner inside the pumpkin! I'm betting that your pet might like to join in on the pumpkin party, too, this Halloween. Set out a big bowl and see if they dig in!

Day 59 - In Lightenment

Friday night we headed downtown to an interactive art exhibit wherein the city became the exhibit! Giant arms extended from apartment buildings. Pairs of glowing shoes were strung from the trees. A wearable art fashion show lit the night and lanterns bobbed throughout the streets in the city's second annual In Light event. One particularly fun exhibit superimposed rotating rainbow lights against the back wall of the courthouse. If you stood in just the right spot, you became part of the show! My friend, Katie, took this snapshot of my son and his friend posing together to form this four-armed creature of the night. Next year, we're making huge lanterns to create our own little In Light moving exhibit...they'll look like pumpkins, of course! Join us!

Day 58 - It's Here!

Though exhausted, I feel like doing jumping jacks because the new www.pumpkinlady.com has just been uploaded! It's a totally different look and feel and has more patterns than ever. But please note, we've only just begun! Besides the fact that we will be adding new pumpkin carving patterns every week until Halloween, later this week we'll offer a whole new line of Pumpkin Lady products! For the latest updates you can follow me on Twitter or become a Facebook Fan. The best is yet to come!

Day 57 - Time Flies!

So tonight we went to my son's school's 10 year anniversary gala. As you can imagine of a performing arts school, it was great. Awesome! Wonderful! But LONGER than we expected. about two hours longer than expected! So, there and back plus the program was six hours! Oh my! So, as you can guess, we lost six hours on the website to get it up today. But have no fear! Our furious little fingers will be working long into the night to have the new site up tomorrow! Until then, here's another sneak peek at our new little raven mascot. I think he needs a name...have any suggestions?

Day 56 - Add to Cart!

I couldn't resist uploading another sneak peek of the new website! I'm so in love with this adorable little pumpkin cart. Only one more day until the new website debut. And tomorrow is just the beginning...there's more to be added every week between now and Halloween. Keep checking the blog or follow me on Twitter for updates!

Day 55 - The Countdown Has Begun!

Here's a little sneak peek of great things to come! This Saturday afternoon, September 26th, we will be debuting the all new www.pumpkinlady.com. I'm soooo excited that I can't stand myself! And YES we will have new pumpkin carving patterns on the site! Great How-to videos will be there to show you how to carve. And we will be adding more each week until Halloween! And next week, you'll find a whole new section of Pumpkin Lady products, along with the patterns we all still love! The Countdown Has Begun!

Day 54 - Lights, Camera, Reaction!

It's sad how desperate I get when it's almost 11pm and I still haven't come up with today's Halloween creation. Cue my son, Jack, to save the day! I had set up bright posable lights earlier in the day for a separate drawing project. He spots them and thinks they'd make great monster eyes. As well as the basket full of cutting tools sitting in front of them. He was right. And I was soooo wrong. I take the picture with the lights turned off. Then, because he's asked for the millionth time for a shot with the lights on, we do so. WOW! It really became a monstrous composition. Love it! And him! :)

It's Finally Here!

Just a little note in between my doing backflips....

FALL IS HERE!

Happy, happy day! Everyone - quick - jump in a pile of leaves! Hug a pumpkin! Do the Snoopy dance of joy! Fall is Here!

Day 53 - Run Baby Run!

What do you get when you mix bagels, pistachios, grapes, and stale marshmallows? Good food gone bad! I can almost see the Bagel Monster tromping through Tokyo...little muppets scattering everywhere! You know the worst thing about this? I have no business telling my son not to play with his food...I can't seem to stop myself!

Day 52 - Double Trouble

So tonight my mother-in-law emails us a photo that she had taken of CVP as he paused to decide which other cat he was about to pounce over the prized toy. Technically, it was a terrible photo - double exposure. And yet, it created the most amazing forms! You can see two little ghost cats, but what is most interesting is what's left of the black cat himself...I guess you could say that CVP was a shadow of his former self! Very cool!

Day 51 - Skelestones

So my son, Jack, comes in and throws my words back at me. "Do you see what I see?" Ahhhh but I did! He had been tossing stones for our cat, Little Bit, to chase when he picked up this skull shaped stone. The shape of the stone was definitely skullish, and I could just faintly see a face. He asked me to create a "real" face for it, so I added my favorite onyx glitter and little blue gem eyes. It did give him a little personality, but you know what? I think I like it better a little au naturale!

Day 50 - Dead Fred

I feel like coming unglued even as I type today's post. It's a good thing I'm sitting because my legs are totally jello. Don't get me wrong. I like spiders. OUTSIDE. I leave them alone...they leave me alone...they eat bugs I don't like...generally we all get along just fine. Until you come in my house. Until you crawl out of my laundry basket. UNTIL you scoot over my shoe. I then feel the need to scoot you UNDER my shoe. This is the biggest spider I've seen outside of a National Geographic photo shoot. His body was just over a half inch wide and a little over an inch long. I see he's been eating well! I'm sorry to report that he will no longer be running ruckus through our tighty whities. Let us bow our heads and honor the memory of Fred. Dead Fred.

Day 49 - Bag Lady

One of the great things about making art every day is that you learn to be a little more observant to the shapes and textures around you...especially when you're running short on time! I knew I didn't have long to get today's project done, so I walk into the dining room, looking for a few stray supplies and hoping an idea will hit me...but then this image did instead. Do you see it? At first you see just a plain ole plastic shopping bag with a receipt sticking out. Now look closer...right in the center of the photo. Do you see her? No? Just in case that was your answer, I've cropped the picture closer and enhanced the contrast a little in the second photo. Now do you see this alienesque bag lady? So, did I just get lucky, or is my house haunted? Think I'll get a million dollars for the bag? I mean, it kinda looks like the Virgin Mary, doesn't it?

Day 48 - It's All About the Candy

It's not hard to guess that I love scrapbooking. Not that I have any time to do it...but I have a mighty nice collection of scrapbooking papers and supplies! And if it has anything remotely related to Halloween (or, for some odd reason, anything with swirls...love swirls!), I have to have it. Yesterday I found this amazing vintage style paper at a wonderful local store called Memories Galore. I added a few of my favorite trims and rub-ons and got this amazing little collage. I think collage is becoming my new favorite hobby! And as for today's topic, in one way or another, it IS all about the candy!

Day 47 - Meet Doug

I know. It's late, like it usually is when I post for the day! But as they say, better late than never. Drawing class seemed extra long tonight...we had a wild time drawing a cardboard box and then went really crazy drawing a WHOLE chair! You should have been there! As  you can probably guess, I'm drooling from boredom by the time it was over and my mind has gone completely blank as to what to do for today's blog. Until I got home and found a puzzle globe that my son had placed on my desk, which now had a small hole in the side. He informs me that he doesn't want it to which I reply, "But do you see what I see?" Of course, no one sees the weirdness I do so I begin to remove just a few more pieces. Now, do you see what I see? We call him Doug. 

Day 46 - Diamond's Are A Girl's Best Friend

Diamond's are a girl's best friend...or should I say paper fasteners are? If you need a quick party decoration, stop by your office supply store! Paper fasteners come in all shapes, sizes, and colors now. They are perfect for decorating little baby boo pumpkins. Just push them in! But don't settle for just one like I have. If you want a really spectacular scene, create a centerpiece. Add a string of battery operated white lights, then nestle in about a dozen of these decorated baby boos. They'll shimmer in the lights and add a festive glow as the light dims. Gorgeous!

Day 45 - Ralph

In drawing class tonight, we covered a piece of paper with charcoal and used a kneaded eraser to remove portions to "draw" an image of a stack of chairs dubbed Gertrude. Finishing early and desperately trying not to slip into a coma after chair drawing, I wheeled out Ralph, our occasional model and coffee companion. In the same technique I "sketched" out his ghostly image. Soooo much more interesting than a stack of chairs, don't you think?

Day 44 - Kitten Carnage

It had been a long day...we crash into bed with the sound of galloping cats tearing through the house. We hear the usual scuffle, a random chirp, and the sounds of what we thought were CVP and Sock Monkey browsing through their toy basket. Oh were we soooo wrong. In the morning, I notice what I thought was a random piece of my wool felting. "They must have gotten into the bags last night," I thought. But noooooo! CVP jumped had onto my art shelves, nabbed my little wool felted skulls and cat, and he and his brother proceed to deck the halls fantastic with their little felted shreds! Kitten carnage everywhere! Is nothing sacred? All that's left is roadkill and two happy little cyclops. Sigh. I guess even the cats are into Halloween!

Day 43 - I Think I'll Call Him Norm

Busy day today! We are about to debut new pumpkin carving patterns this week, and I have a few more that I still need to ink in. Even so, I thought I'd start my day with a walk with my hubby. Coming around the lake bend, we see this pumpkinesque alien form nestled in the grass. It was a huge mushroom! I guess even the 'shrooms are donning their fall colors! 

Day 42 - Doggie Bag

After perusing a million magazines and how to's about stamping, I thought I'd try it myself. I have a huge collection of clear stamps...but don't do anything with them! But when I discovered this little bulldog stamp, I couldn't resist. I had a terrible time inking the stamp (note to self: sign up for a stamping class tomorrow!). So, after I had the original image stamped, I reinked the design and added a cute little Halloween hat. He turned out pretty well after all!

What About You?

The lake is sending an early Autumn breeze through my window as I type. Makes me think of argyle sweaters, crinkly leaves, and I have the strong urge to toast marshmallows tonight. This is my favorite time of year, and it's not just because the thought of donning fuzzy stripety socks makes my heart skip a beat. It's time to gather. Not just a harvest, but friends 'round the fire (or in my case, friends around the coffee table at my favorite local bookstore). Everywhere you turn are postings for fall festivals, pumpkin picking, and homecomings. People coming together long before the New Year ball drops, looking forward to the season that fills the trees with a riot of color and the air with aromas of cinnamon and spice. I reflect on how much I love the weeks ahead, and I wonder, 

What about you? 

Are you itching for that first huge leap into a pile of fresh raked leaves? Helping your four year old pick out their first big pumpkin and they get to choose the pattern "all by myself!" Searching the stores for the cutest costume for your newest family member, Puppy? Or perhaps smacking fingers away from the pumpkin pie right out of the oven? What are you looking forward to this season? What's your favorite memory of seasons past? I'd love to know. Send me a reply so we can all share in our favorite time of year, Autumn.

I'm listening...

Day 41 - Eat Me!

Get a load of this monster popper! Jalapeno happiness! Here's a great little snack for your next party. Simply cut a small slit in one end of the popper, then use some of the inner cream cheese to dot on the eyes. Finally, take a crumb or two from the pan to finish his eyeballs. Careful...this snack may bite back!

Day 40 - You Put Your Left Hand In...

Can you believe 40 days has come and gone since the start of 365 Days of Halloween? Only 325 more days to go! Anyway, I promised to show you the rest of yesterday's little contour line assignment: draw my hand six times, in different positions, holding complicated objects. Of course, being right handed, I could only draw my left hand (you do NOT want me to try drawing with my left hand! Oh my! It's awful!). And my little objects were all Halloween related. Overall, I think it came out pretty well! Next comes inking them in! (Though I usually wear more ink than the paper does...that's why I carve pumpkins instead!)

Day 39 - Contour Candy Cup

I am the queen of multitasking! For example, while in the drawing class I'm taking this semester, I make sure that every project is Halloween themed. This weeks homework is, yet again, a modified contour line drawing of my hand. I have to draw my hand six times, each time holding a different object which, in my case, will be Halloween! While everyone else is holding feathers and flowers, I'm drawing skulls and various creepy crawlies (I'll show you the other drawings soon...gotta finish them first!). Lol no wonder I get weird looks all the time...but it's worth it. Besides, being normal is highly overrated!

Day 38 - Rub A Dub Dub

A Skull in a Tub! Exhausted, and mega sore, after yesterday's VA Beach Rock and Roll Half Marathon, I thought I deserved a gigundo bubble bath. Little did I know that when you combine a capful of bubbles with tub jets you get a snowy white MOUNTAIN! What to do? Create today's little piece of Halloween fun. If only all nightmarish creatures could just be swept down the drain when we're done with them!

Day 37 - Little Bunny Domo

This is a picture of the world's scariest Easter bonnet: Domo the Easter bunny.  My son, Jack, duct taped a robin's egg blue jumpsuit onto Domo, and then taped it to a clear plastic hat with added duct taped Easter eggs in purple.  It was a horrific hit in the parade!  I know, this isn't a "Halloween" photo...but isn't this creature perfectly terrifying?

Day 36 - Paper Thin

I was going to sculpt tiny little paper skulls for an altered book project so I tried to create a base around which to mold them. Well, it didn't work! (you win some, you lose some) However, the little mold itself was a cool success. It's a stack of thin paper skulls, each one a tiny bit larger than the last. it took quite a while in itself to do...but at least something was successful with the project!

Day 35 - Bright Lights Big City

So we were downtown tonight for the city's First Fridays Artwalk. All the galleries have show openings and street entertainment. I look forward to it every month, despite some of the weirdness I see! I know, you're probably thinking, "Look who's talking! A girl who makes skulls from quesadillas and bats from cheesecake!" And you'd be right! I'm even rubbing off on my son. As we walk down the city street towards our car, he notices the colors of the bright corner stoplights just a few feet above our head. "Mom, could you put a pumpkin face on the yellow light?" I pull out my camera (yes, I brought it while searching out ideas for today's blog!) and snap a quick picture while dodging some guy that's now accosting me for money and my camera and the three of us then dash back to our car! Despite that little adventure, I love the idea of faces on the stoplights....don't you think every light should wear a grin this Halloween?

Day 34 - The Moon IS Made of Cheese...Cake!

For the last year my husband, Jack, has been perfecting his cheesecake making techniques...and boy did he succeed! Tonight's dessert was this mini turtle cheesecake. And as you can see there wasn't much left after I found it! Never having abided by the rule to not play with your food, I carved the remaining pieces into a moon and a little bat. I then painted the bat with dark brown molasses and took my pic. I used Photoshop to add a poster edge filter to give it a little more spooky character. I think I should play with my food more often!

Day 33 - The Hand of Fate

In my last few days of classes I have been studying contour line and the human form. In layman's terms? Drawing a million hands and feet! (oh, and shoes, with lots of laces that make my eyes cross!). I've come to intimately know the contours of my hands...or should I say my left hand since I draw with my right. Tonight I used my hand as a model again...but this time I lengthened each finger and nail, then added wrinkles and warts for character. I think my witchy fingered rendering turned out quite well though both my teacher and my hubby think I should make it green!

Day 32 - Gronk

Gronk monster was carved awhile back for a haunt show...but I've never shown it on my website before. What was I thinking? I love this sad little monster...he's so ugly he's cute! This guy took about four hours just to carve. I had to carve out an inch, shave a little, trim a little...carve out another inch, trim a little...you get the picture! It was a fairly delicate carving so only a tiny bit of it could be sculpted at a time. But all that time was worth it, don't you think?