A Halloween Tale ~ with a Treat!

Dreaming in our little beds...
A crow's call "Caw, caw" in our heads...

We wake with a start, aroused from slumber,

get out of bed and nearly stumble....

The ground all around is littered with bones,

....in the distance, there are creaks and moans...

A chill runs through us, we're not at home...

We are in a garden where only tombstones grow.

Each skull seemingly peering...

into our very souls...

And inside the tombs is an eerie glow...

We hurry swiftly, quickly trying to find

a place to hide til this nightmare subsides...

Up ahead, there is a light.

A lantern on the porch of a crickety old shack

beckons us to approach...

Though a tingle says stay back.

A lump forms in your throat...

Better to go...

Then wait for him to attack!

The door opens without effort...

We peek cautiously inside...

One wall is ablaze with flickering candlelight.

A piano before us

looks like it never plays...

A broom leaned on its side...

Books and photos displayed.

A black cat sits upon the floor

near a chair and a cauldron

we swear wasn't bubbling before...

...and on a tray near the brew

are jars filled with a slew

of ingredients most bizarre,

Items like decay and spider eggs...and things grosser, by far...

Another room down the hall

to the the right

Holds even more peculiar sights...

Jewelry and candles..

pictures of a beau?

Edgar Allen Poe!

A hat stand for a Crone's cone...

And are those eyes we spy

in that ornate jar?

Plucked fresh, the tag describes

when beauty was ripe within these eyes...

Nevermore.

....and hanging on the door

Witch's tights!

Have we found her boo-doir?

What could be next,

we wonder as we step

into the livingroom we go to inspect...

The fireplace mantle is shrouded and dressed...

...and someone is trying to escape the chest...

A boneyard atrium with a warning to beware..

we dare not let out spirits locked in there...

The table is hospitably set...

with tea and chocolates just waiting for guests.

Wait! Is that an insect?!

We find ourselves relaxing

even if just a bit...

...and I giggle to myself

as I tell you my secret.

I'm the one who brought you here,

My Dear,

to have tea with me!

Every year

Near Halloween

I prepare for company.

I empty out my pantry shelf

I cast a spell...to make a switch.

I close my eyes and make a wish....

And transform to my Witchy self!

Heeeheeheeeheeee!

Thank you so for joining me...and to the Lovely Vanessa Valencia for hosting this chance at spooky mayhem and revelry!!

Don't leave just yet, I have a Treat,

That one of you soon may receive...

Please leave a comment down below

and a way to reach you in case I don't know.

A guest will be chosen on October 29th

...and this crow will find a new place to reside :)

Okay, ryhming's over...phew!

Does anyone remember where I left my broom?

(sorry)

Heeeheeeheeehee!

Cameron

Flights of Fancy

Hello My Bloggy Dears!

I'm here today to show you a painting I did specifically to link up at Butterfly Effect 's weekly themed challenge....This week is Masks...

I decided to do a paint-over collage this time.  I selected an image from a magazine and adhered some paperback pages to the canvas.  I don't use this technique all the time, but I learned it from the wonderfully talented Tamara Laporte of Willowing...and it really is amazing how the underlying image completely transforms....

Sorry about the glare...I barely remembered to snap a pic for you.

Here's an in progress shot.

....I knew I wanted to make her wearing an owl mask....as you know, I'm sorta into them right now :)

I decided to make her feathers all snowy and ethereal.

"Dreaming of Feathers"

8 x 10 Mixed Media on canvas

With a crisp contrasting background and dreamy, party pastel colors....

With lots of irridescent shimmer!

...and as always, my favorite part, piercing eyes...

I purposely left her hair more undefined so as to keep the focus on the mask....

Hope you enjoyed her.

She is in my Shop if you find her dreamy, too....and I am still offering 20% off everything til the end of October!  The coupon code is THANKS2U.

I appreciate you visiting with me today...

I invite you to please stop in on Saturday for A Halloween Party Extravaganza....mwuhahahaha!!!



I am happily joining the festivities this year!  So please join me for some frights and delights...and a Giveaway, too...heehee!

Phew...I don't think I've used so many links before...haha!  I'll see you on Saturday!
Looking forward to it,
Cameron

Night Owl

I have always been one......
Feeling inspiration in the wee hours......
Being content to dabble in anything, but sleep....

Funny then, that this little guy was painted this morning after dropping my daughter off at school :D

I recycled this canvas from an old work I no longer liked...

So this......

became this....

"He liked the Night"

5 x 5 inches on canvas

in the shop

(*SOLD* Thanks, Diane!)

You can't see it in the photos, but the moon and stars sparkle with fine glitter art paint.

Because thanks to all of you, I am inspired and cheered...

...and not afraid to call myself an Artist any longer!

...and with any luck, I will someday be able to earn a living as one...haha!

Biggest Hugs!

Cameron

Bringing the Dead to Life

Hello all my Wonderful Bloggy Buddies!

I'm so happy to be able to post here twice in one week!  It's all this cool weather...it just perks me right up :D

With Halloween looming in the air, I was enjoying some wonderful images of skeletons and spooky decor online, when I came across photos of Dia de los Muertos....sugar skulls, bright painted faces, colorful flowers.....a reminder to recognize and celebrate our loved ones past and present.

I was overcome to try Day of the Dead inspired art of my own....and...

I even rembered to take a few in progress shots :)
I started with some quick notes of what characterizes the style....

So, I chose 2 prepared 5 x 7 inch canvases and sketched faces on them...

First with pastel, then more detailed with pencil.

Once I refined their faces, I painted them white and sketched on the patterns they would have adorn their faces.

It's so amazing to me how I can just freehand a face shape, eyes, nose, etc, not purposely trying to make them alike or different........but end up with them having distinct faces from eachother...

I was laughing a bit here that they resembled those masks the wrestlers wear on tv :D

All finished up...

Flowers in their hair...

"Dulce" has such soft eyes and a gentle expression....perhaps missing a cherished one she lost?

From the side...

....and this is "Rosa".

Her more rounded eyes have a direct gaze....

She just plucked that rose from her Abuela's garden before joining the festivities.  A rose as pretty as her name....

I enjoyed this so much!  It was so much fun to dress these girls up....almost like I was playing in make-up in front of the mirror...heehee!

I hope you like them, too!  If you like them A LOT...they are in my Etsy shop ;P

Hold the memories of your loved ones close...and hold your living ones closer.  Tell them how much they mean to you.  Say "I love you" at a time when they least expect it.  Life is for the living...

and for Loving (imagine a heart icon here since I don't know how to do that...haha)

I love you guys,

Cameron

Meowy and Bright

This is a post I have long been promising to not only my daughter...but a few artist friends, as well....So I'm pleased to finally be able to show you a small (albeit important :D) part of our house!

When we did our final walk thru last October before being able to call this house our own....the room that would be Maggie's looked like this...

Yes, it was blue...which just happens to be Maggie's favorite color...but with that long hallway and dark walls...it felt so cave-like.

The one window in the room was covered in blinds...which blocked light and her pretty view.  And I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I absolutely hate cleaning the dust that accumulates on those things!

So after some pondering on Maggie's part about what kind of room she wanted (it was either going to be an undersea/dolphin theme or cats)  she chose the latter...which also was her birthday theme this year....go figure :)

And the project began!

It all started, if you remember, with this fabric...

Maggie picked it out herself :)

We painted the walls a buttery yellow to match, took off the blinds and let some light in!

We used her Birthday sign on her door....and I painted a square of magnetic paint on her closet doors to provide a fun area to display her art and other treasures....

That cute kitty on the right is by a talented friend Shayla Fish.  She made it for Maggie specifically...so sweet!  It matches the room so perfectly, too :)

The area to the left now serves as a great art gallery wall. She has quite a collection of original art in this little room...

The white cat is "A Little Birdie Told Me" by a wonderful artist named Carole at Ladybug Art Studio.  She loves cats and nature and has just the right shop to find affordable originals. She's a really nice person, too....and agreed to trade this and another piece for some owl stuffies I made :)

The black framed art are some little watercolor and ink cats I painted long ago...

That painting of the 2 cats is a favorite of Maggie's.  It is a portrait of our own 2 feline girls done by the incredible Lauren of Fair Rosamund.  

Oh, and I LOVE these shelves from Ikea.  We got them on sale for $20 bucks a piece!

They hold her aquarium and various collections.  My friend, Marty, gifted us that sleeping kitty figurine she scored during one of her many flea market excursions :)

We got Maggie a new bed at Ikea while we were there, too....a full!  Definately larger than what I originally envisioned, but....when you find something at a great price (the frame was $49 dollars!) you gotta jump! Now there is room for everyone on the bed, me, Daddy and Mags...when we read at night :)

The rug is so fun, I couldn't pass it up....from Kohl's.

That banner is made from calendar pages that I got at the dollar store.....another leftover from her birthday party.  The tuxedo cat painting, "Waiting" is also by Carole.  I made the pillow to match the curtains....the felt cat was taken off the shirt I made for her birthday outfit...

I think I made them a bit too long....but I'm too lazy to take them off and start again. 

There are 2 more cat paintings on this wall...

I did these....definately not my usual style....but I was trying to match the colors of the room and fill up some space.  Maggie likes that one is looking up and one is looking down :)

Sugar...

...and Spice.

Beacause we know that is what all little girls are made of ;D

Now, on to the undersea/dolphin themed bathroom!

Thanks for taking this little tour with me....and a big hugs to all the artists who helped make my Pumpkin Noodle's room a happy place to be a kid!

All my best,

Cameron