Shivers of Delight

This is a big weekend for collectors of Halloween art.  Two, (2!) Halloween art shows are taking place this Saturday, October 27. On the west coast, All Hallow’s Art Fest takes place in Petaluma, CA from 9AM to 3PM. In the Great Lakes region, Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween in Marshall, MI has an early show from 8AM- 10AM with a higher admission price and general admission from 10AM to 3PM. Click the photos to find more information. I have been attending Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween for around 6 years. What started as a whim has become an obsession. I could try to explain how it makes me feel like a child again, how I think of it as a night market ruled by fairies (I get in line around before 7AM even though I don’t have to because I’m so excited), or how it leaves me breathless every time, but I just can’t do it justice. You have to make the trip. If I had a better broom I would try to attend both festivals. It’s a dream of mine. I haven’t actually calculated how long it woul...

I've started decorating the inside of our home and it's a challenge. Our basement is full of Halloween decor that I just have no room for. Our walls are covered with art and every flat surface has something sitting on it. I would hang more things from the ceiling but being that we live in a late nineteenth-century home the formal rooms actually have canvas ceilings. I've gotten around that by having a grid of fishing line strung across it, but I can only hang very light weight things. So when I say I'm "decorating" what I'm actually doing is walking around the house with some odd Halloween decoration in my hand looking for a spot to put it. I can often be found stock still staring at a shelf for 10 minutes. It's Halloween decorating paralysis. And yet, there are still other things we need make note of this week: Wednesday the 17th: Something Wicked This Way Comes is published in 1962. Thursday the 18th: The first episode of The Addams Family airs in ...

Now that I'm co-managing the Halloween Art Guide for Spellbound Collectors website (have you checked it out?) and focusing on a myriad of other Halloween projects I would like to give you a weekly snapshot of spooky things catching my eye. I'm planning to post on Mondays for the near future and see if it feels right for us. Please let me know what you think.  Some things to make note of this week: Monday the 8th: The film Psycho was released in the U.S. in 1960 Wednesday the 10th: The X Files first episode airs in 1993 Thursday the 11th: We're 50 Days From Halloween! Friday the 12th: The Flatwoods Monster is sighted in West Virginia in 1952 Visit the  Shivers of Delight Ghoulish Days Calendar  for additional info. Halloween Artist Updates Have you visited these artists' shops lately? Click the photos to link to shops. If I find out that there will be a pop-up artist sale this week, I'll let you know about it in my Facebook feed.  Happy Haunting!

When I say "whimspookal" I'm describing something that is bursting with spooky whimsy. The Halloween figures from Joanna Bolton are whimspookily delightful! Joanna creates her magic in Illinois (so there are no tariff taxes ....yet) from papier mache and fabric. You'll find her shop on Etsy- yes there are still great artists there. You just have to look harder. Pumpkin Queen Halloween Witch Halloween Witch Ornament Pumpkin Witch Halloween Witch in Shoe I know it's the Spooky Season because my credit card balance is climbing. There are so many artists making Halloween art right now that I'm starting to panic! 

This past weekend my husband and I and some friends headed to Albany, NY for a day of brewery hopping, the Troy Farmer's Market, a visit to the Albany Rural Cemetery, and a stroll around the Albany Twilight Market .  The Twilight Market takes place on the second Saturday of the month- September is the last street market for this year. I was impressed with the vendors at the Twilight Market! The market is focused on haunting, witchy, and oddities items. It was really fun to visit all the booths. I purchased several pieces of jewelry and some stickers. You can see more of the market on my Instagram feed.  I instantly fell in love with the jewelry at Claudia Martin's booth. I purchased a skull ring with gold that I couldn't stop looking at- above. Claudia has an online shop and while you won't see my ring there (maybe it is sold out?) you can find a variety of beautiful pieces. Minima Crania Reliquary Locket The Gazes The Abacus Naked Flame Sconce Necklace Naked Flame als...

It's time to buckle down and buckle up. Halloween is quickly approaching and if you're like me you're starting to get really serious about planning your activities, decor, and costumes. July was absolutely crazy and, although Halloween was always on my mind, I didn't have much time to get organized. I have so much to share with you!  ✅ If you're not already following the really fun podcast By Pumpkin's Light that is hosted by Miranda of Spooky Little Halloween and Mike of All Hallows Geek you're going to want to get on that quickly. The episodes consist of interviews with a variety of people who are passionate about Halloween. I bring this up now, because I was interviewed for the latest episode and it was so much fun that I laughed through the entire interview. When I listened to it again, I didn't even remember saying those things and I laughed all over again. It's the same as when I have to do public speaking. My mouth moves and sounds come out...

On the day that marks 100 days till Halloween, I am so excited to share with you a side project that I've been working on for 18 months with Kristen Stafford of Halloween Art & Travel podcast. I present to you our new website for Halloween art collectors. If you've been following my blog for a few years, you probably noticed I've posted less. Previously I had relied a great deal on Etsy to manage my favorite Halloween artist shops, but then Etsy turned corporate bullshit and all my favorite artists started leaving and scattered with the wind. I started wishing there was a place I could visit to find where all those artists moved to. It also occurred to me that we are in an amazing period of time when Halloween art is flourishing and really, shouldn't someone be capturing that? I made the decision that it should be me! I knew it was a project too big to tackle on my own and so I immediately reached out to Kristen. We share so much in common and have complimentary ski...

I am stunned to see that I have no posts about artist Jana Seven of Rag and Bone Dolls . Of all the artists in my Halloween art collection, she is the most represented! Have I subconsciously been keeping her to myself? I don't think so. I talk about her with other collectors all the time.  It could be that Jana releases her art in collections all at once and they sell out very quickly. I really can't post ahead of time about what you might find. She gives very little notice before she opens her shop. The other reason could be that I know that she doesn't consider herself a Halloween artist and I haven't wanted to put that label on her. However after a great deal of thought and discussion with fellow collector Kristen Stafford , I've come to the conclusion that I collect works by artists that fit in with my curated art collection which, if I have to define it, focuses on Halloween, memento mori, and folk tales. Jana Seven surely wouldn't dispute that she fits wel...

As my Halloween art collection grows, I find I lack the space to display it all. I hate that! Thankfully, many artists create small pieces using spun cotton and felt that I can tuck just about anywhere. The needle-felted witches from My Dreams Lab are just precious. I like that that they can soar around the room on their brooms as ornaments. Witch on a Broom with Ghost Witch with Crow and Pumpkin Skirt Witch Standing on Broom Witch with Orange Skirt Witch with Cat Hat Admit it- they're adorable. I'm going to need more than one. 

Kaitlin Martin's modern-medieval whimspookal banners have been bookmarked on my Halloween Shopping tab since at least 2020, but it's been awhile since I've wandered back to her shop CoolCatKMart . Martin paints on fabric and makes really fun pennants that remind me of a ghoul joust. I was excited to see she is now painting on silk scarves and doilies!  The pennants are painted with acrylics on canvas and are one-of-a-kind. Ghosties Pennant Fancy Dragon Pennant Martin's doilies and scarves are just as fun. Skeleton Knight Painting The Ruins Painting Coven Painting The shop also offers mini paintings on felt, stickers, and cool prints like this one: Three Witches Print This is a fun site to shop in and don't forget to bookmark it!  

I haven't looked at a zine since the 1990s when I lived in Athens, GA and Henry Owens had a music zine. Were you even alive then? Fast forward 25 years or so and an artist friend, Bruno Perosino (@bperosino on Instagram), recently showed me some of the cool zines that he makes.  Today I was browsing the online shop of Pam Wishbone and happened upon her zines! I just love Wishbone's style and her zine Signs of the Night: Sigils of the Order of the Empty Cup (and others) are sitting in my shopping cart. Little did I know there are loads of Halloween and spooky zines out there that cost less than $10. It's the perfect way to support an artist and feed your longing for spooky art. Let's take a look. Calendar Observations: Order of the Empty Cup zine (Pam Wishbow) All of them BRUJAS mini comic zine (Rebecca Artemisa) The Idgaf Book of Spells Halloween zine (Rebecca Artemisa) The Graveyard's Call zine (dMcMpDesign) All Hallows Lore zine (Lys Reese, The Pomegranate Kid) N...