Shivers of Delight

This is a post to bookmark! I'm going to keep a running list of Halloween artist pop-up sales, shop updates, and shows that will be taking place for the next few months. These are events that I see in my social media feeds and email and want to remember. I have a feeling you do as well.  Just don't buy what I want. heheheheh October 5th Darksome Art & Craft Market at Mount Moriah Cemetery , Philadelphia, PA 7th Stacey Bear Fall/Halloween Sale , Online 8pm EST 15th Tattered Moon Halloween Shop Update , Etsy 7pm EST 16th Forever Fall Halloween Shop Update , Etsy 7:30 CST 17th Vintage By Crystal Halloween Shop Update , Etsy 11am EST 18-19th Salem Night Faire , Salem, MA 19th  Clay of the Dead shop update 10am MT 25-26th Salem Night Faire , Salem, MA 25-26th Gothic Harvest Market at Lyndhurst Mansion , Tarrytown, NY Stay tuned for updates! So sorry, did you miss these? September 3rd  Erstwilder Halloween Brooches Release  12:30pm AEST 13th  Farm and Foundry sho...

You may have been wondering what I've been up to lately.  Well, I've been caught in the cycle of busy work where nothing significant gets accomplished.  I haven't lost my passion for all things spooky. I'm just waiting for this phase to pass. It always happens when I'm feeling a loss of direction or purpose. Rather than slow down and work it out I just add more mundane tasks to my to-do list. Do you do that too? For some reason, this blog keeps getting pushed aside. Perhaps I've been cursed? While I figure it out, I hope you'll follow me on Instagram and Facebook where I'll post a daily inspiration (am I crazy?!) spooky stuff that inspires me, and hopefully you, to focus on what really matters: a deep connection with the mysterious, dark, and unknowable.

It saves me a lot of time to be on artists' mailing lists. I hope you're taking advantage of it too. This week I received an email from Strange Dolls artist Beth Robinson about her new collection of Memento Mori boxes. They're beautiful! I first saw Robinson's dolls at an art show in Vermont where she used to live. I purchased a melancholy doll with blood dripping from her nose and down her dainty white dress. It sounds gross, I know, but she is actually quite endearing. I brood about her troubles. The figures in Robinson's Memento Mori boxes are fantastic and have an air of royalty. "Each element symbolizes the passage of time, the cycle of life,  and the inevitability of mortality." Robinson encases the figures in clear resin which for me almost freezes time. Very interesting. Memento Mori Box #6 Memento Mori Box #1 Memento Mori Box #4 Memento Mori Box #3 If you like spiders, Robinson also has a few Black Widow Dolls in her shop. Black Widow Doll #1 The...

I realize that about this time last year, I started the redecorating project where I switched my dining room with my Halloween art gallery. You can see the start of the project here >>  and here >> . I just needed more room for art! I didn't expect it to take quite as long as it did, but I think I can call it sort of done. Every time I buy a new piece of Halloween art I have to move half of it around again to find the right space, but I'm sure you all understand that.  I was a bit sad to lose the large space I had for the dining room, but since we don't entertain that often it really didn't make sense to have the dining room there. The Halloween art gallery was in a tiny room and was so filled with art that there was no place to sit and enjoy it. It the end the switch made sense.  Introducing the new Halloween Art Gallery. If you would like to see a short reel of the room head to @shiversdelight on Instagram. 

Taina Latvala creates some beautiful Halloween art dolls. The faces are so expressive, but I really love the costuming. Her shop is Rusty Dolls on Etsy and Latvala resides in Kurikka, Finland. Halloween Witch at Dressing Table Woodland Witch Fortune Teller Purple Witch Old Ghost Woodland Witch with Lantern They're fantastic, right?!

I cannot believe it's over already! I look forward to Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween in Marshall, MI every year and it's gone in a blink of an eye. Truly, I think this one was the best ever. This was my 5th trip to the show (4th for Bewitching and once for Ghoultide Greetings.) There were 52 vendors this year and 6 new artists. Bewitching Peddlers never disappoints. Jennie Hepler Takens of My Dearest Witch runs the show and has a booth. I don't know where she finds the time. This year Eastend Studio & Gallery in Marshall had an exhibit of some of the artists' works and was open for a meet and greet event the night before the show. It was really great to be able to talk to artists and collectors because during the show it's rather hectic and not as easy to catch-up. Marshall is just the perfect setting. The town is friendly and adorable! This is my 3rd year of staying in an awesome Airbnb downtown- and yes, I've already been penciled in for next year ther...

 If you're a Halloween art collector, you know that this is the time of Halloween art shows. All Hallow's Art Fest in California was this past weekend, so watch for those artist's website shops to be stocked with pieces they didn't sell. This weekend is Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween in Michigan and I'm headed out there with my husband. I'm so excited!! If you can't make one of these major Halloween art shows, don't despair! There are still lots of Halloween artists that don't get into a show that are wonderful. Case in point: Ahania Art Dolls located in Turkey. I've followed this shop on Etsy for many years and there are some great Halloween pieces available right now! Best of all they've got their shipping down to a science and you'll not have to wait long to receive it. I have my eye on a few pieces, but if you act before I do, no harm done! There is plenty for everyone. Anthropomorphic Raven Doll Anthropomorphic Owl Figurine Pump...