Halloween in May?

Who knew you could have a Halloween filled weekend in the middle of spring! On Saturday my friend Carolee and I took a trip to the National Haunter's Convention in Valley Forge to meet up with some of our EHAG and STJ  friends. The folks of STJ put together an amazing booth filled with more Halloween goodies than the eyes could take in. I think I looked over every piece for over an hour and it was so hard to choose. I went over my budget and came home with three original pieces, a Witching Hour wall hanging by Iva Wilcox, a skelly ornament by Chicken Lips Studio and a Poe sculpture from Skeleton in my Closet. I also had to buy a repro Scott Smith piece at the Celebrate 365 booth, the raven on the jack o' lantern was too neat to pass up! As if that wasn't enough, I found a very cool but creepy cow skull at another haunt vendor's booth.

My loot :)

STJ eye candy.

The Philadelphia Ghostbusters were there. I want their car!

An animatronic Little Shop of Horrors prop for your Halloween display.

One of my favorite parts was seeing people in costume! I grew up on a steady diet of horror movies so I had to take Freddie and his girlfriend's picture.

A nice looking Captain Jack.

I'll walk your plank (oh no, that's right, I'm married:)

Don't forget to check out EHAG's B&W Challenge this week an add a little Halloween to your spring!

Bid on pieces by clicking here!

I'm not sure if I will get anything completed on time but I have a few images swirling around in my brain.

What's Blooming & Sleepy Hollow

Hyacinths - yippee!

An early, wild looking tulip.

Looks nice with my bunny statue.

Voila! My newest original Sleepy Hollow folk art sign. Painted especially for the

EHAG Emporium which opens tonight at 9 PM EST. This one is BIG - 24" x 16".

Now on EBAY - Click for auction.

Click on the image for a larger photo.

We're all mad here!

Have you seen the new Alice in Wonderland movie yet? I have, twice! We are huge Tim Burton and Johnny Depp fans in this house so we couldn't miss it.
In my primitive and folk art group, PFATT, we had a Alice in PFATTland challenge this week and I wanted to share the piece I created. My version of the Cheshire Cat with my favorite quote in the banner above his head. He's painted on an unused oak cupboard door. I even added a little dragon fly and a rocking horse fly to the border with some heart vines for the Red Queen. I will be listing it on Ebay later tonight if you're interested!





Last week was my birthday and I was sick with bronchitis (still sick really). I didn't do much because, well, I couldn't, but my Mom brought me over this lovely basket filled with all sorts of spring seeds, organic fertilizer and a cute dish towel. She also bought me an AeroGarden so I am interested to see how well that works. Got an herb garden started in it today. Also built a teepee out of branches and planted peas to grow up and make a hideout for Zoe.



This week I've donated the giveaway item on the EHAG Emporium so if you'd like to win one of my spooky tree pendants, scoot on over there and leave a comment!

Thanks for visiting today. I hope you are enjoying this warm, spring like weather!

Almost March

I'm so excited, it's almost March, a month with so many possibilities. Will is rain? Will it snow? Is it going to be 50 degrees outside or will it be freezing. Of course it's the month that contains my birthday (and husband's) so it's always been a special time for me.

Any other Pisces out there? I love to meet other artsy fish like me!

So here's what I've been up to this week (I'm really itchin' to paint a horse, maybe next week!):

Working on turning an image that I've painted into a sculpture.
Little bunny in a pumpkin. Nice for Halloween or Easter, right?

Playing around with another rabbit I've sculpted. Not sure what direction this one is going in yet. My husband says this bun freaks him out a little.

Went to Landis Valley today and got to hop on a wagon for a ride.

Too cold and windy to stay long but we had fun on the ride!

Finally finished my Dutch Rabbit in the Jack O' Lantern today!

Franny the Snow Witch

Franny the Snow Witch came to life one day,
when some witches in the village went out for winter play.
Her body they made from snowballs, big and round.
For her nose they used a carrot they had found.
After placing the coal for her mouth and her eyes,
"Something is missing!", the oldest witch sighs.
Removing from her head a hat pointed and worn,
then placing it on Franny's and POOF, she was born!
Quickly they worked to build her familiar,
a cat named Snowball that looked quite peculiar.
Franny the snow witch came to life that day indeed,
to remind us of the magic of winter, the witches all agreed!



Franny is a friendly witch, she loves to sit and watch the birds all day long.

She measures 13" x 7" and both her and her kitty can be easily removed from their base.

You can't see it in the photos,
but she has touches of diamond dust glitter and mica flakes all around her.
She can come live with you for $99. She will travel for free if you live in the US
Please email me if you would like to give her a new home.
jmacneill@hotmail.com

I have a few other Halloween pieces for sale in my Etsy Shop including a wonderful folk art Sleepy Hollow painting that's one of my favorites!

I am working on a new Halloween sculpture this week, a large owl on a pumpkin!
Here's a work in progress photo...

What's coming up?

Well, for one, the first flowering bulbs are blooming in my yard - snowdrops - yippee!
I know, I can't believe it either. Soon the aconite will be blooming and then the crocus. I was all in a tizzy when I went out to put warm water in the bird bath and saw these little ladies peeping their heads up through the leaves.
Thank you snowdrops, you made my day:)

Next thing that's coming "up" is the EHAG Emporium. You may have noticed my little button advertising this event on my sidebar. This project has become my little baby this month and I am so excited that I suggested it to the group. We have over 20 amazing pieces of original, one of a kind, Halloween art for sale starting January 31st and 9PM EST. If you love all things spooky, witchy, ghostly and whimsical, please drop by. I've added many sneak peeks to the blog as well as a list of artists participating this month. All artwork will be sold on a first come, first served basis. I have a sculpture for sale and it isn't a horse for once!



Lastly, we have the PFATT Penny Tree Auction coming up. I've donated an original Valentine's Day ornament for the tree to be auctioned off in February with the proceeds going to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Please check out the PFATT Blog to see pictures and learn more about this special project.


All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. Walt Disney

Gypsy Mare Studios Halloween Giveaway!

In appreciation of all my wonderful blog followers, friends and customers, I've decided to have a giveaway this week for a Halloween pendant from my Etsy Shop. That's right, the winner may choose any Halloween themed, hand painted pendant from my shop!

So many ways to enter. Please leave a separate comment for each entry. Winner will be chosen at 9PM Eastern Time - Sunday, October 18th by a random number generator.

1 entry for leaving a comment on this post.
1 entry for tweeting about this giveaway with a link to this blog post.
1 entry for being or becoming a follower of this blog.
1 entry for following me on twitter. User name: GypsyMareArt
1 entry for becoming a Gypsy Mare Studios fan on Facebook (see right sidebar).
1 entry for telling me your favorite song on my playlist (see sidebar).
3 entries for blogging about my giveaway on your blog (you may use the graphic above on your blog post)!

As an added bonus, I'll throw in 3 of my Headless Horseman postcards just in from the printers!
Thank you so much for visiting my blog and entering the giveaway!




PS. If I get more than 200 comments, I will add a 2nd place prize, a Halloween pendant of my choice.
PPS. If there are more than 250 comments I will have a 3rd prize of 5 Headless Horseman postcards!
PPPS. If you are a dude and do not have the need for a Halloween pendant, I can turn one into an ornament for your Halloween tree should you win!

Thank you to everyone who has left a comment! The response so far is humbling:)

Almost October

Yay, October is almost here! You can almost smell the candy corn in the air. Even the new kitten is getting in on the decorating fun! I've been thinking of changing his name to "Toots" because that little critter lays the world's stinkiest farts. Honestly, how can a 2 pound animal produce such a foul odor? It's beyond me!
I took a few quick photos this afternoon while I was yammering away on the phone.

This morning I completed the Salem Riding Club sign I spent all day yesterday working on. I thought I would put it up on my blog for sale for 2 days. If it's not purchased in 2 days, I'll put it on Ebay. It measures 11" x 14". Comes signed, varnished and ready to hang. My 3 year old is so in love with this piece since it shows a young witch riding a beautiful black horse. She told me this morning it is the prettiest thing I ever painted! I hope she lets me sell it:)
Price - $125.00 + shipping

SOLD!

And if your a big Sleepy Hollow fan like I am, please check out my current Ebay auctions. I have a handpainted box and an original painting of the Headless Horseman for sale.

Find the Wandering Witch

Please stop by the EHAG blog for your chance to win one of several awesome goodies up for grabs!

Your goal: to find "The Wandering Witch"

Here's how you play along in the blog hunt/blog hop:

Blog hop your way around participating EHAG member blogs, (a list of artists names/links will be posted on the EHAG blog).

Find the banner which states:

"You have found The Wandering Witch" and post a comment below the banner along with your name.

If you are not a blogger: *Please be sure to leave your name and an active email address.*

Want to remain anonymous?: *If you would rather not leave your name and/or email address and would like to be entered into the drawing, just send us a note via this email address: ehaagartists@hotmail.com and we'll be happy to enter you!



The handpainted pendant hanging on the witch is my contribution to the EHAG giveaway. It is painted on a Tennessee Spinner gourd that I grew in my garden last year. As I write this, it is not on the EHAG blog but it should be up later tonight.

Grim & Thank You!

I finally finished Mr. Grim. I'm so happy with how he turned out! Not sure what to do with him, he looks so nice with the Headless Horseman. I would love to have prints made of the two but I'm not sure how saleable they are. We'll see, right now they like living with their creator:)





I also wanted to give a big old blog hug to Tracey of Wild Horse Moon and Black Feather Farm. I was lucky enough to win her latest blog giveaway, a gorgeous multimedia necklace with a cool vintage photo of a cowgirl. As soon as I unwrapped it I had to put it on, it's lovely! For now I'll hang it on my bedroom mirror so I can look at it every day.





If you're feeling lucky this month, head over to the PFATT Blog
and enter their fabulous fall giveaway. There are a bunch of wonderful prizes!

More cool giveaways...
Life, Craftiness & Everything Else.

Cart Before the Horse

Rue and Hyssop

Doodle

Sometimes it all starts with a doodle. I was talking to a friend on the phone and drawing on a sketchpad when I came up this this Headless Horseman painting.





Ta da!

Sleepy Hollow WIP

So, my husband goes back to work in a week (teacher) which means I won't be able to get as much painted. For my final summer hurrah I thought I would tackle this small wood chest I've had for over a year now. I don't usually paint pieces this large, they take a lot of time and cost a bundle to ship, however, I felt pity on the poor naked thing and decided to paint my best Sleepy Hollow scene to date.
I don't normally share my work in progress but I've had a few people ask me if I would so what the heck. This represents two days of work. I don't think people realize how much time these things take, from sketching my ideas to sealing and base coating the raw wood. Hope to have him up on Ebay in a week so please check back!



And I must post a garden picture! I took a photo of a hairstreak butterfly but it wasn't as crisp as this silver spotted skipper.



And a question for you... Why do cats like boxes? They look so funny in them! This is my dear, sweet Zazu this morning. I think she knows she looks funny and would prefer I keep the camera out of her face.