The Morninglori Vine

Back to the grindstone

Good morning dear friends. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend (and a calm and easy Monday). I want to thank every one of you for stopping by and visiting during the Halloween Party and leaving such sweet comments. You guys and gals are great!

I saw Old Crow Medicine Show perform over the weekend.

Oh how I long to be a really good fiddle player. Hell, I'd settle for decent enough to actually let someone hear me. All in due time Lori...all in due time.

What fun the last few weeks have been!...playing with friends, trying out new project ideas, practicing the fiddle, road trips, concerts, blog parties....

but it's back to the grindstone for this little nose of mine. The Good Folk Fest is just three weeks away...eeek, three weeks? Really!?!

I got a few things finished up over the weekend...

and I made these guys a while back but never got around to sharing them...

But there is still  A LOT to do. I'll have a twelve foot by twelve foot space to fill this year and I've agreed to be the featured artist at Nitty Gritty for December and January so I'll need to bring enough extra work to leave some behind for that. Ummm, yeah...the anxiety dreams started a few nights ago. But it's all very exciting nonetheless.

Hopefully I'll be checking in soon with new work to share!
xxoo

Yipeeeee...it's party time!

Hello! Welcome!!! I'm so glad you made it. Would you like some tea? It's spiced chai and VERY tasty...

or perhaps you'd prefer cider? I've got some mulling on the stove...

Okay, now you must have a cookie.

I was up bright and early this morning baking these so they'd be ready to ice when I got home from my fiddle lesson. I've fallen in love with my new bat-shaped cookie cutter. I picked it up last weekend from Lynn's while on little weekend get-away to Louisville.

Or would you rather have a slice of pumpkin bread? I've got a loaf coming out of the oven right now...

Just a sec, let me get that ready for you...

Uhmmm...if you want a piece, I'd get it quick before the spiders polish it off.

Alright, so you've got a drink and you've got a snack. Now relax, have a seat

and give me your opinion on my outfit...

I'm thinking....sort of......wicked witch.....of the west. Heheeeheeeeee!

And take a look at my sidekick.

No flying monkey, anywhere, can compare to that!!!

Now I know at least a few of you have been waiting patiently for this...

It's time to choose a new haunt for Archibald. All of the names have been written on paper and tossed into a plastic punkin head.

I think I'll give Mr. Bones the honor...

Wooohooo!!!! Congratulations Megan!

Awe, what heck, go ahead and draw another Mr. Bones...

Yippeee! Congrats to you too Christine!!!!

Archibald and Bramwell are both screeching and squealing and moaning with glee.

Now everyone have a great time at the party! I've got all kinds of mingling to do.

xxooxx

Halloweenish Treats + A 100th Post Give-Away!!!

As promised, sweet and Halloweenish...

I just love these darling little ghosties, all dolled up and ready for the Halloween festivities. Fairbanks, Bramwell and Dagwood are floating about the morninglori shop...and one lucky commenter will have the honor of being haunted by Archibald.

Why yes, that is exactly what I'm hinting at, I'm having a give-away. This just so happens to be my 100th post here at The Morninglori Vine and to celebrate that milestone, I'm offerring one of my brand new Dapper Eidolons to one of the lovely blog visitors who make this all worth while!

All you have to do to get signed up is leave a comment on this post. That's it, plain and simple. And no, you don't have to have a blog to enter just make sure I have your email address so I can get in touch with you if you win.

I'll be accepting comments until midnight on Friday, October 17th. That is one week from today. My plan is to announce the winner on October 18th at Miss Vanessa's Party...

although, I've never really had a give-away before (except for the one-world one-heart give-away but that was a pretty huge event) and I am secretly nervous that no one's gonna sign up...uhm, I guess that's not really a secret anymore. Anyway, if that happens, I might extend it until the day after the party just in case some party-goers want to get in on the action. We'll have to wait and see.

And just a quick reminder for any of you in or around San Fransisco, the Monster Art Rally opens tonight at Gallery1988. Go, mingle, laugh, enjoy yourself then tell me all about it.

xx

Wonders...

Let me introduce a bit of a new direction for my plush pieces. I'm calling it, quite matter-of-factly, Wonders. I love both how encompassing and simple the concept is. Let's face it, the world is FULL of wonders.

This colorful collection of toadstools is part of the Wonders of the Woodland theme. A theme for which I have a handful of other ideas already brewing in my little noggin. But the perfectly wonderful thing is that I'm not limited to the woodland...there are all sorts of wonders...wonders of the sea, wonders of the desert, wonders of the marshland...you get the idea. I can go wherever my inklings take me. There are exciting changes afoot, just you wait. But fear not, part of that excitement includes some brand new Chimians.

These three cuties have already popped up in the shop. The rest will be added over the next couple of days.

I'm also working on some very sweet Halloweenish treats that I hope to have ready very soon. Until then...

xoxo

Life and Group Shows

Well hello there dear friends. How have you been? living each day to its fullest I hope. I’ve spent the past few weeks dealing with life…floods, fallen trees, power outages, internet and cable outages and the Great Wasp Invasion (seriously). I’ve also been enjoying life…camping trips, festivals, celebrating with family, hanging with friends, quality time with Doug and Sebastian. And I’ve spent quite a bit of time trying REALLY hard to not suck at playing the fiddle. It’s going alright; let’s just say I suck a little less each day. 

I’ve also been working out some new designs and I’m oh so excited about that. I’ve been so busy cranking work out lately I haven’t had much of a chance to try coming up with anything new. I should have at least one idea to share with you soon.

On the bright side of “cranking work out”, I’ll be part of two group shows that are just around the corner.

 

These guys are at Gallery1988 in San Francisco for the Monster Art Rally that opens Oct. 10. If you’re in that part of the country I definitely recommend checking it out. There will be loads of great work by some incredible artists. I’m thrilled to be included in the mix.

This group of sculptures will be part of the Halloween Hullabaloo at Indigenous right here in Cincinnati. The Hullabaloo (i.e. reception) will happen on Oct. 16. So all of you locals, hop on over and say hello. The festivities go on from 5:00 till 8:00. I’ll probably get there around 6:30 and I’d LOVE to see you there.

Renegade Chicago!!!

Hello dear blog friends. As you might have suspected, my scarcity here in blogland can be attributed to the frantic and obsessive preparing for my next show...Renegade Chicago and it's...eep...this weekend. I'm a little late getting on the road but all is well. I wanted to pop in real quick to give you a wee peek at what I'll be taking with me.

I also finished 16 brand new heads to take along. I forgot to photograph them before packing up but here they are in-progress...

The weather is supposed to be crummy tomorrow but it's a great time to pile on all of that cute rain gear you never really wear and come out shopping. I got a great big pair of rubber rain boots that I'm pretty excited about!

I'll be in booth #230. Stop by and say howdy!
xoxo

Craftin' Outlaws!

Howdy friends. I'm just finishing up the last few stragglers on my to-do list before heading to Columbus for Craftin' Outlaws tomorrow.

All of these brand new heads (completed in the wee hours of this morning)...

along with these guys...

and a mountain of Chimians will be going with me. I'll be emptying out the shop before I go to bed tonight so If there is anything you want (and you won't happen to be in Columbus tomorrow) hop on over and get now.

I'm looking so forward to the show. J will have a display this year. And I'm sooo excited to see Megan again and meet her new little monster.

If you are anywhere close to Columbus definitely stop by...and say hello!...and introduce yourself!! I'd love to meet you!!!

O.K. I've still got a few things to check off and I'm starving. Maybe I'll see you tomorrow.

Love and Kisses

New Petits

Howdy folks. I'm back with new Petit Chimians...

Margo, Lewis and Adrien are already in the shop, hoping for wonderful new homes. 

I'm keeping myself busy, getting ready for Craftin' Outlaws in just a little over a week. So, if all goes according to plan, I'll have more goodies to share soon.
xx

Fun I had + fun I'll miss

Happy Friday everyone…wait a minute…Friday already….geesh, where does the time go?!? Last weekend Doug and I went down to Morehead, KY for the Old Time Fiddler’s Convention. I’ve been really bad about photo-documenting all of the fun things I do so I don’t have any pictures of that to show you either. Oh well. It was a good time, lots of great music and perfect weather.

Spending a weekend away from the studio always leaves me a little behind on my “what needs to be finished by this time” schedule. But I did just finish up some new Weedulcets. Have a look.

Irie and Liam are in the shop and the rest will be added slowly. I don’t plan on staying away quite so long this time. I should have a new group of Petits to share with you soon.

Oh yeah, if any of you live near Louisville, be sure to check out the Kentucky Art Car Weekend this weekend. There’s gonna be a parade and workshops and music and even a hoedown so don’t miss it (like I will…boo-hoo; I just can’t manage another weekend away, regardless of how much I’d like to).

last week's heads + a new one for me

Wow!.....the Shadow Art Fair was pretty great. Sadly though, I’ve got no pictures to share. Honestly, I didn’t have a chance to take any. The show started at noon and ran till midnight and it was packed the entire time. My only complaint was the extremely limited space behind the tables, which was shared by the two artists whose tables were set up back to back. On the bright side, I had the good fortune of sharing the space with Matt Cipov a.k.a. MATTY8080 and his very sweet wife.

Before packing up for the trip I did get those mounted heads photographed. I just didn’t have time to edit and post them. So let me share them now.

Marley & Mateo


Bridgett


Dunstin


Finnegan


Marion

Niko & Nigel

Edmund

Marcel

Marley & Mateo was a custom order and of the others, only Edmund and Marcel made it back home with me. Both of them will be at Krafthaus this Friday, along with some other things.

As to be expected, I saw tons of art I would like to own but I had to choose, and it wasn’t difficult. How could I (or Doug) resist one of Cre Fuller’s Tin Angry Men …

 

He now hangs happily over the doorway leading from our living room into the kitchen.

Ok. I know it sounds nuts but I’ve got a load of work to get to. Craftin' Outlaws is less than four weeks away!!!

xxoo