Mutterings of a Mad Woman

My most recent custom piece was an absolute joy to create and both myself and the new owner thought she turned out pretty cool.

He gave me a fantastic back story to pull inspiration from, which always makes the task of bringing someone's vision to life much easier.

The story serves as the theme for his home haunt. Here is his tale (posted with permission):

"In the late 1800s, the town of Severed was in financial peril. The once booming mining town was suffering because of one man, Jonathan Miltz, the owner of the mine.

Miltz was a gambler and had lost most of his fortune, forcing him to put his floundering mine up for sale. A day after it was put on the market, twin sisters rode into town, bringing their traveling snake show with them. Apparently the show was very lucrative as they immediately bought the troubled mine, as well as the town theatre so they could set up their show in a permanent  location.

The Manjula Sisters reopened the mine and began hiring all the men back who had lost their jobs. Everyone in the town was happy again.

But it was short lived.

Workers at the mine began disappearing and the sisters claimed they knew nothing of their whereabouts. The town's newspaper reporter, Jacob Wheeler, started to dig into the twin's past and what he found was shocking. It turned out the sisters had fled Salem during the witch trials and had come to Canada after being wanted for practicing witchcraft. This was all the townspeople of Severed needed to hear to start their own witch hunt.

The sisters were dragged from the mine where they were hiding and taken to the town square to be burned alive. As the flames rose around them, one of the sisters stood on the other's shoulders, and with her dying breath placed a curse on the town, turning all the women into Serpent Witches. These newly born witches of Severed hunted down the town's men. Once they had disposed of every last man, the curse was lifted.

Or was it?"

My job was to create a figure of one of the women from Severed after she had been afflicted with the curse and transformed into a Serpent Witch. With such a rich back story, I wanted to make sure I gave a nod to elements in the original tale and imagine the history of the woman I was to create. Here is my tale and some additional pictures.

When you walk into the Magic Kingdom at Disney World in the fall, it's like walking into Halloweentown.

Autumn colours are splashed down Main Street in banners, leaves and wreaths. Pumpkins are perched on rooftops, windowsills and peeking out from store window displays.

Halloween is everywhere.

It's in the shape of the themed baked goods, from Jack Skellington cookies to pumpkin confetti on muffins. Bags of candy have Disney characters trick or treating on the label.

If the entire park was decorated this way, I'm not sure I would have left willingly.

And if you think the collection of pictures posted below are cool, wait until you see my night shots during the Halloween party.

"Serpents and spiders, tail of a rat; call in the spirits, wherever they're at.

Madame Leota may be the most popular Haunted Mansion character (next to the beloved Hitchhiking Ghosts). In fact, the crystal ball/projection effect is one of the most imitated props recreated by home haunters.

When the ride brought me into the dark space with the floating crystal ball, and Madame Leota's booming voice inviting the spirits to come forth, I instantly understood what all the fuss was about.

I was able to snap this quick photo with my iPad, believe it or not (photography is allowed, but no flash as it ruins the ambience). I didn't think anything was going to turn out, since I was a) moving in b) a pitch black room and c) not actually looking at what was on screen because I didn't want to miss a moment.

The cool thing (one of many) about visiting the Haunted Mansion at Walt Disney World during Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween is that Madame Leota herself is sitting out in front of the mansion in the evening, greeting guests and interacting with them as they wait in line (see the various pictures below). 

I was lucky enough to attend two party nights, and the ladies portraying Madame Leota were hilarious. Quick witted improvisers who never broke character, they constantly engaged the crowd and playfully jested with those in line. Hands down, it's the best character interaction in the park, and she never loses steam.

This year I am participating in the Halloween Artists' Studio Trick or Treat Tour, where artists sell their work and donate 20% of the sale to an animal charity of their choice.

I chose the non-profit organization of Loyal Rescue Inc, a foster-based rescue in Ontario, Canada. It's made up of volunteers who open their homes to animals and organize mass rescues from puppy mills across North America. It's dear to my heart because that is how I found my beloved Monkey Boo (temporarily named "Honey" by the foster parents). She was malnourished, undersized, riddled with worms and parasites. It breaks my heart to picture her in those conditions, and if I can help save another dog from such misery, I'm happy.

The first picture is the image they used for her adoption page, and the two on the right is my healthy pup enjoying her first Halloween with her new forever family.

Let's get to the items for sale. I'm a bit behind schedule on this as I've been away for a week, but hope to add more items below as time allows.