I have put my first Art Doll miniature up on ETSY. I have been so busy with other things lately I have not had the time to put into my dolls, and while these are not really conventional dolls, they are a step toward them.

I wanted to create a series of miniatures that all have some sort of secret compartment. Each piece will come with a small treasure or pet that will fit inside. Fynn, a tree guardian, shown above on the left is the first piece. Wink, his pet owl carries messages to and from other guardians. Each piece is all hand-sculpted, painted and sealed with a gloss coating.

The miniature shown on the right is a work in progress. I am working on his pet at the moment and I also started sculpting another piece for the series. When they are available I will post again. Fynn and Wink are available now. Check out the link below if you are interested!

—+— Fynn and Wink on ETSY —+—

Eva Nyiri is a young Hungarian designer whose thesis design series titled Black on Black, which showcased earlier this year, is garnering a lot of attention. Her idea essentially, was to create a way to modify one jacket four different ways while giving each a character on its own. Each piece has removable parts and borrowing from themes such as robot and samurai mechanisms, a fifth jacket can be assembled from the parts of the four.

Blade Runner, Dune, Ghost in the Shell, Transformers and The City of Lost Children were all cited as inspirations in Eva’s work. “Not only the mood and the surreal worlds seen in these movies have inspired me and continue to inspire me, but their messages too”, Eva stated in an interview with Mashkulture.

Visit the link below and read the enire interview in which she describes how she formed her ideas about using color, shape and materilas.

—+— Eva Nyiri interview at Mashkulture —+—

Halloween is approaching quickly this year, and once in a while I’ll spend a bit of time browsing ETSY - an online marketplace for independent artists to sell thier handmade creations. I decided to use this post to feature a few stores I found this last week, and while not all are Halloween themed they certainly are dark in nature. The sites below corespond in order with the photos above from left to right.

Midnite Muse.Features various products from the dark side. First image above on the left features a wooden keepsake box.

Isabella’s Art. Artwork and beautiful shadow puppets. The second image from the left features “Find me a Prince”, a laser cut shadow puppet based on Isabella’s own illustration.

Lush Punk.A mixture of Gothic, noir and punk jewelry designs. The thrid picture from the left features antiqued silver filigree guitar pick earings.

Freyagushi. Clothing designer with ultra feminine, military and medical themed designs. The fourth and fifth images from the left features a twisted Alice themed couture overbust corset.

Lust Jewelry. A fun line of Swarovski crystal jewelry. Last image on the right features “Black Star Dust” - Swarovski faceted earings with black star pendants.

Happy Haloween everyone!

Manuelal Barran is an artist/designer who specializes in corsetry and metal couture. His work includes collaborations with other artists, exhibitions and projects in cinema, video art and other mixed media.

At the moment, as his website states, he is spending most of his time researching and developing a new artistic concept of metal: METAL COUTURE, through the careful combination of metal and different materials and techniques for fashion, art and cinema. I was really fascinated by some of the images and wanted to learn more about the processes and materials he uses in his creations. I couldn’t find any specific information so I’ll have to be content with the photos until I can dig up some details.

Anyway, take a look at some of his amazing work!

—+— Manuelal Barran —+—

When a group of talented designers and artists come together and collaborate, sometimes great things happen - and in this case it did with the new alt-magazine Cry Havoc.

Alisha, the zine’s fashion editor, best described it to me as a photo guide to alternative lifestyles, and at the same time strive to bring an indepth side into the alternative community. The launch issue covered a range of fashion from designer Eirik Aswang, rockabilly DIY clothing from Rockin Bones, Reset Couture’s 80’s inspired line and others. Also featured is a Q+A with alt-model Veronica Van Sant. The next issue is due out in December and will feature tattooed models, tattoo inspired accessories and the culture in general.

Starting in 2010 Cry Havoc will run quarterly. At the moment, the first issue is available to view and download in PDF form and (in future issues) will be available to purchase a printed copy. Check it out!!

—+— Cry Havoc —+—

Hopefully most of you have passed through an amazing little site called Gorey Details. If not please do yourself a favor and take a peek and browse the collection of dark and unusual curiosities.

Julia, the site’s owner, started the website about 9-years ago and it began as a place dedicated to Edward Gorey merchandise, but branched out shortly after to include Tim Burton and Alice themed items such as postcards and rubber stamps. The name itself is from a play based on a few Gorey stories and fit perfectly. The site today is much more than Edward Gorey or Tim Burton. Artbooks by Mark Ryden, Coraline action figures, vintage Art Nouveau prints, zombie patches, Alchemy jewlery, comics, Halloween themed items and the list goes on.

It’s like a painting I’m constantly working on - adding more detail to it, always searching for another shade of black. 

The site serves as Julia’s creative/artistic outlet and labour of love. Check it out! Be warned though, you may be there a little while!

—+— Gorey Details —+—

The Steampunk style is a fusion of Victorian romance and modern technology. Sometimes associated with cyberpunk and other sub-genres - it is just as unique and odd as it is beautiful. “In Sectus” is the work of an Australian writer and artist and I stumbled upon her amazing pieces on her ETSY site.

In Sectus means ‘cut into pieces’ in Latin. And that’s what I do: cut up other things to make new things. Might be a cicada cast, a tablet of silver or a fossilized piece of wood, but you can betcha there’s some dissection behind every finished product.

You will definitely find things you won’t find anywhere else as every piece she makes is one-of-a-kind (OOAK) or limited edition: Soviet Steampunk, insects housed in clockwork cases, tiny reliquaries that seem to have been unearthed from deep in dreams.

She also creates what she calls “Bugbots” in her spare time as art pieces and I am hoping they will be available to buy soon! Please take the time to visit her store and check out these beautiful jewelery and art pieces.

—+— in sectus —+—

Halloween is approaching! Just a quick note - You can still order a mask and have it in time for Halloween, however you will need to pay for express shipping. Please contact us and let us know where you live for an accurate quote.

As you may or may not have noticed there has not been a lot of updates at the G + C site for a little while and we just wanted to give everyone a small update. We just finished moving studios out of Toronto and we are planning a brand new website for next year! Our goal is to have it up around mid 2009 and we are very excited about it. It will feature much more interactivity, new art, complete sections and new products. We will be posting about it again but we thought we would let you guys know what we are working on.

Anyway here are some cute Halloween items I found on ETSY!

I’ve always loved the work of Amy Doan (aka Shrinkle) and a recent visit to her website I found she has been selling on ETSY. After checking her profile I noticed she started in November of 2007 - and has been selling online on eBay since around 2002 - eek where have I been! ETSY is an online marketplace to buy and sell things handmade - and has attracted many Indie designers to set up shop there.

If you have never seen Amy’s creations take a look as I think they are very well crafted and have a unique style.

—-+—- Shrinkle on ETSY —-+—

Toronto Alternative Arts & Fashion Week runs from April 9th to the 11th, 2008 [Distillery District - Fermenting Cellar - 55 Mill St. Building 6].  The annual festival combines art, fashion, photography and performance.

This year Goblin and Crumb designed a few pieces for Breeyn McCarney’s collection Sweet which will be showcased in a runway fashion show beginning at 9:30 on April 9th [at the above address]. The theme for the show is sweet dreams and happy beds, mixed with eerie atmospheres. All the clothes are made from vintage and antique home decor.

Tickets are $15 in advance, available at The Rage 13 Kensington, Magpie 884 Queen West and Urban Textures 44 Gerrard St. West. They will be $20 at the door. For more info check the link below.

—-+—-+—- Alternative Fashion Week —-+—-+—-