The Wolfman - Trailer

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG
I'm almost as excited as when I saw the trailer for Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

Go watch the trailer HERE

And take a look at the official website HERE

Found it on Cryptomundo

Molding Skulls

I just found a great tutorial for molding a plastic skull and casting plaster copies. There's lots of pictures and detailed instructions. The most expensive part is the liquid latex (if, of course, you already have a nice skull at home), but the 20-30$ it'll cost you in materials is well worth the massive amount of skulls you'll be able to make!

from The Creepy House Next Door, which also contains many more interesting tutorial revolving around creepy halloween yard decoration.

For painting the skull, I strongly suggest this step-by-step demonstration, by Dave the Dead from The Shadow Farm. He uses an urethane skull, but there's no reason why it wouldn't work on plaster. I'd suggest applying a coat of sealer to the plaster first, however, so it doesn't soak up all the paint.

Making a hardcover out of a paperback

Rev. Marx at Marx Designs posted a great tutorial on how to cover a cheap paperback with boards to give it the look of an antique hardbound book. It's quite simple actually, and his instructions are more than you need to figure out how to do something like it. Definitively worth checking out.



Link to the tutorial

Found on Propnomicon

It's time for book reviews!

Is there a better feeling than sinking into a comfy couch a dark and stormy night, resting your feet on the tanned bear skin's head in front of the fire place*, opening up many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore and reading 'till you nod, nearly napping?

Well yeah, there's better feelings, but this one's pretty darn nice anyways.

That's why I read a lot, and I thought I could share my recent findings(in terms of litterature) with you. There's some old, there's some new, but it's all good.

1. Paint It Black - Voltaire

A guide to gothic homemaking, he says. Damn right, he is! Although this little gem is a bit too tiny to my likings, it's filled with great info and ideas for transforming the most boring dorm room into a somptuous gothic den. From modifying toys to covering walls with draperies, you can be sure this book will help you. However, it's a quick read; a few more projects should have been included to justify the asking price (about 15$cdn on amazon).

2. Brothers Karamazov - Fyodor Dostoievsky

Every one needs to read a good russian realist novel now and then. Although a big piece to chew, Dostoievsky's masterpiece is definitively worth your time and concentration. The story is about three brothers, who's father is assassinated. It covers every subject from love, money, honor and fraternity, to murder, justice, depravity and religion. And these russian names sound awesome!


3. The Metamorphosis and Other Stories - Franz Kafka

Oh man, Kafka is awesome. I mean, really, he is. After Stephen King and Eddy Poe, he's probably my favorite author.

Just go read this book and tell me you liked it (I won't believe you other wise). It is filled with short, witty, surreal stories, which makes you think as much as it entertains. A salesman waking up as a giant cockroach (or whatever it is)? yup. Jackals asking a white man to kill a few arabian guys with rusty scissors? It's there. and there's many more stories present. If you like surrealist tales, you'll like this book by Kafka.

4. Dieu et Nous Seuls Pouvons - Michel Folco

If you can read french, it is one of the most enjoyable novels you can read. This book tells the story of the Pibrac, the greatest (fictional) family of french executioners. The story is told with great attention to historical accuracy, with a touch of dark humor. definitively a 5*****.

5. Secrets of the Sideshows - Joe Nickell

If you have any interest in the world of the sideshow, this book might just quench your thirst for knowledge. It covers every topic from natural freaks to sword-swallowing tattooed hotties. It also explains a bit how different types of sideshows were organized, and how certain stunts were performed. A must-read for the sideshow enthusiast.

Ok, so that's about it for now. I might give a short review of more books later, since I still have to go through a pile of unread volumes. If you want to know more about any of these books, just ask!

Tsantsa; from clay to shrunken head

I love shrunken heads. I really do. These little guys are creepy, look great, and have that mysterious tribal vibe to them. And let's face it, they are damn cute. And after reading my 1925 copy of Up de Graff's Head Hunters of the Amazon, I decided I just HAD to have one.

Of course, buying a real shrunken head is out of my price range, but I wanted my own little tsantsa, and there is no better way to get something than to make it yourself.

Using sulfur-free oil based clay, I had a blast sculpting this little guy over a few hours. I won't go into details with the sculpting process; with a little bit of artistic talent, it's quite easy to do. The sculpture done, a mold must be made. It shalt be made out of plaster, said I!



I made a dividing wall with thin aluminum pieces (the bottom of a pie plate), and covered the head with plaster and strips of burlap. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of this process, so you'll have to imagine. I then sloshed some liquid latex inside the mold, following by the lengthy process of letting it cure, then removed and powdered the latex cast with baby powder.

I gave back a little color and tackiness to the skin using brown and orange grease makeup (applied thinly so that the wrinkles and pores aren't filled out), and following the information I had about the methods used to make shrunken heads, I blackened the head with charcoal.

I then applied a good layer of fixative. I personally like to use ultra-strong TRESemmé hairpsray. Following this, I sewed the lips and the back of the head shut with thin cotton rope, which I dyed a yellowish brown with coffee earlier.



I still have to decorate it a bit more and find a way to put hair on it (punching hair into slip latex is quite difficult; I'll have to find another solution)

However, I'm quite happy with how it looks like right now! It was quite a simple process, with plenty of info that can be found online, but if you want to try something similar and need any help, advice is just a comment or an email away!

Here is a great website about shrunken heads

and on here you'll find a friendly community willing to answer most of your questions about molding and casting latex props

Bottled specimens

Here's a great tutorial for making fake, antique bottled specimens by the folks at Propnomicon: Clickety-click!

HERE is another one by Baron Von Fogel at Indy Mogul.

Both would make great props to store in your wunderkammer. (you DO have a wunderkammer, don't you? if no, I might elaborate on the subject later.)

Necromance

I just found via The Steampunk Home a great shop, located on melrose avenue in LA, called Necromance.
It features an eclectic assortement of natural history items, curios, antiques, books, jewelry and other amazing stuff.

Definitively worth checking out; their online catalog is full of great objects of all kinds, with great prices!

more details here