Tag Archives: handmade gifts

Muppet Cars and They Live Aliens Make for a Memorable 45th Birthday

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February is a very special time of the year for my husband Frank and I. For those who are not aware, we were born 6 days apart in the same hospital, so these past 2 weeks we found fun and unique ways to celebrate 45 trips around the sun for the both of us.

With me still being out of work I didn’t want to do anything too costly or too far away and I had heard about a new exhibit at the Studebaker Museum that was a little under 2 hours from us. Since my birthday falls two days before Valentine’s Day, we doubled down and made it a little day date adventure for that as well.

Now most of you may be saying “But Nicole, why the Studebaker Museum?” Well because a VERY special vehicle just happens to be on display there right now. A vehicle that an artsy Jim Henson obsessed geek like myself couldn’t help but feel all the feels from being in the same room with it…. aka the one and only original Studebaker from They Muppets Movie! The same car that Fozzie and Kermit take on their memorable road trip to Hollywood together. A vehicle filled with magic, art, hopes, and dreams! And maybe a few rubber chickens as well.

Not only is Fozzie’s car a very fun and nostalgic part of cinema history, it also plays a very fascinating part in both the world of engineering and puppetry arts. The car was actually outfitted to create the illusion that Fozzie was driving. They used a monitor hidden in the car’s bullet nose and the real driver in the trunk. With my husband being into cars and a tech in engineering he too was fascinated by seeing the mechanics of this in person. Seeing the car also takes you back to a very significant moment in Muppet history. The moment that Kermit and Fozzie meet Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem Band for the very first time. With the help of Scooter on bubble duty, the band busts out the paints and brushes and while they jam out to “Can You Picture That?” completely transform Fozzie’s car into a far out escape from Don Hopper. An epic masterpiece and a colorful new beginning to a very groovy friendship.

As you can see in the photos the band often influences my attire and for those Mayheads landing here for the first time, be sure to check out how Dr. Teeth inspired my Halloween costume in 2021. It was even featured in the Jim Henson Legacy Newsletter and Tough Pigs costume parade!

Now to switch gears..
So right after the holidays were over, I knew I wouldn’t have the money to buy my husband something off his wishlist so I started brainstorming what I could make him instead. I had less then 2 months and knew I had to get started on whatever I planned on doing. Then it hit me out of nowhere.. could I pull off making him a They Live Alien? It’s one of his favorite movies and he loves props that are life like in size. And like me and my Muppets, he also has quite the collection of memorabilia and tattoos to prove his dedication. Making him anything in the past has always been hard because when we are not at work we are always together. So being laid off I knew this was the perfect time to pull off something that required this much work. So the first thing I did was check the supplies I already had and made a list of what I needed to budget the rest.

I used the same life size, heavy weight, anatomical skulls I use for my zombie heads as the base and got to work. I had never made one of these so each part of the process was either going to go really well or I was going to be really tested. I kept thinking of David Bowie’s words “Always go a little further into the water than you feel you’re capable of being in. Go a little bit out of your depth. And when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.”

It was thrilling to see how giddy I would get with coming up with how to accomplish the next step in the process and seeing it all start to come to fruition. However nothing beat the feeling when I saw the look on his face when he opened it. 2 months of trying to hide this thing while still working on my other art projects paid off and he is now the proud owner of a They Live collectible that no one in the world will ever have. The beauty of aliens, love and handmade art!

You can see this They Live piece of art featured with more of my Misc Sculpture and Latex art on the Remains page of my portfolio website.

HUZZAH to the next 45 years!

Stay Strange & Magical✨,
LDG Nicole

A Magical Moffin Moment with Ve Neill

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Meeting and occasionally gifting my art to legendary icons that I admire is one thing, but encountering icons who are creators themselves and inspire me to elevate my artistry skills always takes the experience to a whole new level. First there was Tom Savini, then Cleve Hall, and after last night I can finally add award winning makeup artist Ve Neill to the list!

Thanks to The Horror House Shop and Hollywood Blvd Cinema who hosted a screening last night of Batman Returns (my all time favorite Batman movie) along with a Q&A and Meet & Greet with Ve, I was able to check meeting another legendary artist that I admire off my list.

I knew I had to make her something to thank her for inspiring me as an artist and creating so many of the iconic movie characters I hold so dear, but most importantly breaking down barriers and the status quo for women in the arts.

So then it hit me. I had a coffin makeup brush holder that I had planned to transform into a Moffin. I knew that this was my sign that it was finally time to make it because it was meant for Ve. I went through my stash of monster eyes and picked out my favorite pair. The colors of them are my favorites… (galaxy colors.. magentas, fuchsias, purples, and blues) and I knew I had the perfect hair to go with it. I wanted to do something a little different with the paint job on this one. I mean it was going to an award winning makeup artist. The woman created the iconic look of Beetlejuice, won Emmy’s for Pee Wee’s Playhouse, and judged incredible works of art on SyFy’s Face Off. In other words I had to up my game. So I went with an ombre effect and could not be happier with the way it came out. I then went online and bought some makeup brushes in the same colors of the Moffin just for effect (as I know Ve uses her own brushes) and it all came together perfectly. Seeing I am my own worst critic, when I say “perfectly” what I really mean is that my heart skipped a beat when I saw Ve’s genuine reaction of joy when I handed it to her.

So here is how it came out….

And here are the photos of my memorable experience gifting it to Ve and a shot of it sitting at her table where she kept it displayed all night….

After watching her weekly and religiously during every season of Face Off I had formed an idea of what she might be like in person, and I wasn’t disappointed. She was so genuinely appreciative that I made her something, and as she took it all in looking at it, she couldn’t stop expressing how absolutely adorable it was, her face beaming with a huge smile. I shared how thrilled I was that she liked it, to which she replied that she loved it. My husband Frank (credited for capturing the amazing candid photos) proudly showed her his Beetlejuice sleeve, and I mentioned that I had suggested he ask her for recommendations on who to add next. She offered a fantastic suggestion, and now he’s seriously considering making it happen.

To top it off during the Q&A the gentleman on the mic that was interviewing her made mention of the unique brush holder on her table and she graciously acknowledged, “Oh, a lovely young lady made and gave that to me tonight.” He inquired if I was present in the audience, and as I raised my hand, she pointed me out. He then commended me for crafting something so cool, giving me a shout-out for my creativity.

One of the things that really stood out to me during her Q&A was her story about when she was a little girl and how her neighbor was a makeup artist. She dreamt of following in his footsteps one day. Despite him occasionally doing her makeup for Halloween and such, he consistently rebuffed her inquiries about pursuing a career in the field. Undeterred, she forged her path independently even in a male-dominated industry. I admire and in a way envy (in all the good ways) her determined spirit— a woman who fearlessly pursued her dreams and set a path for so many artists after her.

It goes without saying I have been on cloud nine since last night. Which was a much needed lift after having such a rough “living my best heating pad life” sort of week. I’ve been sharing with everyone about how amazing Ve was, and I’m still buzzing with excitement knowing she now owns one of my creations. Not only did she genuinely like it, but meeting her surpassed all my expectations. I’m immensely grateful to the event hosts and to Ve for making another one of my dreams a realty!

Love this Moffin creation? See more of my monster coffin creations here on my official portfolio website!

Stay Spooky & Magical,
LDG Nicole

Cotton Candy Cocoons Make Heathers Holiday Out Of This World

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The overwhelming response I have been receiving on my Cotton Candy Cocoon Ornaments has been “out of this world” (pun intended). Not only did the ones I pre-made sell out very quickly but my listing for them on Etsy was being favorited so much I decided to set up a custom made-to-order listing for anyone interested in having one made. This of corpse has resulted in me getting to make more of them, but one order stood our from the rest.

When the order came through my Etsy shop I found out it was going to be a gift for my dear and close friend Heather and I had the hardest time keeping it from her. On top of it I was quite honored just knowing that something I made was on her (always well thought out) Christmas wish list and even more so that her in-laws chose it off her list to purchase it for her.

When she opened the gift during the holidays she immediately texted me and we got a good laugh out of it. The best part though was when she followed it up with this beautiful photo of herself proudly holding it up to show me how happy she was to receive it.

On top of all of it she shared the following feedback about the ornament that truly lifted my spirits.

“Nicole designed these creative, and incredible interpretations of the cotton candy cocoons, I knew I needed one! I put one on my holiday list, and crossed my fingers, since she only made two of them. I was very excited when I opened the box and saw it in there! Honestly, I’m surprised she kept it a secret this long. Ha! If you’re a fan of the movie, I recommend ordering one. They’re well made, and super cute. It was a hit when I opened it at my family party.”

Did you also receive one of my handmade Cotton Candy Cocoon ornament for the holidays? Or maybe you bought one for yourself or someone else? I would love to see and feature your photos here as well as on the Freaky Fanatics slideshow of my portfolio website! Contact me via my website or a DM on Etsy!

✨💀✨
Stay Spooky & Magical!
LDG Nicole

Custom Haunted Mansion Barrette

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Dax is one of my clients from the UK who first discovered my work 7 years ago while purchasing one of my pre-made Dead Girl Decay barrettes. He gifted it to his wife and she loved it so much he reached out to me the following year asking if I could make her something more custom. Every year since then he returns with a new theme to have a new hair piece made for his wife and it always gets my creative blood flowing! Not to mention how honored I feel knowing it’s the first thing she opens every Christmas!

So this year Dax got into the “spirit” of things by requesting the theme be Disney’s Haunted Mansion! Some requests included the branding colors, Madame Leota, the iconic wallpaper, and of corpse…the hitch hiking ghosts! This was right up my alley so I was super stoked to get working on it and very happy with how it came out…

The first thing I envisioned was Madame Leota front and center but most importantly I wanted her to have a dome like – crystal ball appearance. I was lucky enough to be able to up-cycle a Madame Leota cabochon jewelry piece that was perfect for what I was envisioning. I used charms to add the hitch hiking ghost accents and found the iconic wallpaper on ribbon! On top of adding flower petals and feathers to tie in the branding colors, I chose to add sheer flower petals and iridescent glitter to represent the holographic ghostly spirits that haunt the mansion! When I sent photos to the client for pre-shipment approval I was happy to get this message in return…

“Perfect! You’ve outdone yourself again! She’ll love it! ❤️❤️”

As alway, the wait to get confirmation that it made it to the buyer (especially overseas) is always a nail biting experience for me. If it gets lost or damaged in transit, you can’t get back the time, unique materials, and the heart and soul you put into an original creation. However my mind was set at ease when I got the message that it had arrived…

“It arrived today!! It’s beautiful! Thank you again, Nicole. Nailed it. 💀💀🦇🦇”

And just like that I was doing my artist happy dance again. I must say no matter how big or small, the custom creations I have made for clients are always extra special to me. It’s one thing for me to envision something and bring it to life in various mediums. It’s another for someone else to have a vision and then trust that I am the right artist to bring it to life. Especially when it has to do with creating something that someone wants to gift to someone they love and is a part of making the holidays even brighter.

Want to see the other custom barrettes I have created for Dax (and other clients)? Be sure to visit the Dead Girl Decay page of my portfolio website and scroll down to Custom Themed Decay!

Looking to have something custom made? Contact me for details, turn around times, and pricing.

Did you receive a piece of my art this holiday season? Contact me or send me a message via my Etsy shop to submit your photos and be featured here and in my Freaky Fanatics slideshow!

✨💀✨
Stay Spooky & Magical,
LDG Nicole