Miniature Halloween Haunted House sculpture from CreativeCritters

Well, it's that time of year again- the time when I (along with so many others) am inspired to make some spooky Halloween creations.  I'd been tossing around the idea of a miniature haunted house sculpture for some time, and recently my ideas came together and I got to sculpting.

I used heavy cardboard for the base and to cut out the shapes of the house.  For the tower I used the tube from a roll of paper towels.  Everything was securely taped and glued together and then I wrapped the whole thing in black clay to make one solid piece and to make the windows look dark when I cut them out.  After I baked that it was easier to apply the walls of the house.  I cut out windows and the door and framed them with thin strips of clay.

Then I started having fun with the glow in the dark clay!  I made glow in the dark candle flames for the upper windows and made them resemble eyes and teeth.  I started the front porch and sculpted a door as well.  The ghost was sculpted from glow in the dark clay and is letting out a black cat with glow in the dark eyes.  For as tiny as he is (no more than 1/2" long) that cat took a long time to make!  It's not easy sculpting in such a small scale!

And this is what it looks like in the dark at this point.  Pretty cool, huh?

And this fun face in the back window was a suggestion from my boyfriend.  It's reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland, albeit slightly more spooky and evil looking, especially when it's glowing in the dark!

Then I started really getting into the details, adding a roof to the front porch, more spooky effects in the windows, and of course the resident skeleton.

All of the effects in the windows were sculpted from glow in the dark clay, as was the skeleton.

At this point I put the roof on, shingled the roof, and then added the large Oak tree at the back of the house.  The tree has a wire and foil armature ansd is securely attached to the base of the sculpture.  It looks somewhat delicate, but is really fairy strong and sturdy.

I added a large glow in the dark full moon to the branches of the tree as well. Then  I added ivy climbing up the sides of the house along with red, yellow, and orange Maple and Oak leaves in the yard.

 

I also made three Jack O Lanterns with glow in the dark faces to decorate the front yard.  The whole thing looks pretty impressive during the day or at night!

 

You can click on any of the pictures to be taken to the listing and read more about this unique Halloween haunted house sculpture.  This took about three weeks to complete but I really enjoyed the process.  I wasn't just sure how it would come out until it was finished.  I must say, I'm really pleased with the results!  As with most of my work, this is another one of a kind creation. 

Thanks for joining me for yet another creative adventure!  Stayed tuned for more creativity- I've got plenty of new projects planned for the holiday season!

 ~Michelle of CreativeCritters

Become a fan of CreativeCritters on Facebook

Follow CreativeCrittersBlog

Join CreativeCritters Google+ circles

Find CreativeCritters on Fiverr

Save 40% in CreativeCritters Stimulus Sale!

Thanks to a well timed email from CCTexan3, I recently learned that many shops on ArtFire.com are having a Stimulus Sale this month.  Click on this thread to read all the details and view many of the shops participating in this promotion.  Like many other artists here, I have some items that have been in my shop for a while, and could stand a bit of extra promotion.   This was good incentive to do a bit of sprucing up throughout my shop as well.  I created my ArtFire Stimulus Sale category for those items in my shop that need a little extra love.  You can find jewelry, dolls, sculptures, and even miniature houses for sale.  Customers will receive 40% off (my deepest discount yet) everything in my ArtFire Stimulus Sale category when they use coupon code STIMULUS at checkout.  My sale runs the entire month of August, and I may continue to add new items to my Stimulus category throughout the month.  To find shops offering sales and discounts for this promotion search AFSS (ArtFire Stimulus Sale).  And if you're an ArtFire artist who would like to get in on this promotion, check out the ArtFire Stimulus Sale thread in the forums.  You can see who's participating and get ideas on how to set up and promote this sale.  Below are some of the items I have for sale right now.  These are all one of a kind items, and at these prices they should go fast!

This 17 inch tall cloth doll was US $35.95- with your coupon code she's only US $21.57!


This adorable polymer clay Witch sculpture was US $17.95- with coupon only US $10.77!


These unique polymer clay earrings were US $12.95- with coupon only US $7.77!


You can't beat these prices for handmade, one of a kind dolls, sculptures, jewelry, and more!  Thanks for shopping handmade at CreativeCritters, and be sure to check out all the shops participating in this sale!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters

Handmade floral themed creations

Spring flowers from CreativeCritters

The flowers in my garden are putting on a beautiful show now that the weather has warmed, so I thought I'd share some of the flowery creations from my studio on ArtFire.com. I have several pairs of earrings which feature flowers, and were sculpted by hand from polymer clay with glass, polymer clay, and acrylic beads for added interest.
My miniature house sculptures are all carefully sculpted by hand from polymer clay and are covered in tiny intricate flowers in a variety of colors and shapes. These miniature house sculptures are all one of a kind pieces, sculpted with great attention to detail.
Several of my fantasy polymer clay sculptures incorporate flowers as well. Fairies and flowers just belong together, in my opinion. And that's just a sample of some of the flowers growing in my shop. Now that it's spring, I'll be creating a lot more floral themed items, so be sure to check back often. Thanks for stopping by!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters

OOAK lighted glow in the dark pixie oak tree house sculpture

Entry for the Polymer Clay Smooshers Guild Tree Challenge

My Polymer Clay Smooshers Guild on ArtFire has inspired me to create yet another challenging sculpture.  The theme for this particular challenge was "Trees",  which meshed quite nicely with previous ideas I'd had for a lighted tree house.  I've created a few lighted miniature houses, which are available  in my studio, and all of them are quite detailed.  These are the kind of sculptures I can really get lost in as I'm creating them.  These lighted houses are also a good way to recycle glass jars and bottles.  For the Oak tree, I wrapped clay around a glass bottle to make the trunk of the tree, then cut out windows with my oak leaf shaped clay cutter.  I used a battery powered pumpkin light, which looks very pretty shining through the windows.  The oak leaves are various shades of green, and they took a long time to cut and place.  I just love the effect of all those individual leaves though.  About halfway through the sculpting process I came up with the idea of adding the pixies, and sculpting them from glow in the dark clay.  This tree is their home, and they like to frolick in the branches, and take care of the mushrooms and flowers around their home.  The entire sculpture is 9 inches tall and 5 inches wide, with the tiny pixies measuring a petite 1 1/2 inches tall.  This one of a kind fantasy sculpture was a lot of fun to create, and I thank the Smooshers for sparking my creativity yet again.



This is what it looks like in the dark, with the light in the tree turned on.  The pixies glow quite brightly, and add a truly magical touch.  Thanks for checking out my creative adventures in polymer clay!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters

My work was featured in Polymer Cafe magazine!

My Pumpkin House was featured in Polymer Cafe magazine!

I always love getting my Polymer Cafe magazine in the mail, but enjoy it even more when one of the items I submit gets featured.  My Lighted Glow in the Dark Pumpkin House sculpture was featured in their Reader's Gallery of the April 2010 issue!  I sent a few pictures of my sculpture to the magazine for their consideration several months ago, then forgot about it as life got busy once again.  I originally got the idea for the pumpkin house sculpture after reading a tutorial in the magazine titled "The Patch Keeper's Cottage".  I started with their basic instructions, then quickly went off in my own direction and turned it into my own creation.  This is the first lighted house I ever attempted, and I really like the effect.  It looks so pretty when the light is plugged in.  I also added a lot of glow in the dark elements, such as the tall flowers flanking the front door, the swirls in the snails shell, the fairy's wings, the caterpillar's stripes, and some of the flowers on either side of the walkway.  The effect in the dark is just enchanting!
The base measures 8" long and 7" wide. The pumpkin house measures 4" tall. To create the house I covered a crackle glass votive with polymer clay, adding windows with frames, a stem, leaves, and vines. The light is a UL listed pumpkin light with a 2 foot cord.
Being featured in Polymer Cafe magazine is very gratifying, since some truly amazing artists show their work in this publication.  I'm in awe of some of the work I see published in this magazine.  And each issue is chock full of fun and challenging new projects to try.  Just look what I was inspired to create!





Thanks so much for stopping by to see my creations!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters

Think Spring!

Think Spring

It's cold, it's snowing, and I can't wait for spring!  I've been getting my seed catalogs in the mail for a few weeks now, and will soon be planning out this spring's garden.  So, for everyone who needs a little dose of springtime right now, here are some of my spring inspired items.  I hope they warm you up just a bit.

Thanks for stopping by for a dose of sunshine and flowers!

-Michelle of CreativeCritters