It's HALLOWEEN! I mean...it's October!

9/30/2016

I gotta let ya'll in on a lil' secret...

#RealTalk ...I LOVE HALLOWEEN!!!!

Seriously, it's one of my favorite holidays!

I mean, I love holidays in general...but Halloween has always been one of my favorites and fall is my favorite time of the year. Wait...about fall. Well ,now I live in South Florida so I will not be feeling any 'crisp autumn air' any time soon, but Halloween decorations make me think of fall...and costumes...and candy...and scary things- yikes!

Remember those plastic costumes with the masks? It was so hard to see out of them!

Second secret...I am actually a pretty big 'fraidy cat.

But I wasn't always. Growing up, I loved to read Stephen King books and watch horror movies, probably through about 8th grade. I stopped reading/watching scary stuff for a while and years later I found that it scared me more than it used to. But I still love Halloween, always will. I have very positive associations with trick or treating as a kid...that one time mom let me have a Halloween party when I was in elementary school and my friends all came...decorating...those little glow stick thingys...watching Charlie Brown wait for the Great Pumpkin...and making my own costumes...as a big kid AND an adult!

Man, I love Halloween! Did I say that already?

Sometimes I struggle finding a theme for my monthly art series. I never have to think twice when it comes to October- I always have my inspiration. I hasn't always been specific to just Halloween, but I have hints of the holiday in each series;

A piece from each October series, 2012-2015.

...which brings me to right now...October 2016...

I knew that I wanted to use Halloween inspiration...but that's about it. Lucky for me, Micheal's (one of my favorite stores) started decorating super early. I noticed the cloche jars. I guess they have always been a part of the Halloween decor but maybe I didn't pay attention. Once I noticed them...I kept seeing them pop up, in other stores, in my Pinterest marathons...I just kept seeing this cloche-bell jar thing. (And side note, I realized I have never read the Bell Jar, so I guess I need to do that, too)

So I started looking them up and pinning them when I saw something fun. And I kept seeing them in store displays. I started to think about a series based on these...but there were challenges;

Challenge 1- Cost

Did you know that bell jars...cloche jars...apothecary jars...they aren't cheap.

Especially if you have to buy thirty-one.

Whenever I am planning a series I have to think about materials, travel, and cost.

Cost is very important. I'm a teacher so...let's just say I am always on a budget. It seemed like this was just one idea that I would have to let go, too many challenges.

This cloche jar was in Target...and it was kinda pricey.

As luck would have it, I was standing in line at Dollar Tree (another favorite store) and in the 'impulse items' (you know, the mess by the register that you really don't need...until you see it) and I saw some plastic wine glasses that were in two pieces.

Actually- I didn't see a wine glass, I saw a bell jarl waiting to become my daily art. So, I bought all of the wine glasses at my Dollar Tree, then traveled to two more to get enough for the month, and a few extra just in case.

My Dollar Tree haul!

Challenge 2- Tops and Bottoms

Next challenge- the base. Bell jars have bases. Luckily, my father in law is a woodworker, so when I was back home I enlisted his help with the bases for my pieces. I'll be picking those up later this month. (thanks, Papa!)

Another challenge that I will have to address is the top of the jar. I am thinking that I will use some polymer clay or paper mâché to create a knob or some type of detail for the top of each jar.

Not sure how this will go down, guess we'll see!

Putting in my order at 'the shop'

Challenge 3- Assembly

The last challenge is putting the works together, especially considering the bases will be in NC until mid-month and I haven't figured out the top of the jar yet. I am just going to go forward, make the daily piece that will 'live' in the bell jar. The pieces might not be fully realized until later in the month, but I am okay with that.

Challenge Accepted!

So I am just gonna go for it. I started the first piece last night, I am not sure yet about backing it or what else might go in the bell jar but it's a start.

Oh, and just for fun- gonna refer to the series as 'belle jar' instead of 'bell jar'...you know...since I draw ladies!

Stay tuned, and Happy Halloween!

I mean...Happy October!

The beginning of my new series!

#BelleJarArtJLG

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.