Horror Holiday Shopping Guide 2014

We all know (or we should know) how important it is to support the smaller companies and artists, right? This is even more important around this time of year when we all go on insane retail frenzies. IF you (or someone you know) is that strange kid that likes weird things, well then here are a few small companies that you should throw your money at. Almost everyone on this list is ALSO having some sort of black Friday/cyber Monday/small business Saturday sale, so you’re welcome!

 ***I DID ONE OF THESE LAST YEAR!!! Click HERE to see it!!!! I repeated some companies from last year, but I tried to add a lot of new ones, too. This list isn’t going to be as long as last years, sorry. I HOPE it goes without saying that the coupon codes from LAST YEAR’S POST no longer work, right? Guys? Are you listening to me?...ugh...***

I’m starting out this list with a few of what I would consider high end splurges. These are for your very special someones. Hey...High end may mean something different for you, but I’m looking at things that are near/over the $100 mark. Maybe that is chump change for you...If so, good job, Richard Branson.



Global Fear Enterprises
GFE is a high end costume company that caters to the haunt industry. Unique, creepy creatures are what you will find here. Since these impeccable costumes are made by hand by just a couple of guys, the price tag is hefty. Lucky for you they have a sale going on for just $666. That's cute, guys.
http://globalfearenterprises.com/

Bloodmilk Jewelry
I have been lusting over blood milk for years. The pieces are beautiful, and reading the artist’s inspiration stories about each peace is fascinating. There are new designs popping up all of the time, but the old classics are always still available. With most designs come options of different materials and finishes. High polish, rose gold, sterling silver, moonstone, black CZ, labradorite, just to name a select few.

www.bloodmilkjewels.com





Contrived to Charm
Another lustful company. Beautiful hand tooled leather goods with that creepy theme we all love. Stunning belts and bootstaps, and even custom cases for your tarot deck. (OR for your Magic cards. Who doesn’t love Magic the Gathering?)

www.contrivedtocharm.etsy.com

Stan Winston School
If someone on your list is interested in special effects makeup, practical effects, character design, prop making, puppetry, illustration/portraiture, model making, scuplting, etc...etc...etc...Then you might want to think about buying them a subscription, DVD, or enrolling them in a live web course on the topic. The Stan Winston school has a huge, jaw dropping, team of instructors on their roster. This is a great option for people who want to take classes, but don’t live in a place that has a school or workshops.

https://www.stanwinstonschool.com/

Middle Of Beyond
Home of the Mondo 237 collaboration collection, which is sold out...as Mondo things tend to be. Also home to those silly Krampus, and Baphomet, and Cthulu, and Big Foot, and...and....AND other sweaters you’ve no doubt seen all over the internet. Lucky for you they are also having a wacky 666 sale. What fun!? $66.60 Baphomet sweater, and a $6.66 Baphomet ornament, so you can all be blasphemous in the most festive way possible.

http://middleofbeyond.com/

Ghoulish Gary Pullin
Gary is both an amazing artist and an amazing person. He has worked with Rue Morgue and Mondo for years now creating beautifully detailed horror art. Gary has a variety of different kinds of prints in different sizes available on his site. Prices range from around $100-$10, so you should be able to work within your budget no matter the size.

http://www.ghoulishgary.com/

Kreepsville 666
One of my all time favorite brands. I write about them often, and fondly, because a large portion of my wardrobe is made up of kreepsville. I absolutely adore the owners of this brand! Two of the best people you will ever meet. Kreepsville offers men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing, along with a ton of awesome accessories and even some home goods and art prints!

www.kreepsville666.com/

Pizza Party Printing Aside from the fact that their name is PIZZA PARTY PRINTING, these guys are killer. I love the style of their graphics, and the shirts are always really soft. Good quality printing, but be warned...The shirts tend to run a bit small. You may want to order up a size. They also offer patches, prints, and a few other bits. Check it!
www.pizzapartyprinting.com

London 1888
Our buddy Christopher Ott is the artist behind london 1888. He needs little explanation, and I’m sure you’ve probably met him at a horror con. Prints, and shirts (both men’s and women’s) with all of your favorite horror icons, and a few mashups as well.

www.london1888.com

Atomic Cotton
I love these people. More convention buddies. Colorful and high contrast is Erica’s style. Their printing is so nice that your shirt will fade over time, but the print will still look brand new. Erica does many of the designs, but they also collaborate with other artists. Recently they’ve begun printing select graphics on “ladies” cut T’s which is always nice for us tiny folk. Also check out their Etsy page for more fun hand made items all all kinds. 






www.etsy.com/atomiccotton
www.atomiccotton.com

Fright Rags
I heard tell of a Black Friday sale, but have yet to see any fliers or codes. This company is cool for a few reasons. They do limited print runs, BUT they allow customer to vote on sold out designs for reprints. If you miss out on a print, you still have a chance. The are one of the few horror T companies that offer “women’s” sizes. I so appreciate that since I’m not big on boxy sacks....No offense to the “unisex only brands”

http://www.fright-rags.com/



Cavity Colors
Woo! Cavity colors is one of my favorites right now. Vivid explosions of blood, ooze, and sinew on cotton and paper. Aaron sells t-shirts, sweatshirts, prints, originals, sketches, and more. 

 

 http://www.cavitycolors.com/

 

Horror Decor
...As the name states...they sell handmade horror decor. Pillows, candles, place mats, pot holders, and more.

http://horrordecor.net/

Horror Merch
Also pretty self explanatory! Their inventory seems limitless. The seriously have it all! Shoes, toys, shirts, dresses, masks, blah blah blah! Check them out! There is usually some kind of sale, or BOGO deal on their site.

http://www.horrormerchstore.com/



Here is a small handful of other macabre merchants to consider:

http://www.shopplasticland.com/

http://www.lovedtodeath.com/

http://necromance.com/

http://sourpussclothing.com/

**They are always having sales, follow on social media to keep up with them, and you can look up coupon codes on retailmenot.com...always check retailmenot.com. ALWAYS!**

The Dark Crystal figures lost toy line

Growing up in the 80's was definitely interesting.  What made it more interesting was all of the amazing pop culture surrounding you at the time.  One of the best things to come out of pop culture was The Dark Crystal which was a brainchild of Jim Henson.  At such a young age I was in awe of the world that The Dark Crystal transports you into, which is complete with creatures of all shapes and sizes.  I remember falling in love with the Skeksis and their minions the spidery buglike Garthim.  It was definitely love at first sight.

Now that I'm "all growed ups" I still love the Dark Crystal material just as much if not more than when I was a kid, as now I can look back with nostalgia in heart and a pocket full of grown up cash that I want to spend on those tokens of nostalgia.  Like any grown up kid I still collect toys and.. Yes comic books as well and.. Shit..  I'm just going to say that I'm probably even more of a kid today than I was when I was 5.  The only difference is a little bit of facial hair and a regular job that doesn't involve taking apart things in the house (I still do that).

Jen complete with card

What would be more enticing than a toy line featuring one of my favorite movies from when I was a child?  Look no further!  Apparently a toy company called Aviva actually had plans to make a toy line of out the Dark Crystal material and went so far as to make an initial set of the toys including mock ups and cards.. The whole nine.  These prototypes fetch a pretty penny on the toy market and there's not very many of them.  One persons count of prototypes including card would come in at about 12 total.  That person is Justin Kerns who I found on the Rebel Scum forums and who was gracious enough to allow me to repost his photos from his collection.

There's also been rumors that Funko who has been hitting the toy world hard with it's Reaction figures, might be looking to make a Dark Crystal toy line.  We're hoping that they take EXACTLY what you see on this page and make it a mass-produced reality.  Here's also to hoping they create and Augra play set complete with her planetary lair.  Take a look around at all the images and feel free to click on them to get a closer look.

My favorite part of this set is the "build a" dark crystal part.  Each figure came with part of the Dark Crystal and when you collected them all the fit together to make the crystal itself.  Man what I wouldn't give to have all of those..  Oh and let's add a Skeksis castle playset on as well.  Fuck it right?  While we're at it..  I've seen a Lego Dark Crystal playset online as well.  It was in the Lego Cuuso section where people can upload their ideas and if it gets enough votes it becomes a reality.  This was how the Back to the Future and Ghostbusters Lego sets became a "thing".  Lets have a Skeksis castle and let's make those damn Lego Dark Crystal sets!  Please!?!  I need more nostalgia in my life and I need more things to blow my money on that sit around my house for no one but my cats and I to look at.  GOT IT?  Oh and I'd be tempted to open up all these pristine packages just to put the Dark Crystal together..  Watch all the collector fanboys cry while I'm doing it.  Don't worry I'd post it to YouTube!  You can check out the original forum post here: http://forum.rebelscum.com/t982892/ and thank Justin Kerns for all these amazing photos.

production photos

Promotional catalog for whole line

Card art for the back of the figure packaging

Garthim actual size on right with 2 up color production model on left

Landstrider box art

Garthim box art

Close up of Fizzgig packaged with figure

Landstrider

Mystic

Skeksis (Chamberlain?)

10 of the 12 known carded figures all together (who do I kill to get these?)

IMAGINER: THE ART OF CLIVE BARKER, VOLUME TWO

To say that Clive Barker has been a HUGE influence on my life is a great understatement.  Ever since seeing Hellraiser the cenobites have made many an appearance in my dreams and now, in my magazine.  Beyond Hellraiser I was able to pick up Clive's book the Thief of Always, and that sent me even farther down the rabbit hole.  I must not have been more than 12-13 when I first read the Thief of Always and the concepts and imagery that were presented definitely sparked things in my mind that allowed me to explore odd themes in my own writing.  Fast forward to this last September and our adventure BACK to Los Angeles for the Days of the Dead convention.  The only reason we really made the trek, flew out to LA, and plopped down the vending fee was to get to meet Clive Barker.

This was the only convention I had seen his name attached to in the longest time and it was also an excuse to go see a lot of the friends we had made while we lived in Los Angeles. (apparently a week is not enough to get to see all of you and I'm sorry to anyone we couldn't meet up with!)  The convention itself was really extremely awesome and that's even with LA already having hosted Monsterpalooza just two weekends back.  The sheer amount of cool celebs was mind boggling.  There were so many that I didn't even know were going to be attending.  I was amazed.  But it was all for one moment.  When we stepped up to Clive's table we were actually one of the first handful of people that got to see him.  I shook his hand first and handed him the poster that Steve McGinnis (great artist check him out) had created for our Hellraiser II anniversary issue.  Clive was so impressed with both the poster and the magazine (cover by Christopher Ott) that he asked to have one.  I gladly gave him our last copy and told him that I really wanted him to be in that issue but it just didn't work out.  He promptly agreed that he should be in one of our issues and I told him we'd be HONORED and that of course the cover would be his and that we would do everything we could to make that happen.  Here's to hoping that you'll soon be seeing the legend in our pages!  Until then check out the kickstarter for IMAGINER VOLUME TWO!  The first volume is just amazing and I would love to get my hands on both the book and some of his prints offered through Century Guild!

IMAGINER: THE ART OF CLIVE BARKER, VOLUME TWO
LIMITED EDITION OF 1,000 HARDCOVER BOOKS (will not be reprinted)

PLUS 100 special Signed and Numbered Bookplate editions.

Now through Halloween on Kickstarter.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/337503446/clive-barker-imaginer-vol-2-art-book

“If people want to know who I am or where I get my ideas from or why I write the things that I do, Imaginer is the answer to that question.” -The Hollywood Reporter (commenting on Imaginer Volume 1)


For over twenty years the imagination of Clive Barker has been hailed as a genius by a generation of creatives including such notable visionaries as Stephen King and Guillermo del Toro.  But where does Clive Barker find his primal inspiration?

Clive has said from his first interviews that he keeps a brush and ink next to his bed to capture fragments of dreams, and that his stories originate as visuals first- the works on canvas are more often than not Clive's inital introduction to the characters and universes that he then picks up a pen to illuminate.  The most recent example of this is his world of Abarat:

"I'm painting these pictures in the expectation that... interesting, strange characters and landscapes will come into my mind and into my mind's eye and appear on the canvas through the brush. There is something willfully strange about this process- that you stand back at the end of a night's work and you look at something and you say, 'Where did that come from?' I mean, I'm not the only artist who does that - lots of artists do that, I know. And it's been wonderful because if I had created Abarat from words- if I'd written Abarat and then illustrated it... it would not be anything like as rich or as complex or as contradictory a world as it is. Because this is a world which has been created from dream visions...  What I'm doing is finding stories that match the shape of my dreams."

IMAGINER 1 was the first comprehensive volume documenting the artwork of Clive Barker; IMAGINER 2 is an identical format- with all new words and images.  Featuring over 75 artworks and 208 pages, the book will be a gorgeous large size of 10" x 13" inches.  The book is composed of entirely ALL NEW and ULTRA HIGH RESOLUTION image captures, painstakingly color corrected to the original paintings.  The detail is impeccable, and Clive flatteringly described the difference in the detail and accuracy of the new captures to any previously printed ones as the difference between "chalk and cheese".

This is an art book of the highest quality, and is being created with the utmost attention to detail to present the artwork as though you were witnessing the paintings in person.

The purest, most direct path from the raw creative mind of Clive Barker to our world is through his artworks.  We are in the process of exhuming and documenting a lifetime of genius; these artworks are the origin points of characters we recognize, and hold hints of stories yet to come.  ALL PROFITS FROM IMAGINER and our EDITION PRINTS will be put directly towards the archiving of the artworks, journals, and manuscripts of Clive Barker.

IMAGINER: The Art of Clive Barker is curated and produced by Thomas Negovan and Century Guild, a Los Angeles art gallery specializing in works on paper 1880-1920 including Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, the Symbolist and Expressionist Art movements, and historically significant objects from the Art Nouveau era.  Works previously in the Century Guild collection are now on permanent display in the Art Institute of Chicago, the Detroit Institute of Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (NY).


IMAGINES FROM BOOK and MOCK-UP COVER:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/d3bmrk9x6q6dlie/AABAO7O5SwJD8eFbrnIYeHTia?dl=0


WHAT PEOPLE SAID ABOUT IMAGINER VOLUME ONE:

“Century Guild’s new Clive Barker: Imaginer books give Barker’s intensely prolific art career the attention it deserves.” -Ultraculture

"For Barker fans, to be able to see the beginnings of his inspirations will be a page-turning treat.” -The Advocate
“Barker described the new collection as ‘the missing element’ in any evaluation of his career to date.” -The Hollywood Reporter

“Clive Barker has procured memorable images from his imagination and shared them with the world…” -DailyDead

“I have no respect for or need to be respectful of reality… My lines can investigate entirely different kinds of journeys.” -MoviePilot



FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT GALLERY@CENTURYGUILD.NET or 1-800-610-2368

Digital Goodness!

While we are first and foremost a print magazine, we also recognize that some can't afford to pay for the print version.  Especially in other countries where the shipping costs are pretty steep.  That's why we off our magazine in digital format.  I want as many people to see the magazine as possible.  I love bringing new and established artists to all of you on a regular basis.

The easiest way to get our magazine is by downloading the magzter app on ANY of your devices it's pretty much available on all of them.  Hit the link to get the mag!

  http://www.magzter.com/US/Gore-Noir-Magazine/Gore-Noir-Magazine/Entertainment/