A little honesty

Hey everyone. Just a little posty post to keep this thing going.

Here's what has been going on with me. And I'm going to be completely honest with you. I try not to get my emotions too involved in my work as far as speaking goes. I think one of the things that keep people interested in what you do, is being completely honest and open with people that take the time to read my blog and look at my work. So here I go.. It's not going to be fun... Not for me anyway.
First of all, I had been with my husband since October 25th of 2010. That was the best day of my life. I had been in love with him since I was 16 years old, and being with him, I was just over the moon. We finally got married on April 7th of 2015. The second best day of my life. I couldn't believe someone actually wanted to marry my. As big of a mess I have been most of my life, he married me. I was so ecstatic! We had every day together.. A lot of people don't get that, or want that. But we had that. And I am SO very thankful for every day I got to spend with that wonderful, loving, funny, sweet, caring, creative man. He was the best person, hands down, for me. He had some health issues, and passed away on November 15th. That was the worst day of my life.. It's been the worst day of my life, every day without him since. I cry, I scream and pout, I get very angry, I get extremely sad. I don't know how to deal with this, but I have no choice but to deal. Because he's not coming back, and I can't go to him. I have a fantastic support system within my family. His father has been awesome and has helped me out a lot. My nephew who I don't get to see ever, because he lives in Florida, has been awesome, and my sweet nieces have been awesome.. My momma though, she's been the one.. The one that dropped everything and grabbed my brother and sister n law and hauled butt to me as soon as she got the phone call. My brother and his fiance, and my momma came here and stayed with me almost a week, helping me with everything. I love them so very much. There aren't enough words in the world that could convey the thankfulness and gratefulness and love and appreciation I have for them. I call my mom everyday crying in her hear, complaining..
There's something else I need to get off of my chest. My foot broke the night my husband died. I broke my damn foot. So the following day I went to the ER and was told that it was fine to walk on, with the boot, and just take the pain pills. So I was thinking it wasn't that bad.. A couple days later it doesn't hurt THAT bad, and I can walk on it pretty good.. So after about 2 weeks of me walking on my broken foot, I go to the follow up doctors appointment, and find out that the break is a lot worse than it was initially. I wasn't suppose to be walking on it, and now I'm off of it for 6-8 weeks. I have steps in my house, to my bedroom, and to the bathroom. I'm using a walker, instead of crutches and I HATE IT! I'm emotionally zapped and now I'm physically zapped (and sore). So yeah.. This is one craptastic month.
Along with all of the stuff you go through when you lose your spouse, I have a broken foot to throw in the mix. This sucks. And I have been in one hell of a dump lately.
So I will be crafting, a lot... Because really, what else can I do when I can't walk on my foot? I have to sit around and only get up when I need to.. And think.. I think a LOT... not good, folks.. I'm going mad. lol.
Anyway, that's about it. I'm not even going to proofread this. This is more of a rant than anything, anyway.. I just hope there is someone out there that reads this and either gets a kick out of it or really understands that they're not alone in the wonderful world of torture.
Thanks for reading this and for not spamming me with a bunch of hateful stuff. ;)
Tonya @woollyghoulieartgreiving

My first Art Doll

So in one of my Etsy Finds posts, you saw this adorable clown doll from Dark Manor Dolls. If you recall, I raved about how much I loved her. Well, I have some WONDERFUL news for myself.
I ADOPTED HER!!!!!!!! Dark Manor Dolls is having a HUGE Moving Sale going on right now, and I took complete advantage of it!
Dark Manor Dolls has 40% off of her dolls. That's a HUGE discount! So go buy your favorite doll, and leave the other clown doll alone! She's MINE!! Just kidding, she's not mine... Yet... But I want her so BAD! Just take a LOOK!!! She's ADORABLE!!!!

Okay, so here's the one I have adopted.

Just look at that adorable sweet face! I love it!!! I can't get enough of it! She's got a bendy body! I am going to be making her a whole scenery to belong to.. She's going to have a whole shelf to herself, until I get the other clown doll. :) 

I'm very excited. I haven't ever collected someone else's art! This is amazing to me. I never thought I'd get this sweet doll in my hands. But she will be here shortly. I can't wait!!

So, this is my blog. I haven't been doing much but decorating for Christmas. And that's not anything worth sharing. So there that's about it. Thanks for reading!

Tonya @woollyghouliedarkmanordolls

Christmas Wreaths

Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't been posting lately. I've had some family issues to deal with.
Aside from that, I have done a little crafting.. Christmas crafting. :) Here's what I've been working on.

This is a wreath I got at the Dollar General for $3, the balls were $1 for 5, the bow I made out of ribbon I got for $1. The wreath hanger was also $1. The stuffed dog was something we found at Goodwill years ago, and I've just been setting it out for Christmas. But this year I decided I would use it in the wreath. I think he goes pretty well in there. I just hot glued the balls on and the bow, and I hung the dog from thread. Done and done. See? Simple and easy. Total cost was $6 plus the stuffed dog I don't know how much he costed.  

This wreath was a little more costly and a little more involved. The wreath is a foam ring, wrapped in yarn. There's a red handmade ribbon, some colorful trees, and handmade pom poms and felt flowery things and some tiny ornaments, all hot glued on. I also cut up some tinsle and used that as a little bit of shiny. This wreath cost about $20-$25. Not too bad, considering that you can't buy them at the store like this, and if you could, they'd cost too much money. 

So that's what I've been up to. Later today I will be making elf houses. Check them our on A.C. Moore to see what they look like. I'll post them when I get done! Stay tuned for them, along with some other crafting and art I am working on.
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog! Have a wonderful day and I hope you had a great Thanksgiving.
-Tonya

Exciting news!!

Something very exciting happened the other day! I sold my large Day Of The Dead Marie Laveau inspired doll! I put an awful lot of work into that doll, and thought she would just sit there.. Forever.. But she sold!!! She was posted for about 2 months, and she sold! I was so excited!
Things are actually working out really well for me in my shop. I've been selling figures pretty regularly. I mean, there are weeks that go by without me selling anything, but as soon as I think I've got lost in the shuffle of searching, I get a sell! It's been decent amounts, too! I have had requests for the Sassy Skelly ornaments, and I've made plenty of them.. They're for sale, folks! If you're one of the people that requested them, I've got them posted!
I've also got a request for a Jack and Sally set. I'm not sure how well they're going to turn out.. But i'm hoping I can make them look pretty awesome. And I've had orders for cats! People love cats!! So I guess I need to make more cats!
I'm loving every bit of this! The art, the creativity, the imagination, the stories I come up with! the mess, the mistakes, the learning, blogging about it, all of this makes me very happy! I have so many ideas, I write them down and sketch them out in my little sketch book, and can't wait to get them made! I have never really loved making something, more than working with clay.
I did venture out of my box a little bit. I got black clay! It's not paper clay, I'm not sure what kind of clay it is.. I haven't opened it yet, because I've been trying my best to get my crafting area organized so I know where things are, and I can stop making messes.
I've had a huge mess on my crafting table, and it was so bad that I couldn't even find the table! So I went to Family Dollar, grabbed some of those clear shoe boxes, and one of those tiny drawer sets, and i've been getting everything organized. It's not done.. But it's getting close!
Once I get my stuff put up and my table cleaned off, I'll make the figures I have requests for, and I'll post progress reports! Because Jack and Sally are going to be new for me, I'll be posting plenty. I would like to keep track of my progress, as well as share what I'm getting done. If anyone has any suggestions along the way, I hope they're share them with me!
If any of my customers by chance, read my blog, I would love to thank you for your support! You have made me extremely happy and proud and confident about my work. I couldn't get validation from any other source. It makes me so happy to know that my hard work and imagination and ideas aren't just messes I come up with. Other people actually enjoy my work! Thank you so much for giving me the confidence I  need to keep trying to get better, with every piece I make.

Tonya @woollyghoulieart

Etsy Finds #3

I'm going to start this Etsy Finds blog off with something that my husband wants so bad. I'm hoping one day, I can afford to get it for him, and build it for him, and surprise him with it. I think that'd make him the happiest man on earth.
MST3K Tom Servo Robot KitMST3KBots is the place to get this! If you're an MST3K fanatic, this is the place for you. Seriously.. This person also has an ebay shop. I don't know what it's called, but just search the tom servo kit. You'll find it. And to this person, I would like to say THANK YOU!!! One fine day, I will get this for my husband and build it, and surprise him. He will love me forever and ever. :)

This next Etsy Find is AWESOME!!! If you like Prince, you'll like this doll. 
WhisperOfThePipit Is where to go to find this Prince art doll. Also, you can find a few different David Bowie dolls, a Dave Grohl doll and "Selfie" dolls. They're pretty awesome. I would love love LOVE to have the Ziggy Startdust Bowie and this Prince doll. This artist does amazing work. Go check them out! PRONTO!!! Purple raaaainn!!!

infernaltoys makes these dolls.. HOLY MOLY! They're AWESOME! That Manson doll is spot ON! I love these. They're done VERY well, and they look AWESOME. They're mind blowinggggg. I can't get over the Amy Whinehouse one too.. Sheesh.. Great work. They do other work too. Check out their shop, get you a doll!

OCRLimitedArts made these AWESOME Coraline Dolls. I adore these! They're very different from Coraline, but you can tell what they are as soon as you see them! I love this. You know, it's great when an artist can make something familiar their very own. It's a job well done. And hopefully one day, I can have a set of my own. :) I love the other mother. She's done VERY well. So go check out this shop, there's other dolls! 

If you haven't noticed, I love cloth dolls. I think they're great, and one of my favorite things. Also, Tom Servo is top notch. I mean, who doesn't want their very own Tom? I KNOW I DO! I know my husband would LOVE it! I'll do another ina few days on something other than cloth dolls :) 

Have a great day!! 

Tonya @woollyghoulieart

More Creepy Christmas!

Hey everyone!
Just wanted to say, HAPPY ELECTION DAY!!!!! Whoever you're voting for, I don't care. I still like you.

So today, I worked my fingers to the bone. Actually... No I didn't.. I just made a set of Christmas Ornaments. I'm happy with them. I hope someone else will be, too.

So, what do you think? I think they're charming. These were actually plain white skulls from Walmart, in the Halloween section. They came in a bag of like 17 I think.. I am keeping the other.. I figured, out of all the ornaments I'm making, I might as well keep some for myself. These are available in my Etsy Shop.

Here's how I made them..
I cleaned them with soap and warm water, washed all of the whatevers were on them.  Once they dried, I spray painted them with gold metallic paint, let them dry, and hit them again. I took these little tiny screw eye hook things and screwed them in the bottom of each skull, behind the jaw line.
I hit them with gold paint again. Then i started the fun part.. Making the little felt hats! I cut out three red felt circles, cut them in half, sewed the straight edge together. made a little teepee. I took the bakers twine, tied a knot in the end, then sewed it to the inside of the hat, making sure to pull the string to where it would come out the of the top, on the outside. So then i sewed on a little black pom pom and glued it to the skull. Once i got that done, I took more bakers twine, tied little bells to the screwed in eye hook things on the bottom. Then i made some clown collars. I just used a fat quarter, and cut six equal strips, folded them in half inside out, then sewed that closed, leaving the ends opened. I turned it right side out, sewed down along the seam, to flatten it out. Then I sewed the ends together to close it up. I basted along the same seam, and gathered it up, then I pulled the bell through the center, and glued the collar on to the bottom of the skull. Whew! That's what I did! So, if you don't want to do this, and don't have the skulls.  I have them already done! Go check them out!
Thanks for reading, everyone! I appreciate the traffic! It makes me happy to know that someone, ANYONE is out there reading my nonsense.

Remember, the election is ALMOST over. Just a few more hours.. Be nice.

-Tonya @woollyghoulieart

New Skellies and a Day of the Dead doll

So here I am, sitting in my recliner, thinking about blogging.. Hungry..
I decided that I'd go ahead and blog, to see how I feel about eating when I get done. Maybe my hunger is based on boredom. We'll see..

So I got a lot of these plastic skeletons on jute. That Skeleton Garland stuff you get at the Dollar Tree. I love it. It's so fun to take these little skeletons and make them into someone. Like these prissy dancing Skellies I created today.

They are CUTE! I think these might be my favorite ones yet. Here's why.. I'm kind of in love with the Rockabilly fashion, and these remind me of it.. A LOT. The hair is bright and colorful and fun. The eyes are so shiny! The skirts though, that's what sets them apart, in my opinion. They're adorable and are going to be cute on someones Christmas tree.
(Side note: Beefaroni doesn't taste as good as I remember.)
Here's how I got their bodies to have bends in the limbs.
1. Get a medium sized pot, and fill it half way with water, get the water to boil. A good water temp for this project is keep the water at a light boil or a simmer, whatever you call it where it's not raging. Get a big mixing bowl, and put a lot of ice in it, and a lot of water.
2. I popped the ribs off of the spine. The ribs and arms are attached, the legs pop into the hip bone attached to the spine, and the head pops off. Pop the head off, too. Water gets in there and leaks everywhere when you're gluing things on. I learned that the first time I did this for Halloween.
3. I put the legs in first. I left them attached to the spine, because I didn't want to take a chance on them breaking and not getting them to pop back in. I let them boil for about 3 minutes before I took a pair of tongs and fetched them out. WEAR HEAT RESISTANT GLOVES!!! these monkeys get hot! Plus, you're working with boiling water.. Don't be a dummy and burn yourself doing something mindless.
4. Once the legs bent pretty easy at the knees, I held them in place, and dunked them into the ice water bowl for about 15 seconds.. Now, when you bend their knees, elbows, wrists, whatevs.. You need to exaggerate the bend, because when you let go, it will unbend a little. Once I get them set in the ice water, I set them back into the boiling water for just a second, then I dunk them back in the ice water for a second, hen let them dry on a towel.
5. Same thing with the arms as the legs..
6. Once you get that done, and they're dry, you can assemble them back together. And there's your dancing skellies.

Soooooo, hunger was based on hunger. Not boredom. :) but I don't think I'm hungry enough to eat the rest of this gross Beefaroni. Why do they change things? It used to be so good..

These skeletons are available in my Etsy shop www.etsy.com/shop/Woollyghoulie

Thanks for reading!! I appreciate it!!
If you've done anything with Halloween decorations, like reusing them for Christmas, I'd love to see!! Just post your pictures and comments in the comment section below, or find me on Facebook @woollyghoulieart on Twitter @Woollyghoulie or on Instagram @woollyghouliescreepycreations

I'll be having a small give away within a couple days. So, follow me on the above mentions and I'll let ya know what's being given away and what the conditions for the contest are!

ALSO!!! I have ordered and received a TON of handmade soaps from BohoGypsysCreations on Etsy, and they smell so awesome. They look as awesome as they smell, and they're so affordable. So go look at her shop: www.etsy.com/shop/BohoGypsysCreations and get yourself some soaps, bath bombs and soaks!! Also, she has a really cool Wonder Woman purse she made. It even has a Golden Lasso!!!

Thanks for stopping by!!
Tonya @woollyghoulieart