Repurposed Elvis Bust Thrift Store Find - Rockabilly Meets Day of the Dead

Musical Icon Makeover Before And After

Which do you like better?  On the left, we have tired, original Elvis - and on the right?  Well, now he's back in fighting form, bright and wicked.  

Selfie with the King, before we went to work.

One last look At the original Elvis Bust in his dirty, dull, weird-eyed state. 

Ideas of transformation were swirling in my mind - would he be a Talavera Elvis?  Would I go rockabilly?  The possibilities almost paralyzed me with indecision.

He was pretty filthy, to be honest. 

I couldn't tell how dire the situation was until I started scrubbing! He was a bisque piece, unglazed, so I knew the paint would stick.  But, that rough finish also meant that everything else he had been exposed to over the years stuck as well!

He needed several coats of gesso.

Roughing in the honnky-tonk inspired shirt design

Trying to reshape his chubby face was a challenge. 

You cannot believe the definition the mold maker had put into Elvis' lips!  Odd, really, when you consider how oddly undefined the eyes had been.  I knew the teeth were going to be a showstopper one way or the other.  

still struggling to put my 2D concept and habits onto this 3D form

Taking shape, but his eyes are looking too large and give him a sort of owl-like vibe which is too innocent for my liking

Just a little more work to do.

It has been said that the secret is to know when to stop.  I wasn't 100% pleased with him yet, but it was getting to the point where I didn't really have anything else I could or wanted to add.  It was a matter of tweaking now, and then glazing with some tints mixed in.  

And finally... he came together for me!

"Elvis Has Left the Grave" by Sherri Bones Nelson, 2015

This fantastic , one of a kind original art piece is for sale now either through my website or my Etsy shop.  Buyers outside of the US or Canada will have to allow me to package him up and take him to the Post Office for a shipping quote, since the Canada Post shipping calculator is giving me a hard time today.  Links below:

ELVIS on sherrinelson.ca

ELVIS on ETSY

Dia De Los Muertos party!

September is a busy month for me.  Always has been - I suppose many of us have the same experience being that September marks a shift from the lazy days of summer back into the routine of school and whether or not you're a student you can't help but get swept up into that energy which is all around.

Now that school is long past for me and even for my daughter I still find that smell of autumn triggers in me a desire for new routines, organizing papers, cracking open calendars and, oddly, the desire to fill my closet with crisp white shirts.  (That last one has never actually happened but still, I have the urge, okay?)

Today, for me, this time of year means a gearing up for Halloween and Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead.)  

I've been painting and creating some new things which I have on offer in my Etsy shop, Bones Nelson.

Bubble wands, gift bags, loot bags, fall baby clothes, adult raglan shirts with sugar skulls and new paintings, too.  

All available at Bones Nelson on Etsy.

Ornaments, too!  Every year I make a new set, this is the 4th year - check out which ones I still have available to buy here:  Ornaments

What are your favorite things to do at this time of year?  Have you any projects on the horizon?  Do you like to get organized?  Fill your closet with pressed button downs?  Tell me in the comments! 

Let Me Be Clear - Harper's Canada is nothing but. My Original Painting after the style of Heironymous Bosch

LET ME BE CLEAR. 2015. Sherri 'Bones' Nelson

I have finished this piece today.  it is a work that has been taking shape in my head for a long while.

Let Me Be Clear doesn't feature a single skeleton (sorry!) however it is a surrealist piece where dark and light meet so I hope that it will not only delight regular viewers but also give my fellow Canadians something to think about as they make their way towards the October election.

detail view Let Me Be Clear, Sherri Bones Nelson, 2015

detail view Let Me Be Clear, Sherri Bones Nelson, 2015

detail view Let Me Be Clear, Sherri Bones Nelson, 2015

detail view Let Me Be Clear, Sherri Bones Nelson, 2015

the viewer is encouraged to sift through the many details to find hints at the issues and representations of how I perceive my country to have changed.  A small sample of the issues highlighted in this piece are:

• destruction of our environment & selloff or our resources,
• the devaluation of our currency and the credit/housing bubble
• the PMO's disregard for justice & the Constitution
• the PMO's callous treatment of Veterans and First Nations peoples.

If you have the time I'd love to hear thoughts in the comment section.  The truth is that Canada has suffered under this regime and I hope I have provided a work that can be used as a reference point someday in the future but also as a tool for discussion right here, right now.

Remember -- 

The blackest darkness is broken by a single ray of light.

Each one of us embodies that light.  It's up to us.

SHINE !

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BonesNelson.com Website

I am so excited to announce that I've finally gotten my own website up and running under the BonesNelson.com domain.  Woo-Hoo!

It's still being built, really, but at least it is there and offers some links for people to follow to see and buy my art.

I have also opened up an account / shop with Zazzle so that anyone who would like a POSTER sized version of any of my pieces may email me and I'll set it up for the Zazzle team to create and send to them!  

Here's a link to my website:  BonesNelson.com

And here's the one for Zazzle:  Bones Nelson on Zazzle

Don't forget about my popular baby bodysuits in true Dia de Los Muertos style! on ETSY

Tiny Bubbles... Day of the Dead Wedding and Party Favors by Bones Nelson

Now available in my Etsy Store, Bones Nelson are sets of bubble wands with gorgeous, colorful, festive Dia de los Muertos labels I designed and apply in house.

Day of the Dead for Christmas? Yes! And Krampus, too

if you've never heard of Grub vom Krampus then allow me to introduce you to a fella who has been terrorizing children up in Northern Europe for more than a hundred years now  He's a counterpart to Santa which sort of makes sense when you think about it; wherever there's a good guy there's his arch nemesis, right?  

Jolly Old Saint Nick looks even saintlier when pictured next to old Krampus.  

See what I mean?  

So I've worked on a few designs, stylizing the demonic creature a couple of ways in order to offer a funny, dark alternative to the usual cast of characters.  Have a look:

Gift Tags and Gift bags... I hand cut that stamp you see on the bags - my first time using that technique in nigh on 25 years, I'd say.  (you like that?  I said "nigh on."  I'm not as old as that makes me sound but it kinda goes with the medieval vibe of the photos, right?  sure, right.)  Anyway I loved carving - especially now that Speedball has this soft easy-cut material.  I'll likely do lots more in the New Year.  

For now though Christmas holiday season approaches so I've got a few new items on offer for that.  In the coming days I'll post more, but for now have a look at my little Mexican Folk Art Snowman cards, and see if you might want to pick up a printed set, or buy the file to print your own!

you gotta fill one or more of these, don't forget!

All of this stuff and a lot more is available through my Etsy shop, BONES NELSON .  You can also visit me on Facebook at Bones Nelson Art or have a look at my website (which I badly need to revamp soon) Sherri Nelson Artworks

All the best for Halloween!  
Sherri

August has been a busy month for this Day of the Dead artist! (and that's great!!)

I've been going full steam for the past three weeks, much to mys surprise.  This summer has been cooler than normal and I suppose if I weren't working so much and didn't have to use very hot equipment the weather would be making me a little blue.  Having a busy shop is definitely not something I'm going to complain about but it has kept me from painting.. something I am aching to get back to.  Ahh well, soon! :)

One thing I've added to my offerings are wrapped canvas prints.  The above is my "Tamales" and it is reproduced here as an 11" x 14" canvas.  I paint the sides, which are staple-free, and I include the hanging hardware.  I hope to add more Kitchen Catrinas to the mix soon.

You can always contact me via this blog, but a better way is through my website contact page.  Look for that here:  Sherri Nelson Artworks  or you can purchase most of my stuff via Etsy here:  Bones Nelson

Painting, Packaging, Ordering, Marketing, Designing, Printing, Sketching... !

It's August and finally getting to feel like summer.  The cool weather hasn't bothered me, though - I've enjoyed working in this weather.  And I have indeed been working!  It's wonderful to be busy and have the creative juices flowing.  I thought it was about time I stopped for breath and to make a post here showing what I've been doing lately.

Excuse the watermarks, etc - I've recently been pirated!  My piece entitled "The Cotillion" was being used without my permission so I've gotten a little more concerned about making my online stuff more difficult to copy.  It all worked out in the end, so no worries.  I hope that in spite of my name being all over the following images you'll still get an idea of the pieces that have been finding their way out of my imagination and out into the 3D world.  :)

More to come...

Tilly and her AMAZING art piece "Skeleton of a Frog"

Creativity + Generosity = Awesomeness  

I met Tilly last weekend at the Skeleton Park Arts Festival and we had a chance to chat a little about art, paintbrushes, skeletons and dance recitals.  It was a marvelous time all 'round and as we said goodbye I hoped that Tilly would keep her promise to me and continue to make pictures and use her imagination to create wonderful works of art.  She told me she would send something to me one day, and .... she DID!

I don't know if Tilly knew this before, or if maybe we just have one of those kindred spirit things goin' on, but it just so happens that frogs are my favourite creatures in the whole world! So when Tilly's mom sent me the photo of Skeleton of a Frog I was so excited!  I asked permission to share it with the world, and so ladies and gentlemen, I have.  Enjoy.  :)  

Keep your eyes open for Tilly's work - I can see her blossoming into a famous artist one day!

All Things Unrelated: Paintings, Desserts & Highly Questionable Coffee Table Books

This is not an overly disciplined working day, I must say.  I have been going back and forth between listening to motivational speeches on the Youtube to looking up Thai desserts to painting.  The lack of focus on any one thing has produced lackluster results thus far. See photo of coconut vanilla mousse, below:

I know that this is nothing to write about, yet I can't seem to stop myself from doing it anyway.  What you are looking at, above, is Vanilla-Coconut Mousse.  If I left it at that perhaps you'd believe me to be creative and competent.  Hmmm.. should I?  Should I leave it at that then?  :)  Argh, I can't do it.  I have to confess that it's merely a packet of Dr Oetker mix blended with half a can of coconut milk and spooned indelicately into a fruit dish.  Even the photo of it is sub-par.  I mean look at the way the curly-q top seems to come out of the edge of the dish there.. *sigh*  but you know, the colours aren't bad.  And the background makes it look like I might live somewhere lush and exotic, so you know, it could be worse.

On to the work of art I'm creating with only a third of my brain engaged:

Look at the way the vase leans awkwardly!  Check out those checks!  And the funny little orchid blooms which I wanted to look subtly like skulls peeking out of hoods actually look very OBVIOUSLY like skulls and unfortunately the hoods are reminiscent of a dark period in US history  Well.. one or two of them are anyway.  

Which reminds me..

This book happens to be sitting on the side table up in the roof observatory of the building I live in. It's about the Olympic torch run in Canada, maybe for the Montreal Olympics or something.. but... come ON!  That is not the picture I would have selected for use had I been the editor, and it is not an item I would have selected for display had I been the decorator of the room, either.

So yeah, nothing brilliant up with me today.  Maybe tomorrow. I think it probably takes a day or two for those motivational messages to kick in.  Yeah, that's got to be right.

What's in YOUR Potato Salad?

It's Victoria Day weekend here in the land of the Maple Leaf, and that means burgers, corn on the cob & cold salads for this family.  For my part, I was in charge of a summer staple:  Potato Salad.

Everyone grew up eating a generations-passed-down recipe where every matriarch along the way added a little something special.  The resulting salad is sure to be a one of a kind and, much like turkey stuffing, is bound to be the one you crave when you are in need of some comfort food.

The Nelson Potato Salad gets gobbled up quickly here in our humble abode.  My ingredients are shown in the photo I snapped while the potato and eggs were cooling today.  What you can't see are the bay leaves that I boil in with the potatos.

What's in your special recipe?

Baby You Have STYLE! Rockin' Day of the Dead and Mendhi inspired cross-cultural cool

Mexican Folk Art Meets Traditional Indian Henna in these new designs.

I love the intricate patterns in Mendhi (Henna body art) ..

But I love the colours of Mexican Folk Art:

So I combined the two inspirations and have come up with something a little bit 70s, a little bit Latin, and a little bit South Asian:

This last one takes one last step into the avant-garde with a tie-dyed colour scheme. :)  To have a better look at any of these, please CLICK HERE.