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!