I have been with Etsy for 15 years and I have been wanting to say goodbye to it for quiet some time. I can’t say when exactly it became more a hindrance than a tool for my business, but this past year I had to wonder why I was jumping through all these extra hoops for Etsy AND they wanted an extra 12-15% on top of the 6.5% fee, which does NOT include the credit card processing
I try to remain optimistic in the belief that things will get better, but at the same time I am reminded daily of the short time we each have in this existence. You just have to try to do the best with what time you have. Another year is here and already five months in. So what is it I have planned this year? Well, I told myself I would start painting more. And I have. So
Launching a YouTube channel in the supernatural entertainment art niche has been a fun project. All the stories you’ll see on the channel are entirely original — spun from my imagination, though some are lightly inspired by eerie real events and timeless folklore. But while the tales may blur the line between fiction and truth, every mask, flask, and haunting prop you see is 100% real and handmade by me. From sculpting to painting, it’s all crafted
Light the Way – A Grimm Design Game Light The Way – A Grimm Design by Mother Grimm Well it has finally happened. I got my little game up onto Itch.io. I had wanted to place it up on steam, but there appeared to be a $100.00 deposit that I just didn’t have at the moment. My minion reminded me there was Itch.io and I ran over there to upload it. GO CHECK IT OUT RIGHT NOW!
Around March I said goodbye to my day job. It was clear after nearly five years as the assistant manager, when the manager position opened up I was past over for the bosses BBQing buddy. Not only was I past over but I would been required to teach my new boss everything in my field, a field in which I had over two decades of experience and expertise. Knowledge which had been a job REQUIREMENT. And when
Being back in the physical realm of conventions selling my creations has been amazing and fun. You get to meet wonderful people that stop by the booth and see brilliant cosplays. But what I really missed was the interaction with other creators who set up shop next to you. Literately spending almost twelve hours for three days with your neighboring vendors, you start to build a relationships with them. It in itself is a small little community
I’m very excited to announce that I’ve paid off my booth for Space-Con in San Antonio! I’ve got a corner booth in the artist alley and I am very very excited to get back onto the Convention Floor and see all the wonderful people. Once everything is laid out and booth numbers are assigned, I’ll make another post about where in the world I will be. Don’t miss out though! I’ve bringing a ton new flasks, masks,
I reached that magic number, so I thought it was time for another post on the Studio website. As you can tell (or not) I’ve been working on relisting things on Etsy, rejoining Art Leagues, working on the ARG, all the while trying to balance a full time job, family, and sleep. But that isn’t to say I haven’t been creating things. I’ve made a few new masks and want to make a ton more! If you
Well, it’s a New Year. There is no denying that. I don’t know what the future holds, but as this is the year I will turn 42, that magic number that explains life, the universe and everything in it. As a person I’ve been working on life, as a creator I’ve been managing too much. Need to focus down and finish a few things, but I tend to jump around from project to project. I’ve got a
The redesign is finally here and I feel I’ve got my spark back, now that A Grimm Design has officially opened for browsing. I’ll have a more dedicated post about it later. Please excuse some of the areas if they look a bit unpolished. I’m having to take care of things in small bites as I do not have very much free time on my hands working a full time job. I still need to move the
I spent a lot of time in the sun as a kid and a teenager….and young adult. Okay, so let says 25+ years of suntans and sunburns and that one little stint as a teenager where I tried to get that golden tan color, frying myself in the sun for skin that I hardly ever even showed. One day I noticed a funny freckle on my shoulder, it looked different than all the others. Over the next
It has been over three years since I have last seriously engaged with my social outlets including my websites and Etsy. Covid certainly changed many lives and during the pandemic many many things changed. Among health issues, a change of housing and a change of jobs, I began planning my next move with A Layman Studios. Several years ago, I switched to using A Layman Studios, but I kept the A Grimm Design for a special line
Last year I was contacted by a client that wanted me to make a unique mask for an art campaign that she is doing focused on empowering women. While I wait for the collaboration to bare fruit, I decided to completed the test mask that I had created to get the basic shape down for her mask. I was extremely happy with what came out of it. I called it ‘ Midsummer Nights Dream’ based of the
This year I had a table in the Artist Alley of Austin Wizard World 2017 and while it was smooth operating from artist load in to load out, I believe this will be my last year attending as an Artist. I enjoyed seeing everyone’s costumes and cosplays, they were all fantastic and a lot of great flashbacks to the films and games I enjoyed when I was growing up. However, I think that WW ended up pricing
They say artist need to express themselves in the emotional times of their lives, wether that be high points or lows ones and this Art Doll was created during probably the lowest emotional time of my life. You see my father had just passed away and I was having a difficult time feeling much of anything. My Etsy orders still trudged on, but there wasn’t the same feeling of enthusiasm that I had for them. Being with
In March of 2017 I had entered a ‘Call for Artist’ for the City of San Marcos. The project was to create a paint job for a seven foot statue of a mermaid that the City of San Marcos would keep on display for two years. I had came up with several designs, some were variations of each other, others were whimsical and odd. There would be ten artist that would be selected, and there had been
This was my third Artdoll. And not long after creating him I gave him a makeover in the fashion department. I hadn’t been happy about the way his costume had turned out, it was a mess of cheesecloth and chains; and to put it bluntly, it looked horrible. So I took him back to his birthday suit and redid his clothing, sewing a little vest and hood for him. And I think he looks a lot better
It had all started with one Serenity Steampunk Flask. And I admit that there was some confusion as to the correct Serenity Chinese Character that was used. I believe I had pulled my reference off the movie. In any case, I no longer make that flask. I did however branch off and offered several different designs. They have been the pride of many Browncoats and each one that I have made has been signed, dated and numbered
6oz Stainless Steel Flask with a Leather Cover Sleeve with the Survey Corps Emblem, Cadet Emblem, Garrison Emblem or Military Police Emblem tooled and sculpted into the leather. The smaller 6oz flask is ideal for Attack on Titan (進撃の巨人 Shingeki no Kyojin) Cosplayers or for keeping your fandom flask discrete on your persons. Tri colored Stained, with black stain on the textured background and an antique saddle tan for the rest of the flask cover. The emblems
This was the second polymer clay art doll that I ever made. He also was a ton of fun to create and my father use to joke that it looked exactly like him. I’m not quite sure about that, but perhaps it’s the cheeks and the belly. He’s still looking for a place to call his own, so go check him out on my Etsy Shop. This is a One of a Kind Art Doll with head,
This was the first Artdoll that I ever made and he’s accompanied me to many many shows waiting for the right person to take him home. I had a tremendously pleasant time making him. The Woodsman: This Gremlin loves his woods and his animal friends. He is as wise as the trees and as gentle as the breeze. This is a One of a Kind Art Doll with head, hands, and feet sculpted with polymer clay.
A hip flask is a thin flask for holding a distilled beverage; its size and shape are suited to a trouser pocket. The hip flask began to appear in the form recognized today in the 18th century, initially used by members of the gentry. And a unique flask is often the gift of choice between colleagues. You can choose to have a flask made to reflect your favorite fandom, organization, hobby, or a special custom design. The
At the request of a few customers, I decided to show what goes into making the leather pocket watch cases that I sell. I want to start out by saying that each pocket watch case is completely handcrafted. They are not mass produced and no two will ever be alike, even if they carry the same design. I had been approached by a patron a few years about making a leather pocket watch case to hold a
