A Cyclonic Cavalcade of Witches and Rockets

Okay, so "cyclonic cavalcade" was taken from a trailer for the old Godzilla movie full of similar styled hype... but as I was writing the copy for tonight's ebay listing - I could hear that same excited voice in my head as I was writing an over the top intro for The Space Witches lantern, and it went a little something lie this: Blast-off to a retro-kitsch sci-fi galaxy where UFO aliens collide into the earthly other-realm of Halloween witches who with their black cat familiars terrorize space in light-speed rockets!!!

Well, all that soul-groaning copy aside, style #4 in the Bindlegrim hex lantern series did make it live tonight, and here is the link by which to set your space ship's navigation controls: 12 side WITCH ROCKETS CATS retro vintage style HALLOWEEN lantern #5/5 BINDLEGRIM

Here are some new photos from the listing, or see the previous blog entry for even more:

And here is a direct excerpt of the ebay listing with general information on the listing:

Spooky Vintage Style Lantern - #4 - The Space Witches 

12 Eerie Visions of Creeps and Chills, Glow for HALLOWE'EN Thrills!

This newest offering in limited edition Bindlegrim hex lanterns merges the cartoon camp of 1950's imagery with the spooky elegance of 1920s vintage paper lanterns. 

Lantern #4 - (Edition #5/5):
This vintage style lantern comes from a series created in limited edition batches, with each different batch containing distinctive pane imagery from the others. This particular style has only 5 made with this particular imagery. And any lantern produced is identified inside the frame - this lantern reads:  "The Space Witches" (#5/5) 2012 Bindlegrim with the artist's Halloween signature.

The frame is created with acid-free museum board. The pieces were Made in the USA and hand assembled by the artist. Each work is packaged in a cellophane bag and also labeled with its number in the edition. The images are laser-prints on vellum for durability. The orange looks great with an orange battery operated candle or a 3 watt flicker bulb. Small holes in the top piece are present for hanging the lantern with soft wire or strong thread if you prefer a battery operated candle.

The Space Witches:
The imagery for this lantern was based on classic candy containers that combined the imagery of witches and rockets. Bindlegrim expanded this idea to create original pane designs, 12 different ones in all, that take the journey into outer space with these witches and their black cats, to see what happens, encountering aliens and other problems - like white mice running loose inside your space helmet - or what if your cat gets stuck on the moon?! Witches and aliens terrorize each other! Cats and mice take their earthly battle into space! Other mischievous witches speed about in helmets and goggles..., they poke the moon in the eye with their broom..., and they crash on dark planetoids!

Space Witches (Halloween Lantern #4)

An unexpected visit came today from a host of 1950s retro-kitsch black cats and witches riding space rockets, (and some not-so-happy aliens), making an appearance at the Bindlegrim studios. This is style #4 vintage-style lantern (imagery with a ton of tiny details) that will have a possible listing this weekend...!

The gallery widget above examines each of the 12 panes (which are each different from one another) in closer detail... and here are a half-dozen photos showing the imagery in the round...

Also...  a short side note to stay tuned for a couple of Bindlegrim bagatelles. Here is some imagery from the second one under development..

There seems to be a bit of a jazz theme happening here. What started out at first as a grumpy moon covering his ears from the sound of raucous skeletons, instead transformed into a high-spirited band leader directing his quartet of band musicians.  I would hazard a guess that "Rumble Bones" is picking on a selection of tunes found on Bindlegrim's vintage Halloween music radio:

Witches, Rockets, and Bindlegrim Radio Waves

With The Haint House Halloween Hex Lantern #3 ending today on ebay, it was maybe past time to get to work on style #4... and this time it's a countdown to outer space adventure featuring witches and rockets! Below are a couple of images from the 12 being created for this new Halloween lantern, (and, btw, for those who might be keeping track, version #1 The Pumpkin Dream & #2 The Cornish Litany will be listed for sale shortly in the coming weeks).

This upcoming version (number four) was inspired by a series of 1950's plastic candy containers with goggle-clad witches riding space-age vehicles. Here's an example of these vintage pieces from the amazing collection of flickr member ghostofhalloweenpast:

With inspiration like that, it's hard not to have fun creating this space-age imagery, while listening to some moog and theremin, with spacey retro lounge music like Space Capades: Ultra Lounge 3, or instrumental rock like Telstar by The Tornadoes, or the darker side of eerie electronic experimental music with Louis and Bebe Barron's Forbidden Planet soundtrack... to name a few.

And speaking of music, that seems like a perfect segue-way to mention Bindegrim radio, which is now broadcasting on a DIY internet broadcaster station that I've enjoyed now for many years called Live365, and is featuring alot of the vintage Halloween music I've been discovering over the past many years.

Currently the Bindlegrim station is in construction-development mode, so the playlist may seem a little limited at this time, but I think audio folks will enjoy what is currently available. I have started off with a collection of Halloween-themed tunes from the 1920's to the 1950's, and, in future, plan to expand the music from those years as well as into larger time-spans reaching into the 1960's and beyond. In the meantime, hope you enjoy the humble musical beginnings, and feedback is always welcome.