Well we have been going and going these last few weeks and am looking forward to the last show we could squeeze in this year - The Glastonbury Frost Fest Saturday the 15th of December. Every show I have been to I have gotten mixed reviews - most have been great but then there are always a few who are disgusted or take their vegetarianism to the divine level.

Yes this is a Holiday market and I have made some very nice and natural yule logs in keeping with the spirit of things (even put a bow on a few of the bigger skulls) but again will probably be the odd one out (which I kinda enjoy).

On the comment front ...

Have to tell you that there are certain animals that are just a real trial to skin. I know there are more than what I am mentioning here but then I haven't had experience with all animals. Skunk is the first I will mention - maybe it was just the smell that made it bad, not sure, what I can say that kept me from doing an easy skin was the amount of fat they store just under the skin and on their bodies. The other animal that comes to mind with this problem is a guinea pig. Just recently experienced one of those and they can be trying without any noxious smell.

Before I go let me share a fun and sarcastic article in The Onion - a news site infamous for this tone of reporting. It maid me giggle a bit.
http://www.theonion.com/content/news/area_pagan_dreading_big_family
If you lack a sense of humor or take being a pagan too seriously don't bother reading it.

HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE, MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY YULE or Just plain of HAPPY HOLIDAYS.

Peace Health and Happiness
Emm

Isn't he just the cats meowww .... I used bits of deer, snake, squirrel, fox, horse, crow, pheasant, as well as black onyx, carnelian, amber, beads and a little glitter to finish him. Let me know what you think.


I am thinking about doing something similar to him using lots and lots of natural colored freshwater pearls with a black background.

Been busy with all kinds of new things. The Halloween Bash in London was fab. Lots of great witchy pagan folk about and although we didn't get to see any copies of Pentacle (who's table I was next too) my article on collecting and cleaning made it in. It was at the news shops just shortly after the Bash. The following weekend we had two other markets - the Pickled Witch Market (which is always a lovely group to share time with) and a Halloween Festival in Crawley put on by Positively Magic which just oozed a fantastic aura.

I have another article that will hopefully make it into Pagan Federation's Mag - Pagan Dawn for their next issue. It is a how-to crafty article and I will wait until it comes out before I talk about it.

Things are quieting down on the market front and getting busier behind the scenes. I do have one more event coming up in just over a week. The Madcap UK Powwow in Northampton will be my last market stop of the year.

I tanned a first snake skin and it turned out lovely. Have several more I will be doing for others whose pet snakes have passed on and want to a keepsake of them. Nothing quite like the feeling of snake skin whether it is on or off.

Had a surprise contact from a rather fun and well circulated magazine here in the UK once I know what issue we will be in I will share it with you. The gorgeous Alix did the interview and she is just a deliciously fun person. We had a drink at the pub and I showed her some O.F. wares which were a huge hit. My husband made her photographer blush (just love my man) and her local side kick Jade was as magical as she was. Thanks you all :::bowing::: it was great fun.

Lots of other things happening. I finally placed a few things up on etsy.com just to keep them circulating and looking forward to sharing some more. Getting ready to order some fresh water pearls to do a skull project similar to the one I will be posting shortly for all to see called the Zoo.

Have a new freezer and new things to work on already in it. Will share them with you all soon. Had a great Halloween nice and quite - only a few knocks on the door (which foretells good luck in the new year) and November is whizzing by at break-neck speed.

I am so looking forward to the Halloween Bash at Mile End London (October 20th & 21st. I just spent two days over the knife skinning and pinning.

Remember in my last post when I said I needed to clean out my little freezer. Well I caught that abominable hair and pulled out a jackdaw, 2 ravens, jay, tawny owl (just applied for the Article 10s for it), a magpie (love those magpies) and one wonky rat. Took a day to defrost and most of the day fighting fluff to prepare for drying.

Visited a friend on Monday and found a squirrel which wasn't there on the way out to his house so I picked him up. Squirrels are nice looking little creatures. Their tails are just Da Bomb.

As a taxidermist in training (still at the skinning stage) I have to tell you that is not easy feat to get the skin off something in one piece with minimal damage. After today and yesterday I think I have had my fill of skinning for a week or two.

I think I have just about all the oddities a person could sift through ready for London and some extra for the following weekend in Dorchesters Corn Exchange (Saturday) and Crawley, Sussex that same weekend (Sunday). As hubby so fondly put it - it will be 10 days from hell. He is just whining because he has to do all the driving. His van is his baby and nobody drives his van.

Speaking of hubby did I mention yet what we bought each other for our 2nd anniversary - (british regulation conforming) Coffins!!! Solid wood - one is 6'4" and mine is 5'10" ... (plus a coffin lid which we use as a display). They look great and we will be selling them on at the Halloween shows. We are such bad children and always have fun being bad. I did originally want one to sell on but honey thought they were too cool so he wanted one to sell on too. Oh the tragedy of having to listen to the dead jokes and wisecracks for those first two weeks. LOL just don't get him started.

I have to thank my ever so sweet husband for putting up with my antics. I used to just collect bones and skulls and strange bits but it has gotten worse since I decided to sell them on. In my freezer which was originally bought for food I have various dead animals which are waiting their turn to be dismantled and returned to a form which someone can love or admire (squirrels, crows, rats even one daughter's pet budgie -yes she gave it to me so I could do a fan with the wings for her).
Poor husband, I can just see the dread in his eyes when I send him out for something from the freezer. Not because the dead stuff bothers him but because he doesn't want to have to move things around - I so need a freezer just for my bits. I do have a small freezer which is dedicated to my business items but it is a counter size one and is packed full. Oh that reminds me I need to go pull something out of it to get it ready for the London Halloween Bash on the 20th and 21st. Keep your fingers crossed animal health comes across with those Article 10s before we leave.

PentaCrow was a popular art piece this last show -SPA.

We just did a one day run from Taunton to Ludlow for the SPA show. We fared better than most but not sure as well as others. It was a bit quiet. Hopefully next year they will be moving to another venue at Leominster or the surrounding area. The parking is a bit pricey which may have kept some from coming by and well I think it was hard to notice there was something interesting happening inside the building which was just down from the market on a side street.

Strange the way what sells at one show does nothing at the next. One show it was horse skulls, crow fat and skull beads then at another it was horse tails and crow wings. At SPA I could have sold 'Penta-crow' 3 times over but the other things that sold were over a wide range.

Just as it has been at the last two shows there was some discussion going on about our little corner. Adorned with a coffin lid with netting for hanging things and five horse skulls looking over our shoulders as well as our normal glassed in cabinet, six foot table and revolving display we were quite an item. Most enjoyed browsing and doing the tactile window shopping things and comments were great. The other tables had some really wonderful stuff. That was a greatly talented group of people I was surrounded by I can only wish more people could have enjoyed visiting.

This coming weekend we have a powwow to attend. This should be interesting because I have been to powwows in the States. I am looking forward to seeing how the dancing goes here (if I get a chance to get away from the stall long enough to go see it.

Well another few days and another blog. Last Wedneday I picked up 6 horse heads and three pigs heads and have set about getting them ready to flog on.

I cleared the cheek meat and throat meat - which had to be done within twenty four hours if I wanted to give themeat to a friend with big russian hounds. Oh did my back tell me how out of shape I am for bending over dead stuff.

Besides the removing the extra meat off the horses before the cleaning process could begin I also had to deface the piggies. Oh My the amount of face that a pig has. Pigs skulls have alot of fat and strange shapped skulls - I can only hope that I didn't put any noticable cuts in any of them trying to get off as much as possible.

The cleaning process started on Thursday (as well as taking the meat to the hounds) and I am determined not to mess with them for at least 7 if not 8 weeks. I have another five in the finishing stages of cleaning for the next few shows. This lot that just went in is for the halloween shows.

The pony skulls tend to lose their teeth easier and it is amazing the difference in the teeth placement between the horses and ponies. I wonder if that might be a way to id the breed of horse/pony in the skulls.

Oh also have dried a horse neck cape (neck mane and ears) Should make a great addition to the stall as well as the tails which sold so well at the last fair I know have some 11 more (in black, dark brown, sorrel, white/beige, blackandwhite, medium brown and black/sorrel).

If anyone reading this has a request or suggestion let me know - I do need comments to help inspire new ideas in what I can offer the public.

I hope to keep this area updated when new and strange stuff is happening with my hobby turned business Occult Fetish http://www.occultfetish.com.

Best description is Bone Craft supplies as bones are my main focus but the strange, weird, unusual are all top focuses when we are searching for items for my customers.

I will back track as I go but lets just dive right in and start with something new which I recently added to the inventory.

I don't normally mess with road kill badgers. They are big and hard to handle, bloat quickly and are generally smelly but I was asked at the last show if I had one. ... Hmm not really! The next morning I came across a very fresh female badger and decided to give it a try. Mainly for the skin which was and still is in great condition. It is still salty but over the next week I plan to continue to work it. My aim to have a naturally cured but semipliable skin to sell at the Halloween Bash in London.

Another Badger tidbit I have in practicing my taxidermy skinning achieved what would be a Badger Paw Pouch with pads and claws still attached. Sooo incredible. Will let you know, when it is finished, how it turned out.

Feel free to comment ... make suggestions, requests ... just keep it clean. I do enjoy a good challenge so if there is something you are looking for ... strange weird whatever feel free to ask and I will see what I can do.