Days of The Dead Indy 2022

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Is our extended weekend already over? That’s how I am feeling right now as I type this. Since the pandemic, my husband and I have not enjoyed one of our full blown horror con weekend getaways. We did a random one day drive to Flashback Weekend last year and prior to that we hadn’t enjoyed a full horror con weekend since Days of the Dead in 2019. That was until this past weekend when we decided to take some days off work, extend our weekend and take a road tip back to Indy for another Days Of The Dead con.

As in the past, I was especially excited to gift some of my original art pieces to those who who would be attending and inspired my work. Unfortunately Lori Petty cancelled at the last minute so this Tank Girl fanatic will have to wait until our paths hopefully cross one day in the future. However the guests who did attend that received my work were incredible and made the experience and road trip so well worth it.

First was John Kassir. It felt so great to be in his presence again (we met him in 2018 in Chicago). There are just some people in this world that you encounter that you get all the good vibes from and John is definitely one of those people. I had shared my “Deadtime Stories” art piece with him via the link to my blog post which he was so kind to stop by and comment on. He recognized it right away when I approached his table with the original and told me how impressed he was with my work and that not all things “Tales From the Crypt” that he collects/owns get put up on full display in his home. However, my piece most definitely will be. He gifted me a 8×10 signed Crypt Keeper picture and took this great photo with Frank and I. Later on we even had the honor of enjoying his company in the hotel bistro and he displayed my work on his table all weekend long. Seriously.. I can’t say it enough.. John really is the greatest!

Later after Patty Mullen arrived and was settled in at her table we visited her and I was able to gift her my “Tossed Human Salad” art piece. She also recognized my work and told me that she had seen it posted on Instagram. She said she was impressed with the way I captured her likeness in such a unique way. Especially her eyes. She said for some reason people have difficulty getting them right but I got her spot on. She was a blast to talk to. Even her interacting with the fans before us in line was a trip to watch. Especially when she was in full Frankenhooker inspired fashion from head to toe! So much purple I was loving it. She too gifted us a 8×10 signed Frankenhooker print and took this adorable photo with me. She was so sweet and so much fun to meet!

If that was not memorable enough. Frank and I decided to enter the That Damn Tattoo Contest that was taking place at the convention. Originally I talked Frank into entering his new They Live tattoo and the people hosting the event insisted I enter my Pee Wee’s Playhouse tattoo as well. We BOTH ended up winning in different categories. Frank took home Best Horror Sci Fi Tattoo and I won Best Small Color Tattoo. The judges who we met on stage during the show had nothing but great things to say about our work. We are now so excited to be able to share these plaques with our tattoo artist Luke Reubelt when we see him next.

It felt all around great to finally have a horror con weekend away just the two of us and experience such lasting memories in the process. An all around great weekend that went by way too fast. Thank you again Days of The Dead for another killer event and to John and Patty for being so kick ass!

Stay Spooky & Magical,
LDG Nicole

Freaky Fanatics: John’s Penny Furter Display

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I was so thrilled to see this photo in my inbox. It comes from one of my customers John and it shows how he has displayed my “Penny Furter” print in his home! 🎈

John loved the piece so much he purchased a 2nd print so his wife has something unique for Tim Curry to sign at the upcoming Monsterpalooza convention! I always love when my artwork is used for these memorable experiences and can’t wait to hear more from John after they meet the legend himself.

Have a photo of how you display my art in your home? Contact me so it can be featured with John’s photo in the Freaky Fanatic slideshow of my official portfolio website!

Are you a Tim Curry fan? Looking for something unique for the next horror con? Be sure to get your own “Penny Furter” print or t-shirt in my Etsy shop! Prints are also available to purchase in person at Closet Collectibles in Crete IL!

Stay Spooky & Magical!
LDG Nicole

Flashback Weekend 2021

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As my blog and bio readers are fully aware, I attend a lot of conventions to network, gift my art and be around like minded people. The first horror con we ever went to was Flashback Weekend in 2004 (where we met Sid for the first time). We have been attending them regularly, every year since. We even travel to them or have mini staycations for the whole weekend to really make the most of them.

Since COVID hit we haven’t been able to attend any conventions and have been having major withdrawals. Most cons were cancelled or dates kept being pushed back for a long period of time. As they started to gradually make a small come back we were still avoiding crowds, not traveling and masks were still mandatory for photos etc. Not to mention they would be planned and then cancelled as restrictions were changing from day to day.

Since things have started to re-open more, Flashback Weekend announced their return. We originally were not going to attend. Wait it out some more but my husband Frank and I discussed it and on a last minute whim decided to go. We figured if they decide to shut the world down again at least we got to get our horror con fix in. Being smart about things still being so unknown we decided to only go one day and on a Sunday which as any convention goer knows, is the quietest and least crowded day to attend.

Here are some highlights from our last minute horror con adventure…

One of the most exciting parts of the day was when we decided to adopt a life size Stripe Gremlin. He enjoyed the convention with us all day long. The best was when a young girl passed us and said “Ohhhhhh.. you broke the 12 O’Clock rule!” Frank and I laughed about it all day….

Stripe Garcia also helped us connect with some new horror fanatic friends. So many people stopped and asked about him or took photos of him. Including the most adorable young cosplayer who goes by The Mini Creep. She saw him and asked if she could take a photo with him. I saw her incredible Sam costume and asked if I could take a photo with her. It made my creepy little soul happy to see someone so young and so excited to dress up and be a real part of things. It made me flash back to the day I was little and dressed like Elvira and how much I would’ve loved events like this when I was a kid.

Then of corpse the main reason we came to the convention was to embrace our inner 80’s child. When we saw the guest list there were 2 main things we wanted to accomplish, and that was having a mogwai play date with Billy Peltzer and finding the shooting star that would lead us to a circus tent from space! Check and check!

We were so glad that we were able to enjoy a horror con again. It was just what we needed. We knew we missed our horror community but after being there again after so long it really hit us how badly we missed it. Oddly enough it was refreshing. I guess if I were to describe it from my witchy point of view I would honestly say it re-grounded me. I was having a bit of a stressful week and I think Frank knew this would lift my spirits (goddess do I love this man).

Thank you again to Flashback Weekend for putting on another fun and safe event for us horror geeks to feel free again!

Stay Spooky & Magical!
LDG Nicole

Days Of The Dead Indy 2017

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Days Of The Dead Indy 2017 (5)We just got back from Indy. Our friend gave us some weekend passes for Days of the Dead. It worked out perfectly because I really wanted to give Sid (Haig) my “Shit The Bed” split face portrait. I was waiting to see when he would be back in Chicago but these passes ended up working out perfectly. Frank and I had been discussing a small summer getaway, we had the extended long weekend already for the holiday and most importantly Sid was on the guest list. His birthday is in July so I thought how perfect is it that I will be give it to him before his birthday. So I made sure to wrap up my portrait (red and blue of course) and we were on our way!

Sid loved the portrait but he also took the time to catch up with us over dinner and drinks. These cons tend to get pretty busy so it was nice to have some sit down time with him since we don’t get to see him all the time. He is such a wise man. We took in so much of his knowledge, advice and enjoyed every minute of the quality time we got to spend with him. He also really loved seeing my Spaulding Skull tattoo (he had previously emailed me telling me it was “so fucking cool” right after I had gotten it) and signed an autograph for my Dad. I am truly grateful to have such an amazing person that I can call a friend. Days Of The Dead Indy 2017 (1)

I also was pretty happy to see that Felissa Rose (Angela Baker from Sleepaway Camp) was added as a last minute guest addition. So Frank and I decided to pay her a visit. Seriously one of the sweetest guests to meet at a con. She kept telling me how cute I was. How much she loved my Carrie/Barbie mash up shirt (she even took a photo of it) and kept saying how great Frank and I were together. I highly recommend meeting her if you get a chance at a con.

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Here are some great shots Frank took of me with some of the decor they had up at the con. The Halloween house was really well put together and I was drawn to it right away. The zombie girl eating intestines… well I told her I didn’t have too much of mine left so she shared some with me ha ha.

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The weekend in general was much needed little getaway and we had a blast. Here are some photos of our horror haul we brought home with us. We had to stay with in our budget (due to a hotel room dilemma that cost us more then we expected) but I think we did pretty good for what we could get.

Frankenhooker, They Live and Beetlejuice T-shirts, Critter Action Figure, Leatherface Political button, Elvira, Brainscan and Alien patches!

Stay Spooky!
LDG Nicole