Handmade Skull Ponytail Holders by Michael R. Doyle of Moon Raven Designs Are Boo-tiful.

I came across these quite by accident and immediately fell in love with them. As a matter of fact, I had to buy one - and did. Beautifully rendered skulls hand cast in various materials are placed on elastic bands for use as pony tail holders. Available as yellow bronze, sterling silver plated white bronze, black resin, ivory resin and even a sugar skull version cast in oxidized sterling overlay on white bronze. Prices vary depending upon materials.

Bronze:




Sterling Silver Plated White Bronze:




Black Resin:




White Resin:



Oxidized Sterling over White Bronze:




A black resin Raven skull and sterling silver over white bronze T-Rex skull are also available:






The bands are easily replaceable (as one would not want to have to toss the piece of art when the elastic is stretched out). 



Moon Raven Designs (Mrd74 on etsy) of Victoria, British Colombia is jewelry with an edge inspired by nature - ravens, crows, wolves, bears and much more. They specialize in Corvidae skull jewelry and it's all handmade in Canada by Michael R Doyle who works with his wife Dianne.

Some other examples of their work:





They ship worldwide, have superb reviews on etsy and make lots of beautiful pieces of jewelry and accessories.



Shop the etsy store here

Moon Raven Designs on Facebook
and on Twitter

WHOLESALE ORDERS WELCOME FROM BRICK AND MORTAR SHOPS AND BOUTIQUES.

© All rights reserved. All content and designs contained in this shop are protected by copyright belonging to Michael R. Doyle and the Registered Trademark of Moon Raven Designs

Hamlet Lamps - Modernist Colored Skulls in Transparent Polymer Add An Eerie Glow.

Hamlet are transparent polymer table lamps in Red, Violet or White available at Skitsch. Each side can be used as the base. E14 bulb connection.



Dimensions L14,5 W19 H19,5 cm
Price 95.00 €
Buy them here

Seeing Skulls. James Hopkins' Vanitas.

above: James Hopkins, Decadence and Demise, 2006 (image courtesy of hamburger-kunsthalle)

Skulls, skulls, skulls. They are everywhere these days. But Artist James Hopkins at least has a diference take on them. He has a series of mixed media pieces called Vanitas in which random objects and furniture are composed to create the image or illusion of human skulls.

The term "Vanitas" (sometimes the term "Momento Mori" is used in its place) comes from a practice in which Dutch painters put symbolic imagery of death into their still lives during the 17th century.


above: Last Chord, James Hopkins

Hopkins has created a contemporary version of the practice and is quoted in a Wallpaper Magazine interview in 2006 as saying: ‘I think of vanity when I see my image in the mirror, of knowledge when I read a book, and of indulgence when I drink wine or play music; but all of these things are lost in acknowledgment of seeing the skull reveal itself.’

Black Still Life, 2007 and Consumption & Consequence, 2006:

Design for Life, 2006 and Prosperity & Decay, 2006:

Wasted Youth, 2006 and Shelf Life, 2006:


However, says Hopkins, ‘I don’t want people to think of these works as being negative or morbid — in fact, they should be read as a celebration of life.’

In addition to this work, John Hopkins has many wonderful pieces. See more of his work here.


Another collection inspired by the Dutch "Vanitas", if you have not yet seen it, is the chair, ottoman and lamp by Vladi Rapoport:

Skull Chair, Brain Ottoman & Spine Lamp. The Vanitas Collection by Vladi Rapaport.

A collection of products inspired by the Dutch "Vanitas" still life paintings from the 16th and 17th century. The characteristic type of symbolic still life painting is the one where the symbols of emptiness, time and death were placed on the canvas as a reminder of the vanity of one's earthly life.

Skull/ Vanitas collection chair
materials: wood, polyester, glass-fiber
dimensions: 80 x 80 x 85
year: 2008




skull chair prototype in polyester for © pierre bergé & associés :


Brain/ Vanitas collection footstool
materials: leather, polyurethane foam
dimensions: 50 x 35 x 50
year: 2008



Something dead/ Vanitas collection lampmaterials: leather, steal, carbon-fiber, electricity wire, lamp
dimensions: 40 x 190 x 40
year: 2008

all photos courtesy of vladi rapaport

Vladi Rapaport

Make No Bones About It: Here's 74 Skull Products

In honor of All Hallow's Eve, aka Halloween, combined with the giant skull craze (that's the craze which is giant, not the skull), I thought I'd share with you a few spooky items on the market.

Each adorned in some capacity with a skull.

That's 74 different things with skulls on them. Seventy-four.

From clothes, to pillows to chocolates.

For people, pets, babies and burning.

Click on the item of your choice above to learn more about it and for a link for purchase.

Boo.