The Idol of Yog-Sothoth

The prolific Jason McKittrick brings us the Idol of Yog-Sothoth. It's the latest of his limited run projects, and comes with some nice supporting accessories.

Carved Cthulhu Idol

Jeff Devine was kind enough to send over a link to his latest project. It's a hand carved wooden Cthulhu idol that's coming along quite nicely.

Turquoise Mosiac Cthulhu Mask

Brandon Zimmerman has been doing some really interesting Mythos pieces. This is one of his best- a Cthulhu cult artifact in the style of a South American turquoise mosaic mask. It would look stunning in a display case.

Bioshock Prop Labels

Whatpayne brings us an incredible selection of product labels from the Bioshock franchise. Browse around his gallery and you'll find even more video game paper props, including a great selection of Fallout items. He also has a tutorial on how to mount them to create a finished prop.

Specimen Unknown

I'm a sucker for tableau presentations like this one from Leon Liang. There's an entire story happening in this one picture. What makes it particularly notable is that it's all digital. None of these objects actually exist.

I'm still not sure how I feel about it.  Craftsmanship and technique are things I value, but is there really a difference between an artist that shuffles around bits instead of clay?  Given the explosion in 3D printing technology the gap between virtual and real props is rapidly closing.  It's incredibly exciting, but vaguely disquieting at the same time.

Faux Jade

"Johnnie" brings us a handy tutorial on creating faux jade with polymer clay. It opens up all kind of interesting artifact crafting possibilities.

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Gentry Edition

The Cthulhu bust from Shaun Gentry that we first looked at last December is now finished. As with his other pieces there's some incredible texture work.

The Silver Key

Mike Jenkins was kind enough to send over this recreation of the Silver Key from Lovecraft's Dreamlands stories.

Because of it's "cryptical Arabesques", and HPL's Arabian Nights leanings, I decided the key should have an Arabic look to it. A little Google Image Searching led me to the keys to the Kaaba (the big black cube at the heart of Mecca), which are very cool looking and covered with Arabic. Go look 'em up. This is a crude, cheap, clumsy replica of a Kaaba key, made by stringing silver colored beads along a thick wire. In person, it is very flimsy and crooked, but with a little careful staging...

Medallion of the Wolf

Polish artist Krissgold brings us the Medallion of the Wolf, based on the videogame "The Witcher". It's a great example of translating a virtual object into the real world, in this case casting it in silver.

Dragon Wand

This Asian influenced Dragon Wand from Maylar is a beautiful piece. Hand carved, and it comes with a fitted storage box.

The Black Stone

Something disturbing is happening outside a small Swedish village. Does this strange black stone figurine have anything to do with it? This sculpted prop comes to us via the Terra Incognita LARP.

Tools of the Trade

What would a vampire hunting kit actually contain?

That's the kind of question that leads one to browse vintage tool sites, and eventually to this wonderful photograph. It's a collection of burglary tools acquired by Police Chief William Desmond and displayed at the 1904 Worlds Fair. There's an argument to be made that this is the kind of gear a real vampire hunter would be using. The conventional Blomberg-style accoutrements (the hammer and stakes, holy water, garlic, and all that) are certainly handy, but you only need them for the actual dispatch. Getting to that point is going to require the tools for some classic breaking and entering.*

*Don't forget the pry bar and wedges. I'm told they're the single most useful tools for breaking into a structure, and equally important for making sure you can get out again.

Hunting Trophies

Christy B brings us a tutorial on how to create a collection of vampire hunting trophies. It would make a nice starter project for anyone looking for a simple introduction to polymer clay.

Bioshock Splicer Mask

Harrison Krix has done more than just make a recreation of the bird splicer mask from Bioshock. He's also provided an incredibly detailed look at what went into making it, from gathering reference materials to applying the final finish. If you have even the slightest interest in making your own props it's a must read.

From Beyond the Mountains of Madness

Jason McKittrick brings us a pair of specimens from the Starkweather-Moore Antarctic expedition. Some day the truth about what's really on that high Antarctic plateau will come out.

The Mask of Cthulhu

"Britzombiegirl" brings us this well done Cthulhu mask. Just click through on the link for a complete series of in-progress shots of the sculpting process. It's fascinating to watch the project develop from the rough initial form to the final detail application.

The Book of Cthulhu

"Sereneti Dragonheart" brings us this interesting Book of Cthulhu. The aging treatment on the cover is incredibly well done. I like the embossment, but it has the same problem as every other tome with an extremely sculptural element- it can never be shelved. You're pretty much obligated to have a storage box for it, or permanently display it on a reading stand.

Lovecraftian Matchbooks

Mike Jenkins was generous enough to send over a collection of Lovecraftian matchbooks. The PDFs can transform a normal book of matches into a handy clue or atmospheric prop.

Inspired by the HPLHS, I have endeavored to create some 1920's-1930's-suitable matchbooks.

The Morrison Co. ones are a reference to the short story "The Call of Cthulhu", and the First National ones are a reference to "The Shadow Over Innsmouth."

First National is / was a real grocery store chain, and this logo is a recreation of their actual logo. I don't know why the HPLHS used a different logo when they made their paper prop (the hand-drawn map included in their SOI radio drama CD).

Fer de Mal is a phony cigarette brand I made up.

Print on white or off-white cardstock. Score on the dashed lines, cut on the solid lines.

If you have any problems downloading the PDFs just leave a note. Google Drive can be a bit wiggy about permissions.

Not of This Earth

Artist Drew Talbot brings us these very nice alien slugs. The paint job on the dorsal countershading is outstanding.

Dragon Skull

Valentin Tournebize brings us this draconian specimen. The piece was inspired by the Krayt Dragon skull from Star Wars.

Werewolf Hunting Kit

Rick Callaway brings us this fun little werewolf hunting kit*. The preserved werewolf finger is particularly well done.

*Sadly, I couldn't find his full name anywhere despite spending twenty minutes trying to hunt it down. Luckily, Mr. Callaway left a comment that allowed me to fix that.

They Bite

Israeli artist KC Mussman brings us this disturbing wound. The inflammation and veining surrounding the appliance is fantastic.

The Tome

Elin Dalstål brings us this handcrafted leather tome. 

Alhazred's Tablet

I won't encourage you to check out Alhazred's Tablet from Jason McKittrick, since it's a product of his pact with the dark powers. No one, at least no human, can sculpt and cast so many nifty artifacts as he has over the last few months.*

*Heh. Actually, I think he's hit on a model that more Mythos artists could take advantage of. There's a strong demand for short runs of Lovecraftian relics. Mr. McKittrick is doing a great job of meeting it with a variety of pieces. I'm not saying that because he's a sponsor, but because I support and appreciate what he's doing.

Quick and Dirty Demon Costume

You need a demon for a music video and the project has a tight deadline and a small budget.

Such was the situation confronting Jacob Petersson, who made up for a lack of resources with an abundance of talent to create this quick and dirty demon costume.  He provides a nicely detailed look at banging it out, including some inspirational repurposing of roadside junk.

This is a great example for anyone confronted with creating a creature for a Lovecraftian live-action game.  When you're working with a miniscule budget things like full body sculpts and pressure cast appliances are out of the question.  Compare the detailed stills in Mr. Petersson's post with the final video and you'll see how to the director used quick cuts and controlled exposure to maximize the impact of the demon.  Shot selection and editing are obviously not available in a live-action scenario, but you can still use the principle of controlled viewing to your advantage.  Dim lighting covers up a multitude of sins.  Adding haze or fog and strobe effects allows you to limit the audience's view even more.  Over the last few years the price of portable strobes and fog machines has plunged, putting them within reach of even the most limited budgets.

Murder of Crows

Rick-is-Art brings us this fantastic recreation of the "Murder of Crows" vigor from Bioshock Infinite. His bottle sculpt is great, but it's the accessories that make the presentation.

Of Unknown Origin

The talented Carim Nahaboo brings us this strange specimen.  Sculpted from epoxy putty with an acrylic paint and ink wash finish.

Preserved Hand

Daniel Martin brings us this bog-style preserved hand.  It's a great recreation of the naturally tanned body parts pulled out of European peat swamps.  The closeup shots give you a feel for the incredibly detailed skin texture.

Ceremonial Pendants

James Ewing brings us these beautiful paired ceremonial pendants. They were handcrafted from brass and copper.

Cthulhu Fhtagn! Prusha Edition.

Christine Prusha brings us this delightful felted Cthulhu. There's so much to like here, from the playful pinup pose to the glittery purple vinyl wings.  And that cheery cherry?  It's actually a spooky skull!