...a vampire Valentine on Vampire's Day...

“I have crossed oceans of time to find you.”

~ Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)

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Today is the Fifth Annual Vampire's Day Soiree  at Holly’s Horrorland! I've been preparing for the virtual party all week. As I planned my post, I awoke to the most perfect mind-hijacking and then revised everything. 

I love vampires! I don't have any friends who aren't aware of this. So on this morning that to most is considered Valentine's Day, I received a Vampire Valentine! That made me think that this would be the perfect time to post all those old weird vintage Valentines. 

 
From a quick search on the web, I found a great deal of Bela Lugosi love (duh! Who doesn't love the King of Vampires himself!)  


 Some of the vintage cards resembled Bela Lugosi but I'm pretty sure they were just intended to be "Dracula".

 But then I discovered that while we don't often give these fabulous Valentines as often now since everything is so virtual, there are several more contemporary valentines out there. Again, a quick search on the web led me to the following:

 The last one (the bat hugging the heart) is a Save the Date card which makes me swoon thinking that these two possibly used this as a wedding announcement! It could be easily altered to be a Vampire Valentine!

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Happy Vampire's Day

 

...another batty day...

“Remember my friend that 

knowledge is stronger than memory, 

and we should not trust the weaker”

~Dracula Chapter X

As I mentioned yesterday, this week I’ve been teaching Dracula to my Intro class. 

Since no one really commented on my brooch interpretation yesterday, I tried a bit harder today with a collection of necklaces from my favorite jewelry necromancer Kay Adams. And if the necklaces aren't noticeable, I'm even donning a bat sweater dress! What do I have to do around here for people to notice some bats! Geez! 

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Just another day prepping for the Fifth Annual Vampire's Day Soiree  at Holly’s Horrorland! 

..."alone with the dead"...

"Between me and the moonlight

flitted a great bat,

coming and going in great,

whirling circles."

~Dracula Chapter VIII

This week I’ve been teaching Dracula to my Intro class. We’ve had a great time discussing various scenes that are particularly creepy. 

Today I decided to interpret a scene with Heidi Daus brooches (the "Glowing Glamour" Chandelier Crystal Pin and the "Batty For You" Crystal Pin). 

The character Lucy is alone at night and keeps being disturbed by this pesky bat flying into the window. The large bat shows up throughout the beginning of the novel and 2016 readers already presume that this is actually Dracula.

I’m a little early for the Fifth Annual Vampire's Day Soiree  at Holly’s Horrorland but my love for vampires extends beyond just one soiree day! Consider this me getting ready for the party ;)  

...smelling like Mary Shelley and other classic authors...

A friend sent me an invitation to like Apothescary Scents online just in time for their GRAND RE-OPENING! The shop describes itself as:

“Inspired by macabre tales, gloomy atmospheres, and secret conjure potions, our perfumes are made with pure and essential oils, organic carrier oils, natural resins, and home-grown herbs.”

Apothescary Scents offers a collection of essential oils noting:

“Each small batch is carefully blended by hand, resulting in many unique limited edition runs.”

I purchased the Literary Classics sampler which included five 1.2 ml glass vials.

The sampler arrived just in time for February which to me means Sinus Infection/ Cold season but this year, I had a fever and had the flu for the last week. Ugh! So record silence on the blogosphere… and today I’m just trying to get caught up on wearing the essential oil sampler.

Now keep in mind that while I’m reviewing the scents that they’re on my body with my very own special chemistry. Plus, everyone has her own preference for smells. Overall, I liked the idea of these better than the actual product. I must not have great fine motor dexterity because those tiny vials are always troubling and I was pretty sure that I would pour out half of the product accidentally. Thankfully that hasn’t happened yet. And with all samplers, this is an excellent way to try new products.  

I started with Mary Shelley (bergamot, basil, lemon and grapefruit). I loved this one but it didn’t have much staying power and the scent was very faint. I tried to think of this as a metaphor. Perhaps a Percy Bysshe Shelley scent would smell stronger; perhaps like his long-form verse, his scent would remain longer?

Day 2 was my boy Poe (nutmeg, cedar, cassia Root, Virginia tobacco, bergamot); I’m a fan of the tobacco flower scent and I lovedLovedLOVED this one. Again, it didn’t have the staying power and the scent was very subtle but I’m pretty sure that I’ll go back to wearing this scent.

Day 3 was Old Books (vanilla, balsam, leather). This one was much stronger than the others and it had major staying power. Of course, now I’m wondering if my lack of being able to smell normally influenced how much I could actually smell. Hmmm. While I am a fan of old books, I am not a fan of the Old Books scent.

Today, I put on the Lovecraft (ginger, oakmoss, devil's root, lily of the valley) and No, No, No, No… I washed it off in about five minutes. That was not a scent for me. I replaced it with Emily Dickinson (lavender, orange, rose, jasmine, frangipani) which is now one of my favorites… but then I’m a fan of orange and rose scents.

Although I haven’t tried it just yet, Apothescary Scents also sent me a free sample of their ABSINTHE Perfume Oil which they describe as a scent which “captures that essence in an intoxicating medley of the rich licorice scent of green anise, the herbal bite of wormwood, heady fennel, and warm sugar.”

They also have a Victorian Séance collection. Unfortunately, I do not see any samples but there are a few of the perfume oils listed including:

APPARITION, which “captures this ethereal fragrance for the delight of the living. Freshly-cut grass lays the perfect foundation for slices of ripe pink grapefruit and a drizzle of honey. A breeze of lilies and eucalyptus carries this intoxicating blend from one world to the next”; SPIRIT CABINET, which “captures the dark, mysterious atmosphere created by the rich woods of a spirit medium's unique position during a séance. A deep and earthy base of ginger and patchouli is warmed by the haunting scent of clove. Rosewood and lemon top the fragrance with a veil of citrus-infused sweetness”; and, SMOKE & MIRRORS which “channels that darker side of the Victorian séance. Its deep and sultry scent is a rich and exotic blend of smoky nag champa, earthy cedar, and fresh pine and juniper branches.”

Happy Scenting!