toys

Travis Louie’s Brady Bunch of Stan Customs for Le Carnaval, 9.13

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 A few days ago, Travis Louie gave us a taster of a couple Stan Skelves that he was working on for Le Carnaval des Spectres, opening next Thursday at Artoyz Paris. Well, damn, when Travis promises Stans, we get Stans: a whole Brady Bunch of ’em! Each of these dapper gents are one-of-a-kind and handpainted by Travis. They’ll retail for $950 each.

Funny: I wonder how many little slippers and moustaches Travis has littered about his studio; this batch is goin’ bare foot and that’s one freshly-shaved pickle if I ever saw one. (Travis refuses to eat pickles that have moustaches, by the way. But he’s perfectly OK with eyeballs.)

Le Carnaval des Spectres opens Sept. 13 through Oct. 20th at Artoyz Shop + Galerie in Paris, France. The exhibition marks CP’s first group exhibition on European soil and features a collection of new two- and three-dimensional works from Kathie OlivasBrandt PetersTravis LouieChris RyniakAmanda Louise Spayd and Teodoru Badiu.

It’s a Wrap: The Final Pieces from KO & BP for Le Carnaval des Spectres

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It’s official! Kathie Olivas and Brandt Peters have just put the finishing touches on their last custom pieces for Le Carnaval des Spectres, which means the CP crew is DONE! [Insert collective sigh of relief here.]

Kathie wrapped up the beautiful “Shadow” Calliope Jackalope a couple days ago and admittedly,  I’m sort of grateful … these little ladies have been teasing me for months; they’re mesmerizing and even more so in person. And as I’m sure you’ve noticed, they’re in good company with a few Grieving Greeters and Dark Wippos, which we’ll talk about very soon.

And then there’s Brandt’s final figure, which quite honestly bombed my inbox earlier this week. It’s freaking awesome, gang, and I don’t even know if I can share it. It’s all insane and Kaiju style and painted with a freaking airbrush.

Aw hell, I’ll give you a teaser. BUT THAT’S IT!

… Did I mention it’s a collaboration with Chris Ryniak? And just wait; this guy gets even better. Alas, I can say no more (and if you don’t hear from me tomorrow I’ve been fired :D). Almost all of the custom figures for this exhibition have remained a secret, lurking in the depths, eagerly awaiting opening night. Stay tuned … the curtain will be up before you know it.

Le Carnaval des Spectres opens Sept. 13th through Oct. 20th at Artoyz Shop + Galerie in Paris, France. The exhibition includes new works from Kathie OlivasBrandt PetersTravis LouieChris RyniakAmanda Louise Spayd, and Teodoru Badiu.

Countdown to the Carnival: Silver Boo from KO & BP

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For Day 2 of our Carnival countdown, Boo is BACK and looking better than ever in a shimmering silver colorway. Following suit with his Fantôme fleet, Boo’s packing a pair of brilliant GID eyes, framed by a charcoal “niblet” mask. His robe is metallic silver with antique accents. It’s all swoon here, folks.

A full, 66-piece run, Silver Boo will debut exclusively as part of Le Carnaval des Spectres. Five will be available at the exhibition and the rest will be sold online with the Paris packs and forum lottery (leftovers will be put up in the shop if necessary). He retails for $265.

Countdown to the Carnival: Brandt’s Fantôme Zombambies

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Step right up! Step right up, now! With the opening of Le Carnaval des Spectres mere days away, we’re offering folks a sneak peek at the fresh-from-the-grave, newly-reanimated and flat-out spooky editions that will emerge from the Circus caravan next week at Artoyz Paris.

First out of the gate is guts and gore galore from Brandt Peters, as he debuts his highly-anticipated Fantôme Zombambies. Initially released as a handful of candy-themed customs for Monsters & Misfits II, the herd returns as a slightly stinkier, unappetizing, but equally badass spectre edition. Entirely handpainted by Brandt with acrylics, these resin beasties have GID eyes that bring chills when beneath a blacklight. The Zombambies are super limited edition of 20, with five heading to Paris and the rest will be divvied up between CP forum members and a lottery (if applicable). They retail for $300 a head (intestine, spinal column, etc…).

Tomorrow the ghastliness continues with the long-awaited return of a fan favorite. So stick around — we’re just warming up!

Le Carnaval des Spectres opens Sept. 13th through Oct. 20th at Artoyz Shop + Galerie in Paris, France. The exhibition includes new works from Kathie OlivasBrandt Peters, Travis LouieChris RyniakAmanda Louise Spayd, and Teodoru Badiu.

T+CP: Brandt Peters’ Stingy Jack Sofubi Reviewed on Kaiju Korner!

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Brandt Peters’ Stingy Jack recently received a cracking review from premier Japanese toy culture site, Kaiju Korner! In-depth, charming and deeply insightful, blogger Andy B wholly captured the essence and charm of the figure and the intent of the T+CP initiative. Now sold out at Circus Posterus and Tomenosuke, the response for Stingy from collectors worldwide has been incredible. Click here to find out why!

A Herd of Custom Wippos from Teodoru Badiu for Le Carnaval, 9.13

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Following last week’s Instagram teasers, Teodoru Badiu has since put the finishing touches on his handsome herd of Wippos, due to embark on their trek to Artoyz Paris for Le Carnaval very soon! From left, say hello to Espirit Bleu, Fantome Green, Ame Noir, Rugueux Rouge and a second Espirit Bleu to round out the bunch.

After seeing these and the Dark Wippo test handpaint a few months back (below), the level of anticipation for these is off the hook. Bring on the edition!!

Ecto-Stan Hits Production & A Peek @ the New Lampe Skelve!

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We saw quite a few editions release this month as part of Travis Louie’s stellar Spirits exhibition at Stranger Factory. Among them was the Ecto-Stan bust, which is now officially in production at CP HQ (i.e. Santa’s workshop). An exciting redesign of Travis’ Stan Skelve, Ecto-Stan is the first to utilize CP’s brand-new 7″ bust platform. The lovely handpaints are an edition of 20 at $250 a pop and are available now, should you fancy some old-fashioned Cyclops ‘stache. Send your inquiries to strangerfactorysales@gmail.com.

We also have some more gorgeous resin Calliope action goin’ on from the lovely Ms. Kathie … there’s going to be a few of these, some headed to Paris, some to AFA. And hopefully more after that, because these are precious.

And is that a Travis Lampe Skelve?! You bet your buttocks it is. He’s been a long time coming and what a coincidence that he should make a cameo a week shy of the opening of The Pit Of Unease. Hmmm …

 

New Friends from Amanda Louise Spayd for ‘Origins of the Forest’, 9.7

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Amanda Louise Spayd’s Instagram teasers (@amandalouisespayd) continue to trickle out in anticipation of her solo show, Origins of the Forest, opening this Friday at myplasticheart. Faux fur has never looked so good.

The reception will take place this Friday from 6pm to 9pm. Amanda will be there! For those looking to pick up a little guy from this show (who wouldn’t?!), be sure to sign up the for mailing list by emailing: previewme@myplasticheart.comThe critters will have full run of the gallery until October 7th.

Travis Louie’s Custom Stan Skelves for Le Carnaval des Spectres, 9.13

With Le Carnaval des Spectres opening at Artoyz Paris in just under two weeks, Travis Louie is finally indulging us in what he has planned for the CP group exhibition. Kicking things off are a pair of custom Stan Skelves, who are sporting some pretty snazzy Cyclops eyes. “Here we spend all this time planning and perfecting [the eyes] and I’m scraping all that off and painting them entirely from scratch,” Travis laughs over the phone from his studio in Red Hook, NY. “I’m a lot happier with this batch … I feel like I’ve finally figured out how to paint these.”

Travis anticipates having nine custom Stans for the show, along with some small paintings. In other words: we have a lot to look forward to. Save your pennies!

Le Carnaval des Spectres opens Sept. 13th through Oct. 20th at Artoyz Shop + Galerie in Paris, France. The exhibition includes new works from Kathie Olivas, Brandt Peters, Chris Ryniak, Amanda Louise Spayd, Teodoru Badiu and, of course, Mr. Travis Louie.

Mikee’s Mail Day: Splurrt Usir!

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Hello CP fans! For those who don’t know, my name is Mikee and I work behind the counter at Stranger Factory. It’s an amazing job and to be honest I got it because of my one true love … Toys! Some would say I have a problem, others would exploit that problem for their entertainment! So in honor of the latter, we bring you Mikee’s Mail Day! I get a lot of packages and we are gonna start showing off some of the fun goodies I collect and why I collect them.

This week being the first, I opened a great package. Today I got in my Splurrt Usir. Usir is the third vinyl character release from rebel toy company Splurrt. Following in the footsteps of his prior releases, while still departing for a slightly different tone, the Usir is just plain evil! Not going to lie, Splurrt is one of my all time favorite toy companies and this is a prime piece of Sofubi to use as an example why. The Usir is a new head mold but the body is actually from a previous Splurrt release called the Diggler. This type of adaption through simplicity is why Kaiju and Sofubi are so amazing! Granted Mattel does this with He Man parts but it’s not because they have to and more because they prefer to cut cost. We Toy Rebels live and thrive on a budget, so finding ways to make something new out of something existing is what this is all about.

Until next time, live that 24/7 Toy Life!