Fairy Tale Inspired Writing Pages Coming

The Carlo Collodi Fountain Pen nib detail

It's come to my attention that almost all my fairy tale inspired short stories, podcasts and other work have been slowly disappearing from the web due to personal site upgrades, defunct blog programs and various other things...

So:

I am going to be adding pages to the Once Upon A Blog site when I can so some of my fair tale writing can have a (hopefully permanent) home here. :)

First cap off the rank:

Torn

(A short story inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's The Marsh King's Daughter)

It was originally written for as a Halloween story for Supernatural Fairy Tales, a great site which has recently had an upgrade. (Note: This is STILL an awesome site full of fantastic fairy tale short stories by Dorlana Vann and other wonderful finds. At last look, my two-part article on True Love and Fairy Tales is still there.)

You can read more about the initial publishing HERE in the announcement post on this blog (which I have also updated with the new page link).

The direct link to the story is under the header next to the About InkGypsy page or you can click HERE.

And, since we're on the topic of fairy tale writing, what better than a fairy tale pen? Look at this lovely, lovely Montblanc Carlo Collodi Fountain Pen I found recently. (They come in rollerball and ballpoint pens too apparently, but you need to contact them for prices. I'm guessing $$$!) It was released just in time for Christmas last year (2011).

Though I haven't been able to write (or blog or be online!) much at all the past year or so, I am beginning to write again and just the thought of this pen is very inspiring. Though it will likely take me a little while to publish anything new, I am excited to go dig up some fairy tale bits and pieces of my own and share them with people again.

I hope you enjoy the pages to come.

:)

Fairy Tale Food Warning

I'm not going to post on the reason this image (originally made for The Guardian by Franck Allais) was being used in "food fight" political campaigns last year (see article here) but I will say that this is an extremely effective view of the fast food way too many kids (and adults) eat way too much of.

Half of the effectiveness of this "PSA" (it's not an ad but works very well as a Public Service Announcement) is in using a kid versus the "fries (fried?) wolf", instead of including an adult in the scene, despite it not being aimed at kids. After all, no one wants to put their kids in danger.

Although the red is on the "wolf" (I know it's a monster) there's no doubt about the fairy tale it's referencing here. I also really like the woods behind being echoed by the dumpster.

Nice job on this!

Disney's "The Little Mermaid" Before Ariel (& Other Disney Takes On HCA Tales)

Isn't this just.. odd? I wonder if any of The Little Mermaid artists ever saw this?

Because Hans Christian Andersen has been in the news lately in a controversial LGBT festival intended to honor him, (click the links in the sentence if you want to read more) his tales have been on my mind more than usual.

I knew Walt Disney and some of his early artists/workers were familiar with lesser known fairy tales but I didn't realize Disney had contributed several sets of stamps themed with Hans Christian Andersen's stories, starring Mickey and the gang. (Apologies if the layout of images is weird. I cannot get Blogger to cooperate on making them stay put today.)

You can see the titles right on the stamp, in case there's any doubt as to their origin (some are a little difficult to figure out).

Interestingly, the sets don't seem to include all of the better known Andersen tales (eg Snow Queen, Little Ida's Flowers etc). There are others that seem rather, well ordinary and don't capture any of the tales magic (or use much of the trademark Disney/Mickey humor). Still, they are fun to look at when you know the tales.

 

I'm particularly pleased, though, to see The Marsh King's Daughter included among these. It's one of my favorites and has stuck with me since I was small, despite it's heavy religious tones in the second half. 

Here's Grenada stamp portrait set of Hans Christian Andersen, which isn't by Disney.

Grenada seem to hold the contract for producing Disney stamps (sorry - I have no research time at this writing to check this myself). I actually still have a Snow White stamp set from one of the theatrical releases when I was young. I like the different views of HCA here. You can see how a wealth of different stories are produced by one person when you view them like this.

There are quite a few that have been animated as shorts - either for Fantasia or as "training short films" for Disney artists. MOst are nothing like these but I think that's a good thing. These are really a good way for Disney fan-kids to learn more HCA tales - stories they may not read otherwise.

In the meantime, enjoy the HCA/Disney parodies. :)

Happy New Year!

May you find wonder in every new day...

Happy New Year!

Reminder: ABC's "Once Upon A Time" Marathon on New Year's Day

In case you're not aware (or have forgotten in the midst of seasonal celebrations and obligations) ABC is having a Once Upon A Time marathon on New Year's Day. Happy New Year!

Here's the OUAT marathon trailer promo:



And here's the advertising copy that was released a little while ago. (I'm presuming most blog followers are keeping up with the OUAT episodes - in case you're not, please note that the schedule below includes a brief synopsis of each.) One thing missing from this is that I've read in several places that they're starting with the Pilot (which makes sense) and there are conflicting reports on whether ABC will air 6 or all 7 of the episodes to date (and I can't get to a TV right now to check the programming myself). Please note these times are EST (I wouldn't want you to miss out):

ABC is giving Once Upon a Time fans the chance to marathon several episodes on New Year's day, or giving newcomers to the show the chance to catch up before new episodes resume in January.

Six of the seven episodes of Once Upon a Time that aired this fall will be broadcasted on New Year's Day. The schedule is as follows:

4:00 p.m. ET - Unknown episode

5:00 p.m. ET - Unknown episode

7:00 p.m. ET - Episode 3, "Snow Falls": At Henry'surging, Emma convinces Mary Margaret to pay a visit to a comatose John Doe in the hospital and to read to him from the storybook. But Mary Margaret is stunned at the outcome of her visit. Meanwhile, back in the fairytale world, Prince Charming meets Snow White for the first time in a most unexpected way.

8:00 p.m. ET - Episode 4, "The Price of Gold": Emma tries to help a young pregnant woman escape from the clutches of Mr. Gold. Meanwhile, back in the fairytale world that was, Cinderella (Jessy Schram, "Falling Skies") makes a regrettable deal with Rumplestiltskin.

9:00 p.m. ET - Episode 6, "The Shepherd": David - aka John Doe - must choose between staying with Kathryn or leaving her to be with Mary Margaret, with whom he's fallen deeply, and inexplicably, in love; and Emma catches Sheriff Graham in a lie. Meanwhile, back in the fairytale world that was, Prince Charming is about to encounter a life-changing event that will forever alter his destiny.

10:00 p.m. ET - Episode 7, "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter": One of the town's residents begins to remember their fairytale past, and Storybrooke mourns the loss of one of their own. Meanwhile, in the fairytale world that was, the Evil Queen attempts to find a heartless assassin to murder Snow White.

Once Upon a Time fans can also catch up on all of the episodes online at ABC.com.  For more details,click here.

Once Upon a Time returns with new episodes on January 8.

There are numerous teasers and spoilery-type things out there about the next episode in case you are curious. All I will say here for now is that Episode 8 is titled "Desperate Souls" and focuses on Rumpelstiltskin's story as well as the aftermath of the mid-season finale tragedy in Storybrooke.

What a great opportunity to have a fairy tale start to your new year!

Image source: HERE
Copy source: HERE

Fairy Tale Chambers by Ontwerpduo

I really like this take on a fairy tale themed room; something practical and functional without feeling like you've stepped into someone's outdated (and too young for the occupant) princess bedroom. 

The design was a private client commission by a company called "Ontwerpduo" and, looking at their portfolio it's clear they like playing with design and taking some out-of-the-box risks without over saturating people in the concepts.  I really like the simple sophistication and nod to the natural as well as the magical.

Here's how it developed (from the website):

Once upon a time we were asked to design a room in an extraordinary house. A 16th century mansion in a beautiful garden with a long history made us feel like we stepped into a fairy tale. No wonder this became the theme for the design. 

For this room we designed 10 pieces all based on different fairy tales, or themes from fairy tales, such as: the secret room, genie in a bottle, princess on the pea, sleeping beauty, etc.

(You must admit, the photo shoot for this is gorgeous!)

Using some of the same ideas but transplanted to a public place, here are some images from their Room 407 design for the Dutch Lloyd hotel in Amsterdam:

Room 407, a monumental room, which we organized with our newest designs. All designs are based on different fairy tales. The ceiling light and the curtains are overgrowing the room, like the roses overgrew the castle in ‘Sleeping Beauty’. You can also find ‘The princess and the pea’, The ghost in the glass’, Little red riding hood’ and ‘The twelve brothers’ in the room.

From the "What It Is, What It Isn't" design set, inspired by Alice in Wonderland (the website even quotes Carroll's text to set the scene). I do believe that the "viewer" actually makes the furniture look "normal". Although this isn't the first set of melted/ warped through-the-looking-glass furniture I've seen it is the first trying to incorporate the back and forth of traveling through the glass and back again. Very interesting ideas:

Objects are how we perceive them to be. Our minds make things what they are and for us this is reality. Think of a branch hanging in the water. We see, with the refraction of light, the branch under the waterline in a different angle. But we know that in reality the shape of this branch is different. We learned how to see the world. 

What if there was an instrument which would change the world into something that we find strange? And better, what if this instrument can also change it back?

I really like the way these people think. They love to play and also have a lot of child-focused designs, meaning the designs are fun for kids but functional and practical (and chic looking) for adults. combining their sense of play with enchantment they dreamed up a lighting system called Light Forest, which you can make grow over walls and ceilings in any way you desire.

Light forest is a wall and ceiling lighting system. The possibilities are unlimited. The design consists out of different parts, which can de connected to the wall and ceiling. Step by step the lighting system will "grow" across the space.

While the photos look slightly industrial you can see how just a little adaption makes for a fantastic addition to a fairy tale chamber. (See bedroom photo above.)

I have to include this tallow candle set for the instant story feel. Such a great combination (and remind me of a number of fairy tales for some reason...)

I recommend also looking through the Garden of Eden indoor/outdoor furniture set photos too.

Original source: HERE and official Ontwerpduo website HERE.