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 Embossed Collector Tin by Prospero Art A new tin and things to keep within from Prospero Art. This “first edition” tin is sold as a package with either a 150-piece jigsaw featuring the lid design, or two packs of Alice in Wonderland playing cards, or both. The tin is a limited edition (3,000 made) and measures 5 1/2 by 4 1/2 by 2 1/8 inches. More images, ordering information and a 2.25-minute video introduction to the tin can be found at ProsperoArt.com!  Cirque du Wonderland by Cart Before The Horse Cirque du Wonderland was created by Dylan & Jo, a mom-and-pop artistic collaboration collectively known as Cart Before The Horse. Details of the work, which was a commission, can be seen on Jo’s blog. Other Alice in Wonderland creations which are for sale can be browsed on the Cart Before The Horse website, including this rather fetching Cheshire Cat.  Cheshire Cat by Cart Before The Horse Hallowe’en is only three months away and scrapbook and paper crafting company Graphic 45 is ready with a new “Hallowe’en in Wonderland” paper collection. The illustrations are Tenniel “spookified” – Alice wear’s a witch’s hat, the Mad Hatter’s tie has pumpkins on it, and the Red Queen has a devil’s tail. You seem to need a wholesale account to order from the site, but I am sure the paper can be requested from a crafting supply store near you. (Click on either image to see larger versions on the Graphic 45 website.)  "Through the Looking Glass" Graphic 45  "Wonderland Classifieds" Graphic 45 There’s an interesting anecdote in a June 4th 2010 New York Times article about Pawn Stars, a History Channel television show about Las Vegas’s Gold and Silver Pawn Shop.
 The Folio Society The Folio Society has published a facsimile of the original manuscript of Alice’s Adventures under Ground. The print run will be limited to 3,750 hand-numbered copies, each clad in goat skin and gold and priced at $179.95. The edition comes with a companion booklet describing the adventures of the manuscript itself, authored by Sally Brown, Curator of Modern Manuscripts at the British Library and the lucky custodian of the precious original.  Carroll's Queen of Hearts  From Victorian Trading Co. Time for our irregularly regular round-up of what’s new in the world of Carroll collectibles and Alice in Wonderland-themed garden gnomes. First up… Alice in Wonderland-themed garden gnomes! These may not be entirely new but we haven’t mentioned them here before. Alice, the Mad Hatter and the White Rabbit are sold for around $60 each by the Victorian Trading Co.. However, to complete your Wonderland patio diorama you may need to turn to Old Durham Road, who also sell the Cheshire Cat and a toadstool.  From the Victorian Trading Co. Other Alice items in the Victorian Trading Co. catalog, either available now or coming soon, include magnets, a blank journal, a pair of earrings and a pendant. The Tenniel-inspired pendant is quite fun – it is reversible and shows Alice before and after her drink and is accompanied by a small silver vial “for secret messages,” or prescription medications, perhaps.  From Old Durham Road Back on the subject of garden furnishings, the company Old Durham Road is also selling a trio of stepping stones, each imprinted with the footprints and catchphrase of a Wonderland character. Choose from Alice, the Cheshire Cat and The March Hare (to whom they attribute the phrase “I’m Late, I’m Late.” Oops.)  From Classico Next up, Classico is selling a range of magnets, postcards and mugs featuring an unusual series of Alice illustrations – unusual in that we can’t figure out who the artist was. Classico have so far not responded to our emails of inquiry. Can an LCSNA member out there shed any light? Finally, from Dollmasters comes “The Alice @ The Tea Party Chess Set.” Each porcelain figure, we are told, is hand-painted, costumed, be-wigged and fully poseable. The catch is that there appear to be only 16 pieces and the board is “fixed in block arrangement for better display,” oh, and it’s $6,500.  "The Alice @ The Tea Party Chess Set" from Dollmasters  The Red Queen, sold by AG (Advanced Graphics) Some light entertainment for your Sunday morning: Where would you put a life-size cut-out of Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen (yours for only $34.95 from AG)? I would like to think of her used to direct attention to a particularly important agenda item, or perhaps to direct traffic (to the left). I have to admit I am featuring this item mainly because the idea of the company made me giggle: AG, “Home of Cardboard People” is “the world’s largest manufacturer of cardboard standups.” Where “our kind of people are cardboard people.” But fans of Disney’s 1951 Alice in Wonderland may like to ask why it is possible to purchase a three-foot-tall cut out of Dumbo, but no Alice and no Cheshire Cat? Who exactly is the target audience? Does the Dumbo fan club really wield more eccentric purchasing power than the fans of Alice? Say it isn’t so! Is it the surreal and episodic nature of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland that inspires so many collage-style artistic responses, or is it just what good twenty-first century artists do? Handmade “vintage” jewelry, steampunk fashion, photo collage: it’s all very po-mo, isn’t it? However, as the following demonstrates, the results can be pretty cool.  "A Mad Tea Party" by Kenneth Rougeau Kenneth Rougeau has created eighteen illustrations for Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (enough for a new edition!) using fragments of previous illustrations, vintage photographs and other assorted photo stock. The resulting digital collages can be viewed on his Flickr photostream or purchased from Etsy.com, where he sells under the vendor name Synchronicity 313. Though fragments of each creation are familiar, the overall effect is new and fun to explore.  "Steampunk Alice in Wonderland Plays Croquet" by Ramona Szczerba Ramona Szczerba’s Alice is more muted but no less effective: “Hand painted, hand cut and hand assembled with vintage images on a stretched canvas, it is embellished with Thai lace paper, ivory crocheted trim, brass rivets and a single brass rose on Alice’s hat.” It’s the essence of steampunk. The collage is for sale on Etsy.com where Ramona, previously featured on this blog, sells under the name of her childhood imaginary friend Winona Cookie.
 Alice in Wonderland Charm Bracelet by Janine Byrom Janine Byrom of Cherished Trinkets, makes sweet fairytale pieces out of brass and bows and, in all probability, sugar and spice. She sells from her home in Manchester, England, but has a flat rate worldwide shipping fee. Her “Alice in Wonderland Collection” contains necklaces, charm bracelets and greetings cards, all for the little girl who loves pink, however old she is. Of course, post-modernity has its ugly babies too. How about a Disney 2010 Alice in Wonderland-theme Yahtzee dice cup? It’s certainly contemporary. We should all feel very proud of our century. Keep up the good work!  Usaopoly Alice in Wonderland Yahtzee  Inscription reads: "Presented to H.R.H. the Princess Alice by the Author, Mar. 25, 1890." Last week we blogged about an upcoming auction with an interesting lot: ceramic plaques, hand painted by Sir John Tenniel with characters from Alice’s adventures, used as menu cards at Tenniel family dinners. We have just heard that the same auction contains another interesting item: a presentation copy of The Nursery Alice inscribed by Carroll for Princess Alice, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria. The inscription, written in blue ink on the half-title, reads not ”Alice, meet Alice,” unfortunately, but the rather more formal: “Presented to H.R.H. the Princess Alice by the Author, Mar. 25, 1890.” On March 25, 1890, Princess Alice Mary Victoria Augusta Pauline was exactly seven years and one month old – just one month older than Carroll’s Alice when she fell down the rabbit hole. Was this a late birthday present perhaps? The book will be auctioned by PBA Galleries this coming Thursday in San Francisco. It is estimated to go for between $8,000 and $12,000.  "Playing Cards" from Windham Fabrics Windham Fabrics have recently released a good complimentary set of cotton prints with patterns inspired by Tenniel’s illustrations for Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The designs were created in collaboration with the Bridgeman Art Library and the Mary Evans Picture Library. Whether you are designing the nursery furnishings or want to make a really craaaazy shirt for your next trip to Vegas, they are definitely worth a look. There are enough pattern variations for a really spectacular quilt, too. Different combinations of the fabrics are available online from Quilting Treasures and Baum Textile Mills. |
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