Greyed Out Productions Giveaway!

Greyed Out Productions is proud to announce its first giveaway! Simply “Like” our Facebook page to enter a drawing one month from today, on March 12th. The prize is the dice bag shown below, sewn in gunmetal gray suede with a green clover lining – it’s reversible too!

If Greyed Out receives 200 “Likes” for our Facebook page by the 12th of March, I’ll give away *two* dice bags… so please share and spread the word where you can!

On March 12th I’ll do a random drawing for the winner, and then announce it on the Greyed Out Facebook page on the next day.

You can find Greyed Out Productions on Facebook and on Etsy – note that you must “Like” the Facebook page in order to enter the contest!

Circle Orboros Inspired Dice Bag

Pattern is based on the runes that Circle Orboros warlocks show when casting spells.

Proppa Red Orc Dice Bag

 

 

 

Fall Sale at Greyed Out

Hey everyone,

 

It’s finally starting to feel like fall outside.  The air is starting to smell crisp, trees are beginning to change colors, and the nights are cool now.  In order to celebrate that, I wanted to have a fall sale at Greyed Out.

From now until the end of October, you can get free shipping using the coupon code FREESHIP or 25% off your order using the code FALLBASH.

 

I believe I mentioned it in my previous post, but I do think that everyone who has a dice collection should have an awesome dice bag to carry them in.  It’s simple and easy to get a mass-produced dice bag when you’re first starting out in your Dungeons and Dragons adventures, but why settle for that?  Greyed Out has a great selection of dice bags available, and while I do sell the same design multiple times, the chances of running into another person with the exact same dice bag are slim.  Get something cool and unique and give your dice a happy home.

You can find Greyed Out on Etsy at: greyedout.etsy.com

 

A few examples of my dice bags:

 

 

 

 

 

Crafty Update

Hello my dearest readers,

 

Tonight I have just a quick update, but lots of pictures.  I’ve been doing some character sketches in my moleskine for an idea I had for a story/comic/something.  It’s about a crew of wayward airship pirates and their quests to glory.  Well, it’s more than that.  But it’s going to be steampunk-ish, without being too over-the-top.

 

The tree above is something I did with watercolors, and I was surprised at how much fun I had doing it.  Normally I prefer acrylics over watercolors, but whatever I did this time seemed to work, and I’m really happy with how this came out.

I’m also planning to try doing some cartography work on leather, using acrylic paints to do some maps, perhaps of Westeros or other familiar fantasy places.  I recently saw a map on Tumblr done that way, and loved how it came out.

In the Etsy shop, I have a new dice bag available – the Freestanding Dice Bag in Suede.  I made one version in brown suede, and was ecstatic when it sold just a few hours after I listed it.  It’s been re-listed, and I plan to make a second version in the smoky gray suede to list as well.  Those pictures are shown below.

 

 

A Gallimaufry of Words

A gallimaufry is defined as: a hodgepodge, jumble, or confused medley.

Today’s post will be somewhat like that, because I have no idea what I’ll be talking about.  It’s dark, and late, and my wife is working for another few hours.  I find that on days where she works the closing shift I always get somewhat morose and depressed after dark.  It doesn’t help that it gets dark at 5:30.

I’ve been working on more dice bags for my store.  This is a new design, made so that it stands up on the gaming table.  The bottom is a square or circle, which lets the bag stand on its own and means that it’s easy to reach in and grab the dice that you want, instead of having to fumble or spread your dice across the table. I really like this design, and the way the bags are made also makes them reversible, which means I can use two really cool but different fabrics to make them, and the buyer can simply turn whichever fabric he or she likes to the outside.  I’ll put up some pictures at the bottom of the post.

Speaking of store, Christmas is coming up and that means that Greyed Out is having a holiday sale.  Using the code HOLIDAYS15 will get you 15% off on your order.  I’m not sure what the shipping deadlines for Christmas are, but I’m happy to work with buyers to do a faster shipping method than my usual USPS Priority mail .

I haven’t been drawing much lately, and I regret that – I really should be drawing daily to improve.  I’ve heard that James Gurney, who writes and illustrates the Dinotopia books, sketches everywhere and almost any subject.  Which, to be honest, is a wonderful way to improve and keep up your skills.  He uses a large Moleskine Watercolour notebook, which is a great size for on-the-go sketching.  I’ve never used the Watercolour notebooks; I prefer the large Moleskine Sketchbook, but at some point I’d love to try out the Watercolour.

Unfortunately, I’ve come to the end of my current Moleskine – it has a single page left, at the very back next to the pocket.  I can’t afford to get a new one right now, but I think it will be on my Christmas list. They’re only $13 from the Book Depository website with free shipping, which is a great value.  I really like the large sketchbook Moleskine for doodling in, because it holds ink really well, and I also use it for journaling.  The 100 pages are enough to last almost a year, and the one I’ve just finished will be my third one done.

Kathryn and I picked up a small Christmas tree at Hobby Lobby the other day – it’s pretty cute, and stands only about three and a half feet tall.  It’s sitting next to the television.  Her mom is coming down to visit for Christmas, which is exciting – we don’t get to see her very much anymore due to her new job in San Francisco.

Gallimaufry!  I’m willing to try my hand at portraits and illustrations for a bit of extra Christmas cash.  I can do pets, people, Dungeons and Dragons character, whatever.  I can either create the art and then have it scanned, and email the finished jpeg, or I can ship out the original.  I don’t mind doing either.  Each illustration can be done in watercolor, acrylic paints, colored pencil, or black and white with regular pencils.  The largest I can do is 11″x14″.  They would be $40 each, $45 if you’d like the original shipped to you.  Contact me at greylikestorms(at)gmail(dot)com to discuss your preferences.

On to the pictures.  These are available in my Etsy store, http://www.greyedout.etsy.com

Ahhh, coffee. Morning post!

I’m about to enjoy my second cup of coffee as I type this.  It’s a cool 55 degrees outside, and I wish it would stay that way all day long.  October is here, and the weather isn’t quite cooperating yet; we still have temperatures in the 70′s during the day.  It’s one of my favorite months, because it means Halloween, the coming of winter, and beautiful colors everywhere you look.  The bright oranges and reds of the trees bring out feelings of comfort, the desire to sit in front of a warm fire and sip a hot beverage, and the excitement of the holidays.

I’m rambling a bit, I know, but hopefully you’ll forgive me.  I didn’t set out with a clear plan when writing this post, I wanted to give an update.  Kathryn and I are doing well, though the second bedroom is still empty.  I’m not quite sure if we plan to keep it empty, or if we will be looking for a roommate.  I’ve not been drawing as much lately, because I’ve been painting miniatures again.  For my store I’ve made another crooked house; this time it’s the Fairy House – Gingerbread Edition.  I also still have these little Spooky Ghost Plushies available, and I’m rather fond of how they turned out.

I decided the other day that what I’d like to do is focus a bit more on gaming-related items.  I’ve been playing Dungeons and Dragons and various other roleplaying games since high school, and it’s part of me as much as my costume skills are.  I sketched an ogre the other day, sitting at a bar drinking coffee and complaining about the adventurers who burst down his door.  I liked it so much that I’m going to do more of the same – I’d like to call it Adventuring Inn, and have a series of illustration that are very D&D themed in nature.  They’d all feature the same location, the bar or tables in the inn.  Why not capitalize on what I’m good at?

While I’m talking about gaming, I might as well put up a quick reminder – I have a section for Drawstring Bags in my Etsy.  Gamers always need a good, sturdy dice bag, and I stand by the construction of mine.

Dragon*Con Musings: Pre-convention Thoughts

I’m not sure I’ll be able to attend Dragon*Con this year – I’ve been wanting to go for a really long time, but have never been able to make it to Atlanta to attend.  This year, when I’m actually living in Atlanta, I can’t afford to go.  Oh, life.

I’m glad that the convention happens here, because from everything I hear it is one of the biggest, best, most incredible conventions for gaming, fantasy, sci-fi, etc that you could imagine.  Thousands of people flock to Atlanta every year just for a chance to attend Dragon*con, and who can blame them?  I have heard from some friends of my wife’s that they attend every year and just walk around in costume to see everything and everyone.  I’m not sure they even buy tickets or passes.  If that’s the case, I may try something similar, and attend without attending anything.

I feel that a lot of the products I make for my Etsy store would work really well for convention attendees – particularly the dice bags.  I make each one with a belt loop, so that you can carry them around without having to hold them or store them in other bags/pouches.  The double drawstring lends itself to a tight closure, which I feel is important – it not only keeps your dice safe, but also your other small change and loose items.  I have a variety of colors, but would be very open to custom choices – just talk to me!  If anyone is interested, email me at greylikestorms(at)gmail.com or convo me on Etsy to discuss other fabrics.  It’s not too late to get your stuff in time for Dragon*con, and I’m always happy to use a faster service than USPS.

I’ve also got a costume shirt listed that I feel is timeless enough to work for a variety of costumes, ranging from the late Renaissance to the early 20th century.  Steampunk, anyone?

For the curious, my Etsy store can be found at:  http://www.etsy.com/shop/greyedout

A Bit of Whimsy

I’m not usually one to call out other people, but I found a few awesome things tonight, so I thought I would share before bedtime.

The first is a shop filled with magic, art, and whimsy.  You should all check it out.  It’s called Art by Kristin Kemper, and can be found here:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/Kecky?ref=pr_shop_more

The second is a shop focused on spiders, spiderwebs, and other little creatures that crawl.  It’s called SpiderwoodHollow, and it’s all about the arachnids.  Take a look here:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SpiderwoodHollow

That’s pretty much it for today.  I finished another drawstring bag, this time created from a fabric with keys printed all over it.  Also, I plan to draw more(again), since I need to catch up on my drawing and want to improve my skills.  I recently stumbled across an artist’s Tumblr post, in which he states several important things that he wishes had been taught in art school.  One of the tenets was “Draw awesome stuff and put it on the internet.”  I think I’m going to try and strive for that… and with daily sketching/drawing, I should see improvement, and so will you(if you keep reading my blog, that is).  I’m going to try to draw every day, snap a quick picture or two of my sketches(no scanner, alas), and post them here and on my Tumblr.  Which can be found at thekiltedgerman.tumblr.com

Here is that drawstring bag with keys that  I mentioned above.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/74678012/the-key-drawstring-bag-by-greyedout