Russell Smeaton has revealed a stretch goal I helped out with – a set of handouts to help complete your Innsmouth experience.
The project is ending in a few hours, so check it out if your interested in some cool stuff with the Innsmouth look.
One of the projects I’m working on right now is making props and handouts for my recently purchased copy of Chaosium’s Horror on the Orient Express campaign for Call of Cthulhu.
I started with a simple print out of the route map. Decided to experiment a bit to try and produce some different effects I can use for other handouts and props. The end result – or close to it anyway – is a nicely aged map that has a heavier/coated feel to it. Nicer maps designed to hold up the elements have a coated/leathery feel to them, and I wanted to try and replicate that.
A couple of important things to note:
I printed the map on my new Epson Workforce WF-7820 printer. This uses a pigment-based ink. A big goal of this was to see how well this ink resists bleeding when exposed to water, as a common way of artificially aging paper involves water. It did not disappoint.
I printed the map on a single 11×17 sheet of 67-lb cardstock that has a vellum finish.
Ideally, you would let the print sit overnight to ensure it’s completely dry and minimize any possible bleeding. I intentionally took the printed page directly from the printer to soak and age it.
I placed the printed map on a baking sheet and soaked it in coffee. I looked carefully for any signs of bleeding ink. At worst, there was a very, VERY SLIGHT bleeding around black text. Since the original file includes some faint coloring around a lot of the text, it’s hard to tell if there was actual bleed. If so, it was just a faint bleed of black into the surrounding tissue, but it in no way impacted the crisp edges of the text. Again, I wouldn’t expect this result with any inkjet printer, but it seems this pigment-based ink holds up very well to water.
Then the map goes in the oven for 4-5 minutes at 225°. Flipped the map over for another 4-5 minutes. I placed it directly on the sheet, which evidently had some residual cooking spray on it. This discolored a couple of areas on the back. Simple fix is to always place the paper on a piece of parchment paper.
This is where I was going completely experimental to try and get the coated/leathery feel. Basically, I’m using a wax designed to wax and waterproof fabric. In this case, it’s a product called Otter Wax, and it comes in a bar.
Straight out of the oven, I placed the still warm map on the counter and rubbed the bar back and forth over the surface. Again, this didn’t affect the printed details at all. As it’s applied, it adds a subtle, waxy sheen to the surface that slightly brings out the color. Flipped the map and applied wax to the back.
Supposed to let waxed fabric cure in a warm environment for 24 hours, so I initially left the map out overnight. The next day it still had a tacky, wax-like feel to it. Decided to put it in the oven (after I aged some paper for another project) for another 3 minutes. This finished the wax curing / absorbing into the paper. No more wax feel to the surface, and slightly heavier than the base cardstock. I applied a second coat of wax the same way, and put it in the oven again. You definitely feel the wax when you apply it, but coming out of the oven that slight stickiness is gone.
The aging process always makes the paper wavy and wrinkled, so after waxing the first time (and again after waxing the next day) I pressed the map under weight to flatten it out a bit. Then I folded the map and pressed it again.
The final map is definitely heavier than the regular cardstock, and it has a texture and feel very close to what I was going for. I might try another application of wax or two, just to see if it makes a difference. The waxing also enhances the aged look of the coffee-died paper. It adds a subtly mottled appearance to the paper that is very reminiscent of natural parchment.
Finally finished up my latest project.
When working on my Yellow Sign display, I was introduced to the amazing Annotated Edition of The King in Yellow. Unfortunately, I quickly discovered it is no longer available in print. However, it is available to purchase as a PDF. So work began…
I’ve done a few homebound copies of gaming books, but I wanted to take things up a notch on this one. So that means trying a couple of things I haven’t done before. Most significantly, this is my first time working with real leather in any capacity. And I needed a new printer to handle larger paper.
So here are some pictures of the finished product. It was another learning experience, and I already see ways I could have made it better. But overall, I’m happy with how it turned out.
This copy of The King in Yellow Annotated Edition uses a paper with a natural parchment appearance. Subtle variations throughout the paper really give it a nice look that simultaneously says rich and aged. These pictures really don’t do justice to how they look in person. The new printer did a great job with both the text and amazing artwork. The pages are hand-sewn and gilded in gold, with a black ribbon bookmark. The cover is black sheepskin with gold foil on the spine as well as the large yellow sign on the cover. The yellow endsheets also feature the yellow sign, this time in black.
Finished up my Essential Saltes.
Here’s another one of my handmade displays for my Shelf of Madness. This was actually made prior to my Yellow Sign and Carcosian Star Chart displays – after the brain cylinder.
One of my favorite purchased artifacts is a set of stone seals from the ‘Hastur’ experience from the Mysterious Package Company. For those that aren’t familiar with these, they are little engraved stone/resin cylinders that when rolled across a soft medium like clay leave an imprint of part of a story describing Carcosa. I always though these were really cool, but anyone simply looking at them wouldn’t be able to easily see the scenes they depict.
So I decided to make some faux clay tablets that show each scene. These are actually made of a moldable EVA foam that has been painted to look like clay. I then mounted these tablets in shadow boxes with their respective stone seals and tags that include a small excerpt of the story told in each scene.
After finishing this project, I got the green light from my wife to expand my Shelf of Madness 😁, so they have moved around a little since these photos were taken.
(By the way, photographing these was much more difficult than I expected. Apologies for the glare and reflections.)
This all started when I saw this cool star chart an intrepid Keeper made for their game. The constellation referenced in Tatters of the King campaign gave me ideas on the specifics. And it kind of grew from there…
I originally just made the star chart with a couple of notes. Trying to decide which version to go with, I asked around, and it seemed everyone agree that a version with notes was the best way to go. So I decided to expand the notes a bit. Using a floating frame I discovered amongst my various parts and pieces (still a pain to photograph well) I put together a slightly larger display than I first planned.
The chart itself on the left with a museum tag, and a full page of notes on the right outlining each part of the diagram – while still leaving enough mystery to fire the imagination.
Created all in Illustrator and Photoshop. These were actually all printed on a single sheet of paper, then cut/torn out. Just applied a bit of tea/marker/flame to the torn edges that were showing white. This piece features a version of the Yellow Sign created by Zacharias Holmberg that’s quickly becoming my favored version. He’s got some cool designs in his Redbubble shop.
For those that are interested, here’s a full resolution PDF of the complete display that you can print yourself. Be aware that the original was created at a resolution of 600dpi, so this PDF is over 80MB.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SYF2i5FFMlsrRK3ec-55sWo9wW2wpJSX/
Building from my collection of mythos-related games and book, as well as my interest in integrating props into tabletop games, I’ve gradually developed a fondness for displaying my collection. In some areas it’s modest, in other areas less so. I have dubbed this constantly evolving display my Shelf of Madness.
And I’ve recently taken to creating some props and display pieces of my own.
I’ve posted pictures of some of these items here and there, and I’ve gotten a few requests for a more detailed description of some items, where they are from, etc. So I figured I could start posting some of that here as well. That way when I post some new acquisition or creation and someone sees something in the background, I’ll have a place where I can point them to check out what’s in the collection.
You can see all the posts describing the Shelf of Madness here.
Another addition to hang above my Shelf of Madness – followed by a companion piece after some fellow Reddit cultists pointed me to some other variations – these contain a number of examples (9 actually, or maybe 10…) of the Yellow Sign.
The main display includes 4 versions of the Yellow Sign. Three of these are featured in major tabletop games, and the fourth I came across while doing some research on the others.
Top left is the Kevin Ross design, owned by Chaosium, along with his originally intended inverted version a little smaller next to it.
Bottom left is by Kurt Komoda and appears in the Impossible Landscapes campaign for Delta Green by Dennis Detwiller.
Bottom right is by Christian Knutsson for The Yellow King from Pelgrane Press.
Top right is the work of Zacharias Holmberg. You can read a brief explanation of its creation here: https://zachholmbergart.tumblr.com/post/618992728119902208/i-wanted-to-post-my-design-of-the-yellow-sign-with
This includes 5 more variations. The first two are at the top with the notes and are from the earliest printings of Chamber’s The King in Yellow. You can read about them here: https://kmalexander.com/2017/06/20/hunting-the-yellow-sign/.
The beetle-looking version comes from the amazing Annotated Edition of The King in Yellow from Arc Dream Publishing.
Middle version comes from the board game Carcosa from One Free Elephant.
And the spiral version was made famous by the TV show True Detective.
I’ve back quite a few Kickstarter projects, almost all of them either tabletop gaming or mythos related. Recently I backed a project producing some really cool Innsmouth postcards from Russel Smeaton. The project is still ongoing with some more stretch goals to hit – and perhaps a couple more to be announced. *wink, wink*
Really hoping we can hit all the stretch goals for this one, so check it out.
Following a conversation with a fellow member of the HP Lovecraft Historical Society, I decided to take a crack at creating a Mi-Go Brain Cylinder as a prop/display.
Having not done anything like this before, it was very much a trial and error process. While I’d probably do a couple of things differently if I had to do it again, I’m pleased with the end result. Here are some pics of the final prop and a brief overview of how this was created. Note that I have not worked with some of these materials in the past, so it wouldn’t be difficult to make a better version than mine.
If you get the urge to make a brain cylinder yourself, the first step is simple: Always begin with the brain.
I knew right away that I wanted to stick to the description in Whisperer in Darkness, which means a full-size brain. We don’t want anyone thinking it’s just a cat brain or something. So I got online and started looking a brain props and toys. Before long I found one on Amazon that specifically mentioned it was full size, and it included dimensions of about 6″ front to back, which I deemed large enough. Plus that gave me enough information to go shopping for a container.
Next stop was a Michael’s craft store near my house. Lots of browsing yielded a jar of the proper size, without any designs shaped into the glass (and it was on clearance), some varying wood stands and other round shapes, some EVA foam, a small cake pan to cap the top, some lights (also on sale), and assorted odds and ends. I used some Rustoleum Dark Bronze Hammered Finish spray paint I had on had, though I had to get more.
I removed the handle from the jar lid and glued the cake pan to the lid to get a more uniform cylindrical shape. Painted and layered wood and composite shapes to make the base, and glued that too the jar. My original plan was to have this be liquid-filled (and I may still do that later), so I didn’t want the lights inside the jar itself. That meant the lights has to be housed on the outside and shine through. Sprayed a little of the paint around the top and bottom of the jar to help diffuse the lights.
Cut a piece of foam to wrap around the jar as a casing, then cut it to form a window. Cut some grooves into the foam to hold the lights and painted it. Glued/stapled the lights into place and glued the foam to the jar. The glue holds well once set, but it’s slow to dry and needs to be well secured during that time. Had a couple of hose clamps that were large enough, so I used them and cocooned the thing in tap to hold everything in place. Had to get creative with the tap to avoid ripping the paint up, and forgot to do the same with the clamps. Ended up damaging the foam and ultimately decided to integrate the clamps into the design. Adds to the look and hides the damage.
Got some quick disconnect fittings for a sprinkler system to act as the ports that would connect the cylinder to the other Mi-Go machinery. Cut some foam to fit around them and did some more painting. Glued it together and attached it to the front (more tape to hold things while drying). Added a spot for the obligatory label of said brain. In case I use this as a prop in a game down the road, I want to be able to swap out the label.
A couple more coats of paint. Also applied a clear version of the same Hammered finish paint to the inside of the jar. This helps diffuse the light more and adds a nice effect to the window. Almost gives it a look of being liquid- or gas-filled without the need to actually fill it. I had some oddly shaped chipboard discs lying around from another project, so I stacked and glued them in a semi-random fashion to make a stand to hold the brain at the proper height. Painted that as well and secured it. Added some acrylic dry brushing to the outside, then applied another clear coat to everything.
Finally, I secured the brain in its new home and added a label.
