Go grab the kids and anyone else in your family or household that typically does not like or is afraid of zombies. The Undead Bazaar is presenting the some of the cutest zombies you will find courtesy of Erin Rose Tollefsen's Little Shop of Zombies.Little Shop of Zombies is home to the "Zombikins" which Erin began sculpting in early 2009. Erin explains, "[The name] actually started as a nickname my husband gave me." The Zombikins started as a way to return the favor of a friend making clay zombies based on Erin and her husband. "I showed them off a bit on Myspace, and a lot of people were interested in buying them. So I made more and started selling them on Etsy."
Erin's store on Etsy currently has several types of Zombikins available for purchase. But keep an eye on the Little Shop of Zombies homepage as she will soon be selling Zombikins as well as other various arts and crafts. There will also be a way to order commissioned pieces! "Earlier this year I was commissioned to make a Zombikins Jewelry box for a fellow Etsy seller. I ended up having to use a bigger box (for fear that the Zombikins on the lid would break if the box wasn't deep enough). I painted a silhouette of a graveyard around the base, and made a male Zombikin and female Zombikin popping out of their graves, along with a Zombikin's arm reaching out of a grave. It turned out better than I had hoped for, and she absolutely loved it!"
While we do see some reoccurring Zombikins, Erin hopes to eventually work on making casts for vinyl or resin statues. "I also want to start a Zombikins Adoption Program, where customers can purchase baby Zombikins complete with re-birth certificates, background stories, and the like."
We're making a toy of you. Would it be a zombie or survivor and what accessories would it come with? "I would definitely be a Zombie. I would have to be sold in a set with a zombie figure of my husband and of my dog, and I would have to have a purse, pack of smokes, flip-flops, and sunglasses."
Most memorable zombie related moment in your life? "Definitely going to the Red Carpet Premiere of Zombieland in Chicago with my husband, brother, and the girl who inspired me to create my Zombikins. We were all dressed as bloody zombies, and we had a blast!"
If you were bitten, would you want to change or would you ask the person you're with to shoot you? "I would want to change. I want to see what it's like to be a zombie. Eating people would be weird, since I am a Vegetarian, but I still want to know what it's like to be one. I guess I can't blame anyone for shooting me if I try to eat them, but if I am a peaceful zombie, I would hope that they would just leave me be."
Erin is also founder of a FaceBook page dedicated to zombie art. You will not only find Erin there, but many of the artists featured throughout The Undead Bazaar. And, yes, yours truly is fan as well! So head over and join in on the fun!
