One would think that horror and cuteness wouldn’t blend so well, but a husband and wife team out of Columbia, SC, has proven otherwise. Officially founded in 2009, Jellykoe specializes in creating artwork and toys and giving them a 1930’s cartoon vibe – even including some of the most gruesome horror characters. The head and eye sizes are exaggerated, while the mouth is drawn small, making the characters both adorable and somehow creepier at the same time. Their designs are translated to prints, posters, plushies, enamel pins, and homemade resin/vinyl toys.
J. Spencer is the lead product designer and illustrator, and Kelly handles the design, production and marketing, as well as being the seamstress. The duo started when they were engaged as a plan to make extra money for their honeymoon. Both were avid toy collectors, and they decided to combine their artistic talents to create monster plushies for their nieces and nephews. After bringing their products to trade shows and conventions and seeing a wide variety of art, they decided to expand into other mediums. Not only has their art been showcased in galleries across the country, but also in several different magazines, including STUFFED and Art Nouveau. More information about the artists can be found on their One Columbia website.

Although the couple mostly dabbles in horror, they also branch out into other beloved pop-culture franchises, like The Office, Miyazaki films, or Star Wars. We’ve purchased several pieces, but my wife’s favorite print of theirs is inspired by Disney+’s The Mandalorian. The print says, “I would like to see the baby,” underneath a precious rendition of The Child. My personal favorites are their posters, which are mostly set up to look like old-school advertisement signs. Currently on my wall, I have framed posters for Ian Malcolm’s Chaos Theory Ride (Jurassic Park) and Jack Torrance’s Hedge Maze Adventure (The Shining). Jellykoe has a lot of original characters and designs as well, like new takes on generic Halloween signs, or your typical zombies, blobs and cryptids. These are just as cool as the pop-culture ones and shouldn’t be overlooked. I particularly like their section specifically dedicated to The Mothman.
If you follow Jellykoe on social media (@jellykoe), you’ll get the chance to purchase exclusive one-of-a-kind prints they release as specials on specific days. For example, they released five different single prints on 4/26 for Alien day, and I snagged one of a horrified Kane sporting an adorable little chestburster popping out of his chest. Another example was their amazing Ewok plushies for May the 4th. Releases like these are common on film anniversaries and holidays. They also offer commissions to those that message them with an idea. The commission prices are completely reasonable, and the effort into the product is top notch. The commissions aren’t just limited to pop culture characters, either. I’ve seen posts of musicians and personal likenesses as well.

Jellykoe is extremely active in the convention community every year, and like most small artist businesses, the pandemic wiping out the conventions has been less than stellar for them. Head over to www.jellykoe.com to check out their selection, gear up for Halloween (they have a spooky upcoming collection to be released), or send your friends some ghoulish gifts!
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