PlushTeam Challenge: Call of Duty Plush Warfare

Here is my contribution to the latest Team Challenge: the Chain Saw.


I was inspired to create this after thinking about all the videogames that I played as a kid- and my first experience with the First Person Shooter game, DOOM. I usually ended up out of bullets and had to resort to my handy back-up, the Chain Saw. Effective, but messy. ;) My chain saw is made out of fleece and felt, with a piece of cereal cardboard in the saw blade to give it strength. It measures 22 inches (56 cm) long. I had fun doing the photos for this one- as you can see I managed to get the dog to cooperate in a DOOM-inspired photo. Gotta watch out for those rabid Zombie dogs! Another life lesson learned from playing Resident:Evil.


Below is a photo of me using the Chain Saw for what it is actually meant for. :)


To see the rest of the PlushTeam's handmade plush weaponry, head on over to the PlushTeam blog, and if you see one you absolutely have to have (and there are some awesome pieces made for this challenge) they will all be available in the PT etsy shop. To see more photos of my chain saw, click here.

Squirrels!

Yellow Squirrel and his best friend Blue Squirrel love to gather and hide walnuts. I made these smaller squirrels in order to have a range of sizes of plush- it's fun to have some smaller stuff in the shop. These guys measure about 6 inches tall by 7 inches wide. Blue Squirrel is already on his way to his new owner, but Yellow Squirrel is still hanging around my etsy shop... probably getting into mischief. ;)

Lady Harriet and Sir William

Lady Harriet and her brother Sir William are intrepid explorers. They sail their airship wherever the wind takes them, be it Africa, Australia, or the Moon.




I had fun making these Steampunk rabbits for Maker Faire. I found an old faux-leather jacket at my local thrift store, and it seemed perfect for the ideas that I had. I also went to my local hardware store and found some bits and bobs that would work for their accent pieces, as well as raiding the bead section of Michael's for smaller Edwardian/Victorian looking hardware. It wouldn't be Steampunk with out the metal. ;)

Lady Harriet is made with a deep brown velvet with the faux-leather bustier, metal beading, and ribbons for accents. She is now available in my etsy shop. Due to the metal pieces, Lady Harriet is definitely not suitable for kids under the ages of 12.



I also used the brown velvet for Sir William's jacket, and found some really fun trimmings for his belt at Britex fabrics in San Francisco. If you live in the area and haven't been, their notions floor is to die for! I also used some gears and beads for his details, and the faux leather for his boots. I used a scrap of sari material for his vest. I had fun figuring out how to do his monocle- I really wanted it to be metal and not fabric- and I was lucky to find a great hoop that was the right size. He also definitely had to have a moustache!

Sir William has found a new home in Wisconsin, and I hope that he is off having fun new adventures.



This is what they look like on the back.




I'll have more new creations coming next week, so stay tuned! Have a great weekend everyone.

My Plush Collection grows again.

These are the wonderful new pieces I have added to my plush collection- courtesy of my fellow PlushTeamers. These were just some of the pieces that I was drooling over at Maker Faire, and when it was over and all the dust had settled, these ended up coming home with me. There was such a ton of great work sent to Maker Faire from the Team that it made it extremely hard to limit myself to just these pieces. Damn you, budget!! I seriously could have returned from the Faire totally broke, let me tell you. Soooo many good booths, and not just ours- Bazaar Bizarre was going on at the same time, and there were MANY great things to be had... in my next life I am going to ask to be a millionaire. :D

Now- on with the show and tell!

I had actually decided a few months previously that I needed a Cowpoke Deluxe Wibbly Woo from abbydid, and so she made him in advance and brought him with her to Maker Faire. He is amazingly soft and cuddly.



When I saw Edgar the Racoon by the Pixels, I knew he had to be mine. I love his coloration, and the blocky shape is wonderful.



It was the fun, cartoony blue printed fabric and the green fur that helped me to make a decision to take this guy home. Made by Little Critters. I have wanted one of her Little Critters for awhile, and this guy just seemed made for me. Yay green!! I am a sucker for a good green. :)



This Chewbacca Moon Bun by Moons Creations is pure awesomeness. It's Chewbacca!! How cool is that? I don't think that I need to say anything else. ;) He goes really well with my Oola Moon Bun that I bought last summer from the Stitch Wars Show.



I told myself all during the weekend of Maker Faire, that if these awesome Mr. and Mrs. Loafee Dice by Yummy Pancake didn't find a home with someone (and I had many an anxious moment seeing people pick them up and debate whether to buy them, let me tell you!) they were coming home with ME. Thankfully they lasted the weekend, so here they are, the perfect addition to my VW Bug. :D



And last but certainly not least is this wonderful Tribal, from one of our newer members of the Team, ArtTales (LEFTZ). She sent a whole Tribe of them to Maker Faire, and it was extremely hard choosing the one that I wanted to call mine- they were all so unique.



Part of the wonderful experience that was Maker Faire was getting to pick these plush in person- to touch and hold them, which is really what this fantastic medium is all about. They look terrific in photos, but having the experience of actually being able to touch them- and see so many other people touch all the plush available at the Team's booth and find their new friend- was absolutely fantastic.

New Plushcatures

Meet Denise and her husband Chad. Denise, who some of you might know as her alter ego, Yummy Pancake, asked me to make custom Plushcatures of herself and her husband for their anniversary. It is always a fun challenge making plush versions of actual people, and usually there are technical challenges as well- in this case, how to indicate Denise's long hair and still adhere to the "pillow style" of my plush. I did finally figure it out, after thinking about it every night before I went to bed for a week. ;)
I got all the answers to all the important questions I asked her, and she sent me several pictures of themselves for reference, which are invaluable. She also mentioned how Chad always seems to be wearing his "Number 32 shirt" in photos, so could I replicate that shirt in his plushcature? I love getting little details like that- they really make the plushcatures personal and individual, and it's always fun trying to re-create a certain detail that says a lot about the actual person I'm caricaturing.
I gave Denise her plushcatures over the Maker Faire Weekend, and it was so great to see her reaction to them in person! :) It's rare that I get to do that. It was also totally amazing to get to meet her in person and hang out for those four busy days.
So, HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to Denise and Chad! Here's to a long and happy life together!! :D

To see a few more photos, or check more of my Plushcatures, head on over to my flickr page.
As always, all of my designs are protected by copyright, and cannot be reproduced or used without permission.

New Friends

Thanks to Jen and her cute daughter Fiona, a few of my plush have a great new home. Here's a picture of Fiona with Witch Helga, Victor and Vittorio Vampire, Walter Werewolf, and Pepito the Jumping Bean.
Thanks Jen for sending me this terrific picture! Looks like these guys have found the right place to call home. Now don't get into too much trouble you guys! ;)

Come One, Come All!

It's hard to believe, but after almost 8 months of planning, the PlushTeam's weekend at Maker Faire is here!

I'm the lucky one who has been playing host to plush from half of our talented PlushTeamers from around the world, and my house is full with boxes of amazing stuffed art. It is taking all my willpower NOT to hide pieces from each one of these artists in my studio so no one will miss them... ;)




If you are in the Bay Area this weekend, come on by Maker Faire and say hello to 8 of the Team's members who made the trip out. You can meet abbydid, Christina Ward Creatures, Yummy Pancake, Moons Creations, Zazu Faure Los Angeles, Absolutely Small, Cutesy But Not Cutesy, and yours truly. There are also certain members teaching classes throughout the weekend, so if you ever wanted to learn how to make your own plush, or just see some cool techniques, these are the classes for you. To find out more details on the schedule of classes and who is teaching what, click here.

I'll be posting more on the Faire experience when I get back- including pics of all the plush I've been drooling over, the Team booth, etc. I have also finished up a couple of commissions- including new Plushcatures, so I will post those after all the Maker Faire dust has settled. Enjoy the week, and I hope to see some of you at Maker Faire this weekend! :D

Ancient Mexican Jumping Beans - exclusive!

I'm pretty excited to announce that my plush exclusive for Schmancy toys in Seattle is on sale now! Celebrate Cinco de Mayo- or just the return of spring with this ancient species- which Plushologists only recently found living deep in the Mexican Rain Forest. They bring an atmosphere of celebration wherever they go, and no two Beans are alike. :D








Ben and I saw this awesome box with a die-cut window in the Container Store while I was working on the Beans, and we thought it would add to the fun to make packaging for them. I designed the elements in Illustrator, and had Ben put them all together for me. His perfectionist quality really came in handy in putting on the stickers- because of him there are no wrinkles or bumps. Which, sadly, probably would not have been the case had I put them on. Truly- I kid you not. So thanks Ben!! :D
Each of the fifteen Beans comes in its own box, which is hand signed and dated by me.



So, what was the inspiration for the Beans, you ask? (Or maybe you don't, but I'm going to tell you anyway. ;D)
Cinco de Mayo was a springboard that got me thinking about Mexico. Having spent a Christmas vacation one year in Cancun when I was 8 years old and visiting the ruins of Chichen Itza and Tulum started a deep respect for "primitive" carvings and art, which has only grown over time. Climbing the steps of an ancient structure and looking out over the ruins is pretty fantastic- even when you are only 8 years old and don't have quite the perspective/knowledge to truly comprehend the amazing achievement and antiquity of what you are standing on. Plus, the beach at Tulum is truly paradise. If you haven't been, I highly recommend you go!!
I really wanted to figure out how to incorporate some of that ancient symbolism into my plush, and when I remembered Mexican Jumping Beans while brainstorming, the two ideas came together. Each Bean has its own authentic ancient Mexican symbol on its belly. It was fortunate that we had a couple of wonderful books in our collection on Ancient Mexican Symbols and Ancient Mexican Art/Civilization, they were invaluable help. So take that, internet and e-books! Score one for real, page turning, library-smelling, books!! Can't live without them.