Cordoroy Creations

The Corduroy Appreciation Club's annual meeting this past Friday was a rip-roaring success, and if you couldn't make it to the actual Club meeting, here are some samples of the awesome plush made for the event:

11l11l11 by Raggy Rat

                                                            Cordelia by ThEm Dollz

 
                                 "Grow A Pair" Corduroy vending machine by Scrumptious Delight

 
                                                   A Pinwale Pin Whale by Squirrel Momma

The Squid and the Wale by Lana "Plushinator" Crooks

Waling Banshee by Plushroom Soup

                                        and the ultra-groovy Wavy Wade by Patti Haskins

You can find all these lovelies for sale in the Plush Team's etsy shop, so why not get your favorite while you can? :)

Corduroy lovers unite!

This Friday is 11l11l11, which if you are a member of the Corduroy Appreciation Club (or simply a devotee to corduroy) is known as the date most resembling corduroy. In honor of the big day, the NYC chapter of the Club is having a HUGE sold-out event, and the Plush Team was asked to make 11 pieces of corduroy plush to be included in the festivities. If you've been following the Plush Team's blog this month you know all about it and the 11 days of corduroy; each day featuring one of the awesome corduroy-inspired pieces created for the event. I am a big fan of corduroy myself, so it was no problem to be inspired to create a plush using the "everyman's" fabric. :D
Here it is:

"Woody Allen, Corduroy Enthusiast"

I chose to make Mr. Allen because he is a lifelong ambassador for corduroy wearers everywhere. It is rare to see photos of him not wearing at least one item of corduroy. (Although I think he's probably more famous for the almost 70 films that he's written, directed and/or starred in. :D) For my piece, I wanted to keep in mind the Club's rules: each member has to wear at least 2 items of corduroy to the meetings. So, my version of Woody Allen has on a corduroy blazer as well as pinwale (baby corduroy) trousers.

 He is also wearing a oh-so-soft flannel sweater, with cotton collared shirt. I wanted to make sure to add the elbow pads on the back of his blazer, and his oxford-inspired shoes are made with ultrasuede and faux-leather soles.

If you are interested in giving Mr. Allen a new home, my piece will be available for sale in the Plush Team's etsy shop  starting Thursday November 10th, along with all the other cordurrific plush made for the CAC event.

For the Corduroy Appreciation Club- a sneak peek

So, I am madly working on a bunch of projects at the moment, and here's just a sneak peek of something that I will be unveiling November 8th.  It's a little fuzzy since it was taken in a hurry before I had to ship it off... more photos of upcoming projects and new additions to my plush collection coming in the next few weeks. :) To see more of the great plush made for the Corduroy Appreciation Club's yearly meeting in NYC, head on over to the Plush Team's blog, where the 11 days of Corduroy are currently counting down.

Day of the Dead Group show Video

If you'd like to see all the fun art made for the show at the Starkweather Arts Center for the ongoing (until the 5th) Day of the Dead show, check out this link.

And to see just photos of the art, click on this link, provided by the curator of the show, Heather Hansma.

Woo Hoo, Plush You!

Here are my pieces for the show, opening at Schmancy Toys in Seattle tomorrow night! I wish that I was going to the opening, since it's an amazing show, and it's always a blast to hang out and talk shop with my plush peeps, but it's just not to be this year.

I was inspired by the idea of taking some classic Hollywood Monsters and adding my own spin to them. Here's the result:

The Surfer Creature from the Black Lagoon:

He's made from a mottled and hairy green wool felt, with cotton accents, corduroy swim trunks, and hand embroidered patches of scales, as well as his gills and his ribs. The surfboard is made from patterned cottons, and has a quilt-batting wrapped piece of cardboard inside, to make it stiff but also somewhat soft at the same time.

And Rockabilly Dracula: 

He's made from faux-leather, denim, cotton, and fleece. I had a lot of fun creating a removable wallet on a chain for his back pocket, as well as doing all the applique on the back of the jacket. He's ready to jump into his '57 T-bird convertible and cruise the scene.

 If you are in the Seattle area and have a chance, go and check out the show- it's always full of fantastic plush art to see (and buy ;D) and great people to meet and hang out with.

Plush You! 2011 teaser

Hmmm... what can I be making for the premier plush art show of the year? I am very excited to be participating again in Plush You!, which opens in Seattle at Schmancy Toys on October 14th at 5pm. I'll be unveiling the finished pieces closer to the show's opening, so stay tuned. 

Mister Bones

Mister Bones here was made for the Day of the Dead Group Art Show at the Starkweather Arts Center in Romeo, Michigan. The show opens October 7th and runs until November 3rd.

It was a lot of work appliqueing all the arm/leg bones on both front and back, and he also has a lot of subtle sparkly white felt sugar skull accents on his skull, which were hard to pick up in the photographing process- hopefully you can somewhat make them out here. I wanted him to read first as a skeleton, and then on closer inspection you see the sugar skull details.

I had found this great sugar skull fabric last Halloween, and I knew that someday I would find a use for it, and this show became the perfect time to use it. I also had some fun adding color with ric-rac and strings of pompoms, and I finished him off with a colorful sombrero and lapel flower.

If you are in the Michigan area, check out the show- there has been a lot of great work created for it. If you head on over to Ben's blog, he'll be posting his amazing paper collage piece for the show soon. It was really great to be in the same show- and I think it helped us create some really fun pieces.

Just a tease...

A brief work-in-progress photo of the piece that I am doing for the Day of the Dead Group Art Show happening in Romeo, Michigan this October. Stay tuned to see photos of the finished piece coming sometime this week! :D