a little treat

I’m a fan of leSportsac, they tend to collaborate with designers I’m fond of; this is no exception. On a whim I went to their site and found that Jeremyville is there current Artist In Residence (not sure about the model choice?). After looking at all the styles and balancing my checkbook I decided to treat myself to the cute little bunny pouch. As a product designer I appreciate all the little details like the ears, bunny head shape, over sized zipper pull and most of all, the handle clip that will allow it to transform any of my bags from boring to cute with just a click! (Did I just try to sell it? Yes, yes I did.)

OH! And I finished my first GYPSY. I really love how it turned out – the gradation of color and the used of my custom Spoonflower fabric!

first mold time!

I’m just twenty four hours from casting the first eyes and butt pieces for my first mixed medium amigurumi. Lovingly named FuzzButt. Each FuzzButt will be made of a mix of acrylic and fur fiber yarn which I crochet. I have so many themes for this little character.

FuzzButt will make it’s first public appearance at the charity fundraiser being put on by a friend of mine who has a sister recovering from a serious brain infection. Along with 5 customized FuzzButts I’ll be contributing 2 paintings, one of which is a colab with Justin Maylone, a ridiculously talented abstract texture artist.

More photos to come.

1st of 8 coats of latex. Looks kind of gross.

Hey Cavey! Easter contest submission

I was perusing my usual blog haunts when I came across an Easter contest for Hey Cavey! Hosted by Toy Break (October Toys) the winner receives an Easter Cavey!! Winner is selected at random so my fingers are crossed, hoping my little Easter themed quick drawing is chosen. I’m always intrigued by stylistically simple characters because I believe simple is harder to pull off than complex and Holly, aka A Little Stranger & creator Cavey, does this so well. I’m a fan – her personal and professional portfolios are to drool over… In my last post I highlighted her as a current inspiration to my own plushy endeavors.

Send those positive vibes my way and I just might let you hug Cavey when I win! 🙂

UPDATE: I did not win BUT I was featured on Hey Cavey’s blog!! So it was better than winning. ^_^

UPDATE TO THAT UPDATE: Hey Cavey creator A Little Stranger contacted me to let me know my illustration will be up on display during Cavey’s birthday party! Pretty exciting… bummed I can’t attend. (again shaking fists I can’t be in the UK)

setting up shop

This past weekend I went on a road trip to my local TAP Plastic store and got all stocked up on materials for casting. This is completely new to me but I’m going to be a pro in a matter of days. HA! Well I’ve at least watched enough YouTube videos to feel confident enough to give it a go. My mind is constantly churning with different characters I’d like to interpret into different mediums. My plans for my first casting will be some notions for a little plush character I’ve designed. Sewing plush is not unfamiliar to me, I’ve created quite a few pieces both personally and professionally. I’ve chosen to make a latex mold, with a plaster of paris mother mold. Based on the guidance of the TAP employee, I’ll be using a fast curing polyurethane for the finished pieces. Last night I tried my first round of sculpting for the casting but got quickly discouraged… I blame a week long headache. It’s been hard for me as of late to get motivated due to this headache. HOWEVER I will persevere… I plan to create my first mold this weekend!! Exciting stuff!

Photo: VonFrau – she’s super talented… I stole it… don’t tell…

This is a siamese bear I created for my Lynn (aka VonFrau) from a pattern I created.

Some peoples that inspire me to create as of late:
Felt Mistress
A Little Stranger 

in progress : “flower fro” sculpt

The name is in progress as well. Naming is my least favorite task when I create characters or sculptures, UGH! When creating my first Spoonflower fabric I played with organic shapes – that I tend on doodling while I’m on the phone – being inspired by spring and the theme of “sprouting”. I purchased a couple of swatches and when they came I was so inspired by them I decided to bring to life one of my sketches in the medium of polymer clay. This whole sculpting and painting process has been an experiment, I don’t know my head from a hole in the ground but I’m having fun learning. Halfway through I had to alter my original plan due to the weight of the clay. My colors of the moment are coral and teal, I just can’t get enough of the combination so I went with it and created a gradient color scheme for (insert name here). I’m finalizing that last details and should have the final sculpture up on my “characters” page by the end of the week.

Sneak peak shot.

one bitter rose

I love, love, LOVE character design. Coming up with little back stories and fleshing out their design. That’s what I spent most of today doing and it was sublime; sketching, scanning and fleshing him out on the computer. I have had this little character in mind for some time… Here’s a sneak peak!!

It’s a work in progress but I’m loving his bottom lip petal pout and his uni-brow. While I’m excited about getting him just right I’m also pretty anxious to get started on the choir of Daisies. Still working on his story I’m pretty happy with the progress so far.