This is the all consuming project I was in the midst of during our move and during the holidays. It was a pain and a joy all at the same time, kind of like giving birth, without the tearing and diapers. Our family has always been a fan of the Snowths and Mahna Mahna trio, so when the opportunity arose to make them, I decided to take it. I've been asked to do it before, but always turned it down, so I wanted to challenge myself this time.
It was one of those things that I miss dearly, but will never do it again unless I got paid millions of dollars to do it. Actually, maybe not, I learned tricks so a second round would go easier, but the execution and planning in the beginning is quite stressful. Though if I ever did attempt these guys again, I would do puppets, not dolls.
My sister came the last night to help me do some machine sewing for the bodies, since sewing machines terrify the crap out of me, and another friend helped me sew up the arms and legs in the beginning, b/c the thought of hand sewing 6 arms and 6 legs gave me an anxiety attack. So thanks for helping me keep my sanity!!
Getting very tired, very very sore, very... covered in fur...
My husband found a sign of life in the small crack of a smile through my hair. He's goofy and sweet.
In any case, I was quite sad to see these dolls go. My husband and I made a quick little video so we could always remember their awesomeness. If only we had more time to play with them before I shipped, but they needed to go asap as they were for a birthday present. I hope you enjoyed my process, the creation of the Jim Henson sensational Muppets inspired Mahna Mahna and his two Snowths!!
*don't let the song get stuck in your head ;)
"Mahna Mahna, Do doo be-do-do, Mahna Mahna, Do do-do do, Mahna Mahna,
Do doo be-do-do be-do-do be-do-do be-do-do-doodle do do do-doo do!"
Have I ever told you that my husband sleep walks? I haven't? Well, I will give you TWO crazy examples and then tell you about last night.
When we were first married, I awoke, being thrown out of bed, flying through the air and hitting my head on our dresser. Fortunately, my husband's body softened the fall. Apparently, he dreamt I was about to be hit by a speeding bus in his dream, and he was saving my life by throwing me out of the way, what a superhero. Thanks, hon!
Another time, I awoke to a bouncing bed. He was jumping up and down on the bed vigoursly while attaking the ceiling. Little white ceiling popcorn paint chips were all over the place. When I asked what he was doing, he frantically replied something along these lines, "There are plastic sporks coming down on us!" Apparently, some crazy mutant plastic sporks were sneaking up on us and stuck in the ceiling, and yet again, he was saving the day. (I hope the spork wasn't as big as this one from Paul Pape Designs!)
Back to the present. I am on the computer (suprised?) and he is laying on the couch waiting for me. He falls asleep. All of a sudden, he jerks awake and speaks gibberish to me for a minute or so (completely normal for him).
Cute little gnome stamp from Niko Art not quite a midget, but the cutest related thing I could find and still be respectful :)
He screws up his nose and says "Who is in that chair with you? I don't see them anymore, did they leave? Oh, there they are, how can you both fit in that chair? Is there a someone in your chair with you?"
I simply reply, "Yes."
He says, "Really? No... NO! She must be a midget then or something. Why don't you come over here then. Shoot my legs off and carry me around, you little midget lover."
Then, he falls back asleep. I suppose, in sleep theory, by removing his legs, he would then be midget like and I would love him too, like my midget companion that was sharing my seat with me? Weird, huh? But seriously, that is not very weird compared to all of the other sleepwalking/talking events I have encountered in these last 5 years if marriage.
Okay, here is another cute little family thing. We finally figured out how to upload video from our digital camera. Too bad it was after I had already erased our UFO sighting video!! He did a little crazy mouse puppet playtime with Isaac (who has named the mouse Pinky Roo). It's cute and 5 minutes long, so take a look if you want to watch. (Yes, I am on the computer again working on my Etsy shop, Bad Mommy!)
Now, the reason for this post, Jennifer of Elegant Journey is hosting a giveaway on her blog for this lovely button print. She is a sweet designer with pretty art and a much less cluttered blog then mine! Go and enter her giveaway and browse around, she has some cute stuff!
Also, my Thanksgiving feast with my husband's sweet family. We didn't do boring turkey this year, we did FONDUE!! Enjoy our pics, b/c it was Yumm-o!
How do you like my very first charm necklace! I love it so much, I am going to be making more :)
It was such a treat checking the mail box today! I recieved a sweet haircomb from Red are the Roses, some shiny vintage optical lenses, a metal hole punch so I can finally use some of my brass stampings in my jewelry designs, lovely fabric swatches from Paper Hill Fabrics and From Holland with Love, lockets and vintage flower cabachons from Bead Supplies.
I purchased a monster mug from Gary Rith for my hubby last year, and Rith had one in "not perfect condition", so he sent it to me as a gift! It even has a tongue. Now, we don't have to fight over who gets to use the monster cup.
Also, last night, the hubster found a great tutorial for making puppets with moving brows. It adds a whole new personality to them. Here's our guy with his eyes opened, and closed. Isn't he such a grumpy looking fellow? I ordered some fabulous furs in vibrant colors, so you will see some more new puppet creations pretty soon.
These little guys are so cute, and for the size, they have a lot of character. Here is your chance to learn about making my monster finger puppets, so pay attention :)
Here is what you will need:
1. Body material (felt, fleece or fur) If you use fur, the selvage edge is perfect for the bottom as it's hard to hem up fur so it doesn't pull out.
2. Felt circles and half moons for eyes, and felt or fleece cutouts for horns.
3. A bit of stuffing for horns. About 5-6 peasized balls per horn is perfect.
4. Embroidery floss and thread.
First, make the horns. Fold them in half and use a blanket stitch to close it. I took the embroidery floss in half, because the whole floss is too thick for these little horns. Start sewing at the bottom of the horn, and when you get to the top, tighten the last stitch and thread it through back to the bottom, to tie it with the bottom thread. Lightly stuff each horn with about 6 peasized balls of fiberfill, using the ball tip of a pin to stuff it down. Lightly bend the horn to make it more of a curved horn shape.
Next, sew on your eyes and a goofy smile with your black embroidery floss. Sew the horns to the top of the face like the picture. For the hair, sew a couple of loops and tie in the back. When you sew the puppet shut, it will make the loops not able to be pulled out.
Now that your little guy is mostly done, pin his backside to the front (inside out of course), and sew shut, making sure to sew the horns and hair into the top seam. Leave the bottom open and trim excess fur so you will have a clean interior for a comfortable finger fit.
Turn your little finger puppet inside out and give him or her a name. They remind me a bit of the 70's show Sigmund the Seamonster.
I have been making my glove puppets as custom only on Etsy... but I know as a buyer myself, I prefer to buy something outright, so I have really been needing to get these puppets ready and in the shop. So, my wonderful sister, BumblebeeBaby sewed up several puppet bodies for me (I create the patterns, and she sews them up in exchange for me doing her hair ;) so now I have a stash of blank puppets to work on! They sale really well at craft fairs... mostly I think because my sweet hubby walks around with one talking to people. They eat it up!
So here is my new hand puppet! The larger glove puppets are sooo fun, but a little more expensive and require both hands to use. These smaller hand puppets are great for kids for imaginative play and teachers to use in the classroom, because they can still use their other hand to write on the board, lead the music, point to pictures... I can't wait to get the other colors and varieties available!
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