Cell Block 316

Been pretty busy with some plush preparations for a grand shop reopening.  But I took a 24 hours break to participate in The Soundry's Cell Block 316 art show.  Artists were "locked up" at the Soundry for 24 hours, and had to complete as many works as they could. All projects had to be started and completed within that 24 hour period.  It was a really fun experience and I would totally do it again. It was nice to kinda be forced to make art, because you really had nothing else to do. I couldn't distract myself with a chore, or go watch tv, I had to make art, or do nothing.

I think I got some really cute pieces out of the show, including a couple that may end up as plushies!













This last one was a collaboration piece with another artist, Brittany Hunter. She painted a background and asked me to put some of my little creatures on it, so I did!





Now that this has been wrapped up, its back to work on getting my shop opened again, especially since I have another piece of exciting news coming soon. :D

Working on pieces for Soundry's Member Show

I've been distracted from updating. A lot has been happening lately in real life, however I am finding time here and there to sneak in some creative things. I have a couple of commissions to finish up, including the Sharktopus for Declan O'Brien. Also I'm finishing some work for the upcoming Soundry Members Show. I'm should have 5 pieces in the show including a good sized plush

Some of the things I'm working on that aren't plush:


Drawing finished just last night. 6x8 inches, color pencil on paper.



Painting in progress. 4x12 inches, acrylic on canvas.

More ornaments on the way.

So it seems a lot of people like my little owl ornaments. I'm super flattered by this.  I have a few more color variations of them that I wanted to photograph and put into the shop today. Unfortunately its raining here pretty steadily. I could take pictures inside, but I think they look so much better setup with the trees and natural light.

I also have another cute little ornament I've made that is waiting to be photographed.  I usually like a nice cold rainy today, but this time I'm hoping it lets up for a little bit tomorrow.  *fingers crossed*


I'll be wrapping up my Xmas crafts this week both for my gift giving as well as for the shop. Starting Dec 21 I'll be on vacation until after the new year. I have a lot of neat things planned for 2011, and will be starting off the year working on some art for the Soundry Members Show. 

Well I guess I'll work on some other things now while I wait out the rain.

Squiddly Prototype

So a while back I doodled a cute little guy absent-mindly.  He looks sort of like a squid-monster thing.  I was really fond of him, so I tore him off whatever scrap piece of paper I had been drawing on and saved him, not sure exactly what I'd be doing with him.


Several days ago, I decided to sketch him out bigger into a test pattern for a plush.  He actually went pretty well, but I'll probably revise the pattern some to make his arms/legs/tentacles thicker. They ended up being skinnier than I thought. I always forget that when working with fleece, I need to go larger than I normally do.

So here's his little prototype:

I also think I'm going to make a slit in his back to stuff him, so I can make sure the crown of his head is smooth and less bumpy.  I may also add some polka dots. This little guy is currently for sale at The Soundry.


Now that I'm back from my mini-vacation visiting one of my sisters and my nephews, I need to get crackin' on the holiday items. Both for my gift-giving and for selling.

Commissions and Christmas

Yes, its already time to start thinking about Xmas.  Especially when most of the gifts and goodies you've planned are handmade.

I'll be visiting my sister and her husband, and my nephews this weekend.  We're going to have some Xmas Crafty Time, since I think its something that they really haven't gotten the chance to do much of in the past. I figured I'd whip up some patterns and we'd make some cute felt ornaments, as well as make them each an ornament with their name and birth year on it (sort of a tradition in our household).

Speaking of ornaments, I'm working on creating a line of ornaments to put out for sale both at the Soundry, and online in my Etsy shop. More on that later.

Besides ornaments, I'm diligently working on making and finishing crochet afghans for my parents. I just learned to crochet a few months back at the Maker Faire in Brooklyn New York. I started work on an afghan for myself soon after, and decided it would be a great present for my parents.  They are both older so its hard to pick presents for them, as they do not use any kind of gadgets (they still have a rotary dial phone line) and aren't very materialistic. They also don't like it when we buy them stuff, because they feel we shouldn't have to. But, super cozy afghans that I made, that I'm sure they will like.

In addition to all the Xmas projects I have in my crafty queue, I also have a couple of commissions on the horizon. A friend asked me if I'd be able to make a custom plush based off a made for tv horror movie for him to give to his gf. I just finished up the sketches this weekend.  Also, some of my coworkers saw the plush girls I was dropping off at the Soundry and asked about getting some custom ones made as presents for friends.

Looks like I'll need to stay organized and on task through the holidays!