Archive for the plush Category

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Image Odyssey: Leprechaun

Posted in absurd, candy coated nightmares, craft, dolls, ephemera, humor, image odyssey, kitsch, plush, thrift horror, vintage with tags , , , , , , , , , , on March 17, 2010 by shewalkssoftly

I’m about to say something that might make me very unpopular: I’ve never done a thing for St. Patrick’s Day. I appreciate the idea of a cultural celebration, but perhaps I associate this day too heavily with those who use it as an excuse to get rip roaring drunk and puke on their own shoes…or someone else’s shoes.

But, since people seem to get very into this holiday, here are some goodies I dug up for the occasion.

Let’s bring on the crafts!

For a nice relaxing sleep after drunken festivities…

Just because you’re paranoid, doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you…

I wonder if these were mass produced, and there are a bunch of people walking around brandishing one of the most irritating grammatical mistakes in the English language:

(If [your] not able to make a grammatically correct button, fake it!)

I wish I had come up with the idea to slap a label on five green jelly beans and market it as a holiday novelty (at 800% profit per package).

Mmmm…tastes like psychosis.

Have fun…be safe…

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Lara Crooks

Posted in craft, plush with tags , on March 5, 2010 by shewalkssoftly

I came across this series of awesome plush sea creatures by Lara Crooks a while ago.

I absolutely love this one:

See the rest of the series here.
Artist site (with many other types of work)

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Knit Thyroid

Posted in anatomy, craft, plush with tags , , on January 4, 2010 by shewalkssoftly

I’ve actually toiled over the best way to make a knit thyroid gland (since I, and a few people very close to me, have had problems with the pesky little thing). I think Ben Cuevas found the magic design…incorporate the throat/spine!

See other shots here.

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Hubert Cumberdale Sock Puppet

Posted in Dana projects, animation, candy coated nightmares, plush with tags , , , on December 5, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

On any given night, I’m liable to stop what I’m doing and just churn out something like this. Here is a quick Hubert Cumberdale sock puppet, based on the character in the delightfully creepy Salad Fingers cartoons (originally posted on Fat-Pie with other David Firth cartoons).

My speedy, off-the-cuff rendering looks lumpy, but such is the nature of socks…he can be smoothed. If you haven’t seen Hubert Cumberdale in action, I won’t spoil anything. Watch the cartoons!

Hubert was quickly adopted after his creation. I do hope he’s enjoying his new home.

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The Felted Chicken

Posted in craft, plush with tags , on November 8, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

I’ve posted about needle felted anatomy and eye creatures before. Here are a few favorites from The Felted Chicken, who has some fantastic sea creatures.

Puffer fish!
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And this angler fish actually lights up! She really goes the extra mile here.
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There are also plenty of non-sea creatures and other adorable things on her Etsy and Flickr pages.

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Gift Exchange

Posted in Dana projects, anatomy, craft, plush, products with tags , , , , on May 21, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

I was floored when I received an amazing package in the mail from my kindred spirit Sarah. I had made her a plushie last month; a jellyfish named Princess Squishy (an incarnation of a nickname/drawing conjured up in the delightful minds of children Sarah worked with).

Princess Squishy

In return, she sent me the most amazing collection of trinkets: classic Bigelow Rose Salve (it’s delightful), a Liz McGrath limited edition tin, and a phrenology head pocket mirror!

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But the most incredible gift was this handmade necklace. An anatomical heart seasoned with tiny gears, axe in a glass case, black flower and a locket filled with meaningful symbols. Does this girl know me, or what?

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All of this for a plush invertebrate! What a talented and beautiful soul she is. I’m so grateful.

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San-X Relax Bear

Posted in humor, japan, plush, products with tags , , , on May 14, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

It takes so little to entertain me. Does anyone else find it odd that the San-X Rilakkuma 5th Anniversary “Relax Bear” is carrying a head on a platter?

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I’m sure the little victim, who seems to gaze up at the monarch imploringly, didn’t find the experience of ending up there too “relaxing.”

You can purchase one from Shop Kawaii if you’re interested.

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Belated Birthday Kick Knacks

Posted in Books, craft, jewelry, plush with tags , , on April 6, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

A few people who couldn’t make it to my birthday party last month took it upon themselves to send some neat stuff and I’d like to thank them.

The lovely Agmac got this adorable crocheted tummy:

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…and one of the more unique fetus ornaments I’ve seen to date. It’s wonderfully shiny, spiky…and unborn. I wonder how people would react if I wore it as a necklace. I could just say it’s an “Earth mother with an edge kind of thing.”

fetus-ornament

Matt P. found this rare and elusive coloring book. There is almost no info available about it, except for the fact that it was created by Matthew Laznicka, about whom I had previously posted. The images are incredibly fun…I’ll have to feature some of them in future posts:

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I was grateful to Julia for surprising me with one of the pieces I had posted about as well. The Aroha Sihouettes laser cut LP book necklace is every bit as awesome as it looked on the website.

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She also included some little lowbrow art trading cards.

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This next one was a small part of a much larger gift from Matt C. and Steph. Louisa and I were unnaturally fascinated with this confection, so we decided to do some research. Turns out Zitner’s Butter Krak eggs have quite a cult following in the Philadelphia area. Since I can’t eat coconut, I enjoyed this one as an intrigued spectator.

butter-krak

Many thanks!

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Emotional Toast: A Megapost

Posted in Dana projects, animation, anthropomorphic, comics, craft, design, food, plush, products, technology with tags , , , , , , , , , on March 29, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

I’m fascinated by random cultural explosions that take place around arbitrary objects. Bacon has become a veritable phenomenon over the past two years, and I’m noticing steady growth of the toast trend.

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I’ll refrain from posting images of pictures burned into toast…it’s been done ad nauseum. I will, however, show you this meta-toast mosaic:
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It’s not just an emergence of toast products I’ve noticed (such as Tic Tac Toast, toast bandages or the toast clock). Toast is gaining a personality.

Now let’s enjoy some brief nostalgia.

In 1989, After Dark introduced the Flying Toast Screensaver (first for Mac, later for Windows):

Later, Sims Carnival allowed for more intergalactic toast possibilities.
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Who can forget the 1990’s pioneer of these crumbly, starchy heroes, POWDERED TOAST MAN?

High-velocity raisins, corrosive croutons, acidic marmalade, flying butter pats…and of course, flight. He had it all.

Years later, we meet Mr. Toast and his mini empire.
gpagecenterThere are countless variations of Mr. Toast images and products. Personally, I’m a fan of Vampire Toast:

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(Love the shiny cape…very classy)

Slightly more menacing is this toast from one of my favorite web comics.

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Never thought toast could be sad? Well, My Paper Crane proves that it can be, if aware of its ominous scorching fate.
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If you prefer your toast enraged and screaming, you can now purchase a Mini Toast Pocket Friend:
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In fact, angry toast does seem to be all the rage (pun intended).
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There was even a design contest based on the concept.

But wait! Not all toast is tragic!

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Look at Senor Happy Toast, gleefully self-buttering:
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And my own soft toast creations, circa 2006 (and part of a complete plush breakfast) were pretty happy too:
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Yummy Pancake’s Mr Toastee flickr set runs the whole gamut.

Happy…
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Dressed up…
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Drunk…
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Whole wheat, original and rye (together in perfect harmony)…
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Some modern toast creations include bizarre, counter-intuitive designs like this Soft Toaster Cell Phone Holder, complete with bear face and ears:
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(The toast, also with a face, is supposed to “wipe off” the phone…wonder if it’s large enough for touch screen phones)

Are you…
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(Image source link now dead)

What are your feelings about the growing Cult of Toast?

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South Park Quality Meats

Posted in craft, installations, meat, plush with tags , , , on March 24, 2009 by shewalkssoftly

I’ve made plush meat products before; bacon strips, a T-bone steak, ham, and of course…the Turducken. But this life sized meat project trumps anything I’ve undertaken.

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The South Park Quality Meats installation in San Diego includes salami, different cuts of meat, sausages, frankfurters, ham, a leg of lamb, a tongue, tripe, one goat and two pigs heads, and a side of beef.

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All pieces are made from thrift/recycled fabric, and recycled polyfil stuffing.

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Check out the store front! Signs were made by a seven year old boy and a nine year old girl.

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See a few more pictures here.

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