A King and Link

Haven't posted here in a little while so here is my two most recent plushies.

The first is The King plush. This was made after a vote for what design I should plushify out of 4. I like the way he turned out.
The second one I just finished yesterday. Its Link from the Zelda video games (which I love).

I have more photos of both over at my blog:
Happy Plush Plush!

The Gentlemen

These are very sophisticated office workers from the early 1900's.

Meet Sir Leopold Figgins & Reginald Kenilworth III, Esquire.

Other images available in my site.

Spock Notch

This is a Spock plush that I made for a commission. I enjoyed making this one, and I like the way it turned out.

Made from felt and fleece.
happy plush plush!

Christmas children decorations

I made a few children Christmas decorations, they are all hand-sewn and all unique little plushies. Looking forward to christmas now *jingle of christmas*

Happy Plush Plush!

Go Ask Alice

I'm finally ready to reveal the pieces I made for the awesome Go Ask Alice show! I decided to make the Queen of Hearts, Alice, and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. I envisioned the Queen of Hearts as a nasty sea monster who captured Alice:

The Queen herself is vaguely heart-shaped, and she has heart-shaped pupils and suckers, as well as heart-shaped jewels on her crown.

I based my Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum on the John Tenniel illustrations from the first edition of Alice in Wonderland.

I actually used my owl pattern, enlarged, for their general shape (Alice also uses my owl pattern, but much smaller), and then I just added arms and legs. I was really nervous about embroidering the faces since I've never made anything remotely human-looking before, but I am rather pleased with how they came out.

I decided to also make sailor hats for Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, to more closely tie them to the Queen of Hearts piece.

And here's the whole gang together:

I've long been a fan of Alice in Wonderland (I even wrote my undergrad thesis paper on the tale, because I'm that nerdy), so I'm more excited than usual to be participating in this show. Many, many thanks to Cimmi for curating! If you're in the Santa Barbara area, please go check it out (and take lots of pictures!). Visit the Paul Cumes Fine Art Gallery website for more info.

Gggrantler & duck fox

A while ago I picked up some soft woollen blankets from the thrift store, and I have made them into some soft woollen plushies. I like the soft warmth from the slightly worn pile and they're lovely to work with. Above is grrantler, another go at antlers,

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and this duck fox (because he kinda looks like a duck, and kinda like a fox) also with vintage upholstery body.

They're both in my shop now, and you can see a few more on my blog.

Lolli Tangleton Couchie

New in town, currently residing at www.marisagirardipresents.com, Lolli knows karate and isn't afraid to use it. Soft as she may be, she is no pushover so don't try anything funny.

The Cat Family

Meet the Cat Family.

There's Mama Cat...

Papa Cat...

Virginia...

Billy...

Susie...

and Betty.

The adults are each 13 inches tall and the children are each 7 1/2 inches.They are all made from eco-friendly reclaimed materials and feature hand-painted faces.If you like them and you have Facebook (pretty please) go to my brand new Facebook page for Wee of Many Colors and become a fan! It's so simple! Just click on the link below!

Wee of Many Colors Facebook Page

The Cat Couple

These are two of eight cats I've been working on as I build my inventory. Meet Fred and Lucy. Isn't it cute how they flirt? They are each about 13 inches tall and made entirely from eco-friendly reclaimed materials.

If you like what you see here and you have Facebook PLEASE (with a cherry on top?), go to my new Facebook page for Wee of Many Colors and become a fan! It's easy! Just click here:

Wee of Many Colors - Facebook Profile

Bertrand

Bertrand has come to life recently.  He was an exercise in working on a flappy tongue as well as the addition of his little green butt flap.  I liked to think of my old pajamas as a kid with the feet and the flap that kept me warm.  He was definitely a reminder of being bundled in those zip up PJ's and having hot chocolate. 

His teeth were inspired by some of those cartoons were the kids have giant front teeth and smile all the time.  He has definitely taken on a personality of his own.  Bertrand has inspired me to continue in this vein of softies and experiment with more features.  

TaylorMade

TaylorMade for BurntLatex

Mulderberry the Couchie

Mulderberry is no stranger in the woods. He was born and raised there and loves to visit every now and then. If you find him nibbling on a bit of twig, he is probably reminiscing and it's best not to disturb him.

To see more Couchies, Have a look at my gallery or my etsy shop

Cat with Pretty Lady Face

This is my latest completed piece. She is actually one of a set of cats I've been working on. Right now she has 4 similar sized cat friends and 5 kitten friends in different colors and fabrics just waiting for their faces to be painted on. Pretty Lady Cat was finished just today for my friends birthday, but I'm hoping to sell the rest at the local farmer's market. I'm looking for advice from plushie artists that sell their work. How did you start? How many pieces did you get together first? How did you determine pricing? Is there anything else I should know?

Wee of Many Colors!

Hello TheNeedle Community! This is my first post. I'm Erin Froehlich and I've been sewing for several years now, but my passion has always been plushies. For me it's hard to compare the satisfaction that comes creating a new creature to anything else. In the past I've sewn them for friends, but now as I've been trying to find a job I can't help thinking how amazing it would be to make a living off them. The plushies below are the templates I'm thinking about designing a line around. You can see more pictures and info at www.weeofmanycolors.weebly.com. I would love to hear any comments or advice you have for me!

Blue

This coming weekend (February 6-7), I am participating in the Studiopolis group color show Blue right in my own neighborhood in Minneapolis. I have three pieces in the show: Ishmael, one of the pieces I had in the 2008 Plush You show in Seattle, plus these two lovelies:

The dragon I tweaked slightly from the previous dragon I made. I wanted this dragon to be less cute and cuddly, so I gave him long fingers over a wire armature and made his face slightly longer and more angular. He's made of buttersuede with cotton scales, polyester ears and wings, and hand-painted acrylic safety eyes. His wings are also wired, and his arms and legs are jointed with plastic safety joints.

The kelpie is a brand new design. He's made of suede with a mohair mane and hand-painted acrylic safety eyes. His arms are jointed with plastic safety joints, and he rests atop a painted wooden base (a new technique for me--thanks to Robyn Fabsits for the inspiration!). I had also wanted to give the kelpie's tail and fin a fishlike look. I considered painting on scales, but ran out of time, so I opted instead for spraying on a coat of clear, pearlescent acrylic. I like the effect it gives, like he's still wet from the sea.

Monstrously Nice to meet you!

Hi there, y'all!
My name is Michal Wright-Ward and I'm new here, to theneedle.org. I've been kindly accepted to post on this blog and I'm so excited.
Who's me? I'm a character designer and plush creator from LA, CA. I've participated in Plush You, Dia de Los Plush, Plush It! and more. I love the plush scene, how creative and original it is. We're such cool folks, aren't we? ; )

anyhow, these are some of my favorite pieces of what I made this year, they're the "Monstrously Nice" gang from Crammed Organisms: Yorick, Olaf, Igor and Stella. They only look cute, but they're actually quite evil.
Enjoy!
Michal

yarn-n-coffee.blogspot.com

Totoro Love

So, I decided to show my 23 month old granddaughter the film 'My Neighbor Totoro' and as of this moment I have seen it with her 83 thousand times!! She LOVES it, so I started looking for a pattern for a plushie, no luck, made my own, here is the result....what do you think?

























Cheers!
The Lolly Trolley

screen printed plushies

This is my new experiment. I got a home screen printing kit a while ago and I've finally started using it.

For its first outing I designed a business bunny and bear. Each one is different and there is only 4 made of each character.

I was happy with the outcome and I've made up some new designs for more.

happy plush plush!

We are off to Renegade Chicago with the Plush Team ^_^

I just got all of my little guys done who are making the trip to Renegade Chicago with the fabulous Plush Team, and they suggested I take a group photo ^_^

new Stitches in new ways

So I've been working on new techniques for making my Stitches stuffed animals. I'm still making some with fully handsewn eyes and faces, but I'm also making them using the sewing machine to attach the eyes .

To denote the difference easily, I'm naming the ones that are slightly less handsewn.
The one above is named Elliott Stitches .
The one below is named Christopher Stitches .

It took a little while to get used to making them differently, and I'm still figuring out how to make them this way but the amount of time I save is amazing. And I think the effect is pretty nice , as well. What do you think?
Here is one of the more handsewn ones for comparison ...

Robots, kitties, and cupcakes from Cutesy but not Cutesy!

Hello Needle! This may or may not be my first post to the Needle...I have been a member for a while but have never seemed to have the time to make a decent post!

Here is my newest creation for a returning customer of mine. He asked me to create something that included robots, kitties, and cupcakes...how ever I wanted to handle those three things was up to me! I believe his intention is to eventually launch a website robotkittycupcake that is completely focused on his favorite artist's creations involving robots...kitties...and cupcakes...you got it! It's one of my favorites, I almost don't want to give him up! After all, what's better than a fella who carries around his stuffed kitty and has a cupcake heart???