squirrel momma

Matched Set

For better or worse, my pieces are on their way to Stuffed magazine.  I was in a coordinating mood, and boy, do they coordinate.

Or, as a friend would say (with one eyebrow raised), "Matchy-matchy.  Very matchy-matchy."

Woodstock

We Etsy Plush Teamers are working on a team project: plush with a Woodstock theme.

Peace, baby.

Stuffed

I forgot to mention that the fabulous Etsy Plush Team, of which I am very proud to be a member, is featured in the current issue of Stuffed magazine.

My little birdies are on page 58--yay!

And right now I'm frantically trying to finish some pieces to submit for consideration for the next issue. The deadline is August 15th, which means I need to mail them out by next Monday, and I'm not anywhere near finished.  Like, not in the same ballpark, or the same zipcode, even. Why do I wait to the last minute for these things?

Why, why, why?

My Black Thumb

Thanks for the feedback on my little dog--I think it's unanimous that he's a Scottie, which would make sense as they were a popular knick-knack back then.

Now moving on to my lack of gardening skills.

Ahem.

I would like to blame what I'm about to show you on lack of sunlight, but as you can see in the photo the tomato plants on my front steps get blazing sunlight for at least part of the day. For some mysterious reason, however, the tomato plants only produced one tomato apiece, and the marigolds refused to bloom.

Not only that, but those two tomatoes never ripened, and were so green and hard that even the squirrels wouldn't eat them.

Obviously, I am only capable of growing weeds.

Hmph.

Sprouting

I've been sprouting some tiny seedlings.

Miki and Misaki (who are each about 4.5 inches tall) have already found homes (thank you!), but I'll be doing some more gardening over the next few days.

Another Parliament

I am about to lose my marbles because the box of crickets I picked up today for our lizard has a chirper in it.  It's been going at it all afternoon long.  Chirp, chirp, chirp.

Chirp.

Grrrrrr.

But before that long fingernail of distraction began scraping down the chalkboard, I did manage to photograph the newest flock of owls. Otherwise known as a parliament.

I also have a little bat finished, but I need to cut out a background for him. And some plant people are in the works, but Nut Boy declared the first one of those off the production line needed more detail, so I have to redo that. Yup, I take artistic advice from a ten year old.

Now I think I need to go feed Bob the lizard an early supper...

Owl Production

In order to keep my owl production line going, I've been fueling my brain with Neil Gaiman.  A lot of Neil Gaiman.  First of all, I'm reading his newest--and Newbery award winner--The Graveyard Book, to Nut Boy at bedtime. If you're familiar with Neil Gaiman (he's the author behind Coraline, just made into a movie), you won't be surprised when I tell you The Graveyard Book is a retelling of Kipling's The Jungle Book, only in this version the orphan boy is raised by a family of ghosts and a tall, somber man who sleeps in a crypt and only comes out at night (I'll let you figure that one out for yourself). I also just finished Stardust (also made into a wonderful fantasy movie, but that one has a few adult situations that might not be so great for kids). And to finish my binge, I just picked up Neverwhere.

Contrasting all that fantasy, I also read a new young adult novel, The Chosen One. It tells the story of a 13 year old girl, Kira, who lives in a polygamist cult with her father, 3 mothers, and 20 siblings. As the mother of a daughter Kira's age, it was hard for me to read about her life, her forced engagement to her 60 year old uncle, the violence and intimidation that keeps everyone under the thumb of the "prophet" who runs the compound. But it was such a compelling story I couldn't put it down (one review describes it as "ripped from the headlines") and I hope Squirrel Girl will read it.

But back to the owls...

I felt like I wanted something snazzy for their photo shoot, so I cut out a gnarled tree for them to perch upon. I usually don't do much set dressing for my photos, mostly because I feel like the pieces are busy enough by themselves, but the owlies deserved a tree.

I am LOVING making these little guys.  And I'm already thinking of some different critters...but shhhh, those are a secret.

Tiny Owl Men

This month the Etsy Plush Team store is having $5 Mondays, where every Monday plush by four or five different artists goes on sale for the rock bottom price of, yup, $5. I'm up to bat next Monday (the 22nd), and after several weeks of hyperventilating I came up with this little Owl Man (surrounded by body parts from his flock-to-be), who stands 2 inches tall, not including his footsies.

It was REALLY difficult for me to come up with something that sells for $5, because my inclination with any project is to make it as nitpicky as humanly possible. But I forced myself to machine (gasp!) zigzag the wings and feet, and keep the details to a minimum. If I make more for my own store--which I probably will--they will have a few more details, and sell for a few dollars more.

And don't ask me why this owl is pink and a boy. For some bizarre, unknown, and probably Freudian reason I give 99% of my creations male personalities. Again, don't ask me why. Just the way it is.

Sardines on Toast

Etsy Plush Team is currently playing "Iron Plush". Like Iron Chef on the Food Network, we were given a secret ingredient to work with. Mine was velcro. I don't know about you, but velcro is my hands down least favorite thing to sew.  I felt like I was Bobby Flay, and the secret ingredient was revealed to be (drum roll please!) SHEEP EYEBALLS!

I tried to make the best of it. But sewing velcro? Yuck. I am usually Miss Do-It-The-Impossible-But-Perfect-Way, but I had to pull out the stick on stuff.  Then I colored it with permanent marker, to try and make the toast look "toasted".

It needed a side of slaw to give it a little color for the picture.  And it probably needed more than that, but today was the deadline.

Should I admit I've never eaten sardines on toast?  And I'm not about to start with these?

R-E-L-I-E-F

We're trying acupuncture for headaches around here.

I think it's working!

(And no, I'm not actually using that poor bird as a voodoo doll.  The pins are to anchor the final pieces in place while glue dries.)