I’m never really 100% sure what my plush creations are going to turn into.  I’ll sift through fabrics and pull together colors and textures that look interesting together and slowly start to sculpt the material until it’s folded in a position that I want to freeze (sew) in place. I never use patterns because it’s more fun to let the imagination run wild and watch it evolve and take shape. For this critter, I started with the head and ears and then the stomach, sewing the bands of color together. I made his eyes beady and gave him a goofy nose (a button covered in fabric) to make him look more innocent & cuddle-worthy. The hardest part was stitching the leather claws in his paws. The very last detail was his bow tie.  I was getting ready to package him up and it looked like he was missing something. I ended up creating a racccoon-fox-bear-man!

Here’s my latest creation ~ Lamb Kinison! He’s headed to the east coast to be part of Common Threads, a textile art exhibit co-curated with Lana Crooks.  The show opens at FOE Gallery in Northampton on Friday, November 14 • 6pm-9pm and will be on exhibit through December 7.

Lamb Kinison is 17″ high and made of 6 different fabrics. His pioneering 3-clawed paws are used to protect himself against other woodland critters that may want to tatter his wool to bits! He’s just a lamb with his lamb-like ways.

Other artists exhibiting work:

40 threads, Alexandra Diamond, Anne Kirn, Caitlin McCormack, Carisa Swenson, Cat Rabbit, Cotton Monster, Dena Obaza, Diane Koss, Flat Bonnie, Intimidnation/Laura Granlund, Jezabel Nekranea, Johnny Murder, Jordan Elise – Horrible Adorables, Junker Jane/Catherine Zacchino, Keely Benkey-Reichman, Lana Crooks, Laura Bundesen, Plush Goodness, Lety RZ, Joshua Ben Longo, Love and a Sandwich, Mariangela Tan, Mekanikku, Melissa Sue Stanley, Michal Wright-Ward, Miel Rose, Moon’s Creations/Marcy Bridges, Penny Nickels, Pockit Palz, Rachel De Urioste, Steff Bomb, Stephanie Laberis,Taylored Curiosities/Penny, Jen Musatto, Tracy Kennard, Venetta Butcher, Yummy Pancake, & Zoe Williams

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Meet Elephant, Leopard and Bunny. Each little fur suit-wearing doll is approximately 16 inches tall and part of my latest collection called, “Furries.” They will be on display and for sale at Schmancy Toys in Seattle for the group show, Plush You! which kicks off on October 10th.

According to Wikipedia, The furry fandom is a subculture interested in fictional anthropomorphic animal characters with human personalities and characteristics. Furry fandom is also used to refer to the community of people who gather on the Internet and at furry conventions. role-playing also takes place offline, with petting, hugging and “scritching” (light scratching and grooming) common between friends at social gatherings.Fursuits or furry accessories are sometimes used to enhance the experience.

I thought it would be fun to photograph the “animals” with nature as their backdrop:

Wanna win this Mr. Beardsley tie? All you have to do is “Like” this post on my Facebook page and you’ll be automatically entered to win! On Monday, August 18, Mr. Beardsley will help me randomly select one winner. This one-of-a-kind neck flair is hand silk screened with gold ink on a vintage cotton tie.

Uglycon makes it way back to Los Angeles this year and Ice Bat turns 10! Artists from all over create their version of Ice Bat (one of the many Ugly Doll characters) for the gallery showing on Saturday, June 14 at Giant Robot. I created three different plush pieces based off of the 1979 movie, “The Warriors.”   They will be for sale at the gallery if you’re interested in purchasing any of these. #TheBoppers #TheFuries #The Warriors “Come out and playyyyyyyy!”