Lost Monster #2 - Vinny

I made another one.

Now I just need to find someplace to hide him.

My First Snowman (and second snowman)

I made my very first snowman ever today (I grew up in southern California.)  Yes, my first one even though I have lived in Utah for over 4 years now.

When I looked out my front door this morning I found this:

So very pretty.

I went in to my wife's class today to help with their Christmas party and help her clean up and organize and such for the new year.  And during recess I took advantage of all the snow to make my first snowman.

I had a few dozen 5th-graders help me make a wobbly snowman that was about 8 feet tall.  Rocking.

But then I wondered what I could really make with this new found medium of snow with a little more time and planning.  So, with the help of my good friend Jason, a different sort of snowman came to life.  We didn't finish until after dark.

Look familiar?

I hope it snows this much again this winter.  I've got more ideas that require attention.

I Love Sewing

A couple of weeks ago I got to use a sewing machine for the first time.  Honestly, sewing by hand is just stupid.  It takes longer and doesn't look nearly as nice.  I still don't really know what I'm doing, but I'm having fun learning.  Notice my glee and intense concentration.

So, after some effort I came out with this guy.  His name is Brutus.  He is loved by adults and children alike.

Sometimes Brutus likes to pretend that he's one of the couch pillows.

This photo is really just for size reference.  I swear.  Also, Brutus has a wicked underbite that is very had to duplicate by non-monsters.

More plushie monsters to come.

Sunday Project

So I try to not work very much on Sundays. It's the day of rest you know. Sundays after church is the time when I usually do silly things that I don't have time for on other days, like that red, felt plushie toy from a few weeks ago.

So my wife Tiffany has recently become wise to how I like to spend my Sunday afternoons. Today she made a request, to make her a really cool box for an upcoming Valentine's Day party in her 6th Grade classroom.

So I did this:

Her kids are going to be so jealous. (Sorry about the backwards text. Photo Booth takes mirrored pictures and I was too lazy to throw them into Photoshop.)

Prototype

I love building things with my hands. I've had the idea to build a small working trebuchet for some time now but I don't have anywhere to put it once it's finished. I can't wait until I have a garage.

In the mean time I'm satisfying my need to build with things like this:

He's a prototype for a bigger creature I want to do later on. I made him out of felt (red because it's the only color I had) and old teddy bear guts. I sewed him by hand. Yes I know it's a bit sloppy but I've never done this before. I was just making it up as I go along. I think for the finished product I'll do some research on how this kind of thing is actually done.

The final creature will have a variety of interchangeable facial expressions, like so:

Puppets!

I'm taking a class on puppetry at BYU.  It's unlike any class I've ever taken before.  We build puppets, write puppet scripts and do puppet performances.  It's a blast (yeah, I know I'm a bit odd.)

You can check out my first puppet performance here:  FUN TIMES.  (scroll to the bottom and click "Will")

No dialogue was allowed in this one.

Vandalism is Where It's At

I have some friends who have been using found objects as sketchbooks.  They will use anything from religious tracts to old journals as a drawing surface.  I was at my local secondhand shop the other day and I thought I would give it a try.  I purchased a reprint of a classic children's picture book called "MITTENS."  I took it home and quickly proceeded to vandalize the front cover.  I cut out chunks of binder's board and ended up with this.

The inside cover and endpaper.

The whole thing is full of illustrations like this little beauty here.  I can't wait to scribble all over the inside of this thing.  I'll be sure to post the results in a few weeks.

Samurai Jack Skate Deck

Some know this about me and some don't: I love Samurai Jack.  If you don't know what Samurai Jack is then you might want to educate yourself.  It is the single most artful cartoon series to ever be shown on TV and the best action adventure cartoon in history.  (I take my cartoons very seriously.  I'm crazy like that.)

So a couple of years back I started long boarding around town to get outside more often.  The deck I bought is a Sector 9, very nice.  The only problem was the graphic on the underside of the deck, it was a surfer in a huge barrel.  I don't have anything against surfers I just need the things that I own to reflect my interests.  Interests: surfing no, Samurai Jack yes.

I sanded off the big wave and painted this on the bottom.