I almost forgot to post about this mask I made for the San Francisco Plush You! venue, double punch. And what better day to post a mask than All Hallow’s Eve? See more in this Flickr set, including in-progress shots.

Now go eat some candy!

It’s that time of year again: the fourth annual Plush You! show at Schmancy in Seattle opens Friday October 10! The opening runs from 5-9pm and will be up for a month. BONUS: This year, there will also be a San Francisco venue as well! WOW! I have sent different work for each place, but the work I did for Seattle is up on my Flickr page.

I have not stayed in the habit of regularly making plush toys out-of-season, but every time Plush You! rolls around, I have a great time playing with my big boxes of random felt and fabrics that I have collected. I use it as an opportunity to try out an idea, or as an outlet for something that has been on my mind. This year, I wanted to make wearable things, so I created a set of three Cryptid Crowns: Nessie, Sasquatch, and Yeti.

I also designed some labels for the crowns. I think I almost have as much fun designing and making the labels as I do making the actual plushies!

P.S. I just posted a set of haikus to the blog of Adam Rex, children’s author and illustrator extraordinaire. The poems I wrote seem to have a familiar theme…

This little bear (kind of looks like a dog to me) has appeared on the streets of New York. Until now I’d only seen photos, and I loved the idea, but now, seeing it on video, I love it even more. The ferocity of the beast is enhanced by its tremulous stance when the air pressure is too strong.

The grates on the street are air vents for the subway tunnels. Whenever a train goes by, the pressure wave of air in front of the train shoots up through the grates and inflates the sculpture. It’s a brilliant and creative use of otherwise lost energy. I wish I had thought of it! (of course, the Twin Cities don’t have subways, so…)