wings, winter, do you smell carrots?

How to recycle plastic containers into wings. Sturdy clear plastic container.
A handful of raw almonds provides good energy.

Basic shapes cut out with scissors. You can use a paper template, but I like drawing them directly onto the plastic with a sharpie.

I sand the flat surfaces with 150 grit sandpaper, the edges with 400 and then 600 grit. I protect my tables with leftover mat board. Careful of colors though--some can lift off and get sanded into your wings.

sanded wings--two small, two smaller.

You can smooth the edges further by VERY carefully and VERY briefly passing them through a flame. Sometimes I use a lighter, but I like candles better--they free my hands and they smell good. I accidentally discovered these 'special effects.' Curling, rounded tips and opacity with clear edges. I haven't explored this at all yet. At the outset, I can definitely say that anything that involves melting should be done with very good ventilation and great care.

Hemostats are great. In the lab. In the morgue. In the studio.

Aubrey makes us a working lunch. I know---all carbs and fat. But. It's winter and we're working. Salad for dinner.

Aubrey in full work mode.

Wings! Completed and looking quite lovely on "Starlight." Worth the care and attention to detail. Gossimer, translucent, strong and unbreakable. Not to mention, made from recycled plastic.

Winter, as it rolled in over the mountains. I woke knowing it was coming and, there it was.

The sparrows are here too. Spencer explains to Soosi that they're pretty to look at. She's not buying it.

So. What did one snowman say to the other? It's not so much the answer as why the question.

Oh yes. Sometimes I get lost.

Have a great Saturday. I'm off for leftover green bean casserole. Then to make art.

Rats, Chicken Soup, Poppet Planet Spins Along

I've had several questions recently about Rats, especially whether new ones are planned. The answer is yes, I do have plans for new rats. Of course I do! Last year I decided to commit a year to getting Poppet Planet going. That was the beginning of October. Here we are, nearly a year later, and Poppet Planet seems to be spinning along on its axis. We still have lots of work to do on the website---at this point, it's basically still a framework. But it's a working framework. Poppets are making their ways around the world. This week I sent Poppets off to Japan, Australia, the UK and Portugal. Each goes out with its own tiny magic, and the message inherent in Poppets; to open our eyes and look with broader vision, to see that we are more alike than different and that we're all in this together.



Because of that, I know the year has been well spent and I must thank you, for mentioning Poppets on your blogs, to your friends and for your own Poppet vision. So, thank you.

This fall we will expand our workspace and I will begin training a studio assistant who will enable me to spend more time creating new originals.



So yes, there will be new Rats. And new Poppets and new Art. And I will be able to finish up projects started previously that have been put on hold, like Tiny Stories and Poppet books.



Which brings me to another bunch of questions about The Poppet Project. I'm not sure even what The Poppet Project is, except that it's been mentioned in the forums. There's no time available to work on it now though several suggestions have been made which I'm considering. I will say that when I do chose a project it will be such that anyone who wants to participate, can.





Other than that, I'm sending poppets out every day. I'm approximately 2 days behind schedule as I spent the weekend recovering from a nasty bug that followed Orion home from school last week. He was sick for about two hours, having the fast system of a 5 year old. The bug, however, mowed the rest of us down with what seemed like glee and we were down for days.



Yes, the joys of school. I'd forgotten this part.



Anyway, after lots of orange juice, chicken soup, and the first season of Lost kindly lent me by our friend Clyde Erwin, I should be catching up again. Pete and Aubrey have recovered as well.





It's Monday morning. Ben will be here soon. He is sealing the glass front on the fortune teller and finishing up some boxes he made for Play in the Dark. We are talking about ways to make the Brainy Toy art pieces, well, do things. Like walk. I for one, would love to see little brains walking. You?

In the meantime, there will be Rats at the Play in the Dark sale. Some pretty special Halloween-y ones. Along with extra spooky Poppets too.

Have a good Monday!