Art Lesson with Older Kids: Felt Finger Puppets

This is one of the few store-bought ready-made kits I've done with the kids. I thought it would be a good introduction to sewing for the kids (who frequently ask me to teach them "how to make Nubbins"!)

The 2 main issues with this problem with this project were... #1: that the kids had issues with learning how to make a knot in the thread...and #2: White glue is extremely frustrating for kids to work with when working with felt (white glue only really works with paper). The glue kept soaking into the felt and the kids were getting frustrated because they kept pressing on the pieces or picking the whole thing up, and felt pieces and/or googly eyes would come off. But ultimately they learned that the project needed to be left alone to dry and I think they really did enjoy it, despite their glue-frustration.

Snow Day With Jake (and Luna) video on YouTube

I have a new "Jake Video" up...starring Jake the puppet and my dog Luna!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu0oDK-OYng

Valentine Poem Video

Randomly came up with this idea to make a Valentine's Day video with my "Muppet Whatnot" puppet (that I named Jake). You can also watch it on my YouTube channel.



Even though I'm the one that made it, it doesn't fail to make me laugh! I think the timing of the music makes this all the funnier. It wouldn't be the same without the music! I got the royalty-free music from this site.

I can't take any credit for making up any of the poem variations. I got them all from doing a Google search for funny "roses are red, violets are blue" poems.

Happiness in the mail!

So, I've been sick this week...sniffles, coughing, sore throat, headache...and just a general icky feeling. And this little bundle of joy I got in the mail on Wednesday just made an otherwise "ick" day just a little brighter!

They were a lot bigger than the picture I had in my head. I love them! I have the urge to do a little puppet show with them!

I imagine this blue guy with a deep voice and a British accent.

Any suggestions for names for these awesome little guys? Or how about a story that I can do a puppet show about?

My Happycloud Thunderhead Monster Finger Puppets!

I recieved an email from Happycloud Thunderhead today telling me my finger puppets will be in the mail tomorrow morning! He also gave me a sneak peek of what they look like from his Flickr...and you know I just HAD to share!

I LOVE them! They turned out so great! He does good work considering all he had to work from was this little digital doodle I sent him!

Doodley Monster Designs

I got emailed by Happycloud Thunderhead today to give me the options for my custom monster finger puppets I won. I started out with doing some doodles to try to figure out how I wanted my puppets...

But then I decided to take the options diagram he sent me and use Photoshop to edit it into a diagram of what I wanted my custom monsters to look like. I did it mainly so I could easily edit the colors. Deciding what colors I wanted was the hardest part. I could design a dozen! These were my final choices... (I can't wait until they arrive! It should be sometime in the next two weeks)

Speaking of monsters and doodles, here are my doodles for those Where The Wild Things Are Nubbins I want to make...

Finger Puppet Give Away at Fun With Mama

Want a chance to win some adorable monster finger puppets? Go over to Fun With Mama's blog and check out the givaway she's having. She's giving away a set of finger puppets made by plush maker HappyCloud Thunderhead.

I've been a fan of Happycloud Thunderhead's work for a while. I originally discovered him via The Needle. I think I may have blogged about him before in a "My Fellow Monstermaker" post.

I'm entering the Giveaway of course (because you all know how much I LOVE puppets AND monsters!). And I get an extra entry if I blog about the Giveaway. Part of entering the Giveaway is to go to Happycloud Thunderhead's Etsy shop and leaving a comment at Fun With Mama's blog telling me which monster is your favorite in the shop. I like the Grimbitts, Wimbly, Kimbly, and Quimbly and their big floppy ears. I love the line in the description that "while friendly [the grimbitts] are not very sociable." I decided that Quimbly is my favorite because of his turquoise color.

I was debating about picking Wimbly as my favorite simply because his name reminds me of one of the Fraggles from Fraggle Rock, which was my favorite childhood tv show! (although I think the character's name was spelled Wembly).

My Very Own Muppet!

I got my Christmas gift from my brother in the mail yesterday! My Muppet Whatnot!

I was out running errands, my husband was working from home...and he called me and said, "Something came in the mail for you today."

"What is it?"

"Something you ordered."

"My puppet???"

"Yep!"

I wasn't expecting it for a few more weeks! I only ordered it last week (finally!) and the site says to expect 3-4 weeks for delivery. It was a pleasant surprise. I have a voice for him, but I need to name him still. When I pick a name, I'll record a video and have him introduce himself!