Musical Lego Minifigures

Beatles circa Abbey Road

Nirvana

Led Zeppelin

White Stripes

U2

It is no secret around here that, for Beeper, LEGO are next to godliness.  Okay, I admit, I was never ever really interested in LEGO myself as a child--but it is lovely the sort of discoveries one is led to as an adult a result of your own child's interests.  As I have worked with Beeper on numerous LEGO projects and models over the past year, I have gained a sincere appreciation for the LEGO aesthetic--the thoughtful construction, the artfulness in their designs, how these simple little plastic pieces are used in a myriad of ways to build something as complex as Hogwarts School or a Star Wars spaceship, not to mention the open-ended creativity they invite.  

Ultimately, this led me to some exploration of LEGO photography on Flickr and the things other big people are creating with LEGO--and this was one of the sets I came across that did nothing else if not bring a smile to my face:   It is a series of LEGO Minifigures constructed to resemble musicians and various rock groups, made by Andrew Becraft (aka Dunechaser on Flickr).  You can see his musical minifgure set here or explore more of his brilliant LEGO minifig creations here.

To me, it is amazing how entirely recognizable specific musicians are when made from LEGO--like Jack White, like the Edge, like all the members of Nirvana.  How can you not love that?  And then in some reciprocal inspiration bouncing between Beeper and me, this morning he saw me working on this blog post, inquired about the minifigure photos then disappeared for a bit and when he showed back up, this is what he presented me with:

This is Beeper's own LEGO minifig interpretation of our family, including Socrates with his green eyes, next to Beeper.  That pretty much made my day.

Easy Steps in Sewing for Big and Little Girls

I received this beautiful and quirky old book from my friend, Kendra, as a Christmas gift this year--Easy Steps in Sewing for Big and Little Girls by Jane Eayre Fryer.  The book also has an alternate title found inside on the title page--Mary Frances Among the Thimble People--which alludes to how this sewing instruction book unfolds more like a story where all manner of sewing notions come to life and spend many an afternoon teaching Mary Francis how to sew the most lovely and exorbitant doll clothing--often offering their instruction in rhyme.

You can see some of the book's main characters above--they appear in illustrations throughout the book. You can also see how perfectly rude Mr Silver Thimble can be, calling Tommy Tomato Pin Cushion a "fatty."  Boys can be so callous to one another.

The book was published in 1913 and as far as I can tell I must have a one of the early printings since it is inscribed to Arlyne Ostrom (from Mother), Xmas 1913 (love old inscriptions in books, don't you?).  But the book is filled with instructions on how to do all the basics in sewing--all hand sewing, mind you--as well as how to do things I have never even heard of like felling on flannel, kensington outline stitch, and whipped ruffles.  It also teaches how to darn which I have never done before but seems useful.

And then there are patterns--like this sweet and classic cross stitch that I feel compelled to make now even though I have somehow always felt that cross stitch is mundane and the equivalent of counting holes in ceiling tiles for amusement.  But this pattern charms me...they call it a Grand Sampler on Canvas, which does make it seem a bit more glamorous.  

Oh yes, and then there are oodles of instructions for doll clothes.  Like, a trousseau of doll clothes that one could take on your 12 month honeymoon across Europe with your beloved and dapper husband--pinafores, bathrobes, kimonos, morning and afternoon dresses, petticoats, fur lined capes, automobile coats, bathing suits...

...and even items of a racier sort like rompers, drawers and bloomers.  Oh la la, mon cheri.

Oh yes, and one must not forget the Tippet, Muff and Polo Cap.  You want one for yourself now, don't you?  I mean, that Tippet actually does look pretty sweet to me--I would wear it (albeit with jeans, t-shirt and kick ass boots...)

But the best part of the whole book is that it contains  sheets of delicate and yellowed tissue paper patterns for all the clothes that fold out.  My heart almost broke when I found these as I paged through the book--mostly because almost all the patterns are still there, just waiting to be unfolded and used.  They are glued right into the book so that they reside right in with the instructions for a given piece of doll clothing.  Like little sewing surprises awaiting you with each turn of a page.

And you can count on this, I will report back at some point, having hunkered down and made something from the book--and then I will scan in the pattern and share it with you just in case you might want to make your own tippet too--or whatever.

Update: As it turns out, this book is actually still in print.  You can find a copy of it under the title, The Mary Frances Sewing Book--find it here.

Etsy Handmade Toy Guide

Since it's black Friday and all, I just thought I would drop in with my own personal list of handmade favorites, all found in crazy labyrinth of shops Etsy has become.  Tell me, does it not warm your heart though, just a little bit, to know that there is so much good handmade stuff for kids out there?  It makes me all giddy just to look at this collage.  Options for kids on Etsy have definitely improved over the last few years and what can be found goes far beyond plushies and custom outfits for Blythe dolls.   Some of these shops were new to me, but many are also tried and true favorites of mine--like The Small Object (and yes, I will be buying the I Like to Draw pencils and drawing set for Beeper's stocking). 

Some of my very favorites are the activity book from Belle and Boo (bought it some time ago and it is worth every one of its 9 dollars--so lovely and full of the sweetest variety of activities and crafts), the mohair bunny with all its adorable outfits and teeny weeny pastries from Man o' Mine, those simple wands with the colorful knitted handle from Green Mountain Wee Woolies, that funny little wool plushie from Sara Carr, and while this is not handmade--well, I had to slip in a vintage Fisher Price set in there (we already own this pop-up trailer and truck set--so brilliant the way it pops up, the little motorcycle that sits on the trailer, and the little boat on the top of the SUV).  Oh, and that new cat design from Cotton Monster is killing me I love it so much and really just want it for myself.

So, go ahead, do a little browsing, click away and get a closer look at some of the items and support all the great artists and crafters out there making so much fantastic stuff. (the list runs from left to right, starting at the top--just in case you happen to follow the photos from right to left from the bottom or some other wonky way)

1.    Multi-colored Natural Wooden Blocks from Imagination Kids $16 

2.    French Alphabet Cards $58 From Bibitty 

3.    Hand Turned Wooden Top from Urban Turn $4  

4.    Hellobaby Munchkin from Viola Studio $19 

5.    Little Tooth Teething Toy from Little Sapling Toys $12 

6.    Pogo Handstitched Woodland Friend  from Pogo $44 

7.    Aada Bunny from Man O Mine $200 

8.    Bubbles Before Bed Book from Belle and Boo $10.75 

9.    The Little Lion Hat from SweetPeaToadTots $55 

10. Tree Branch wands $5 rom Green Mountain Wee Woolies 

11. Set of semi Trailers from Nin Design $38 

12. Rainbow Alien Invasion Finger Puppet Set from Babus Toys $45 

13. Letterpress Fortune Teller from Sycamore Street Press $8  

14. Vintage Fisher Price Pop Up Camper $44 from Toys of the Past 

15. Ultimate Mustache Crayon Set $10.95 from Gaddy Nipper Crayons 

16. Lina Von Katz Kitten from Cotton Monster $58 

17. Paper Doll Set from Sarah Jane Studios $9 

18. Indoor Teepee Tent from Moozle $195 

19. Linen Doll Tallulah from Leilalou $26 

20. Ninjas with Intelligence from Goose Grease $30 

21. Green Digger from Elsie Marley $55 

22. Bear, Bunny, Bird Pocket Notebook Three Pack $12 from The Black Apple  

23. I am Here - Your neighborhood custom map play mat from Board Stiff $28.50  

24. Wooden Car Stacker from Just Hatched $18 

25. I Like to Draw Pencil Pack from The Small Object

26. Unique Linen Pencil Clutch $23.09 from Pilli Pilli 

27. Edie Plush from Sara Carr $39 

28. Silver Bubble Wand from Nina Gibson Designs $38 

29. Coco Doll from Beeb $43.50 

30. Mushroom Bowling $28 from Muddy Feet 

31. Yellow and Blue Wooden Toy Boats from Friendly Fairies $58 

32. Design Your Own Starter Home $18 from The Merc Shop 

33. Shooting Marbles Set from Marble Maam  $9 

34. Tim from Raplapla $56 

35. Walking Blocks from Asher Jasper $40 

36. Pull Raven from Sleeping Forest $28 

New Crafty Links and Lots o' Easter-y Projects

I just updated the Projects Found Elsewhere You Should See button over there in the sidebar. Lots of lovely easter-y and spring-y projects over there for you to check out--projects for the kiddies, but also a couple of big people projects too. Go check them out and make something handmade (or 2 or 3...) this week to tuck into an Easter basket, or to give as a special spring-time gift. I will be back here tomorrow with another tutorial of my own for you...in the meantime, happy-crafty-link-surfing.

Kiddo Travel Desk: Thanks MerMag!

Made this on on Monday for Beeper--an uber-handy-dandy travel desk for kiddos. Check out all the cool features...

...handy pockets to hold a gaggle of markers, and anything else you want to zip into a little pocket...

...an applique monogram so your kid will not confuse his travel desk with anyone else's in the car, plus nice button and loop closures for the EXTRA pockets that reside behind other pockets (yes, that's right, pockets on pockets...oh the stuff you can stow...)

...and even more handy pockets on the other side to hold more stuff and a water bottle if you want...

...and while I forgot to take a photo of it, this is the pillow that slides into the pocket on the backside of the desk, under the board that sits in there too. This means you can remove the board and the pillow at will so you can launder the desk when your kiddo spills his grape juice all over it (oh, and did you note the convenient carrying handle pictured in the first photo?)...

And you can make one too! Simply visit Merrilee's blog--MerMag--where you can find her tutorial on how to make a travel desk like the one she made for her own kiddo (see more photos of her desk design here).

I did make some small modifications to Merrilee's design--1) appliqued the desktop initial instead of embroidering it 2)did not make the pockets slotted to hold individual pencils--I wanted my pockets to be deep and big enough to hold a handful of markers or crayons so they could be at the ready for Beeper to color (when you color everything in rainbow colors just 4 crayons will not do) 3) I made my slot for the desk board big enough to accommodate a pillow insert (then skipped the step of creating a stuffed pillow pocket to the desk)--what I love about this particular modification is that I sewed a cotton fleece cover for the pillow insert so it can do double-duty as an actual pillow when pulled out from the travel desk slot.

And I have to tell, you we put it to use last night during our 10 hour drive to central Illinois (doing time with the in-laws), and it worked beautifully--Beeper colored and did dot-to-dots and played with his monster magnets and then ate his dinner on it...this travel desk comes highly recommended by 2 out of 2 moms (um, that would be me and Merilee).

Some Local Color

I just wanted to share some of the stuff around here giving me a little happy boost whenever I see it. It is all about color (a continuing ode to Beeper and his rainbow vomit coloring style). Like these melamine mixing bowls in a lovely nesting rainbow set. They are designed by Michael Graves for Target. And while I already own a couple of sets of ceramic mixing bowls I could not walk away without bringing them home to my kitchen. Bliss in a bowl (or 6).And this. Have you seen the lunch boxes by GoodByn? We bought one for Beeper earlier this year and I am grateful for it every single day that I pack it. There are so many reasons to love it: made from recycled materials, comes with 3 sheets of stickers so the kiddies can do it up in their own style (without the influence of any mainstream cartoon characters), bento-influenced with all of its little compartments, dishwasher-friendly, you do not need to use baggies or individually portioned items because each food item will stay contained in its own compartment, and it can be recycled when you are done with it. Go see the GoodByn site. Get your own--in fact, I am waiting for the adult version so I can have my own.

And this is Beeper's latest doodle face. It is a wizard. Ala Dumbledore, I think (or so I like to think since I have great affection for Dumbledore, like he is my favorite eccentric uncle or something). He happens to be holding 3 wands in each hand too, in case you did not notice.

And on an entirely separate side note--I wanted to share some info with all of you about the Rainbow Sunshine Plushie fiasco. Coincidentally, my brother-in-law happens to work in the US Patent Office--he is an uber-smart guy with a science-y PhD AND a law degree, for good measure. He actually reviews patents for his job. Naturally, I sent a little note his way when Taggie's attacked. And what I learned was that I actually was in violation of their patent. He said with the way it was written, what they had actually patented was specifically the use of folded ribbon. I know. He thought it was a little surprising too that there was a patent on that. He did say that if I had the inclination, I could set about trying to challenge their patent, and find some examples prior to the original patent date, showing that they were not the first to use ribbons in the way they do. Tempting--but not really. At this point, I could give a rip. I am just over it. And while I still think it is ridiculous, I have to admit that it has been a good lesson in patent law, but more valuably, it has taught me how supportive all of YOU are. I was truly wowed by the support so many of you showed to me over this crazy issue. And your own commitment to standing up to the man, when called upon. The comments you left made me smile, laugh and just feel downright warm because I knew I was not alone. So, thank you for all of that. Thanks for visiting, reading, and supporting. It is that sort of thing that makes all the time I spend on this blog worth it. I love you, man (big group hug vibe coming your way).

Color Your Own Valentine's Cards

Are you like me? I refuse to buy commercial, "character" based valentines. At least for now while Beeper still does not realize he has a choice in the matter and is happy to go along with whatever his mama puts in front of him.

Like these Color Your Own Valentines Cards I purchased from Etsy--a $3.99 pdf purchase=as many valentine's as you can manage to print + a donation to the Children's Heart Foundation. I love that. Don't you?

The pdf consists of 12 different hand drawn valentines by various Etsy artists and not a dud in the bunch, I tell you. They are all sweet and lovely. Also that donation was a clincher for me.

So, rather than coloring valentines for each of his classmates, Beeper is packaging a little set of these cards for them to color themselves. Brilliant--right? A little gift and a valentine all in one envelope (never mind that we did almost the exact same thing last year--new school, new kids--they'll never know). I made a little band for the cards and Beeper addressed some brightly colored envelopes and now we are set for Friday's Valentine's Day shindig.

Interested in the cards? You can buy your own set here. Interested in doing something like what we did? You can download the band we made for the cards here:

DOWNLOAD VALENTINE CARD BAND

Happy Valentine's Day.

Doodle Face Skeleton

Beeper received one of these Magnetic Doodle Face guys from The Small Object for Christmas. This was his first original creation with it--a skeleton body for that sweet little head. No original clothing creations, no frilly neck ruffles ala Bozo the Clown, no spotted animal bodies even. Nope--just bones. What can you do? He's a boy.

Downloadable Calendar Love

I am so in love with the downloadable calendars available on Etsy, right now, as we speak. Between you and me, I have ordered 4 already--and I may be back for 1 or 2 more of the above.  Does this seem irrational and like I may have some sort of hoarding problem around which a reality show could be constructed?  Well, I like to merely think of myself as smart and thrifty--because, what I plan to do with all of these calendars (aside from revel in their design during spare moments) is to give them for christmas gifts--one for everyone on my gift giving list--friends, family, teachers, coworkers, you-frickin-name-it--they are ALL getting one of these calendars this year.  And this is the beauty of the $5 downloadable, PDF calendar, non?  You can make as many copies as you please and give them out to the paperboy, neighbors, newly acquired friends on street corners...whomever, whenever.  Give, give, give.  And also, since you do have to print and assemble them, I think they can at least partially count as handmade--right? (and with the Decorate Your Own from A Little Hut, well you get full handmade credits there).

And for your own reference and further perusal, these are the calendars pictured above (listed left to right, from top row to bottom):

1. Patterned Initials by A Little Hut
2. Printable Nature Calendar by Blue Tricycle
3. Printable Calendar by Yaelfran
4. Blank Calendar--Decorate Your Own by A Little Hut
5. Petit Paris by Little Brown Pen
6. Simple Woodcuts by E.M. Papers
7. Printable Monthly Colorful Animal by Printable Project
8. Vintage Silhouettes by Red Door Studio

The downloadable calendar is pure genius, if you ask me.  I wish everything was downloadable and endlessly reproduce-able and cost only $5 for the pleasure...

Toy Crafting Crush

I know, I know--it was less than a month ago that came forth with my sappy blog crush confession for Sweet, Sweet Life.  Call me fickle if you will, but I choose to believe I have room enough in my heart for BOTH Sweet, Sweet Life and Matsutake.  Besides, they are totally different blogs--Amy 's blog is full of happy, diverse discoveries each day, while Katie's is full of her own fantastic wooden toy designs and snarky commentary on her domestic life.  I do LOVE THEM BOTH.  But, I digress because what I really want to tell you about is Katie's toys, her blog and her Etsy shop.  Well, let's allow the photos to speak for themselves.... 

I mean, c'mon.  How can you not love her work?  It manages to feel both modern and vintage at the same time.  And I am not the only raving fan, since Martha invited her to be on her show a while back to share how to make her paper mache pull toys (see the tutorial here--on Martha's site).  

And then, on top of all her toys that are so good they make you want to gather one of each up and hoard them all for yourself in your own workshop, she also does these FRICKIN AMAZING crafty tutorials on her blog.  Like this play stove...

...or these sweet little Where the Wild Things Are looking creatures made from cardboard toilet paper tubes (reduce, reuse, my friends)...

...or this hedgehog pencil holder she somehow envisioned rising out of an empty plastic sodapop bottle...

I mean, it is mind blowing, really, what Katie is doing over in her neck of the woods (which also happens to be near my neck of the woods since she too lives in Minnesota).  Oh, and did I mention she also designs her own sewing patterns?    I may have to make one of these squirrels for a Toy Society drop now (even though I hate squirrels because they ransack our garden and gnaw holes in our compost pail and burrow in  the attic of our house--buttholes--but somehow when I look at Katie's squirrel design I suddenly ADORE squirrels and want to go  bring them a bucket of  unshelled walnuts or something and then I want to make one of these for myself and cuddle up with it at night...)

Are you crushing on Matsutake as much as I am yet?  Well, go find Katie's blog here, and her Etsy shop here and by all means, enjoy yourself.   After discovering Katie's blog, I read it straight through like I was reading the current issue of a magazine from cover to cover--so settle in with a cup of tea and some cookies or something because you may be sitting in front of your computer for a while.  (And, Amy?  I still totally dig you--really).

Little People

I so love this. Tiny art, installed on the street, left randomly for any old stiff to stumble over. Alientation and whimsy and humor--and so many other things--evoked here. So utterly genius. Why can't I be this cool? (but alas, this is as close to a Little People installation I get around here...)

It's by some dude who calls himself Slinkachu. For real. Check out this little snippet from his FAQ:

Q: Where do you get your "little people"?

A: Many of the little people live under my bed where I force them into hard labour cleaning crumbs from my floor.

He does this in London (god, I love London). And what I am really happy about is that there are people like Slinkachu in the world who think to do things like this--and then actually, do it. (somehow I think for something like this to be thought of and realized by me it would involve: 1)drinking a whole lot more whiskey--straight, 2)a nanny to look after Beeper while I am on one of my benders installing little people throughout the city into the night, and 3)probably would need someone extra to clean the tub and do the grocery shopping...genius like this does not come without its price...)

Now go on and dig it for your own self. Find his Little People blog here. And if you really, really love his work--you're in luck--there is a whole book of Little People installation photos.

Alternate Uses for Sculpture

The Minneapolis Scuplture Garden outside the Walker Art Center is possibly my favorite place in the whole city. I can recall when I first visited the Sculpture Garden back when I was in junior-high and I was just plain awe-struck. It is place that is both surreal and magical and inspiring. There is the ubiquetious Spoonbridge and Cherry by Claes Oldenburg & Coosje van Bruggen...and then just all sorts of other stuff....stuff that Beeper and his cousin Bailey (I describe her as distilled sunshine) found alternate uses for on recent Saturday afternoon at the sculpture garden.... ...like this sculpture climbed and used as slide...
...or this scuplture that became the focal point of an extended game of hide and chase......and this one that was employed as some sort of wobbly swing. You can see what there is to love about this place--especially when it comes to exposing small children to art. It is not fragile, it not something you cannot touch, and it is larger than life--something that can be scrambled over, walked around, felt with your own hands.
And then we ended our visit with a walk across the Art bridge that traverses the I-35W freeway. Art does make the world a better place, yes?