I Felt Awesome- Interview and GIVEAWAY!

 As you should all know by now, my friend, Moxie came out with a book recently titled I Felt Awesome: Tips and Tricks for 35+ Needle-Poked Projects.  As I have already mentioned, this book is AWESOME!  Moxie is hilarious and I'm not just saying that because she's my friend.  If you don't like to needle felt you would still thoroughly enjoy reading this book.  I did an interview with  her to join her giveaway here!  All you got to do is leave a comment with what you would love to needle felt and we will randomly choose TWO winners!  #1 winner will receive a signed copy of her book AND a kit!  #2 winner will receive a signed copy of her book AND a little present made by moxie!  Enter to win today!  Winners will be chosen Feb. 16th. 

S- You did all the projects for your book, I Felt Awesome!  How long did this process take? 

M- It seemed like forever! From the day I submitted an inquiry to the publisher to the day the book was on the shelves it was 2 years and some change. (There are a couple extra months in there because of a family emergency, btw.)

S- Not only does your book have GREAT projects but your writing is hilarious!  It seemed like you had a lot of fun.  Do you plan on writing more? 

M- Thanks! It was a lot of fun and a lot of very hard work. I'm not in a hurry to focus my energy on one project like that again for a while. However, if I get a great idea for another book, I'm sure I won't be able to keep it to myself.

S- Do you have any favorites from the book?

M- So hard to choose! I'm really happy with the yo-yo project. The moldy cozy still makes me smile. I also have the Ennui neon sign hanging in my studio and it continues to be awesome.

S- You are doing quiet the book tour!  Where may people find you?

M- Next up is gallery hanahou in NYC. (March 3 for the show opening reception and March 4 I'll be teaching a workshop and signing books.) I'm working on something for Baltimore but the details aren't firm. I have a secret desire to felt in all 50 states so if someone wants me to come to their town, they should drop me a line and see if we can set things up.

S- What are your plans for 2011?

M- Make more art!

House of Ingri Interview and Giveaway!

 A nice interview to learn more about the woman behind, House of Ingri.  Enter your name and a way of contact here for your chance to win a House of Ingri toy, Francis Love Bunny!  Winner will be announced on Dec. 18th!  My sister AND brother in-law's birthday.  OH AND their dog. 

S- Can you give us a little background on the House of Ingri?

HI- I had just graduated college and was working in animation when I made the first dolls. I’ve always been a bit of an obsessive doodler, and my little drawings were all over the office. One night I was trying to think of something nice to make my co-workers for the holidays and was digging around the attic looking through my scrap materials and craft supplies… I found a couple old vinyl table cloths and remembered a Naugahyde Monster that a friend of mine had found at a thrift store- I thought the idea of making vinyl stuffed toys out of my characters would be cool, I had some acrylic eyes and noses that I had bought at a craft store a few months before laying around, so that was the inspiration… the first dolls I made were pocket sized Francis Love Bunnies and Marty dolls.  

S- What made you decide to relaunch House of Ingri since you started?

HI- I was a 22 year old fresh out of art school when I launched the company the first time. I loved the challenges of running a business but had to learn a lot of lessons the hard way… I mean, I offered free international shipping… ha, ugh. I needed to step away for a bit and figure out how to build a strong foundation for the company and get a game plan together. I spent a few years working as a Producer at a very smart New York design agency and gained a lot of valuable experience there. I also have amazing friends who kept me inspired. When I married my husband Brian and became pregnant with my daughter, I knew the moment was finally right.   

S- Tell us about each character. 

HI- I have a whole world for the guys in my head… Francis Love Bunny is a nurturer- he has a garden and likes to bake, Marty is the attention-seeking troublemaker, Picco Panda is handy with a hammer, Moki Monkey is an adventurous thrill seeker, and his brother Miko Monkey is an artistic introvert. They all live next door to each other beside a lake, along with a bunch of other characters that live there too.   

S- How did your work appear on Oprah?

HI- They were doing a show on women entrepreneurs, and featured an online store where the House of Ingri dolls were sold, the dolls were on the homepage- it was random and lucky and very exciting.

S- What are you most looking forward to the relaunch of your toys?

HI- I can’t wait to introduce a broader audience to the world of Francis & Friends- we’re manufacturing the characters in fleece now so that they are both more huggable and at the same time affordable. There are more characters in store for 2011 and we’ll be introducing some great new books featuring the guys too… life is good and I’m very grateful- there’s a lot to look forward to.

Stuffed Giveaway!

The new issued of Stuffed is out and looks adorable. It's so great to see so many of you lovelies in the issue AND ON THE COVER! Enter your name here with your contact info for your chance to win a copy!  I will choose a winner Jan. 20th.

Winner!

I forgot to draw a winner for my new book, Creature Crochet. The winner is.......Violet Fenn! Please email me at kristen at schmancytoys dot com with your address so I can get it out to you!

If you want another chance to win you can go here and here

Creature Crochet Giveaway

I am giving away a copy of my new book/kit, Creature Crochet, coming to a Barnes and Noble near you. All you need to do is add a comment here with your name, email or how to get in contact with you and I will choose the winner on August 26th. There will be a few more giveaways circulating the internet in the next few weeks as well.

Stuffed Volume 2

Stuffed Summer Issue has now hit the newsstands. Win a free copy here. All you got to do is put a comment here along with your contact info and I will choose some winners on July 14th. It looks like a goodie and there is an interview in there with yours truly...

August 15th is the deadline for submissions for Volume 3. All you have to do is send your submission, clearly marked, with a check for return postage. Go on, get famous!

Win this guy!

Add your name to Caya Creations for your chance to win this cute creature. Winner will be chosen on May 31st!

Crobots Book Review and Giveaway

Zakka Life is having a giveaway and book review for the new book Crobots. You have until this evening to enter for your chance to win.

Paisley Jade- Giveaway

To mark Paisley Jade's 1 year blog anniversary she is doing a giveaway. Enter to win here

Another Giveaway!

Hey Everyone! T&A Friendly is doing their first ever giveaway. You could win "Ida," the shrimp who always, for some reason, has this stern look on her face. For giveaway details, visit site here. This is going to be fun!

A giveaway!

Enter to win this beautiful hanger embroidery art over at Design for Mankind. Winner is chosen on April 15th.

Cakespy Interview and Giveaway!

So unless you are a weirdo, you can't go to Cakespy's website without 1) salivating immediately 2) spending a lot of time reading and drooling over Jessie's creations of the edible and not edible sort 3) feel inspired. The brainchild of Jessie Oleson's is a story that has inspired many artists and business people alike. And there are so many reasons why. I know this is not plush but I find her story so inspiring that I wanted to share it with all of you. Please leave a comment here with contact info for your chance to win a surprise gift package from Jessie herself. Enjoy sweeties.



S- To start, for our readers that may not know who you are, can you please explain the basics. Who, What, Why?

Cake- Helllo plush buddies! My name is Jessie Oleson (pronounced like the twins, even though it's spelled funny), and I am the Head Spy at a dessert detective agency called CakeSpy. I have a website where myself and a group of family and friends write about bakeries, recipes, and baking experiments; it's all sweetly punctuated by my original artwork, which consists of anthropomorphic baked goods, which I also sell. The motto of the site is "Seeking sweetness in everyday life", and I like to think you can find a lot of sweetness on the site!



S- At our last Grassroots meetup, I found it really interesting that you get so much mail. That is so fun! Can you tell us about a few of the more unusual things you have gotten? Favorites?

Cake- I love getting mail! Most recently, some of the highlights have included cupcakes shipped from Fields of Cake in Maine (alas, they were NOT OK upon arrival), cupcake dental floss from Archie McPhee, a condom-holder with cake artwork on the outside...and as a wild card, a biography of the woman who started POM Wonderful. Let's just say the mailman regards me with slight suspicion.



To read full interview and enter for your chance to win your own sweet treats, go here

Win an issue of Stuffed

Last week I was really excited to find an issue of Stuffed in my mailbox. This week I am even more excited to be able to give away 2 copies of Stuffed here. Leave a comment here with contact info and I will choose two lucky winners on...how about March 15th? The day your applications are due for this year's Plush You show.

I really am impressed with the magazine. It is full of great photos, the layout is really nice, there are some great articles, etc. I can't wait to see what they bring us this summer!

Alicia Paulson Interview and Book Giveaway!

Do you ever read a blog and just think I wish their life was mine? Even if you like your life, there is just something about those photos and all the pretty that they surround themselves in...Well this is how I feel about Alicia Paulson. She has the gift to make every thing look beautiful, peaceful and calm. Just how life should be! I am sure she has her ups and downs just like everyone but looking at her blog makes me want to run home and sew and make my house pretty. I had the pleasure of finally meeting Alicia this past weekend at UCU where she did a book signing. She is just as pleasant in person! It was so nice to finally meet her and have her signing her amazing book, Stitched in Time: Memory-Keeping Projects to Sew and Share from the Creator of Posie Gets Cozy. Speaking of which, leave a comment here with contact info for your chance to win your very own copy!



S- For anyone who might not know about you...can you just give us a little bio on yourself?


AP- I am a craft designer – sewing, embroidery, and crochet – living in Portland Oregon. Since 2000, I have designed a small line of one-of-a-kind gifts and accessories called Posie: Rosy Little Things (rosylittlethings.com). Lately, I have been working on books, and publishing my own craft patterns and kits, so that keeps me out of trouble. And I try to write daily at my blog, Posie Gets Cozy (rosylittlethings.typepad.com). AliciaPaulson.com is sort of the traffic circle that keeps the things that I do organized.



S- Your book, Stitched in Time, recently came out (which again...is amazing!). Can you tell us more about the book and how it came about?

AP- Thank you! The idea first came my way back in January of 2007, when I was approached by a literary agent who knew that Potter Craft, the publisher, was wanting a book of "memory crafts." I had a bunch of other stuff going on, so doing a book wasn't really anywhere in my mind at that time, but as we started discussing the potential concept I just knew that that was my book. I started working on the proposal, and a couple of days later the agent called and said that the publisher had called her and asked her if she knew me – so it was sort of like other people saw this theme in my work before I did. But as soon as I started developing the idea it just grew and grew, and it all felt exactly right for me, and allowed me to express all the things I really care about when it comes to design.



Read full interview here

Wonder Thunder Interview and Giveaway!

I have only recently had the pleasure of discovering the magic of Wonder Thunder but I am sure glad I did. They are a little bit like magic you know? Leave a comment here with contact info for your chance to win a 2.5" mini plush toast made by the WT team!

PY- How did Wonder Thunder come about?

WT- Wonder Thunder was assembled out of loose scraps, dirty screens, loose morals, and long winter days. We felt the need to fill our already busy days and nights with as much stuff as possible. The rest is history.



PY- Are you from a State that actually has thunder?

WT- Our lives in Tennessee were riddled with thunder storms, something we miss dearly here in the pacific northwest. Tennessee is known for it's sporadic tornado outbreaks, crashing trees, and volatile weather.



PY- You guys have a diverse collection. Who does what in your duo?

WT- We both come up with ideas and the illustrations, we typically draw things by hand then manipulate the drawings on the computer. Sasha screen-prints, Meagan sews. We both do the cutting, ironing, stuffing, embroidering, washing, folding, and cooking.



Go here to read the full interview.

Kayte Terry Interview and Giveaway!

After a recent correspondence with Kayte Terry I have been totally addicted to her blog. I like to think that I am also an omni-crafter so I really enjoy the variety of amazingness she has there. It is very inspiring! Kayte has made really amazing and unique pieces for the last few Plush You shows and did a really nice writeup of the show last year for Adorn Magazine. Her awesome book, Complete Embellishing: Techniques and Projects is equally as inspiring. Full of fun projects that any omni-crafter will enjoy! Leave a comment here with contact info for your chance to win!




S- Can you first let our readers know a little bit more about you?

KT- Sure! I am a stylist/writer/crafter living in Brooklyn, NY. I love everything about making things and have been crafting for pretty much my whole life. I am definitely an omni-crafter and like making all sorts of different things but I am no good at making multiples. I like to use a lot of vintage materials so most of what I craft is one-of-a-kind. My favorite things are japanese craft books, paint by numbers, Liberty prints and the color pink.



S- You do a lot of writing for various publications on various crafty things and events. How did you get into freelance writing?

KT- I wrote a lot in college and always imagined that I would write really lofty art theory books after I got out of school. Of course, I totally stopped writing after college and didn't really pick it up again until I started blogging. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed writing. After that, I started writing a bit for Get Crafty and for the Adorn Magazine blog and eventually more jobs came in.



Visit here to read full interview.

Look What I Can Do- Interview and Giveaway

I thought it would be appropriate to have a Plush You! loyal this week as it IS the WEEK of Plush You! It still blows my mind. Anywhooo, Dawn is one of my favorite people on Plush Planet. She came into Schmancy when I just opened with a HUGE bag full of the most amazing plush creatures I had seen. It's been a pleasure to see Dawn grow in the plush community, the craft community and in her art. Her work is similar in a lot of ways to when she started but now it's just more fine tuned and perfected. It's no wonder that she has received a lot of attention. Her work is fantastic! It is my great pleasure to feature the plush-a-holic herself for this special week of Plush You! Leave a comment her with your contact info for your chance
to win your own creature picked by Dawn herself!




S- Why don't you first tell us all a little bit about yourself and how you started your business.

DR- I was home with my daughter and started to sew her some creatures. She had such fantastic reactions to my Plush Art and she was THE reason I was inspired to begin and keep sewing. Plus my friends and family saw them and kept telling me I should sell them. So after a bit of time I decided to open my Etsy shop, January 9th 2006. Etsy was not really that well known at the time, hard to believe now, so I really had to promote myself. I started reading a lot of craft/art related blogs and was really inspired to start my own blog too. That's when www.Plush-a-holic.blogspot.com was born July 22nd 2006 the same day I became a part of the Flickr community and both have really changed my life. I am also an amateur photographer and went to school for almost 4 years for photography so I absolutely loved being a part of flickr (still do) and I really missed the thrill of creating. I used to spend hours and hours in the studio and color darkroom. Sewing changed my life. It made me so happy and gave me a sense of purpose agian. It was something I could do while my daughther was home with me and still feel connected to something bigger than myself. Something I could do for me.



S- You have two kids now but you still amazingly make stuff, update your site, your flickr, etc. How do ya' do it?

DR- Well, if you look at my shop you will see that I have been a bit slow lately. Having a new baby really makes it hard to have the energy to create. I guess I am just driven to keep going so that I feel a part of something bigger than myself and if I am being really honest I don't want to disappear from the Plush Community. I have worked very hard to be involoved in it. The connections I have made in the craft/art world are really, really important to me. Plus I am addicted to making Plush Creatures. I really enjoy the process and the finished product too. It's all so exhilerating!



Go here to read full interview.

Steff Bomb Gives away her Sole

I discovered Steff Bomb when I started carrying her toy, Mr. Lertchman. She makes monsters and who can't appreciate that? I was so glad to see that she had applied to this year's Plush You show (which is next Friday btw??!!!!!). Leave a comment here with your contact info for your chance to win her Sole.



S- First tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into making plush toys?

SB- My name is Steff Bomb & i like making things? ha. i guess that pretty much sums it up. my favorite food is vegetarian corn dogs, my favorite color is brown, i love my boyfriend (his name is Evan & i think he is a dreamboat), and umm...i am allergic to cats (but i will snuggle them anyway).
i got starting making plush toys a few years ago when i lived with a bunch of friends back in Philly. i read about an all plush show called Plushtastrophe, in Pencil Fight #2. the show was amazing and oddly enough, it never dawned on me that you could do something like that. i have been drawing all of my life but never had a medium that i felt comfortable with...but after reading that article, plush just made sense. the next day, i bought a cheap sewing machine from a wholesale liquidator and i have been sewing ever since.
so, i guess, thank you Bwana Spoons. as it turns out, he is the 100% indirectly responsible for who i am today.



S- You haven't updated your site in awhile. What have you been up to since Oct. 2007?

SB- oh...you noticed that too, huh? heh...
i've realized that i am much better at keeping up with myspace than i am with my website, because i can update it on my own. i have never really been good with computer stuff. my friend Meghan Ansbach has been kind enough to offer to help me spruce up my website and even make the "news" section more of a blog...so that even with my lack of computer knowledge, i will be able to update it regularly.
i've been up to a lot, but its all sewing. actually thats pretty much all i have done since...but i am definitely not complaining. ha. i've also very very recently moved from Philly to Chicago. before this year, i have never even left the east coast. i have to be honest, as much as i love living in Chicago so far...i love Philly pizza much better.



S- One of your toys, Mr. Lertchman had an international release through ESC-Toy. How did that come about and how did that change your plush making career?

SB- oh man, it changed everything. completely and totally. late 2006-ish, i received an email from Erick Scarecrow basically saying that he likes my work and was wondering if i ever thought of mass production. coincidentally around that time, i had starting researching mass production because i wasn't able to keep up with orders. i thought it over, decided "what the hell", and starting saving. by April 2007, i had enough money to pay for the production costs. i know it's not the the best toy in the world...but i collect toys too, so it was surreal to actually see mine in stores all over the world, on the same shelves as Friends With You and Uglydoll's. it's opened so many doors for me too. i still cant get over that i get to be in awesome art shows...let alone alongside people that i have admired for years. i am not going to mention any names (cough cough Heidi Kenney cough cough)...but i still get all giddy about that stuff.



Read full interview here

Hine Mizushima Interview and Giveaway

The second I saw one of Hine's pieces I immediately gasped and smiled. When I asked her to be in my button book and she said yes, I immediately gasped and clapped my hands. The second I read that she had also applied to Plush You! I gasped and jumped up and down. Her work is simply amazing. She is one of those people I think a lot of people are watching and on the edge of their seat wondering what she is going to come up with next. I really enjoyed interviewing her and hope you enjoy reading it. Leave a comment here with contact info for your chance to win one of her amazing camera camera cases!



S- For those Plush You readers who might not know who you are, can you give us a
little background information on you

HM- Hello! My name is Hine (pronounced [hee-neh]) Mizushima. I was born and raised in Japan. I majored in Japanese traditional paintings at an art university, and worked as a designer/Illustrator for paper products in Tokyo. Then after I met my husband, we decided to move to Rome, then Paris, then NY. And two years ago we moved to Vancouver, Canada with our lovely son, and at the same time my creative life was completely changed! I was always just an Illustrator, but now I'm a PSMAVA (Puppet-Stop-Motion-Animation-Video-Artist) and a (slow) crafter as well, and I just LOVE to make things..



S- You have had various bouts of fame, with your video for They Might Be Giants, to your plush creations making the rounds on various craft sites. Why did you decide to get into plush work?

HM- I've never thought of getting into plush work before. I didn't even know what "plush" meant! But when I started to work on the second stop-motion music video for a They Might Be Giants kids DVD a year and a half ago, the wife of one of the band members, Robin, who is a talented musician and also a super crafter, made some great needle-felted number-shaped puppets for the video. So I wanted/needed to make other characters and the props with the same materials to go with them. That was the beginning. It was actually a lot of fun and easy to create 3D stuff with felting wool! Since then, I have been getting into plush work little by little. My plush always has wire inside, so you can pose them however you want!



S- How did you start working with They Might Be Giants?

HM- First of all, I have to say that I REALLY love their music! One day, I stumbled upon 'How to make stop-motion video with your digital camera and iMovie' on the Internet. So I made a video with tiny puppets for their music, just for fun. Then I tried to post it on their My Space page, but I didn't understand how it works. Then I found 'send message' button instead, so I simply sent them the link of my video. Then a few days later, they contacted me, asking me to work on a video project with them! I REALLY freaked out, of course.... I'm working on a different project with them now.



Read full interview here

Fluffels Interview and Giveaway!

Fluffels are sometimes fluffy, often times adorable, occasionally sinister lookin' little creatures by Mariska Vos-Bolman. Mariska will be showing once again at Schmancy for this year's Plush You show! I love these little guys and hope you do too. Leave a comment here for your chance to win your own Cute Kitty Kit. Don't forget to leave contact info so we can tell you you won!

S- In case our readers don't know who you are, can you please briefly describe what Fluffels are and how you got started?

F- Fluffels are crazy but very cute soft toys. I try to give my creations a lot of character that will put a smile on your face. The name Fluffels is a combination of the dutch word for soft toys: Knuffels and the word Fluffy. Two years ago I bought my first sewing machine, after looking scared at it for two weeks (I was sure I was going to hurt myself) I tried my first project, a pillow. Then I made a Soft toy and there was just no stopping. :)



S- In 2007 you quit your Video game job to be a full-time plush artist. What made you take the plunge?

F- I wasn't enjoying myself at my old job anymore. I was doing the same thing for years and was pretty bored, I was making soldiers all the time. The Company itself was great, wonderful people. But I really needed a change. I already started making plush and selling them to several shops around the world. Doing this was so much more fun for me that I thought I'd give it a try. I won't say it isn't hard. But I'm enjoying myself and It is going better every month.



S- How have you marketed yourself to reach new audiences?

F- Enter lots of plush shows :) . You have to do a lot of marketing. Sent your creations to blogs, make a Flickr page. Don't expect to just start selling without doing any marketing. Hand out your business card to anyone you know, they might know someone that can help you do a bit of marketing.



Read full interview here