Knitimals Plush Exclusive and Interview!

Danamarie of Knitimals fame came to Plush You! the first year that people seemed to really make the treck out to see the show.  I was so honored and humbled to have folks come out from far and wide.  Ironically her little brother was with her, fell in love with the city and moved out here and now works across the street from little old Schmancy.  The world is small and full of good surprises.  This is only one of many surprises that Knitimals represents.  We will be releasing these adorable little guys on Sept. 15th.  In the meantime, let's see what's been up with the artist.

S- What was your inspiration behind this exclusive?

K- I knew I wanted to do something colorful & bright (which is pretty easy for me), and it had to be soft and snuggly (so I decided to go with uber soft fleece). The Knitimals always have a red heart on their chests, and the OoAKies always have a heart on their cheeks, so a heart SOMEWHERE seemed inevitable. I started thinking about love and the way we carry love around with us. Being 7 months pregnant, these day I am carrying MY love around in my belly! So, it all kinda clicked for me--- my exclusives would carry love in their bellies & sort of commemorate the way I'm feeling right now.

S- Did you do anything fun and exciting this summer?

K- I did! Aside from a few road trips to Boston & Maine, which we love, and catching up with friends all up and down the east coast, I was super busy with art shows & craft fairs. We saw some great concerts & went to the farmer's market a lot. AND my husband and I got to go on the first REAL vacation we've had in a long time. We spent a week at the beach in Delaware & played skee-bal and ate fries with vinegar and watched the fireworks over the ocean. It was like being 10, but with more freedom & extra pocket money for the boardwalk. I didn't bring any work with me (and I NEVER do that) and we spent our evenings reading to each other. It was fantastic. Then at the end of August, I shared a booth with some of the other gals in the Baltimore Etsy Street Team, at the Buyers Market of American Craft and got to introduce my work to a new group of retail buyers... different from a beach vacation, but still pretty fun & exciting.

S- Where would you like to see your plushies on vacation?

K- Ooh, all this vacation talk is making me want a summer do-over. Well, *I* would like to go to Hawaii, so, I think it would only be polite to help them plan a trip there. I could see these guys enjoying a good luau. I imagine they'd be good surfers and I know they like pineapple. Then, of course, there's Germany. I've always wanted to go and my brother just got back from a trip there... I was jealous, and I could sense the Love Bellies were jealous too. And Iceland! Sweaters and green hills and Sigur Ros? Yeah, I think the Love Bellies would enjoy a three pronged vacation. Can we set that up?

S- If your little guys could talk, what do you think they would talk about?

K- Mostly they'd make small talk. They're friendly & generally open to learning about new things. But when they're left alone, to talk amongst themselves, I think they'd talk about baked goods. I can't tell you how many times I've walked into my studio and been convinced that I had just interrupted a colorful debate over brownies versus cookies. Some of them strike me as staunch banana bread types, while others have cupcake written all over them. It's not my place to get involved. I think they're all right.

 

 

S- Any exciting plans for the rest of the year?

K- um, yeah... what was it again? something pretty exciting... but what was it? what was... oh yeah, a BABY! We're less than a couple months away from finally meeting our little boy and I am SO excited! I am, admittedly, a little bummed that I won't be able to come out for Plush You this year, but otherwise the timing is really great. I'm doing one more big show and then I'll be putting my shop on vacation so my husband and I can just focus on our little dude. We're looking forward to just being at home & soaking in all the sweetness. He's due a week before our anniversary and we can't think of a better present. Plus, we'll have all that extra love around us for the holidays (and we won't have to cook!). I've been making him some pretty awesome dolls and blankets & stuff too and I can't wait to finally have an "excuse" to KEEP the *really* cute stuff I've made. I'm in full on nesting mode-- painting a mural, sorting the tiny little clothes we've been given, preparing our dachshund for his new brother and just generally getting ready for all kinds of  awesomeness. And I've heard that Scorpios are super cool people (right, Kristen?). (kristen says "hahaha YES!)