We made our first set of felt shapes a bit before Halloween, to cheer up our space and ourselves. Being at home almost 100% of the time due to the pandemic starts to get you down after a while. It was surprising how much adding a couple of seasonal felt banners to a room lifted our spirits!
Our friends saw our garlands during video chats and loved them! So we decided to add them to the shop!
We always thought offering felt shapes would be fun, but until we started laser cutting it wasn't a feasible option.
Decorating for the holidays always sounds fun, but it's a lot of work! Hand cutting a bunch of small shapes to make a garland is daunting. But with our laser cut felt shapes, the hard part is taken care of!
We offer individual shapes, so you can customize your very own garland with colors and shapes. We also offer assorted sets of themed shapes and colors, if you don't want to make a ton of decisions. You can find all our current pre-cut felt shape offerings here
It's a big change but one we're super excited to have made. It's been in the works for years.
Why the change? Put simply the name 'Squshies' name has become problematic over the years.
It was hard to pronounce. It was hard to spell and was constantly being auto-corrected. It also stopped making a whole of sense.
The name Squshies came from the combination of the words “square” and “plushie”. Our felt animals started with very boxy and square designs. It was a fun challenge at first but as our little world of critters grew, we began to transition further and further away from the square designs. What started as a fun challenge had become more of a joyless limitation.
We really love the name Squshies, despite all the problems we had with it. The decision to move away from Squshies has not been done lightly. We've been trying to find a new name for probably close to 5 years! We've thrown out countless name ideas over the years. A couple of ideas had potential, but they just didn't stick.
Until Little World of Beasts.
We feel that Little World of Beasts still has the sense of fun and cuteness Squshies did. We love how it doesn't focus on any particular medium, opening up a world of possibilities. It's a tad long, but all easy to spell real words that won't autocorrect! We feel like we couldn't possibly sum up what we do any better than we have with this name.
We hope you like this change as much as we do =)
I'm super excited to share a project we've been working on!
At shows we get asked about the possibility of putting Squshies on all kinds of things like hats, bags, and t-shirts. These are all things we would love see to Squshies on, but not feasible for us to make ourselves.
I'm super excited to share a project we've been working on!
At shows we get asked about the possibility of putting Squshies on all kinds of things like hats, bags, and t-shirts. These are all things we would love see to Squshies on, but not feasible for us to make ourselves.
For the last year and half we've been experimenting with felt patches/appliques with the hopes that we can provide the Squshies and you can take your favorite Squshie patch and make the perfect hat/bag/t-shirt/ for you!
We started this project with a felt iron on of our old unicorn design and added it to a t-shirt. It worked, but after about 5-7 washes the more pointy bits started to peel up, like the tips of the hooves and mane. Once the peeling started, the rest of the patch was quick to follow. We had a feeling sewing the patch would work, but sewing around every bit of the unicorn's silhouette was rather complicated.
We revisited the idea with our new outlined designs, which have less pointy bits and provide a much simpler shape to sew around. We took our narwhal and ironed it on to a t-shirt and then hand stitched around the white outline for extra security. This test was more what we were looking for! All the photos of the narwhal shirt I took today for this newsletter. This narwhal appliqued t-shirt has been through the wash 20 times! Let's take a closer look at how it's holding up =)
If you get up close you can see the most pointy bits, like the tip of the fins have separated from the fusible web.
Using stitches, in conjunction with the iron on fusible web, has prevented the peeling from being extensive and the applique is still very secure.
Other areas of the patch are just starting to show a bit of separation of the fusible web from the felt, but once again the stitches are preventing the patch from peeling up further.
After so many washes the felt is a bit pilly, but so is the overall t-shirt.
Since we were happy with our test we sent a few appliques out to #squshiefriends to be tested!
Above you can see the results of 3 of the tests we sent out!
Our friend Corri used her appliques to made some towels super cute! I never would have thought to add the patches to towels, but I love the idea! She has put them through the wash a few times and said they're holding up well.
Our friend Chrstina added her applique to a hat! Didn't it turn out just adorable?
No promises, but I'm hoping to have to have some appliques available in time for the Jackalope Art Fair at the end of April in Pasadena.
So what do think of the Squshie felt patches?
This blog post was from our February, 23rd newsletter! Our newsletter is the best source for finding out all our newest news. Sign up at join.squshies.net to be sure to get the latest updates on this project!
]]>For the past week Jason has been making silly little doodles and I've been painting them. They're quick. They're fun and they're good practice. These little doodle paintings have also been a nice and much needed source of relief from the onslaught of horrible news these days.
We want to do something to help while we make cute little doodles, so we're participating in #artfightinghate (started by Jeff Courturier) And doing our silly doodles as commissions for people who donate at least $25 to a charity that is fighting against hate.
]]>Painting doodle commissions currently on hiatus
For the past week Jason has been making silly little doodles and I've been painting them. They're quick. They're fun and they're good practice. These little doodle paintings have also been a nice and much needed source of relief from the onslaught of horrible news these days.
We want to do something to help while we make cute little doodles, so we're participating in #artfightinghate (started by Jeff Courturier) And doing our silly doodles as commissions for people who donate at least $25 to a charity that is fighting against hate.
Here’s how it works:
The samples we've included here give you a general idea of what you can expect from one of our doodles. Although these were all quick phone pics so not the best quality representation.
Some things to keep in mind:
* We may use your doodle request for coloring book pages or felt creations in the future. Pets are an exception to this.
** No guarantees how quickly we''ll get to your doodle request. We've going to do our very best, but we got to do all our regular jobs too.
Charities
IRC (International Rescue Committee)
Sierra Club ( because we're all about animals/nature here and they can use help too )
]]>It's been a long time in the making! The very first Squshies coloring book is ready to pre-order, with 24 different Squshies to apply your creativity to! The coloring book is available for pre-order in 2 styles. This pre-order is the best and only guaranteed way to get a copy of the coloring book.
]]>It's been a long time in the making! The very first Squshies coloring book is ready to pre-order, with 24 different Squshies to apply your creativity to! The coloring book is available for pre-order in 2 styles. This pre-order is the best and only guaranteed way to get a copy of the coloring book.
We may have limited copies available after the pre-ordered coloring books are shipped for purchase.
One style features complex patterns. This version is great for adults looking for a relaxing creative outlet or for ambitious children who enjoy more challenging coloring.
The second style features simple line art. This version is great for kids! It is also fun for adults who want something quick to color or anyone who would like to doodle their own patterns.
The coloring book is $12 and made up of 24 singled sided, saddle stitched pages. Our coloring book is being printed on nice thick paper that works well with colored pencils and crayons.
The paper is heavy enough to work with markers and light applications of water color, but these mediums will bleed through the pages. If using these mediums we recommend tearing out the pages before getting started, or placing a stack of scrap paper or cardboard in between the pages to protect.
Coloring is fun, but it's even more fun with a buddy so for a limited time we're offering a special discount on coloring book sets! When you order multiples of 2 you get the sale price of $20, instead of the regular price of $24.
Last Day to Pre-Order - September 25thScheduled Ship Date - Oct 12th
Digital copies of the coloring book are also available for download now! We've created a special page just for digital downloads. Digital downloads have a separate check out process than our regular shop and go through a website called Payhip This site handles payments via Paypal.
We are sorry for the inconvenience, but unfortunately this is the only way we've found to stay compliant with VAT requirements for EU purchases of digital products on our website.
If you have any questions please email us at squshies@gmail.com
]]>I realized I'd written about our move in the newsletter, but I totally forgot to post on the blog!
After months of searching we finally found a place to live in the Bay Area! Well not quite the Bay Area. We ended up in Stockton, much further east than we were planning, but we found a cute little house to rent!
]]>I realized I'd written about our move in the newsletter, but I totally forgot to post on the blog!
After months of searching we finally found a place to live in the Bay Area! Well not quite the Bay Area. We ended up in Stockton, much further east than we were planning, but we found a cute little house to rent!
I've been working on Squshies again, Jason is loving his new job and we're all unpacked, minus some decorations. We're still adjusting to this new life but things are looking up.
Now that we're feeling settled it's time to get Squshies up and running again. The shop has been re-opened!
Although it has been a bit quiet on the Squshies front for the majority of the year, I've been hard at work on a bunch of projects!
We've got whole bunch of new animal portraits in the works for a gallery show in September. Above you can see a sneak peek at a couple of the portraits I've cut as well as the massive pile of frames for the show.
Getting everything ready for the gallery show is the top priority project at the moment, but the overhaul of the Squshie designs to a new and improved look is also in the works as well as our very first coloring book!
To be sure not to miss any updates on upcoming projects and Squshie releases be sure to sign up for our newsletter! Our newsletter goes out every week to every other week, depending on the news we have to share. Subscribers get special offers and fun free downloads as well as Squshie updates and nature news.
]]>
I mentioned in last week's newsletter that 2016 was shaping up to be quite a year and I wasn't kidding. The last 2 weeks have been pretty stressful as we were waiting to get the final answer on some really big news and the weekend was spent making a decision about that really big news
]]>I mentioned in last week's newsletter that 2016 was shaping up to be quite a year and I wasn't kidding. The last 2 weeks have been pretty stressful as we were waiting to get the final answer on some really big news and the weekend was spent making a decision about that really big news.
That really big news is that we're moving up to the San Francisco Bay Area. Jason was offered a dream job opportunity up North.
So what does mean for Squshies?
Well first we'll be having a moving sale. More on that later.
Then the Squhies will be going on a hiatus of an undetermined length. This is going to be a difficult move for us, both logistically and emotionally. Figuring out the move is going to be taking up the majority of our time and spending time with friends and family before we go will be taking up the rest.
Until we land on our feet and get ourselves settled we won't be able to give Squshies the time and attention it requires or deserves. The shop will be closed in about a week and this newsletter will be the last for a while. You'll probably hear from us a bit on social media, but definitely a lot less than usual. We'd love to give you an estimate of when all of these thing will be back, but we honestly don't know at this point.
Thanks for being a Squshie friend. We hope you'll bear with us during this transition.
We were planning on having a big Happy New Year, Make Way for the Level 2 Squshies sale, but moving has really thrown a wrench in all our Squshie plans for the year. So instead we're having a moving sale.
All ornaments and hoop art pieces are 30% off with coupon code "Moving" from January 14th - Jan 21st. Shortly after the sale the shop will be closing until further notice.
To find out when our hiatus is ending please please sign up for our newsletter at http://join.squshies.net which always has our most up to date news.
]]>Now it is time to share the final prizes! Our first place winner got a custom felt portrait of their pet. Here's the portrait we made:
]]>Now it is time to share the final prizes! Our first place winner got a custom felt portrait of their pet. Here's the portrait we made:
Here's a closer look at the detail of the portrait and one of the pictures we were given as reference for the portrait.
Our 2nd and 3rd place winners got a postcard sized print of their pet illustrated in the more cartoony Squshies style that we use for creating our pet ornaments. Here's the 2nd place winner's illustration and one of the photos we were given for reference:
And here's the 3rd place winner's illustration and one of the photos we were given for reference:
Hope everyone enjoyed this year's contest!
If you'd like a felt portrait of your pet, or a custom felt ornament, get in touch with us via our handy custom order form and let us know what you're looking for.
]]>We also got this additional photo that really gave us an awesome reference for what our 1st place winner was looking for.
That is the kind of feedback we love, especially with the additional clarifying photo! It was clear and detailed and let us know exactly how we could improve the sketch. You know your pet best and we want our custom pet work to capture your pet as best we can so feedback is very important to help us achieve that.
We hope this makes our custom order process more clear. Feel free to ask any questions you still might have about custom orders! Next we'll be sharing what the grand prize winner's portrait looked like! We'll be waiting until our winner receives it before sharing here.
]]>
Beauregard the Hippo and Reginald the Rhino are going on a year-long adventure through classic literature, and you can follow along with them in Squshies' first ever, limited edition calendar!
]]>Beauregard the Hippo and Reginald the Rhino are going on a year-long adventure through classic literature, and you can follow along with them in Squshies' first ever, limited edition calendar!
We've been working on making this project a reality all year! We stared with some rough sketches way back in February. After our move we got to work turning those sketches in to full 11.5 by 15.5 inch framed felt illustrations. We finished all 13 illustrations just in time for the Ontario Art Walk in August.
Since August we've been working on getting all of the felt pictures for the calendar print ready. A super good friend, who also happens to be a graphic designer, did an amazing job of taking our idea and the Squshies style and creating the absolutely lovely layout.
We love how the calendar turned out and we know you will too!
The calendar measures 11 inches (27.946 cm) by 17 inches (43.18 cm) when opened and is being professionally printed by a local print shop, who we've worked with many times before.
Squshies 2016 Calendar: Adventures in Literature will only be available to order via this pre-order!
Important Dates for the Calendar Pre-Order
Last Day to Order - October 15th
Scheduled Ship Date - Oct 30th
]]>We started making framed felt animal portraits this year and they've had pretty positive response. This made us think, if people like portraits of random animals, how much would they love a portrait of their pet in this style? This year for the Squshify My Pet contest, 1st prize will be a framed custom felt portrait of the winning pet!
Please be sure to read all the full rules and details as there a some changes from last year.
]]>Web Comic - This is in the works!
]]>Web Comic - This is in the works!
We really feel the future of Squshies lies in story. When we asked how important different aspects of the Squshies were to you, the overwhelming responses was that the character stories were super important. We were really happy that you feel this way, because we do too! We want to do more with the characters and their story and world.
We don't have a set date for when this comic will start but we've been working on it a lot behind the scenes.
Calendar - This is in the works and happening soon!
We've shared a few pictures for this project already and it is definitely happening. We're still working out some details and the final design of the calendar but all the images are completed. Each month is going to feature Beauregard and Reginald in a classic novel.
The calendar is one reason we asked about Redbubble and Kickstarter in the survey, both are potential way for us to make the calendar.
We'll have more about the calendar as soon as we work out the details.
Red Bubble - This is a thing (but just barely)
Redbubble is a website for print on demand products. Artists can upload their artwork to be used on a wide variety of products. They get to choose which products they'd like their work printed on. When someone orders an item, Redbubble prints and ships the items. There are a wide variety of services like Redbubble that offer a wide variety of print on demand products.
We do have an account on Red Bubble with a very small selection. This is something we've been thinking of using more because it does allow us to create a lot of Squshie items we just can't make on our own. It is also a great way for us to test potential product ideas without making a huge up front investment.
One of the products Redbubble prints is calendars. This is a interesting option because not only do they print calendars, but they also let you choose which month you'd like your calendar to start on.
As much as we think there is a lot of great potential for working with Red Bubble we feel their calendar design while functional, is a bit dull. We'd like more control over the design of the calendar to make it more fun and playful. It's an option, but not necessarily the best for this project.
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is a crowdfunding platform. You can read their about page but the short version is that artists create a project and try to get backers to pledge money to get it made. Backers will get rewards like the finished product and other bonuses offered by the artists. If enough money is pledged we use it to start making our project, if not then no one is charged and we try something else.
We've been working with a local print company and graphic designer to create the calendar we truly want to make. Doing a project like a calendar is expensive and calendars are a very time sensitive product. Kickstarter gives us the opportunity to be sure there really is enough interest in the calendar to get in printed.
This is just one of the options we're considering, but it seems like a really promising one.
Squshies Collectible Cards (super rough idea)
All of our animal characters with a little tag with their name and story and we want to improve upon those tags. We've been thinking something along the line of collectible cards, kinda like baseball and Pokemon cards, but not quite. This is a super rough idea, with a lot of crazy logistics to work out, but there seems enough interest to give it some serious thought.
A Squshies Game (this is a thing, but not)
We've actually developed a little Squshie game, but it got put on the back burner. It still needs a lot of work and it will be a long time before it will be ready. There seems enough interest to bring this project back to life.
We also thought if we could tie a game idea together with the idea of collectible cards that could be super fun. What do you think?
A Squshies Patreon
This was a thing that we mentioned that people were overwhelmingly unfamiliar with.
Remember how way, way back in the day artists had patrons? Patreon is kind of like a modern day take on that idea. It is a way for artists to get financial support to create the things they create and a way for people who like an artist's work to help support those creations.
Creators can offer different levels of fun rewards to thank their subscribes for their support ranging from special exclusive content, live chats, digital freebies and even care packages. A whole lot of possibilities!
Knowing a bit more about Patreon is this something that sounds interesting to you? Ideas for rewards if we pursue this idea?
Subscription box/club
Subscription boxes have become super cool recently. Who doesn't like a fun little package of goodies in the mail once a month? They have subscription boxes for makeup, snacks, and even pets and we think a Squshie one might be fun!
We think a subscription box is something that could potentially work really well with a Patreon.
Something like this would take a long time to work out all the details of but we'd love to hear what you think!
Loyalty/Reward Program
Probably the most rough idea of all. We've heard of few small business starting loyalty/reward programs for their supporters. We're not really even sure where to start on this idea, but it sounds fun and almost everyone who took the survey thinks so too! Hopefully someday in the future we'll have more ideas for this.
I hope that cleared up some of the mystery for some of the things we mentioned in the survey that people weren't familiar with yet. As always if you've got thoughts, ideas or questions for us please let us know =)
]]>Most of your read the blog and our newsletter!
A few of you didn't know about the newsletter. It comes out every 2 weeks to every week, with all the newest news from Squshies, free downloads and fun animal news. If you are interested you can sign up here.
]]>Most of your read the blog and our newsletter!
A few of you didn't know about the newsletter. It comes out every 2 weeks to every week, with all the newest news from Squshies, free downloads and fun animal news. If you are interested you can sign up here.
One of the big things that we learned is that learning about animals is important to so many of you (yay!) We used to do weekly Wildlife Wednesday posts, but they were very time consuming and didn't seem to generate a ton of interest. Looks like there was more interest than we realized.
Going into the holiday season Wildlife Wednesday posts aren't really feasible. We're going to think on how and what to do with them for the future. For the time being we've added a new section to the newsletter for nature news, where we're going to share links to some of our favorite animal news and links to info about cool animals we think you should know about.
You also had great suggestions for the newsletter freebies, like more complex coloring pages and more fun activities. We'll be working on including them in future newsletters.
Cake Troll!
So many of you have referred to yourself as a cake troll! I'm glad so many other people have an inner cake troll. What are your cake troll's names?
For those of you not familiar with the cake troll, someone made a joke about me and how I have an inner cake troll. So I named him Otis and made him a into Squshie.
**Pssst!** Don't tell Beauregrad, but Otis also got written in as favorite Squshie the most times!
Year Round Squshies
We were super happy to see that so many of you use your Squshies to decorate year round! We originally were thinking of ornaments just for the holidays but we keep up ours year round and we're glad to hear so many of you to too!
From a Friend or Family
So many of you who took the survey found out about the Squshie from a friend or family member. That's awesome! Word of mouth is so important to a small business like ours. Thank you so much for helping us spread the word about what we do! Your enthusiasm for the Squshies means the world to us =)
Website and Shop
Most or you know about our website and shop which is awesome! We've had a blog for a while, but late last year we made the move to combine our blog and shop all on one connected website. Our Etsy shop still exists, but the shop on our own website is now our main shop and focus. It will always be the best source for finding Squshies and with the biggest selection. Almost always when we run sales or coupons they only apply to our main shop.
Animal You Wish We Had
We got a bunch of great suggestions! Chimera, dolphin, mermaid, cheetah, capybara, slow loris, squid, and unicorn. Cheetah, capybara and dolphin are critters we have rough designs for. We're working on updating the look of the Squshies, so it might be a while before new animals show up but we've definitely made note of these suggestions!
Unicorn is one we do have though! This is Charlemagne and he's a nacho archaeologist.
One other thing I wanted to talk about in regard to the survey was Facebook.
I was really surprised to see Facebook as the social media most people follow Squshies on and regularly check. Facebook is personally my least favorite social media. I honestly only use my personal account so I can access the Squshies page.
I was so surprised by this answer because so few people see our Facebook posts! You may have heard this before, but if not, in the last few years Facebook added a feature where artists and businesses can pay boost their post. Ever since they added this feature posts by pages get seen less and less.
As the manager of my page, I get to see at the bottom of each post the total number of people who see each post. That number is pretty disheartening. There are over 800 people who have liked the Squshies Facebook page. Our posts usually get seen by about 50-100 people because I don't pay to boost them.
If you don't engage with a Facebook page on a frequent basis, Facebook starts to show you less and less of that page's posts. One way to make sure you see our posts is to comment, like or share them! That interaction tells FB you are interested in what we're posting and they'll keep showing them to you. It also really helps us out! The more a post gets interaction, the more FB let's it be seen.
Sharing, commenting and liking our posts on any social media platform is a great way to show your support so if we post something you like we really appreciate it when you let us know!
There are other options available in the Facebook setting to see our posts more easily. You can turn on notifications, so you get a notification when we post. You can also set our posts to see first so they'll appear at the top of your news feed.
If you've been having trouble seeing our updates on Facebook we hope this info helps!
There was so much wonderful stuff in the survey I hope I covered a lot of it in this post. We've got one more post coming that covers all the potential ideas we mentioned. If you have any questions though please let us know! In this blog post I answered all your questions for us from the survey.
]]>So let's get started!
]]>So let's get started!
To thank you for your efforts in filling out our survey, we’re throwing in a coupon code for purchases in August, which you can find at the end of the survey.
]]>To thank you for your efforts in filling out our survey, we’re throwing in a coupon code for purchases in August, which you can find at the end of the survey.
After submitting your answers, you have the option to leave your e-mail address to be entered in a drawing to win your choice of one of the 4 prints pictured above! What’s not to love?
The winner of the print will be notified on September 1st, via email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond. If no response is received, we'll draw a new name.
In other Squshies news, the Ontario Art Walk is happening again on August 15th! We'll be opening up our work space and turning it into a gallery for the evening.
We've been super busy working on finishing up some brand new pieces, 13 new pieces in fact. We're very excited to be sharing them all for the first time on August 15th. Visit our event page for all the art walk details. Hope to see you there!
]]>Thank so you much to all the wonderful people who stopped by and checked out our work. We had so much fun and we hope everyone who came did too. We can't wait until the next Art Walk on August 15th.
I know when we first moved I promised pictures of our new place. Since everything was set up nice for the event and we've got many long distance friends and family who couldn't make it to the art walk , I took some pictures of the gallery area before the show started so you can see it too!
As you came in the door, you were greeted by these 2 skeletal friends of ours on one side and...
Ludwig the T-Rex was waiting to greet you on the other side.T-Rex greetings for all!
The main gallery wall with all our framed felt pictures and our large needle felt work.
Hoop art was displayed over in the corner with the snacks and painting desk.
Here's the front door, the amazing giant windows and the display we had of paper toys, buttons and smaller needle felted guys. This was directly behind the main gallery wall.
View from the loft area.
We're really enjoying having space to have these wooden dinosaurs out and visible again. They've pretty much been in storage since our wedding and that's just no fun. They also make a handy room divider.
Once we switch everything back to work space mode I'll try and get pictures of what it looks like then too.
I'm a bit of a hermit and super shy so meeting a bunch of people I don't know is always a huge deal for me. Even more so when they are coming to my home!. So I want to give extra thanks to all our friends and family who made it a point to come out and support us at this event. You made the evening so much fun and I hope you will all join us again for the next one.
]]>May has been one crazy month! We finished our move and are just about set up in our new place. Here's a picture of the front area before we moved all our stuff in. This big area will be our new studio space.
]]>May has been one crazy month! We finished our move and are just about set up in our new place. Here's a picture of the front area before we moved all our stuff in. This big area will be our new studio space.
We've got most everything set up, a few odds and ends need to find where they go. Decorative stuff is a pile on a table but everything we need is functional. Once everything is fully set up I'll share some more fun pictures than an empty room.
Trying to pack, move and then unpack 2 weeks before a show was probably not the best idea ever but it has been worth it. We're loving it and are excited to get to work on new Squshies projects. Having so much space just for our work room is amazing!
Sunday was the spring Santa Ana Patchwork show. The Patchwork shows are always fun to do and this was no exception. This was our layout for the show. It was a little stressful to pack up for the show since half our stuff was in the new place while the other half was at the old place. We forgot a few things, but all in all it was a successful day.We also managed to finish a couple new animal portraits just in time for the Patchwork Show. These got a lot of love at the show, especially the panda, but didn't find homes just yet. They are now available in the shop.
Unfortunately we won't be able to make it to the spring Long Beach Patchwork show this year because the date conflicted with another event we're already committed to. We'll be in Irving for Califur!
This will be our very first time attending Califur. We're excited to be going on a new adventure with the Squshies. We've been working on some new pieces for this show too and you can see a few sneak peeks above. These will be framed just like the animal portraits, but feature the Squshie characters.
]]>I had to keep one project entirely secret because it was a big surprise gift for a wedding. The other project was also part of the wedding, not quite as secret, but I didn't want to post about it until after the big day.
I'd spent so much time not talking and sharing both projects that it totally slipped my mind to include them in the recap post. Luckily I had a reminder from the bride, who is long time friend, that I should include them in the recap post. They're big enough to merit their own post though. Ready to see?
]]>I had to keep one project entirely secret because it was a big surprise gift for a wedding. The other project was also part of the wedding, not quite as secret, but I didn't want to post about it until after the big day.
I'd spent so much time not talking about or sharing both projects that it totally slipped my mind to include them in the recap post. Luckily I had a reminder from the bride, who is a long time friend, that I should include them in the recap post. They're big enough to merit their own post though. Ready to see?
For the wedding, my friend Christina wanted her cats to be part of the ceremony. Having actual cats at a wedding would be a nightmare so instead the bride and everyone on the bride's side had plush kitties for bouquets.
The black cat on the left is Buford and the black cat on the right is Tas, both based on the bride's cats. The light grey cat is based on the groom's cat Fred. The dark gray cat is my cat Hazel. Christina and I adopted Tas and Hazel at the same time when we were roommates in college. Hazel, Tas and Buford were buddies for years so Hazel got to be part of the ceremony too.
The groom is a big fan of owls so we made owl boutineers for everyone on his side of the wedding party. The groom got the owlbear and his 3 party members each had an owl. We're missing the snowy owl in this picture.
Hopefully in the future we'll have pictures from the wedding to share with you.
The mobile ended up being quite big. The the hoop we used was 14 inches in diameter and if I remember correctly the whole thing measured 2.5 feet from top to bottom.
Here's another picture of the whole mobile with everyone facing in the same direction. This was a really challenging, fun and special project to get to be a part of.
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