Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2009 08:33:41 -0500
From: Hobey Ford <hobeyone-AT-gmail.com>
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Recycling Old Toys Into New Puppets!


Sue Hastings did the same thing in the 30's.  She took dolls and
stuffed animals and converted them into marionettes.


On Fri, Feb 20, 2009 at 9:14 PM, Mathieu René <creaturiste-AT-primus.ca> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Today, I went shoppping for fabrics for my soon-to-be costumed glove
> puppets.
> I found the right fabrics I wanted, and discovered a new specialized button
> store which also includes a mini Theatre Stage for their own productions,
> and one of the owners is a remarkable paper mache artist. I did not fail to
> make connections.  Then I went hunting for an iron, because I'm becoming
> serious about clothing design for my puppets and myself. I did not find one,
> but instead I found a treasure trove of possible puppet parts!
>
>
> For a while, I've known (from Puptcrit!) the classic tip of buying
> second-hand stuffed animals to recuperate their plastic or glass eyes (or
> noses, etc) for making puppets. I always check whenever I go to second-hand
> stores, but rarely find anything neat enough. This time, what choice there
> was!
>
> I paid 7$ for a big bag full of old stuffed animals of my choice. Here's
> what they are already teaching me:
>
> -A few inspire me new shapes and new approaches in patternmaking.
>
> -One small simplistic sitting dinosaur will be the inspiration for a new
> line of small puppets I'll design soon. His pear-shaped flat-bottomed
> weighted body with loose legs is an ideal starting point for
> a puppet that can stay put and still have great movement range.
> I'm not modifying this one though, he's too cute in his efficiency, I'm
> keeping him with my select few stuffed animals. I think Alf and the tiny
> Dino will get along splendidly.
>
> -One big ugly teddy bear will provide me with a bigger than usual pair of
> deep glossy brown eyes I can't find in stores around here.
>
> -One large size long-limbed velcroed-hands monkey will have its limbs
> shortened, and head and hands replaced by paper mache heads I'll design.
> Just an exercice in toy customization.
>
> -one nicely patterned classic-looking bear glove puppet will teach me about
> simple, more compact pattern for the body. My glove puppets so far are tall
> and large-scale.
> He,s also a good example that even a very limited range of movements can be
> used efficiently.
> I,m impressed with this one. He was made to be quick and cheap to produce,
> but he's gorgeous, comfortable, and could be used to perform!  Most toy
> glove puppets I tried were torture devices, even for small kids, or they
> barely moved at all.
>
> -An authentic reading Teddy Ruxpin (paid $1.99!) will probably help me with
> a different approach to moving eyes and mouth mechanics, or at the very
> least look cool in my studio with the removal of his
> bear skin (robot-like I suspect).
>
>
>
>
>
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