Cupcakes have feelings too! Just watch this amazing, adorable stop-motion animation for evidence. It’s by Kirsten Lepore, my new favorite artist after I saw her work featured on Beautiful Decay. The animation is the length of a short film, but totally worth your time.
Sweet Dreams from Kirsten Lepore on Vimeo.
See more of Kirsten’s animations on her website.
I was excited to be interviewed recently for the newest Knit Picks podcast, which is now available! Stacey and I had a nice chat about knitting toys and how I came up with all the creepy and kooky characters in Super-Scary Mochimochi. Sometimes podcast interviews make me nervous, but it really helped that I’d met Stacey previously at TNNA and she’s super cool.
Since Knit Picks is awesome, they’re also doing a giveaway of 3 copies of my new book! Just leave a comment on their giveaway blog post.
Big thank-yous to Stacey and Knit Picks!
I’ve been in Tulsa since last Wednesday to hang out with family and work with my book photographer, Brandi Simons! My photo trips have been one of the highlights of my year since Brandi and I starting working together for my first book, Knitting Mochimochi, three years back. Brandi is a blast work with, and I’m always in love with the cute, hilarious, and beautiful images she somehow creates. And the fact that she lives across the street from my parents is incredible luck!
Since the books that we work on are always scheduled to come out an entire year later, it makes it difficult to share what we’re doing at the time, but I’ve remembered to snap a few photos with my iPhone this time. I can’t show much of the subjects, but here’s a peek of a couple of the shoots from the past few days.
Our prop list this time has been impressive, including everything from a rubber duck to a Jolly Roger flag to helium balloons. And we’re shooting in some of the most glamorous locations that Tulsa has to offer, including multiple bathrooms!
Any guesses of what the featured toy for this location was?
I can’t even express how excited I am about the photos Brandi has taken so far this time. Of course, I felt the same way last summer when she was doing the photography for Super-Scary Mochimochi. I’ll share another photo from that book in the final sneak preview tomorrow! (What-to-Werewolf and Toaster Ghost were the first two previews.) Just one more week before the on-sale date!
I got to spend last week on vacation with my sister and adorable niece Nora! I already knew that Nora was a fantastic baby, but I found out on our trip that she is also an aspiring yarn artist.
At almost eight months old, Nora still shares many similarities with my cats. I’m thinking that will change quickly, but I’m hoping the yarn obsession is here to stay!
Thanks everyone for sharing your fun Pee-Wee’s Playhouse memories over the weekend! Your comments brought back even more nostalgic Pee-Wee times to me.
Today’s secret word is… WINNER!
The winner (AAAAAAAAHHH) of this original 1988 Pee-Wee’s Playhouse Fun Pak is…
Comment number 23, written by Kristen E!
Penny and Jambi were totally my favorites. :) You’re absolutely right – Pee Wee’s Playhouse made Saturday mornings more magical! I miss it!
Congrats, Kristen! May this Fun Pak contain a bit more of that magic for you.
These cards are relatively rare items, so I thought I’d open another Fun Pak and share what’s inside. The contents didn’t disappoint!
Stickers, temporary tattoos, one of those hologram image-thingies… and thankfully, no stale piece of 24-year-old gum. I hope the winner’s (AAAAAAAAHHH) Fun Pak is just as fun!
How awesome is this needle-felted artwork by Hine Mizushima?!
“I’ll Hold, You Wind” will appear in Art Too Cute for Words, a group show that will run May 12 – June 24 at Leanna Lin’s Wonderland in LA. Definitely check it out if you’re in the area! (Really wishing I was…)
Hine is truly one of my creative heroes. That’s why I’ll be posting an interview with her very soon, so be sure to check back for it!
John has a new website! And it isn’t just any website, it’s new partner site of The A.V. Club, where I’m sure many of you read about movies, TV, and other pop culture stuff. My husband’s new project, called The Gameological Society, is dedicated to intelligent and fun discussion about games—mostly video games, but also board games, game shows, and sports. The idea is that games are a part of all of our lives, and thinking about them shouldn’t just be for the guys who think of themselves as “hard core” gamers.
I know there’s a huge overlap between knitters and gamers, so I hope many of you will check it out! (And that cute pic of Soupy on a laptop that you see if you scroll down a bit on the homepage? That’s my cat and I took that photo!)
What’s your favorite game these days? Please share in the comments!
The other day I finally made it to Argyle, the new yarn store that opened up a few months back on Prospect Park West in Brooklyn, just down the block from me.
I don’t know why I waited so long to go—it’s such a lovely store, owned by this lovely couple, Esther and David.
Their passion for knitting is apparent in their great selection of yarn and wide array of tools that knitters need. It’s a great feeling to know that if I need some new needles for a project right now, they’re just a walk away!
The first time I visited, I introduced myself and mentioned my patterns. I’m not the best self-promoter, but Esther and David made it easy with their enthusiasm for my designs! You can now find a bunch of Mochimochi patterns and kits in their store.
If you live in or near Park Slope/ Windsor Terrace, Argyle could be your new favorite LYS! They’re renovating a back room for classes, and they’re also planning to add other craft supplies in the future. I’m exited to see this small business grow along with the neighborhood.