Return of the Dodo

A lot of my famous Tiny Animals have been out of stock recently, but now it's time for some to make a much anticipated come back!

Today I spent the morning cutting out quite a few critters, including: puffins, ducks, dodos, and raccoons. As he's one of my all time favorites who has come back (from the extinct!), I thought I'd share some recent production photos of the humble dodo.

Here he is in progress. He comes from tiny pieces of felt--flat felt, not wool roving--and is hand sewn and stuffed into a tiny plush.

Many people make the mistake of thinking my tiny animals are needle felted. I suppose that's because there are a lot of such products out there, and needle felting is currently quite popular. I, however, use a number of techniques on my critters, mainly sewing.

When I set out to make a new tiny animal, I always research the real animal first. This proved somewhat difficult where the dodo was concerned! Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the most accurate resemblances we have this extinct bird come from scientific sketches and some taxidermy.

Still, inspired by The Eyre Affair, and my crazy sense of humor, I pressed on, doodling my best tiny dodo shape (I can't draw for the life of me) for a pattern, and planning the colours and finer details. And thus the tiny do was born.

Here is the finished creature:

Not so very extinct after all! You can buy a tiny dodo here: Moss Mountain shop. 

By sheer luck, it would seem, most of my tiny animals "come out right" the first time around, and I have never met an animal I couldn't make, tiny dodo being no exception. He is one of my tinies that I am the most proud of.

What is your favorite extinct animal?

Relaunch & Giveaway for 5,000 Likes!

Dear faithful Moss Mountain lovers,

At long last I have decided to begin blogging again! The last few years have come and gone, not without major ups and downs, and I have learned a lot about business, not to mention life!

I want to thank every one of you who has joyfully celebrated my successes, and supported me in all I do, because without your encouragement, I couldn't have continued.

Being a self employed crafter/artist/miniaturist  (and writer!) is not an easy  job no matter what others may say. Many people will never understand why I choose to do what I do, but I have decided that that is their issue, and not mine.

Those of you who, like me ("We happy few," to quote Shakespeare's Henry V), have a passion for the creative, in whatever form, know that to devote your life to anything less sublime would be a complete and utter waste.

Now, enough of this soppy talk. It's time to celebrate 5,000 likes on my Facebook page.  As a thank you to all of my fans, I am giving away a Christmas sheep for the tree! Just click here to be taken to the giveaway. :)