Beyond the Sock Puppetry Worshop

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Philip

Exciting news! There is a new workshop coming to North Texas this summer–Beyond the Sock: Puppetry for Television and Film. Are you interested in learning what it takes to design, build and perform with puppets like those used in some of America’s most beloved productions like Sesame Street or The Muppet Show? Want to learn puppetry techniques from the professionals behind the characters? The opportunity is yours!

The worshop features puppet building tips from our good friend, Project Puppet’s Pasha Romanowski. You’ll also learn to puppeteer with acclaimed Muppeteers Noel MacNeal and Peter Linz. Registration is now open through May 15th. Space is extremely limited for this rare event, so sign up today!

Rabbit Magicians

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Philip

Walter and Weatherby. These are two rabbit magicians that I built last summer for Kids on the Move in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Fun characters.

Victorian Vultures

Posted on April 10, 2013 by Philip

I was pleased to work again with Kids on the Move in Tulsa, Oklahoma to bring two new characters to life. These vultures are loosely patterned after the Thenardiers from Les Miserables. I’m looking forward to seeing these two in action.

Mushu Puppet

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Philip

I recently built a modified version of the Mushu character for a staging of Mulan by the Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School‘s drama department. The puppet is built to be worn by the performer and attaches to the waist. The performer’s hand enters the back of the head and the legs attach to the thighs to give the illusion of walking.

Rosendo

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Philip

I was pleased to work again with Ramon Ramirez of Smarty Cartoons (I previously built Ms. Carrie Oki for him). It’s always great to work with Ramon. His cartoons translate so easily into engaging puppets.

And speaking of puppets, this guy is Rosendo. He’s a reporter…and a bit of a ladies man. I got to do some things on this project that I hadn’t done before such as hand making shoes and a microphone. The puppet’s hand is connected to the mic, and the mic is controlled with a rod.

Dragon Puppet

Posted on February 26, 2013 by Philip

Times are busy in the Thistledown workshop. I’ve been so happy to be a part of some really fun projects. My hope is to be able to share some of the work here over the course of the next few weeks.

This little guy was commissioned by Cook Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas. They have a television station for the hospital and he will be used in some of their programming. It was fun bringing him to life.

Teacher Toon Puppet in the news

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Philip

Ramon Ramirez, creator of Teacher Toons, sent me this image from a recent interview he did with his new Thistledown puppet. We’re looking forward to seeing more from Ms. Carrie Oki!

Teacher Toons

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Philip

I recently worked with illustrator Ramon Ramirez of Smarty Cartoons to bring one of his Teacher Toons creations to life.

One of the things I love about working with illustrators and cartoonists is that their work is usually quite stylized and that almost always translates into great looking puppets.

She was a blast to bring to life. I can’t wait to see her in action.

Transition

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Philip

This is a time of transition for us here at Thistledown Puppets. After recovering from a website problem (which is now fixed) there is some work to do on the blog. There’s lots of work going on in the workshop right now, so please be patient with us as we revamp the blog over the coming weeks.

We’re also in the process of moving in to a larger studio space. This is really exciting. We’ll post pics of the new digs once we’re all settled in. AND–we can’t wait to show off some of the latest puppet creations, so stay tuned!

Thistledown Puppets For Sale

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Philip

As we kick off the New Year, I’ve been organizing the workshop to make room for some new projects. As a result I’ve decided to sell a few puppets that have been hanging around for a while. They are all a part of Thistledown’s history and I’d love to see them go to good homes where they will be appreciated. If you are interested in any of them, send me a Contact Form and I’ll send you a PayPal invoice for them. If you are interested in the entire set, you can purchase them all for $1700 total.

First up is the Red Panda from the Building the Red Panda video series. He was originally built for a local auction, but he was a little out of place there and never received a bid.

Red Panda

Next is Little Red Riding Hood. She was part of one of our early live shows.

Red Riding Hood

The next puppet was one of the top ten finalists in the Once Upon a Puppet Contest held in 2007 at Project Puppet. It’s Mr. Toad of Toad Hall, inspired by the Kenneth Grahame classic The Wind in the Willows.

Toad Sold

Mr. Toad

And finally we have a little female sheep that was used for a few years as Mrs. Cratchit in our production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol that featured a motley group of Thistledown’s puppets.

Sheep Sold

If you haven’t been able to afford one of our custom creations, this is a great way to get one of our puppets to add to your collection or puppet show cast!