Last Friday, my little man Titus came into the world. I can’t wait until he can build puppets with Daddy.

Tags: General Stuff, Puppet People, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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At least once a week as I’m building puppets in my workshop, I come across some doodle or painting that I’ve done over the years (like the one above that I did on our honeymoon in Ireland) and I always think…”Wow—I forgot all about that!”…and nobody sees it but me. Maybe that’s a good thing, but when you create something you at least want SOMEONE to see it…besides your wife.

Puppets are my art now…and I put everything I’ve learned over the years into designing and performing them. So I’ve created a new blog as a place for me to show some of the artistic journey that I’ve taken over the years. So for anyone who’s interested, I’ve dusted off a bunch of images and will try to update it as often as Thistledown will allow.

Tags: General Stuff by Philip
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I recently built this little kitty puppet for my uncle. The real Slinky is no longer with us but will live forever as a sock puppet with a sagging tongue.

Tags: General Stuff, Projects, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas. We’re looking forward to a wonderful 2010!

Tags: General Stuff, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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Cory Godbey recently received the dragon puppet that I had tons of fun building for him. I thought I’d share this fun little video that he posted on his blog Light Night Rains:

Tags: General Stuff, Projects, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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Sometimes even the puppets want to go out and play…

Tags: General Stuff, The Artful Puppet, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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Below are some designs for a couple of unrelated personal projects in development for 2010. They’re still in the planning phase, but I wanted to at least throw these out as a bit of a teaser.

Tags: General Stuff, Projects, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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Here is a link to some photos from yesterday’s preschool puppet demo.

Tags: General Stuff, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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I was recently invited by a local church pre-school (Fincastle Baptist) to come and give a puppet demonstration, so this morning I packed the car and headed out to a really fun time. There were lots of little ones and a few adults, and I introduced them to several of my characters and performed and sang pieces from a couple of our shows.

I think interacting with children is my favorite part of what I do. I love the hours spent in the studio laboring to build puppets, but when that puppet is performed for for a child and you see their face light up with pure joy, it definitely completes the experience. And I also love how brutally honest children are. One little girl told me as I was beginning my presentation that I didn’t bring enough puppets! Ha!

Tags: General Stuff, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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Here is the finished dragon puppet for Cory Godbey. In the images below you’ll see the little details in the character, my favorite being the little dandelion he is holding, just like in the design.

What a fun and amazing project this was! It was truly an honor to be able to work with Cory–I’m constantly inspired by his illustrations and the rich and beautiful work that comes out of Portland Studios.

Tags: General Stuff, Projects, Thistledown Stuff by Philip
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