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:

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Sometimes even the puppets want to go out and play…

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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.

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Here is a link to some photos from yesterday’s preschool puppet demo.

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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!

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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.

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Below are some images Cory’s dragon as it comes down the home stretch. They are shots of various parts of the body as they were covered, including the belly, knees, and hands.

This last image is my favorite. I took it as I was beginning to sew the neck onto the body. It definitely felt like a St. George and the Dragon moment.

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The most exciting news around here is that my wife and I are expecting a little boy in March. I was so excited when we found out it was a little boy that I went over to the Thistledown Puppets Store on Zazzle and made him his first onesie.

Granted, it will be awhile before he can wear it, but I sure can’t wait to see him in it.

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Not long ago, I was asked if I would consider donating something to an auction held locally for the Children’s Miracle Network. It’s a great cause, but not having a lot of time, I employed the good old Glorified Sock Pattern from Project Puppet and came up with this fun little orange guy. I hope he is a valuable addition to the auction.

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I’m nearly finished working up the head for Cory’s dragon. I chose a crushed panne fabric for the skin because it’s thin, stretchy, and with the slight sheen it reminded me of dragon scales.

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