Whimsical Fantasy Snail Sculptures from CreativeCritters

Recently I was sorting through my stash of crafty things I've saved over the years and came across my collection of sea shells.  Looking at the shells I had a flash of inspiration and saw them becoming colorful fantasy snails, complete with snail riders like dwarfs and fairies.  The first thing I did (after thoroughly cleaning the shells) was to paint them with brightly colored metallic paints.  I altered their shape slightly with addition of some polymer clay, which I painted to match the rest of the shell.  Even I can't tell where the shell ends and the polymer clay begins.  I added some fun stripes and swirls, then began sculpting the body and head.  Since these are fantasy creatures, anything goes.  For this snail I used blue glass beads for eyes and gave him spiky lashes.  He's got a cute smile on his face and his little tongue is poking out just a bit.

 

To be sure the eye stalks were strong and wouldn't bend or break I sculpted them around wires which run from the eyes all the way down the neck.  After the snail was sculpted and baked I gave him two coats of high gloss glaze for a nice wet look.  This snail has a dwarf rider who looks likes he's having the time of his life.  What could be more fun than riding a snail through the forest at breakneck speed? LOL

 

My next snail is a pretty purple girl with beautiful eyelashes made from feathers.  I used gold beads for her eyes and reinforced her eye stalks with wires as I did for the first snail.  To achieve the speckled appearance I mixed  white embossing powder with the purple clay.  She carries a pretty flower fairy on her back.  You can see they've been out collecting wild flowers from the meadow.  The fairy even made her pet snail a garland of bright yellow flowers to wear around her neck.  A girl always likes to look pretty you know!

 

 

 

 

 

These two are obviously have a wonderful day together! 

 

As with many of my creations, these whimsical snails are one of a kind sculptures.  I'm never quite sure what they'll look like until I'm finished sculpting.  Their personalities develop as I'm shaping the clay.  I still have plenty of sea shells left in my craft stash, so I plan on making more of these fun characters.  Stay tuned to see what else I come up with! ;-)                                                                                                                          

-Michelle of CreativeCritters

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Gardening Halflings and Gnomes

It all started with a gift for my friend's birthday.  I made her a sculpture of a dwarf standing in front of his lighted mushroom house.  It was so much fun to create, I decided to make another version.  The mushroom house itself is really cool.  I wrapped clay around a glass votive holder for the stem and living area of the mushroom and cut out the door and windows so the light could shine through.  Inside is an electric tea light.


Pretty flowers grow up the stem of the mushroom and around the base of the house.  I decorated the cap of the mushroom with glow in the dark leaves and stars.
 
Then of course there are the main characters of this piece, Gnor the Gnome and Henry the Halfling.  As I was sculpting these two I remembered our neighbor and Grampa exchanging fresh garden vegetables during the summer.  They were good friends and always willing to share whatever they had grown that season.  I still remember Mr. Wednt bringing Gramma bouquets of dill- LOL!  In this sculpture Henry is bringing over a basket of tomatoes, corn, lettuce, and carrots.  The more I look at Henry, the more I see Mr. Wednt in him- he even used to wear a straw gardening hat.  This all came through subconsciously, and I didn't even see the connection until after the piece was finished.  The Gnome and Halfling were inspired by Boris and Dinko Tilov.  I've been doing a lot of the projects in their Sculpting Mythical Creatures in Polymer Clay, and having a great deal of fun with them.  Their characters are always fun and whimsical, and full of personality.  I'm currently working on another project from that book, and should be listing that one in the next week or so (all depending on how complex I make it).
Thanks for stopping by and sharing the creativity!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters

Another fun Alice in Wonderland inspired creation

My latest addition to CreativeCritters is this whimsical plush Doormouse in a teapot, measuring 7 inches tall and 8 inches wide. The hand sewn teapot was sewn from bright red felt and is decorated with yellow and orange felt flowers. The flowers, which have contrasting centers, are glued and sewn to the teapot. The whimsical Doormouse was sewn by hand from gray felt and has the lid of the teapot perched on his head as a hat. The mouse is securely sewn to the top of the teapot and both are firmly stuffed with polyester fiberfill. The base of the teapot is firm, so it sits level. This would be a great addition to any Alice in Wonderland collection!






Thanks for stopping by to check out my newest creation!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters

Handmade Cheshire Cat sculpture and earrings

Whimsical Handmade Cheshire Cats from Alice in Wonderland

Lately I've been having a lot of fun creating characters from Alice in Wonderland.  My favorite character from this delightful story has always been the Cheshire Cat.  First of all he tops my list simply because he's a cat, and I do love kitties!   Second he's purple, which is my favorite color.  And then there's that wonderful, magical way he fades from sight.  And of course you just have to love that "purr"sonality. I sold the first Cheshire cat sculpture I made, so I created another one to replace him.  Of course this one is completely different, but that is the nature of my work.  Most of my pieces are one of a kind creations, even when they are of the same subject.  This sculpture measures 4 inches tall and I used glow in the dark polymer clay for his eyes and mouth.  When you turn off the lights all you see are his disembodied grin and large eyes.  I just love that effect!


I've  made a few pairs of Cheshire Cat earrings as well.  I love these "illusion" earrings, where it looks like the cat's body goes through the earlobe.  These also have glow in the dark facial features, as well as glow in the dark stripes, all made from glow in the dark polymer clay.  The earrings measure 1 3/4 inches long, and are lightweight and comfortable to wear.  And if you turn his head just slightly it gives him the most whimsical expression!  These earrings are just FUN!


This isn't the best picture, but it does give you some idea of what they look like glowing.
Next I made a pair of Cheshire Cat Head earrings.  I'm always trying to create something different, something that will make people smile.  I think these silly earrings will do just that.  I know they make me smile!  I added some glass beads to accent the the cat heads.  The earrings are 2 inches long and have glow in the dark features.  Somehow, for me at least, the Cheshire Cat isn't really complete with out the glow in the dark effects.  (It's his "cat magic", you know)


I may try my hand at a stuffed Cheshire Cat next.  I'll have to think about just how to create a pattern for him to achieve the effect I want.  I'm always creating here at CreativeCritters!  Stay tuned to see what I come up with next.  Thanks so much for stopping by!
-Michelle of CreativeCritters