Celebrate your pet with Personalized Pet Jars from CreativeCritters

 
Although I've been creating custom pet sculptures for years now it took a suggestion from my boyfriend to make me think beyond just a figurine and make the leap to personalized pet jars.  Above is a picture of my own Ginko kitty with the pet jar I made featuring him.  He was very helpful and more than willing to pose for me during the sculpting process ;)
I can sculpt any type of animal you have (cat, dog, bird, skunk, ferret, fish, etc.) once you send me several good pictures of your pet.  The animal is sculpted by hand from Premo polymer clay without the use of any molds and each is a unique, one of a kind creation.  I pay close attention to all the little details that make your pet special.
 
I carefully texture the fur and after the animal is cured I paint the details of their coat with acrylic paint.  I attach the sculpture very securely to a metal mason jar lid and further personalize the glass jar by covering it with polymer clay and adding a plaque with your pet's name stamped into it.
 
I can also stamp paw prints and other decorations into the clay.  For Ginko's jar I used a cavorting cat stamp framed by swirls and stars since that just matched his personality.
 
I used a half pint mason jar with a wide mouth lid for this pet jar, but I can use any size mason jar you like.  This cat sculpture measures four inches tall and the overall height of the entire piece is 6 1/4" tall.  These jars make great storage for pet treats, office or art supplies, or snacks.  The jars can be hand washed and are food safe.  These can also be used as memorial urns for pets that have passed on.  You can use them to keep your pet's ashes, a tuft of fur, their tags or collar, or anything else you want to remember them by.
Our pets are special, and if you're like me you consider them part of your family.  I think this is a wonderful way to celebrate those special animals in your life.  And what cat or dog doesn't want a treat jar that's completely personalized? ;)
You can click on any of the pictures above to be directed to the custom order listing in my shop.  If you have any questions you can contact me at macreativecritters@gmail.com. 
I truly am passionate about pets, and I understand the connection people have with their cats, dogs, ferrets, and other furry friends.  These jars would make a unique and special gift as well. :-)

~Michelle of CreativeCritters

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Custom personalized wedding cake topper

My youngest brother recently got married and I had the honor of making their wedding cake topper.  He and Sarah first met while playing the World of Warcraft.  He played a female Blood Elf and she played a male Tauren.  They wanted me to create their characters in polymer clay wearing the same outfits which BJ and Sarah would be wearing for the wedding.   Sarah wore a beautiful white wedding gown and BJ wore full Scottish dress to represent his Celtic heritage.  I even created her wedding bouquet to match the flowers in the real bouquet.  This highly detailed cake topper posed several challenges for me.  It had to be lightweight since I didn't want it to sink into the bride and groom's special cheesecake.  I also learned a lot about Scottish dress outfits while painstakingly matching the plaid pattern on the Blood Elf's kilt to the clan pattern my brother would be wearing in the wedding.  I included as many details as possible, like the sporran, the purple tie, the laced gillies, and the belt buckle. 
 

This cake topper measures about four inches tall and 5 inches wide and took about a month to complete.  It was a real hit at the wedding.  Everyone liked it so much I decided to  make a custom order listing in CreativeCritters for personalized wedding cake toppers.
I can create toppers to resemble your online avatars, characters in a game, or anything else you like. 
Your wedding is one of the most important events in your life. You want your cake topper to signify that importance, rather than have just another generic bride and groom! This is a keepsake you will have for the rest of your married days. It should be as special and unique as your wedding :-) I can create any character you like, so long as you can provide good pictures. I can also create more traditional bride and groom, or same sex cake toppers, but still customize them to make them resemble the bride and groom. There are a lot of options when it comes to wedding cake toppers, and I do my very best to create something that is completely unique, something that really captures who the bride and groom are.  If you have any questions just visit CreativeCritters and use the Contact Artisan button under my avatar.
Thanks for stopping by!

~Michelle of CreativeCritters

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My entry for the Smooshers In The Ocean Challenge

The theme for the Polymer Clay Smoosher's Challenge this month is In The Ocean.  Once again I had lots of ideas swimming through my head (and not enough time to sculpt them all)!  Eventually I settled on a mermaid.  I always enjoy adding an element of fantasy to projects whenever possible ;-)  Not too long ago I made several beaded pendants using some of my mismatched glass beads.  The beads were all very pretty, but none of them matched.  When I make jewelry I generally like to use matching, or at least similar beads, so this was a good way to display the beads.  I decided that a miniature mermaid wrapped around a pendant made of blue and green beads would be just right for an ocean challenge!

 I started by sculpting the mermaid's tiny little head.  It's always a challenge to sculpt on such a small scale, but this one actually went pretty well.  Sometimes I have to remake a head up to 5 times!  I only had to remake this one twice ;-)  I used tiny blue glass beads for her eyes and gave her fairy ears.  I baked the head at this stage so further sculpting wouldn't distort all the tiny details.   A baked and hardened head is so much easier to work with.

 

 Next came the torso. I sculpted this and attached it to the neck, using diluent to make the seams perfectly smooth and invisible.  I wasn't ready to add the arms yet at this point.  I wanted to sculpt her tail and get her positioned on the pendant before I made her arms.  That way I would be able to position them perfectly so she was holding onto the pendant.

 

I swirled together several shades of blue and green Premo polymer clay to create a custom mix for the mermaid's tail and the teardrop shaped beads I planned on adding to the necklace.  Before positioning the mermaid around the beaded pendant I painted her facial features with acrylic paint and colored her lips and cheeks with powdered pink chalk mixed with interference red/ blue Pearl Ex powder.  I really wasn't sure what color I'd get when I mixed the two, but it turned into the perfect shade of pink with just enough of a sheen to make it look very realistic.  To be sure the mermaid was securely attached to the pendant I added liquid polymer clay where her body touched the pendant.  I baked the mermaid and beads at this point.

After the body and tail were baked and cooled I added her arms and hair.  I used wire through the eye pin to suspend the pendant in a coffee cup while it baked for one final time.  This assured that none of her delicate features would be crushed while baking.
The final step in the necklace was to create the beaded components, which were composed of blue and green glass beads, silver bead caps, and the blue and green swirled clay beads.
And this is how the final piece turned out.
 
I've actually only made a few mermaids (so far), but I have to say this is my best one yet.  I'm very happy with the way she turned out, and I'm glad I took my time while creating this entire necklace.  Once again, this is something entirely new for me- definitely a one of a kind creation!
Thanks so much for joining me on another creative journey!

~Michelle of CreativeCritters

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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

Alice in Wonderland sculpture- the 300th item listed at CreativeCritters!

Alice Meets Mr. Caterpillar- my 300th item listed!

My 300th item was listed at CreativeCritters on ArtFire.com yesterday!  This one of a kind handcrafted polymer clay sculpture was inspired by Alice in Wonderland.  This delightful sculpture depicts Alice meeting Mr. Caterpillar, with my own touches added, of course.  I added glow in the dark spots on the mushrooms, sculpted the flowers and Mr. Caterpillar's belly from glow in the dark clay, as well as painting the stripes on the small blue mushrooms with glow in the dark paint.  The effect in the dark is pretty impressive- the picture hardly does it justice. It does give you an idea of what this piece looks like in the dark though. This sculpture measures 5 1/2 inches tall (to the top of the caterpillar) and 5 inches at the widest point of the base, with Alice measuring 3 inches tall.  You can click on any of the pictures to go directly to the listing.  And if you'd like to see any of my other 299 items, please feel free to browse my studio.  Thanks so much for stopping by!



-Michelle of CreativeCritters

Handmade Plush World of Warcraft Murlocs with SOUND!

I've been making plush World of Warcraft Murlocs for some time now, and have several listed in my shop.  They're really funny mosters, and I have a blast making them.  In a recent conversation with Mother (she and my brother play WoW) she was musing if it would be possible to make Murlocs with sound.  If you play the game, I'm sure you know what they sound like.  I recalled seeing recordable buttons in the craft store on my last visit.  I told Mother that if she could find a good Murloc sound wave file and email it to me, I should be able to record it on the button, then sew that into some part of the Murloc.  Mother's been playing the game for years, so she knows a good Murloc sound from a corny reproduction.  She sent me the file, I got the button and recorded the sound, then I tried to figure out where to put the button in the Murloc.  I thought about the mouth, but it wouldn't have fit right, so I settled on placing it in his left thigh.  I kept accidentally pressing the button while sewing the Murloc, scaring myself and the cats- LOL!  Not only is this creation soft and cuddly (yeah, I know, Murlocs aren't usually considered "cuddly"), but he makes those hysterical sounds.  This would be the ultimate Christmas present for any WoW fan.  Once I can get more supplies I'll be buying more of those buttons and making more "talking" Murlocs.  Be sure to make your purchases in time for Christmas- it's creeping up faster than I want to realize!  Check out my entire Plush World of Warcraft category to see all I have to offer for WoW fans.  Thanks for looking!

OOAK Plush World of Warcraft Murloc with Sound

-Michelle of CreativeCritters

Miniature polymer clay houses from CreativeCritters

Today I'd like to talk about my miniature house sculptures.  I've been making these for quite a few years, and always enjoy them.  Although they take at least a week to complete, I enjoy getting lost in the process.  Each house is very detailed and built in stages, sculpting the walls and roof in polymer clay and baking them flat, then assembling the house, adding more details and clay, and baking again.  My favorite part is the landscaping, which is also the most time consuming.  I cut out every leaf and flower by hand (thousands of them!), and shape them before placing them onto the sculpture.  I  often bake the house 2 or 3 more times while adding landscaping and other details.  These houses range from about 5" tall by 4" wide to 3" tall and 4" wide.  I cover the bottom of the base with felt and always sign and date the piece.  My newest, and most unique piece would be my Lighted Glow in the Dark Pumpkin house sculpture.  This is the first house that I've put an electric light into (also the first vegetable house), as well as the first one to have glow in the dark clay elements.  I plan to make more houses like this in the near future (I've got a really cool idea for a mushroom house), as well as sculpting more of the traditional houses.  You can click on any of the pictures to go directly to the listing.  Each of these houses is a one of a kind creation, and any would a wonderful gift this holiday season.  Thanks for stopping by!

 

-Michelle of CreativeCritters

How losing my brother got me started making World of Warcraft plush

I wasn't sure if I was going to write this- wasn't sure if I could.  But this has a lot to do with some of my creations, and I think I owe my brother the recognition for his part in their making.  My older brother, Jeff died 1 year ago on Oct. 28th.  He was only 39 and his passing was sudden and unexpected.  It hit me hard, and I still have a hard time believing that he's gone.  His passing caused my mother and I to reconnect after many years, and through her I learned about a side of Jeff he didn't always share.  I knew about Jeff's love of fantasy, of course, that went back to the days of Dungeons and Dragons, but I didn't know that he had traded D&D for the World of Warcraft.  My mother and younger brother played too, and through them I learned about some of the different characters and their roles in the game.  Jeff had a Tauren character.  When Mother saw some of the work I was doing, she brought up the idea of making plush World of Warcraft characters.  She's also the one who found ArtFire and sent me the link (THANK YOU Mommy!).  As a way to honor Jeff, I decided the first characters I would make would be Taurens.  It took weeks of study about Taurens, and even longer testing out patterns, changing, adapting, and trying again before I came up with a Tauren I was willing to put up for sale.  These patterns are created completely by me, and each character is one of a kind.  The Taurens measure between 14" and 18" and are stuffed with polyester fiberfill.  They're dressed in leather and carry polylmer clay (sculpted by hand) weapons.  I think Jeff would be proud of them.  Recently I've started making Murlocs.  So far I've created 3 different patterns, with options to customize each one.  These monsters measure between 12" and 17" tall and are stuffed with polyester fiberfill.  They have jointed arms and legs, and I use pipe cleaners in their fingers, making them completely poseable.  If Jeff were here, I'd give him one for a pet.  He always liked my comical fantasy sculptures- my Christmas presents always made him laugh.  As I get time, I'll be creating new characters, and delving deeper into Jeff's World of Warcraft.  These are the plushies I have available at the time of this post, however, I'm working on another Murloc right now, and will be listing new characters as I complete them.  Thanks for reading and browsing.

-Michelle of CreativeCritters