biscuits work in progress

A few more pics, just for fun.

piping completed 

grandchildren's favourites

Easter biscuits

Unfortunately no new animal today.  Promise I will have an awesome dog for you in just a couple more days........check this space!


Today it's something different.  Yummy, festive Easter biscuits - such fun to make and very therapeutic too!  My sincere apologies you can't taste how fabulous they are.  My thanks always to the beautiful and talented Roxanne Floquet for her recipe and for teaching me this artform.

Been a busy bee in the kitchen making iced vanilla bean biscuits for Easter.

butterflies, bunnies, chicks, eggs etc

 

workstation.....ready to rock and roll

oh dear......me in my nightshirt.....oh well it was the wee hours of the morning

icing colours ready for piping and flooding .......and paper cones all made

most pass muster but a couple have dodgy eyes 

 

few tiny gifts for the dancing girls

 

Orphaned Elephants

the three Musketeers

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust  does the most amazing work.
Their mission is  the protection and conservation of wildlife and habitats in Kenya. Best known for the rescue and hand-rearing of milk dependent orphaned baby elephants and rhinos, so that they can return to the wild when grown, the DSWT also manages anti-poaching teams, mobile veterinary units and community outreach programs.

Today's blog is showcasing the trio of elephants I donated to the DSWT - and which are up for auction on Ebay for the next 8 days. If you would like to bid on this trio then please visit them on 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Trio-Baby-Elephants-/190814567956 


If you would like to sponsor a baby orphaned elephant , or make a donation to this trust, then please visit their facebook page or website
 

https://www.facebook.com/thedswt?ref=ts&fref=ts
http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org

I didn't name these elephants , so will describe them as per their size.

big

BIG……... was created from sparse, long-pile velvet in deep grey with inner ears of hand -shaded short-pile pink velvet, and footpads of Ultrasuede grey.  Her eyes are black German glass and the white surrounds are ultra suede. Small tusks  were sculpted from Apoxie-Sculpt modeling compound, then fashioned into beads, and finally hand sewn in place.  She has been 5 ways jointed using cotter-pins and therefore can be posed in various positions and move her head from side to side.  Big stands under 8cms tall

middle

MIDDLE and BABY size……….were both fashioned from a browny-grey long pile velvet with ultra suede inner ears and footpads.  Baby has onyx eyes and Middle-size has black German glass.  White ultra suede was used around the eyes. They have cotter-pin jointed heads; but their limbs are string jointed.  Middle stands under 6cms tall and Baby is only 4 cms

baby

All three were designed and created from my own patterns.  To achieve their facial expressions and impressions of wrinkles i have needle sculpted their faces extensively  and in certain areas also scissor sculpted the fur.  They are all stuffed firmly with polyfibre and have some steel shot inside them to add extra weight.  Their tails have had mohair strands rooted into the fur.  Hand shading has creating their sorrowful eyes, which tell a story.  I made their little tartan blankets out of polar fleece.

woollen blankets shield the orphans from the cold. 

at DSWT the older orphans look after the younger ones

they play together and socialize

one day they will be reintroduced into the wild

Whose your daddy?

                                        

Getting ready for Easter

This year I have created three little ducklings.  Each time I have changed the pattern  to achieve slightly different results.......so yes they all look like they have a different dad.  Who is the ugly duckling here?   A mother can't say!  If your child has a big nose or goofy looks do you love it any less?

Created from soft plush fur in a creamy white colour with yellow feet and bills

They show their sizes here by sitting in a dessert spoon, and in a palm. The smallest is the centre duckling - 3,5 "  the first measures 4" and the last 4, 7"

Showing off his oversized bill and webbed feet which were made from Apoxy Sculpt , dried, sanded, painted and then sealed.

showing foot detail

 the first 2 have feet made from yellow Ultrasuede.

The usual techniques of scissor sculpting  the fur pile. needlesculpting and hand shading have combined to give each duckling his own looks and personality.

sitting on eggs

they all have black beady eyes made from English glass and are all filled with polyfibre for bulk and softness, and loads of pellets and steel shot giving them weight and a  solid feel in the hand. 

Would love to take this opportunity to wish all my viewers a happy Easter

Sneak Preview

Coming soon.............

Who's hiding in the Teacup?

                           My goodness me.......it's a tiny teacup piglet

Yes, we know you're a teacup piglet but climb out please so we can admire you.

 

Poinky is a pink piglet who oinks a lot.....hence his silly name.
Made from the softest longpile Sassy velvet in pastel pink, with inner ears of a matching ultrasuede.

His black beady eyes are rimmed with pink eyelids  and made from black German glass. He stands 4,5 cms high.

Like all piglets he has a curly tail which has been wired for poseability.
He has an Eddybare label sewn unobtrusively behind his right front forelimb. Poinky has sweet little trotters.   A ton of needle sculpting has been done to achieve his facial characteristics.

T'wit T'woo

T'wit is a fluffy baby owl standing 4,5 inches tall.   His tummy and face are made from plush and his fluffy, darker feathers are in a variegated, longpile mohair.

Like all owls, Twit has large eyes fixed in their sockets—so he must turn his entire head to change views. Owls can rotate their heads and necks as much as 270 degrees (135 degrees in either direction) while searching for prey. T'wit 's head has been jointed enabling him to accomplish this.

His eyes are shiny black, German glass and red-brown and black Ultrasuede.  His beak, his feet and sharp talons were hand- sculpted from Apoxie-Sculpt; dried and then sanded, painted and sealed. 

 T'wit has fluffy, jointed wings which allow for posing in different positions and an internal armature  increases their poseability.

He has amazing fur feathers and this allows for many different hair styles and facial expressions.  Here he is hunting and looking keen and alert

Ears pricked up here.

  
Some mornings T'wit wakes up with scruffy 'bed-hair', which is very cute.

                     He loves to roost in the foliage of the umbrella tree

When he's cold or lonely T'wit wraps his fluffy wings around himself and has a very forlorn face.

  
Here he is  with his friend T'woo. She is also 4.5 inches tall but has a grey , sharp , curved beak and has an unjointed head .

  
                                  Here are a couple more pictures.

T'wit stands beautifully on his two feet but at the moment he is trying to balance on just one of them.  Pippa is totally unconcerned with these little furballs.......its her meal time and she's waiting patiently!

 First on one leg , then on the other.........very well balanced little owlets.  Soon they'll want to fly away