Monsters and creatures of whimsy have always been something I've found myself coming back to. Little creatures that hide in nooks and crannies - going about their lives while we're completely unaware - the thought just sparks inspiration!
This will be a page that focuses on such creatures I have created over the years. I hope you enjoy, and that you might find inspiration for your own friend, enemy, or creature.
Mwoop
Mwoop was the first of my handmade monsters. He was a creature made to explore the tools found in the workshop of my program, and one that allowed me to push myself to the limit.
He was finished in 2019.
Ally
Originally designed in a reflective assignment for my Empathy Machines class, Ally is the warm feeling of comfort to aid in taming their counterpart, Demon or Enemy, when they grow to be too much.
Despite being inspired by a moth, Ally isn't supposed to be nearly as small! In fact, they are about 7 feet tall - that way they can wrap you in their wings to snuggle or hold you when you need it most.
Because Ally is an extension of comfort they don't have a gender, but that doesn't make them any less lovable!
Despite being inspired by a moth, Ally isn't supposed to be nearly as small! In fact, they are about 7 feet tall - that way they can wrap you in their wings to snuggle or hold you when you need it most.
Because Ally is an extension of comfort they don't have a gender, but that doesn't make them any less lovable!
For one of my classes during the fall 2021 term, we were again asked to create a monster using wood and various other hand tools.
With my experience from Mwoop and my drive to go above and beyond since I was finally back on campus, I decided to create one of my most challenging wood creatures to date - a fully ball-jointed anthropomorphic doll to resemble Ally.
And I'm glad I did!
The process wasn't nearly as difficult as it had been the first time. Based on my previous design I sketched out and divided the body into what I thought to be the main features, and mapped out where I wanted my main points of articulation
With these parts in mind, I divided the 4 by 4 piece of wood into sections for each, and cut it on the miter saw at my school's maker space. I then drilled and cut all the holes for the elastic that would hold Ally together, and sanded away at each and every part till I had the rough shape of the body part in mind.
After weeks of work I finally had each body part shaped and strung, and went on to the finishing touches.
I gave the body a full coat of paint in antique white and then painted on a protective coat of Liquitex matte varnish, before painting their eyes.
I then created the arm armature by twisting jewelry wire and glued it into the sockets I had drilled with my Dremel.
Following Mozykyto's yarn weft tutorial I created the fuzz hugging their upper torso and glued it on with quick-dry super glue, and glued pink feathers to their head to act as their antenna.
And thus, Ally was completed on November 3rd, 2021
