Return Of The Sphinx
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Regarding the stuffed animals, they are all the same sort, a design I think of as "a sphinx". Catlike, attentive, mysterious, and ultimately noseless, with protruding arms in front and a graceful line as though carved by desert wind. They are about the size of a small pet, all about 10-12 inches long and I guess 6 inches high, when seated. When I was at the Dirt Palace sale, two people (on two occasions) came up and asked me what they did, I was kind of dumbfounded by the question the first time but I was like, they sit there looking at you, it's exactly like a cat. You can squeeze them and decide that they love you, and then decide that they express this love with a certain flavor of disinterest. I don't think this is wrong although I wish at the time that I didn't hit the nail so directly on the head. I wasn't prepared.
Later at the sale a mom and her adult daughter came over, staring at the table very critically for a long time and talking softly, and I was sure they were saying "this sucks, what's the deal here", because sometimes that's where my mind goes. But then I overheard them mentioning a "companion robot" so I butted in. As it turns out, they wanted to get one of these sphinxes for their mom/grandmother, who was feeling lonely!! And it was either this or a companion robot. They were worried that she'd forget to charge the robot, or that its software would need to be updated. That's where I held the advantage, that and the price point. Well I don't love to be in competition with a robot but if it does happen I want to come out on top; I was delighted. I'd love to know if it worked out for everyone but at the same time it's none of my business. I hope it worked out.
Personally I find the sphinxes to be pleasant to be around, and they're nice to have on a couch, or to crook between one's head and shoulder, or to carry around in one's arm. They are really stuffed with stuffing, so you can really really squeeze them with all your might. I do that sometimes. Many people have told me that theirs sits on the couch in a specific location, maybe on top of a small ziggurat of throw pillows, and when it tumbles off due to some slight disturbance in the room, they run over and fix it. I'm into that.
Construction Notes
I don't make these guys according to a pattern, so they all have slightly different aspects. I do this for two reasons: I like the result, and it's easier for me this way. The fabric varies according to taste, and the eyeball placement, eyeball quality, and eyeball number varies somewhat according to a certain unknown factor, as is customary for all things.I took the liberty of naming each one on the storefront, which makes things easier on my end. I also wrote up a little personality description on each guy's individual page, just like a kitten adoption website. And there's a little video of each one, because it's hard to get a single representative pic of each guy. They're a really great shape in real life but I felt like it wasn't coming through in the pic.
I wasn't going to name them at first because there's a certain dignity to an animal without a human-knowable name. But then I thought about how mad Frankenstein (monster) was at not being given a name at the get-go, sooooooooo I felt I better name these guys. It's OK if you forget the name entirely, or if you rename them later, or if you discover that their personality is actually quite different.
I guess that's it?
Oh, if you have one of these guys already please send me a pic! I love seeing pictures. :)
Oh! And if something seems broken or not working on the storefront, or you're having any troubles, please email me right away- jacob@fujichia.com. I feel like I tested this extensively but one never knows, does one? If you're reading this on Tuesday 2022-02-08 and have a question or just want to say hi, I'll be hanging out by the pond for a few hours, casually picking flowers and feeding them to the fish. Feel free to drop by and do the same :)
Links / Misc
- Again, the storefront is presently just outside the castle, leaning up on the right side (stage right). Click here to go [outside] and find it.
- The Dirt Palace is a cool artists space near me and mannnnny many of my friends have lived there over the years. They have a website that pretty much looks like the house, and of course I love that: [link]. They also run a secondary location that's like a bed and breakfast with an artists residency component (that you could apply to) buuuuuut they don't seem to have a website, just an instagram account-- [instagram]. let's get a website up, folks!
- I was inspired to get back into making stuffed animals by my friends Emma and Sophie, who recently started a stuffed animal company called Plushie Love: [link]. Regular readers may remember Emma as the artiste who drew the logo for Strawberry Band: [link]
If you got here through a link, click here to go outside and come back in: [outside]
Archives of previous posts is here, in the coat room: [coatroom]
To sign up to get these posts in your email for free, click here: [substack]
To write me a nice message, use the contacts page: [link]
To leave a little donation to help in the maintance of this castle, OR to simply hear the sound of a large bell, which is good luck, visit the temple area: [link]
As always, if you're bugging out or need a respite from endlessly scrolling the feed, you are welcome to hang out in the castle as long as you want. :)
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