Crafty Tuesday:The Nifty Things that have happened because of my work Edition

Puppets and dolls have been my doorway to some pretty interesting adventures and have lead to some great friendships. So in no particular order except when it is in order Because of a Sandman Puppet, I met Neil Gaiman and this time he remembered me. I had met Neil before during his first Sandman tour which was when the first graphic novel came out at the comic book shop, Whirlygig Comics in New Haven, that I use to work at. He remembers the shop because of an interesting story that happened there which I can confirm was true because I was there when it happened but I left no impression what so ever (which is a good thing during a whirlwind tour). But this time it was a DragonCon back when I was the tech director. I had, for a lark, made a Sandman puppet with LEDs for eyes and feathers for hair. Jill Thompson saw the puppet in passing and asked for a closer look. She asked if Neil had seen it. No, said I. He must, said she. So we arranged a time for me to be where Neil was. He loved the puppet a lot. I made him one and promised that those would be the only two unless I rebuilt mine. I would not sell anymore. Not that I haven’t had requests for them but I promised Neil and I keep my promises. The Doctor Who puppets have led to some interesting conversations and some adventures in their own. A number of the Doctors have their puppets and I owe Colin Baker his which I will get to him soon I hope. The most recent was the puppet that started it all which was the Paul McGann Doctor. Since that TV movie was the impetus for me even starting to make the Doctor Who puppets, getting the puppet to Paul just seemed like a good thing to do. I know he liked it. I got the same kind of bear hug I got from Neil when I told him that I could make him a Sandman puppet. I met the Frouds through a doll making course that a fellow puppeteer informed me about. I met Wendy and Toby and was introduced to Brian at San Diego. Since then I have taken Wendy’s course a number of time when it is in my area. I always learn something and Wendy pushes me as an artist. She knows what I have done and believes I can do better. I remember once I tried to slide some hands by her and she made me go make them again because she knew I could do better. I have been introduced as a puppeteer to others which leads to all kinds of interesting conversation with all kinds of interesting people. Last year I participated in the Puppet Slam at DragonCon and had a blast. I hope to do so this year as well. I just got the most twisted Idea….. And finally and most important, if I hadn’t made a set of Klingon Puppets back at the Atlanta Fantasy Fair, I wouldn’t be sitting here typing this. Those puppets introduced me to my husband and led me to the life I have today which I wouldn’t trade for the world. I am grateful that puppets and dolls have lead me such interesting places.