Well, some months I feel like I barely come across one thing that really sparks my imagination and others, like this past month seemed chock full of more than I can handle but I am going to keep it to just a few. . . in case next month is a dry one. :)
Little House remembered:
This month's media recommendation has got to be one of the strangest ideas I have come across but it is A-MA-ZING!
It's a podcast called. . . Little House on the Podcast
If you remember the show Little house on the Prairie as fondly I do from childhood, this is a must. If like me you have not watched an episode in a decade or more and you think you can't recall a single episode with much detail, this podcast is going to change that.
The podcaster takes every episode and gives a comical 15 minute recap from her perspective. It's HILARIOUS.
She's witty, sassy and picks out all of those bad 70's tv tropes that we missed as kids but are hilarious to recall now. She looks at it from the perspective of a mom today and from her childhood as well.
Fair warning! She has favorites among the characters and a few she has never liked and she does not hold back. Like me, she loved Laura, not so much Mary, and wonders why Carrie was even around. :)
Best of all, I don't feel the need to rewatch the episodes again myself because in that 15 minutes, she really hits the best of every episode.
Hmm, I'm not doing a very good job of selling it here but trust me, if you loved Little House, you'll love the podcast. She is currently in the middle of season three but that means there are two-plus, full 22 episode seasons to listen to!
The amazing thing is this. Yes, she makes fun of the show, the characters and the silliness of some stereotypes of tv (like how many characters who are "residents" of Walnut Grove, are in one episode and then never heard from again!) then BUT she clearly has a reverence for the show too and if you were a fan, this podcast will make you laugh AND cry! I promise.
Inspiration is for, or taken from, the birds
I've been working on creating creatures for my fantasy world but sometimes I come across an animal or bird from our world that inspires something else in the fantasy world. In this case, I give you the Secretary birds from Africa. I think those awesome head feathers will make for a wonderful and regal addition to the formal clothing of an elven orders highest office.
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| A Secretary Bird with it's fancy feathers! |
Flashback!
Remember enamel pins? In my teens they were most prevalent as the little guitar and comic character pins that kids wore on their jackets. They had the metal pin back and the bright enamel colors on the fronts. If I remember right they were like 3 dollars each at most record shops.
Well, When I joined Kickstarter a year ago, I began to notice an uptick in the number of enamel art-pin projects popping up. And now, a year later? It's off the Hook Ya'll!
Here is the latest one that I sponsored, no surprise it's designs are based on the Egyptian Pantheon.
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| We purchased Thoth and Hathor, they are the two on the far right! But all of these these, and the other dozen the creator added since, are beautifully done! |
There are pins for anime, chibi, mythological beings and original designs and characters of all and any imaginings. Right now I think there are at least two dozen or more enamel pin projects going on Kickstarter.
I love when something old comes back around and gets a twist. They seem to be a wonderful way for new illustrators to get their work out there and on Kickstarter, I'd say 80% of them get funded more than fully.
Well, that's it for this week!
I hope one or more of these made you smile!
See you again in a week!
Nicolas
XO
I have been seeing a lot of artists on Instagram do pins from their characters and I found a maker who if you order $100 can make them for less than $1 each. I have been considering it with my new kids characters like the girl in yellow. Maybe I should try a Kickstarter as I never go there to check anything out... but it sounds like a good way to be able to get things started.
ReplyDeleteAlso, thanks for the little house info. I am in the middle of a few books but I may have to make time for that after I get through them! You DID do a god job of promoting it!
Can’t wait to hear more of the writing you are working on.
Andrea I think your characters would be AWESOME as enamel pins and I would definitely support your Kickstarter! :)
DeleteAs for the writing you are still on my list as an alpha reader. I have just reworked a good bit of the story arc and went back to the beginning to start again but I think in a month or so I will have a chapter or two to start with.
I am going to send you an Etsy message tomorrow and drop by your blog too as I have a few things I wanted to ask you and to show you.
I hope you'll find the Little House podcast to be fun. It's a unique idea to review episodes of such an old show but I find myself laughing out loud at least three times per installment, especially when she has her "lightbulb" moments about how Little House formed her parenting ideas. :)
Thank you so much for dropping by and I will be over your way soon!
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I loved Little House! The podcast sounds like fun! That bird for your inspiration is amazing! Wow! I too truly love the feathers! I remember those pins! I use to have some! Everything comes back, doesn't it??
ReplyDeleteBig Crow Hugs Nicolas!
Yes Stacy everything DOES come back it seems! I think the wonderful thing about the pins is that in our digital world they are a tactile thing people still want to collect. That makes me happy. :) And something that artists can use to put a tangible piece of themselves in the world off-line and inexpensively.
DeleteHi Nicolas!
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry about your sparrow.
Just the other day, I rescued a little chickadee. It hit the window and fell on his back. The wings kept fluttering. I picked it up with my gloves and he stayed with me for almost an hour. He wouldn't leave my hand. I didn't mind. Poor little one was so shaken up.
Now for your situation, it's serious. Do you have a wildlife sanctuary around? Anything like that? I would phone them and ask. If the poor little one can't use his legs, he could even have a deformation.
Sorry I can't help more. Unless you want to become bird parents and catch the little guy, but I don't know if that would work?
Wishing you all the best Nicolas! Let me know if anything happens!
Big Crow Hugs!
Thank you for all your advice and help Stacy! We didn't see the little guy at all today so I am hoping it was either temporary ( I read a lot yesterday about that happening when a bird smacks a window etc) or that he found a place to recover. IT was a fully mature male, that much I could see and so I figure either it was a recent injury or that little guy has learned to fend for himself! I'll keep an eye out for him but can't imagine that we could catch him since he had full use of his wings and just could not perch due to the legs. It did not seem to stop him though! :) Thank you again Stacy for your caring heart and BIG crow hugs!!
DeleteI haven't gotten much into podcast, but this one sounds wonderful and I will have to check it out. Thanks for the recomendation.
ReplyDeleteI hope you'll enjoy it. I think the podcaster's ability to show such reverence for the show while at the same time, point out the very funny shortcomings of 70's tv and child actors through a modern lens, is wonderful. : ) Thank you for dropping by!
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