And that has upset the apple cart a little bit here at Beastie Towers.
So, I’m just stopping in to say hello, and to promise that the new Beastie I planned to introduce to you this week will be joining us next week instead. She has SO MUCH cool stuff to share and I want to make sure I’m back on form to show it all to you!
In the meantime, here are some of my favourite silly Beastie pictures from the archives to help brighten up your Tuesday!
A close encounter of the porcine kind… Careful there, Explorer Beastie!
Remember the time Paddy went in search of the perfect all-over tan?
Or how about another beach adventure, when Plunkett recreated Botticelli’s Venus?
Oh, and here’s a typical night out with the lads. Lest we forget, this is what happens when you let them split a human-sized hot whiskey.
And finally… I love this picture of Fairy Princess Beastie, sent to me by her new family. Look how intensely she’s concentrating on her colouring in!
Ha! I’m feeling better already! Here’s wishing you all a sniffle-free week, and I’ll catch you again next Tuesday!
Explorer Beastie’s been a bit quiet lately, hasn’t he? But he always likes to take advantage of the post-Christmas lull to do a spot of out-of-town adventuring, and last week found both of us up in Donegal again, treading a slightly different path from the one we took this time last year.
Actually, this breaking of new ground was thrust upon us by circumstances beyond our control. We had originally intended to fuel up with a monster fry at Café Donagh in Carndonagh, but alas! Some pre-trip research revealed that the owners had retired from the breakfast business, leaving us high and dry in the fried food stakes. We only had memories of last year’s feed to sustain us as we embarked on our quest for a new spot to enjoy Third Breakfast (the most important meal of the day).
Our first stop was the pretty little town of Ramelton. Surely there must be a good breakfasting spot around here?
But unfortunately not – it being a Sunday, we had the choice of pricey gastropub fare or the diner in the local Eurospar. So Explorer Beastie Beastie-bombed my last photo of the river…
…And we hit the road again. Several potential candidates were rejected along the way, until we drove up to Ripples Restaurant just outside Kerrykeel. We didn’t hold out much hope – we thought it might be a bit fancy for the kind of food we were craving – but the chef was happy to put together a plate of fried goodness for us while Explorer Beastie toasted himself by the fire!
The meal itself escaped photographing, since it was half-eaten before I thought, “Hey, maybe I should have taken a picture”. Please be assured that it was very good, and feast your eyes on the glorious view outside the restaurant instead.
Well and truly refuelled and recaffeinated, we hopped back into the car and did the best thing you can do when in Donegal – drove to the extreme end of the finger of land we found ourselves on to enjoy some wild coastal scenery!
This time around, that meant heading for Fanad Head, where Explorer Beastie found some ruined houses to explore!
Does it still count as “Urbex” if the buildings are in the middle of nowhere?
Post-road-trip research has revealed that this is an old coastguard station, which was abandoned after the Second World War. Back in the day, it would have housed four families, with sheds outside for storage (that’s the building in the top right of the image above). But hey, what’s that just around the corner?
A LIGHTHOUSE!
Explorer Beastie did everything he could to get a little closer…
…But we’d just missed the last tour of the day. Still, we enjoyed admiring it from a distance in the bright winter sunlight.
Building work on this lighthouse started in 1815, and its light shone for the first time on St Patrick’s Day 1817. Its last full-time keeper retired in 1983, and these days it only needs a caretaker… But that means that us regular folks can now book a stay in the former keepers’ cottages! It’s lucky we didn’t know this at the time, or we might not have come home.
As it was, we thought it best to make the most of the remaining daylight – let’s head down to the shore!
One Beastie on the rocks, please!
We spent a while watching the waves crashing on the rocks – they were seriously huge, even though it was a calm day! Then, as the sun set, we jumped in the car and made for home.But next time, we’re totally staying in the lighthouse.
Have your travels taken you anywhere interesting yet this year? Be sure to tell us all about it in the comments! And we’ll be back in a week with our first new Beastie of 2018, so join us again next Tuesday!
PS Explorer Beastie isn’t the only one who’s been out adventuring lately! Finn McSpool has been enjoying the benefits of an unseasonably warm start to the year in Portland, and we’ve a new monster face in the Blogosphere too… Take a moment to meet Slartibartfast, who’s just taken up residence on Escribble!
Hello there everybody! Today seems like a fitting day to share the last of my pre-Christmas commissions with you, since I’m looking out my window and watching the ground being slowly covered with a dusting of snow and hail! It seems we might have a bit of a way to go yet until Spring starts springing… But perhaps a little pinch of witchy magic might help?
I love a project that gives me the opportunity to create a Beastie who’ll share the unique style and interests of their new human friend, and there was plenty of that going on here!
For starters, this sweet little Witchy Beastie never leaves home without a big cup of freshly-squeezed green juice – what a great way to get the day off on the right foot (or paw)!
I even dunked a stick of celery in there as a garnish! Witchy Beastie’s human counterpart is apparently a big fan of morning juice raves, so this should help lay the foundations of a good strong friendship!
This lady also has a favourite hooded cape in rich bright purple… so of course, Beastie does too.
The original plan for this cape was to make it out of felt, but it was waaaaaaay too bulky on a small Beastie frame! So I switched to a lighter, woven fabric from my stash, and cut the pattern pieces on the bias for a little bit of extra swishiness. On the front, I fitted a gold chain and clasp so that the cape could sit open without slipping off her little woolly shoulders. Then her outfit was completed with a little A-line dress, in a cotton print sprinkled with magical stars!
Oooh, we should probably talk about her hairstyle next! We went for a swept-over look in light blonde (erk, is it obvious to anybody that I don’t speak hairdressing?) with a cool baby-blue streak in the front…
… And a tightly-cropped section on her left hand side. You would not believe how lovely and soft that short Beastie hair is!
Then her look was completed with a pair of chunky-framed cat’s eye glasses…
… And special witchy “shoes” with curly toes!
Finally, I added one last essential piece of kit – after all, every self-respecting Witchy Beastie needs her own broom!
This one has thick, bushy needle-felted bristles, and tucks neatly under the arm of Witchy Beastie’s purple robe when she’s not using it!
Well, hopefully that’s brought a little bit of magical monster sparkle to an otherwise wintry Tuesday lunchtime! And we’ll be back next week with photos from my latest road trip with Explorer Beastie, so be sure to drop in then… Have a great week!
Happy Tuesday, everybody! And, after a brief wintry wander with Paddy and Plunkett last week, we’re going to dip back into the pile of pre-Christmas commissions, and meet another new Beastie!
So, you all know Explorer Beastie, right?
…And some of you might remember a few variations on the theme over the last couple of years, like Explorer Beastie’s little sister…
… And this rather retro gent, Victorian Explorer Beastie!
But here’s the newest addition to the Explorer Beastie clan, and he’s a little bit different!
First of all, he was made as a very special commission for fellow blogger Simon at Planet Simon. Although Simon’s blog mainly focuses on science (both fact and fiction!), his posts also drop in the odd slice of humour or snapshots of his day-to-day life, and it’s always a fun place to hang out and have a chat! But back to that Beastie… Can you tell what makes him stand out?
So far, so similar… But check out his paws!
Simon always seems to be fixing or making things, so I thought it made sense to create a useful companion for him who could lend a hand if needs be. One leap forward in Beastie-volution later, and here’s a little monster with magic magnetic grippy paws! And that, dear readers, means that he can hold onto stuff!
Mmmm, lunchtime!
Ready to fix stuff with his handy spanner!
I made him a compass as well – that’s essential kit for an Explorer Beastie, after all.
And of course, he can’t carry all these cool things in his paws ALL the time, so a Beastie backpack was called for too!
Let’s get everything packed away there, shall we?
Perfect!
I can’t wait to see what exciting exploits this pair get up to! Oh, and if you’re planning some adventures of your own, why not grab your free February calendar page from my shop?
It features the ever-intrepid original Explorer Beastie, enjoying the balmy (ahem!) Donegal coast at around this time last year. Oh, and did I mention that it’s FREE?
Have a great week, everybody… And don’t forget to join us again next Tuesday to meet another new Beastie! See you then!
There’s been some pretty chilly weather in Ireland and the UK this past week or so… And much as I love snow, I’m glad we just got a brief flurry here in Dublin last Tuesday, rather than the full-blown blizzard that hit Scotland and the north of England! But the plummeting temperatures reminded Paddy and Plunkett of a frosty walk they took at the very end of last year, and prompted them to send me a few choice happy snappies!
As far as I can tell, they were first lured outside by the idea of being able to skate on the frozen bird bath…
As usual, Paddy was showing off his moves, while Plunkett played it safe at the edge of the rink.
But wait a sec… Is that a rock poking up above the surface of the ice there?
SPLAT!
Apparently so, yes. Yeowch!
“Here, Paddy… I’ll help you u – WOOOOOAAAAAOOOOW!”
Uh-oh. There goes Plunkett as well.
“Maybe that’s enough skating for one day…
…C’mon Plunkett, let’s go for a walk instead.” I think this is much more Plunkett’s scene, don’t you? And on the way, they found some beautiful frosted leaves…
… And some pebbles that almost looked furry thanks to their icy coating!
Later, Paddy was even able to talk Plunkett into attempting a little climbing.
Mind you, the view from up there made it totally worthwhile!
But even little woolly monsters start feeling the cold in their paws eventually. Time to head back indoors! Although the winter sunlight was playing some strange tricks as they strolled home… “Check out our shadows, Plunkett! We’re giants!”
“Whatever you say, Paddy…”
Thanks for the photos, lads! Hopefully the days are going to start getting a little warmer again soon… And with that in mind, I thought it was high time February’s calendar page made an appearance!
It’s in the store now, it’s ready to download, and it’s FREEEEEE! Cheers to everybody who welcomed Paddy and Plunkett onto their walls, noticeboards and fridges for January – I loved seeing the pictures some of you posted on your blogs and social media of the calendars in action!
As you can see, Explorer Beastie has stepped up to the plate this month. I chose one of my favourite shots from our trip to Donegal last February, which captures some of the best bits of late winter in Ireland – yes, the weather can be a bit wild, but the gentle light and the fact that there’s still plenty of green about make it a quietly beautiful time of year. I hope you’ll like this one as much as I do!
That’s it for this week, folks – we’ll be back next Tuesday with another new Beastie for you to meet! See you then!
OK folks, I promised you something big this week, and here it is! Now, I’ve made Beastie families before (you can meet some of them here and here), but when I was asked to create individual little monsters for all of a customer’s nieces and nephews, I did briefly wonder what I was letting myself in for. Sometimes families here can be on the large side – in fact, Boyfriend has so many cousins that he’s pretty sure there are some out there that he’s never even met! Fortunately, the grand total turned out to be a totally manageable seven… And although that’s still more than I’ve ever made for any one Beastie enthusiast, I reckoned I’d definitely be able to get them ready in time for Christmas!
So, let’s take a quick tour through my biggest Beastie custom order ever! These Beasties were heading to three separate households, with a brother and sister in one…
…Two sisters next…
…And a family of three to complete the picture!
We decided it would be best to keep all the Beasties quite similar, but each with their own unique twist to make them as individual as their human counterparts!
For the boys, who are both big into their Gaelic football, that meant shirts in their county colours… So, blue for Cavan and white for Kildare. And they both get to be #1 in their own teams!
Oh, and I had to send them each out with their own felt football, of course. The shape of the segments that make up the ball are based on the human-sized version – that took some figuring out!
You might also have noticed that I experimented with a new way of doing short hair for these two – I think the fur fabric captures the fineness of children’s hair better than wool can, and it’s so soft as well. What do you all reckon?
As for the girls…
… Each got her own hand-knitted sweater with an appliquéd felt initial, and I was in experimentation mode with their hairdressing too!
Sometimes Beastie hair (as I’ve made it in the past) has come out a bit thick and unmanageable, and because I had five girls to make, I wanted to ensure that each of them had their own distinct hairstyle. At first, I experimented with a technique I found in a magazine, which involved laying out a line of sticky tape, sticking strands of yarn to it, sewing through the tape, then peeling it away and stitching the hairpiece to the head, which had been prepped with a piece of felt in a similar colour.
Um, the less said about my state of mind that day, the better.
(Image from my old Dean’s Gift Book of Nursery Rhymes)
That said, I did like the effect I was able to create by using multiple shades of yarn, so I decided to cut out the sticky tape middleman, and sew strands directly to the felt “hair cap” where they were needed. The result? More readily style-able pigtails and ponytails!
So, I suppose that means we’re all ready for the group photo…
Oh. Maybe another one, with everybody looking at the camera this time?
Much better!
Did any of you take on a monster project in the run-up to Christmas? Tell us all about it in the comments!
Aaaaaaand next week we’ll be taking a break from Christmas commissions and catching up with Paddy and Plunkett… They have some wintry photos they’d like to share with you. See you then!
Hello everybody, and welcome to the first proper BeastieBlog post of 2018! I hope you all got a bit of a break over the holidays – I know I certainly took advantage of the end-of-year lull to catch up on some sleep! But it’s great to be back, and right now is actually one of my favourite times of year. Yes, really! Because NOW I can finally start sharing my Christmas commissions with you all!
It was tricky to choose which of my latest Beasties I’d introduce you to first… But in the end, the honour has gone to this little monster lady!
At a time of year when many of us are resolving to make changes in our lives or try new things, I thought that this multitalented Beastie might provide a little inspiration. She was created as a special companion for a lady who works as a translator, so she speaks a couple of languages…
…And she’s also interested in art history, so she never leaves home without a handy sketchpad and pen! You just don’t know when inspiration will strike.
Of course, she’d never get anything done if she had to carry all this stuff around in her paws. So I made her a cool satchel-style bag to put everything into!
Perfect! She certainly looks happy… But what’s that I hear?
Aha! Beastie’s best friend… A sweet little felt pooch to keep her company while she works.
Because this Beastie was going to live in Germany, I modelled her four-legged friend on traditional German breeds, like the German pinscher and Jagterrier. Hello there, pup!
I think it might be time for walkies… What do you reckon?
And of course, there’s always time for hugs and treats!
This year certainly is off to a good start! How about you – any big plans for 2018? Let us know in the comments… and if one of your new year’s resolutions is to be more organised, don’t forget to download your FREE Beastie calendar pages from the store! January is there now, and February will be added shortly!
We’ll be back next week, when I’ll be sharing snaps of my biggest ever custom order! See you then!
2017 was a pretty exciting year here at Beastie Towers – check out the review post I did a couple of weeks back, and you’ll see what I mean! I’m hoping there’s even more good stuff around the corner in 2018 for us, and for all of you out there too. It’s been great having you along for the ride over the past 12 months, and I can’t wait to see where the new year takes us all!
Oh, and if, like me, your life was teetering on the brink of complete chaos because I didn’t make a Beastie calendar this year, fear not! I’ve a new year’s gift for you all… Get thee to the Shop section of my website, where you’ll find a free downloadable calendar page to help you stay organised for the whole of January. To get yours, just add it to your cart… and don’t worry about filling out the whole “address details” form! You only need to enter your name and email address, then you’ll be able to download the page directly from the confirmation email you’ll receive shortly afterwards. After that, print it out… aaaand it’s up to you! Stick it on the wall, pop it on the fridge, tuck it into the pages of your bullet journal – wherever you like, really! Big thanks to both Tammie and Jan for suggesting this idea! I’m hoping that those of you who (like me) still find that nothing really gets sorted out unless pen and paper are involved will find this useful. And hey, let me know where yours ends up… especially if you find an unusual place to display it!
The BeastieBlog returns to normal next Tuesday (that’s the 9th of January), when I’ll be starting to share the first of the Christmas gift commissions now that all the presents have been opened and no surprises will be spoiled!
See you then, and all the best to all of you for 2018. Happy new year!
Wow, what a hectic week it’s been! And before I introduce you to another pre-Christmas new Beastie, I wanted to say a big THANK YOU to everybody who came along to meet me and my little monsters at our recent Christmas markets! It was so nice to see the faces behind some of my favourite Instagram accounts, catch up with Beastie buddies I’ve met at past events, and make some new friends, too. You all rock!
Now, we’re really keeping it local with this week’s new Beastie – she’s a true Dublin girl! She was created as a surprise birthday gift for a lady who’s a big Dublin GAA fan, and who loves her coffee. Knowing that, and with a few photos to work from, it was easy to sketch up some ideas for a little monster friend!
Then, a few tweaks and a lot of teeny sewing later… She was ready!
This Beastie has soft, curly wool and alpaca hair, and a pair of super-cool glasses…
… Which she can take off, if she likes.
She’s also proudly sporting the latest Dublin GAA football jersey, complete with sponsor logo and the team crest!
I used a combination of hand embroidery and appliqué to get these details as close as possible to the real thing… here, take a closer look at that teeny tiny Dublin crest!
There’s also a little personalisation on the back of the jersey, to make this gift extra special!
And finally… That all-important cup of coffee! This Beastie’s new human friend is especially fond of Americano, so that’s what she’s drinking too. I thought it might be fun to add a wisp of crema around the edges, to give the coffee that proper barista-made look!
Now, making Beasties makes me very happy… But what makes me happier is seeing them well settled in their new homes! So you can imagine how delighted I was to receive this photo of these two girls posing together for the camera!
Hopefully this is the first of many fun adventures for this pair! And if you’d like to know how you (or someone you love) would look as a little woolly monster, I’m already starting to take orders for 2018! Sooo… Find out more about the design process here
or get in touch with me through the Contact page to book your spot!
Next week, join us for a look back through the highlights of 2017 – it’s been quite a year! See you then!
