Little Wooden Guys

Still Going!

2011-08-29T06:06:00.000-07:00

No posts here in a long time, but I certainly have not stopped making wooden figures! To check out my new business site, The Old Brooklyn Woodshop just click on the link! New wooden figures and other woodworking projects are being posted regularly!

More Droids!

2011-01-03T06:52:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple more new Star Wars droids for the collection. The new ones don't have names, but they are characters that can be seen in the Star Wars Droids cartoon episode called'The Great Heep'. Enjoy the pictures!

C-3PO and R2-D2

2010-11-14T10:34:00.000-08:00

Here's a look at my new C-3PO and R2-D2 figures on a beautiful November day in Prince Edward Island. Both are styled after their look in the Droids animated TV series from the 1980's.

Minor Hockey Player

2010-10-13T16:47:00.000-07:00

Here is a figure the I made for my brother's birthday on October 11. I thought it would be fun to make a figure based on him as a boy in one of his minor hockey uniforms. From start to finish this figure took about a day to complete. For this one I am including some pictures of what the figure looked like before it was painted so that it's easier to see how many pieces were used in it's construction. While at first glance it doesn't look like it, this figure is actually built out of 19 separate pieces, some of them actually functioning a little like a skeleton. What I mean by this is that some parts, such as the arms and the gloves, have a separate internal piece of wood connecting them. What I did was drill out a hole in the lower portion of the arm as well as through most of the glove, and then insert and glue in place a smaller rounded piece of wood. I did the same thing with the hips. For the lower legs, skates and base I did pretty much the same thing except this time I had the internal piece coming from the lower legs go down through the skates and deep into the base. This should make the figure far more secure than if I had just glued the skates to the base for instance. Like most of my more recent figures the head is able to turn and is also removable so it can be placed on another body. The figure is about three inches tall, including the base.

Back in business!

2010-10-02T18:41:00.000-07:00

After going for months without being able to use a wood lathe, I'm happy to report that things are finally looking up. At my new (actually 110 years old) house, I have an old pig barn that will eventually be at least partly converted into my woodworking shop. It smells in there, it's dirty and there is still a long way to go till I have everything cleaned up and set up the way I want it, but at least I now have the lathe and some of my other tools set up and ready to use. I have actually been able to use the lathe a few times in the past week and begin work on a few new figures. A new Elmo figure is now complete and will be looking for a new home soon and four more figures are currently in the works. I should be able to get some more work done on these four tomorrow after I get back from a nice morning at church in Charlottetown. It's fun to be back at it!

Ernie and Bert

2010-08-11T08:53:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since I've posted anything here, and with good reason! My wood lathe bit the dust months ago, so I had to go out and purchace another one. My bench was too small to hold the new (actually antique) lathe that I had just bought, plus I was going to be moving in the summer, so I just had to put off my woodworking until I moved to the new place. Now that I'm at the new house, I have a barn that will make great place for a workshop, but no bench or electricity available in the barn. Once those are in place, I will finally get to try out the new lathe! In the meantime, here are some pictures of two figures that I haven't posted before.

Andrew's Wii character

2010-01-29T06:14:00.000-08:00

If you are familiar with the Nintendo Wii system then you may recognize this character as resembling some of the Mii characters that you can create for games like Wii Sports and Wii Fit. This little guy is a character designed by my son Andrew. When Andrew first added him to the game, he was intended to be a character who was terrible at every sport (notice how miserable he looks?). Since then, Andrew has allowed him to get a lot better, but he will still always have the same miserable, but kind of cute, face.
For this figure, I thought I would try something new: legs! It makes the figure a little taller than others that I've made, but I suppose there's nothing wrong with that. I like how he turned out, and my kids think he's great!

Maurice 'Rocket' Richard

2010-01-22T05:13:00.000-08:00

I had been thinking about making some hockey hero figurines for a while, and recently I completed my first one. This figure is of one of the greatest players ever: Maurice 'Rocket' Richard from the Montreal Canadiens.
I am very pleased with how he turned out. It took a few tries to make a stick that would work, but I finally came up with something that I think does the job. For a while I thought that maybe he would have to go without a stick, but a hockey player just wouldn't look right without it. As you can see in the last picture, the stick is removable and the head can be turned.
Painting took about 6 hours. When you look at the figure now, it seems hard to figure how it could take that long, but details such as straight lines take time! They very first thing that I painted was the logo. First the white background, then the red 'C' and finally the blue. The last part of the uniform to be painted was all the red. The figure is 6.5 cm tall (2.5 inches)
This is yet another figurine (head and body) to be made from a set of old table legs that my neighbor was throwing out with the trash a couple years age. Absolutely excellent wood. Recycling at work!

Ichabod and the Headless Horseman

2010-01-20T07:58:00.000-08:00

Here are some brand new versions of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. A few interesting features on these: The pumpkins face glows in the dark and Ichabod's head can turn and be removed.

Droids R2-D2

2009-12-19T05:32:00.000-08:00

R2-D2 from the Droids cartoon is now finished! This one was quite a project and a lot different from any other figure that I've ever made. The post that enables him to fit in vehicles and playsets is removable, his head can turn and is also removable and his legs can move. The color scheme may look unusual and inaccurate to the movies, but this is how R2 looked in Droids.
This is actually the second Droids R2-D2 that I have made. The first one was made back in July 2008 and was a lot simpler. You can see the original in the bottom picture.

A work in progress

2009-12-17T18:30:00.001-08:00

It looks like Mungo Baobab is about to get a droid!

Star Wars Droids: Mungo Baobab

2009-12-17T05:02:00.000-08:00

Here is a fun character from the 1985 cartoon Star Wars Droids. Mungo Baobab was the master of C-3PO and R2-D2.

Sesame Street Christmas Play

2009-11-29T11:35:00.001-08:00

"Welcome, oh welcome, to our little play..."
Here are four of the characters who took part in the Christmas play on the Merry Christmas from Sesame Street record.

Bert

2009-11-29T11:31:00.001-08:00

This new Bert is based off of a play that was featured on the Merry Christmas From Sesame Street record from 1975. Poor Bert was stuck with playing the part of the Christmas tree. The Christmas lights are removable, and like Ernie, Bert's head can turn.

Ernie

2009-11-29T11:27:00.000-08:00

This new Ernie has a lot more detail than the one that I made last year, including arms, a three dimensional nose, and a head that can turn.

Frazzle

2009-11-29T11:24:00.000-08:00

This is the second time that I have made Frazzle. If you search through the posts from last year you should be able to find the old one. Both times I have found it difficult to get him to look how I wanted.

Elmo

2009-11-29T11:23:00.003-08:00

Barkley

2009-11-29T11:14:00.000-08:00

I made Barkley the dog some time ago, but am just adding him to the blog today. The dog shaped body was time consuming to make, but fun.

Han Solo

2009-09-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

Boy, is been a long time since I last posted! Well, there's finally a new figure to show, so here he is: It's Han Solo from Star Wars!
The figure is partially based off of the design of the Lego characters, but with many of my own modifications. The head is not permanently attached so that it can turn and be used with other bodies. As you can see, I tried on the head from the Nathanael figure, and I think the result is quite nice! I'm really considering making a more sculpted head for Han Solo, so if I get around to it, I'll post some more pictures when it's done. Those sculpted heads sure take a lot more time though!
Most of this figure was made from the handle of a broken shovel.

Nathanael

2009-07-21T06:03:00.001-07:00

Here is the new wooden figure of my eldest son, Nathanael.

Harmony

2009-07-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

Next up in my family set is my wife Harmony. As you can see, I have been working on a new style that takes these figures even further away from the original Fisher-Price little people. I am giving these figures longer, tapered legs with 'feet' instead of the short straight peg of the older figures. Ladies, like the figure seen here will have skirts with ankles and feet below. I like how they are turning out. It makes for an interesting new look.
This is the first human female figure that I have made. I was holding off for a long time because I knew that the figure would be a lot more challenging and time consuming to make if it's done right. Sure enough, it was both challenging and time consuming! The head was the most difficult part of all due to the long hair. That took a lot of carving! The head is carved separately from the body from one piece of wood, with the exception of the nose.

Me!

2009-07-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a funny one: me!

Guy Smiley

2009-05-18T07:36:00.000-07:00

Here's a new figure for my Sesame Street collection: Guy Smiley! He was one of the more challenging figures to make, mainly because of the hair. His hair is made from many little bits of yarn that have been glued to his head with epoxy. At first his hair looked really wild, as the strands of yarn were a lot longer while I was attaching them. I should have taken a picture! Oh well, he looks a lot better after a haircut anyway. The main parts of this figure are made from some very cheap (actually free) wood. The body (excluding the arms) was carved from the handle of a broken shovel, and the head was made from an old table leg that someone was throwing out last month. How's that for recycling?

Telly Monster

2009-04-16T19:32:00.000-07:00

It's been a little while since there was an update, hasn't it? Well, here's something new: A brand new Telly figure that is! My first Sesame Street figure of 2009. Since it's late right now, I'm only going to put up a few pictures, but I will try to add some more soon.

New McDonaldland set

2009-03-26T07:07:00.000-07:00

Here is what I have been working on lately. As you can see, I have made duplicates of some characters. Some I will keep and the others will likely be sold. As you can see, there is a new merry-go-round in the works too. It is made out of a beautiful piece of oak that I could just not bring myself to paint over with a coat of green paint. I think I'll be going with wood stain with this one to preserve the nice look of the wood grain.
This set is far from finished. More characters are needed, as well as more play features beside just the merry-go-round. Hopefully when it's done I can find a good home for it (if I can bear to part with it myself)!

Hamburglar

2009-03-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

This is the first Hamburglar figure that I have ever made. He is based not on the familiar modern version, but on the version that I remember when I was growing up in the 1970's and 80's.

A Work in Progress

2009-03-19T15:04:00.000-07:00

Here's a shot of a work in progress. It's always a dusty job, but I enjoy it. Can you guess what I'm making there?
More completed toys will be posted soon, as I am currently working on a large batch.

Rowlf the Dog

2009-03-04T12:20:00.000-08:00

Rowlf is the third Muppet Show character that I've made (the other two being Kermit and Fozzie). Rowlf is a figure that I remember wanting when I was little. Unfortunately there was no such figure!

Fry Guy

2009-03-04T12:14:00.001-08:00

Fry Guy's are fun little McDonaldland characters aren't they! This little fellow is my very first Fry Guy, as well as being my first full bodied character. I decided that he needed to be full bodied since the skinny legs and big shoes are such an important part of the look of the character.

Mayor McCheese

2009-03-04T12:01:00.000-08:00

I have already made several copies of Mayor McCheese, but this time around I thought I would try something new with him. It was a lot more work and I suffered a few injuries in the process, but in the end, I'm pleased with how he looks. However, this may be the last time that I make Mayor McCheese in this style!

McDonaldland

2009-02-04T09:47:00.000-08:00

It was time to take another crack at making a merry-go-round, so this time I chose McDonaldland as the theme (the last merry-go-roun was a Sleepy Hollow/fall theme).

Most of this merry-go-round was made on the wood lathe, with the exception of the holes which were made by my new drill press. The base is made from a thin, but hard and smooth sheet of particle board, stained a dark walnut color with red felt on the bottom. It has a small peg sticking up in the middle that the platform balances on. The two levels are not fastened together and can be separated.

The platform level is made from a pine board that was turned round and smoothed out on the lathe. I wanted the platform to be green to resemble the lush green foliage of McDonaldland. Just like the green shrubery that the hamburgers grow on! First I painted the platform with an even coat of leaf green paint, applied a wash of dark green, and then a final wash of very watered down black.

For the middle post I wanted something a little more interesting than just a plain old column sticking up out of the middle, so I came up with what you see here! The little burger guy makes a nice knob for turning the merry-go-round.

After making the merry-go-round, it was time to make a brand new Ronald McDonald. This little guy was actually very time consuming to make! Ronald is wearing the outfit that he wore back in the '70's and '80's, and his pose is based on the pose of the statue that you see in the bottom picture. As you can also see in one of the pictures, Ronald's head is able to turn.

Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker

2009-02-02T09:43:00.000-08:00

It had been a while since I had made any Star Wars characters, so I decided it was time to add a few more to the collection. While still based on the look of the Lego figures, I have started to move away from that look a bit more. The costume designs of these characters, as well as the hair styles are more based on movie referance pictures rather than on the Lego characters. For these two figures, I decided to give them rounded shoulders rather than the sharper angled shoulders that were used on some of my previous Star Wars figurines.

This is actually the third Luke Skywalker that I have made. I wasn't really satisfied with the first two, but I like this one. I added touches of gold paint in his hair that look really nice when the sunlight hits them.

For Obi-Wan Kenobi, I was planning on adding a hood made out of felt, but I was not able to find the right shade of brown that would match with the paint. Oh well. He's good enough!

Frazzle

2009-01-25T17:54:00.000-08:00

I thought it was time to make another brand new Sesame Street character, so here he is: Frazzle! I don't know if he is even on Sesame Street anymore, but he was when I was a boy. Kind of a scary looking monster isn't he?

If you're wondering who Frazzle is standing with in the last picture, that's the very first Frazzle that I ever made, way back in 1987! Wow, 22 years ago!

Winter Man

2009-01-25T17:45:00.000-08:00

Who is this guy? I don't really know! I just thought it would be fun to do a character that is completly my own creation. Since we're in the middle of winter, why not have a little wooden guy endure it with us! This little fellow is sporting a handsome 1890's style mustache and is bundled up in his winter clothing.

Elmo

2009-01-25T17:40:00.000-08:00

Here is another Elmo that is going up for auction on Ebay. On this one, as well as the Elmo from the previous post, I put a lot more time into getting the figures head shape closer to that of the Sesame Street character.

We're on our way...

2009-01-20T11:38:00.000-08:00

These four will soon be on their way to Colorado, thanks to a very kind person who decided to purchace some of my figures! I really like how these turned out. I think they are probably the best versions of these characters that I have made to date.

David

2008-12-19T05:39:00.000-08:00

Here's a new figure for my Christmas Eve on Sesame Street line: David!

In the Fisher Price line of Sesame Street Little People, the only human cast members that were included were Susan, Gordon and Mr. Hooper. I thought it was about time that David got his due!

His head was difficult to make, and I am still a long way off from being able to make really good likenesses, but I think he's passable for now.

David's sweater and scarf are based off of the outfit that he wore during the skating scene at the beginning of Christmas Eve on Sesame Street.

Prairie Dawn

2008-12-12T10:34:00.001-08:00

"Welcome, Oh welcome, to our little play. We're so very glad that you've joined us today."

Remember that often used line from Prairie Dawn? Well, here she is, my first girl Muppet (with the exception of a Zoe figure that I sold).

Prairie Dawn was a real challenge to make, especially when it came to the hair! I won't go into all the boring details except to say that her head actually consists of seven separate pieces of wood!

As you can see, her head can turn, but it is limited because of her hair.

I included the picture of Prairie standing with Big Bird so you can see her size in comparisson with a larger figure.

The Count

2008-12-09T08:46:00.001-08:00

Here's another character for the Sesame Street line: The Count!

This figure of the Count is based off of his appearance in Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, hence the reason for the top hat.

Since the Count doesn't usually wear a hat, I thought that it would be a good idea to make the hat removable. You can't see it in the picture, but there is a peg at the bottom of the hat that fits into a hole in the top of the figure's head.

The Count was one of the more complex figures to date, mainly because of his nose and ears. They were made as separate parts from the head that were later glued in place. It was hard to keep from losing that nose as I was carving it to shape with the rotary tool!

In the bottom picture, you can see my whole Sesame Street collection to date. Ten so far, but there will be more to come!

Grover

2008-12-05T10:43:00.000-08:00

Here is my brand new Grover! I have to say, he's the best Grover that I've ever made.
I had to make his head a separate piece from the body to more closely resemble the picture of the actual Grover Muppet above. Since Grover's head is not centered on his neck in the picture but is actually quite a bit forward, I wanted to make sure that the figure had a similar look. Unlike some of my more recent figures, Grover's head does not turn. It is glued in place with some wood patch applied over top to smooth out the joint and make it blend in nicely with the body.

Mr. Hooper

2008-11-21T06:31:00.000-08:00

Mr. Hooper is my first human character from Sesame Street. I made this figure based off of the scene in Christmas Eve on Sesame Street where Ernie has come into Mr. Hooper's store to swap his rubber duckie for a cigar box that Bert can store his paper clip collection in.

Like the most recent Barack Obama figure that I made, I decided to give Mr. Hooper ears. He also has a head that turns.

The picture at the bottom shows the original Mr. Hooper figure made by Fisher-Price in the 1970's.

Kermit the Frog

2008-11-21T06:26:00.000-08:00

I decided it was time to try making Kermit again. I hadn't made him in a while, and now that I bought this new shade of green paint specifically for Kermit, I just had to make a new one!

Big Bird

2008-11-14T08:57:00.000-08:00

Here's a new addition to my Sesame Street collection: Big Bird!

Barack Obama version 2

2008-11-11T16:56:00.000-08:00

I made another Obama to sell, and this time I thought I would try to give him ears.

As of Nov. 11, this figure is now listed on Ebay!

Barack Obama

2008-11-08T05:50:00.000-08:00

Here's the update to yesterday's post. Yes, that's right, it's President-elect Barack Obama! Why? Well, why not! Even though he didn't get my vote, I still thought it might be a fun project to make a figure of him. Wow, a toy of a politician! Isn't that just what every kid wants?

Maybe I should send him to the Obama girls, they're the same age as two of my boys. Hmmm....

In the works...

2008-11-07T10:25:00.000-08:00

Here's a new figure that's just underway. As you can see, I'm experimanting with a new head style. Last night while I was trying to go to sleep, I was thinking, "Why don't I try making a more human shaped head? It's possible isn't it?" So today I decided to try it, and here's how it's turning out so far.

I'm also trying a new idea for the neck. For this figure, the neck is actually a separate piece that goes down about a quarter inch into the body, where it is glued in place, and about a half inch up into the head. A large hole is drilled up through the body with a smaller hole going through the neck. A screw goes up through the body and connects to the head so that the head won't fall off, but will still have the ability to turn. So far I am really liking the result!

I think I will add arms to this figure, but I thought that for a change I would post some pictures of a figure in an earlier stage.

Who is it going to be? Wait and see!

Nathanael

2008-11-07T10:17:00.000-08:00

My son Nathanael just had his 10th birthday yesterday, and I thought I should make him a special figure of himself! Too bad he was already asleep by the time I was finished! Oh well, late birthday presents are okay too aren't they? They must be, because Nathanael was very pleased to see this little guy this morning.

Anyway, here he is, all ready for school with his backpack on. This is also a figure that has the ability to turn it's head.

Mayor McCheese

2008-11-06T07:37:00.000-08:00

Ah yes, another Mayor Mc Cheese! If you look back through some of the earlier posts, you can see that he isn't the first that I've made. There's just something about this character that I like. Maybe it's because he's so colorful...or maybe it's because he looks tasty!

Mayor McCheese will be available on Ebay soon!

Elmo

2008-11-06T07:33:00.000-08:00

This isn't the first Elmo that I've ever made, but he's the first to have a fuzzy nose! I used a glue gun to hold the nose in place. For the eyes I used wood glue, and then once that dried, I put epoxy over top.

Elmo will be available on Ebay soon!

R2-D2

2008-11-06T07:26:00.000-08:00

This is the second R2-D2 that I have made. The first one was based off of his appearance in the Droids cartoon series. This one is based off of the movies. For such a simple looking character, the details were actually really hard to do. Time consuming too!

This figure will soon be available on Ebay for anyone who would like to have him!

Oliver Hardy

2008-11-06T07:15:00.000-08:00

Stan's best friend is now finished! Like Stan, Ollie's head is able to turn. I am not completly satisfied with how he turned out (human faces are hard to do!), but he's okay. Ollie is made from ten pieces of wood that are held together by wood glue. So far all of the figures that I have made with extended arms have held together very well, but I don't think I would want to drop them to put them to the test!

Halloween

2008-10-31T09:53:00.000-07:00

Stan Laurel

2008-10-24T06:42:00.000-07:00

This is my second attempt at making a Stan Laurel figure. I have included a comparisson picture above (the bottom one) so you can see the differances.

This time around, his outfit is based on what he wore in the show Towed in the Hole in 1932. And of course, I just had to paint him in black and white again!

Stanley is the first figure that has the ability to turn his head. I drilled a hole in the bottom large enough to insert a screw that goes up into the head.

As simple as his face looks, it was the most difficult part of all for me. I had to re-do it more than once!

Halloween Merry-Go-Round

2008-10-24T06:25:00.000-07:00

Here is the first play set/display that I have made. When you turn the tree, the wheel in the middle spins, and all of the spooks chase Ichabod around the tree!

I made this toy with The Legend of Sleepy Hollow in mind. The dead tree with a large hole in the middle is based off of my memories of some of the trees in Disney's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. The stone mile post that says "New York 30 MI" is based off of an old mile post that is actually still in place beside the Old Dutch Church in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y.

Displayable Figurines

2008-10-18T10:00:00.000-07:00

These toys are probably not suitable for little children to play with, but they make for nice displayabe figurines. Don't the fall characters look nice with fall decorations?

Philadelphia Flyers Snowman

2008-10-18T09:43:00.000-07:00

Time to take a break from the fall theme. Here's a character for the upcoming winter season.

I wanted to make something with a hockey jersey on it, but I didn't feel like making an actual hockey player at this point. While I was carving this guy out, I thought I was making another scarecrow, but this time with a Philadelphia Flyers jersey and a touque. When it came time to make the arms, I made the decision that he was going to be a snowman instead.

This fellow was very time consuming to paint. Making the logo was very difficult work, and I was worried that I was going to make a mistake that would be difficult to correct. Thankfully, it worked out well. I don't really like how the number turned out, but oh well.

The jersey that he is wearing is based on the very first home uniform that the Flyers wore back in 1967 (which is also the reason for the number 67 on the back).

The snowman was made from ten pieces of wood

Ichabod Crane

2008-10-18T09:25:00.000-07:00

This Ichabod Crane figure is based off of his appearance in Disney's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. Ichabod is the unfortunate schoolmaster who was chased through the forests of Sleepy Hollow by the Headless Horseman.

Making Ichabod took a lot of work! His head was a real challenge, but while he doesn't look identical to the Disney character, I think this is about as close as he's going to get.

The reason for the unusual positioning of Ichabod's arms, is that I am planning to someday attempt to make a horse for Ichabod to ride on. The raised arm would hold his riding stick, while the arm pointing forward would hold the reigns.

I chose to give Ichabod a happy expression over a frightened face, simply because I thought it would be easier. Plus, for most of the cartoon, Ichabod looks happy. So even though it would look odd for Ichabod to be smiling while being chased by the Headless Horseman, when he's off the horse, at least it looks like he's giving a friendly wave.

As I said, Ichabod is the most complex figure yet, and was made from 12 pieces of wood. I still need to figure out something for the bow in his hair!

Ghost

2008-10-18T09:17:00.000-07:00

Here's a glow-in-the-dark ghost for the Halloween collection!

Yet another figure with extended arms! I think it gives the figures a lot more character, plus the ghost just had to have them!

For the base of the ghost, I wanted it to look like he was hovering over the dead grass and weeds on an autumn night. A few colorful fall leaves are scattered among the grass as well.

Scarecrow

2008-10-18T09:04:00.000-07:00

Here's a brand new scarecrow for the Halloween collection. I did make another scarecrow earlier this year, that you can see in an earlier post. However, this one has a totally different appearance. The reason for the particular look that this scarecrow has, is that I wanted him to have more of a colonial times appearance (hat, shirt, jacket style) so that he would fit in better with the Sleepy Hollow themed characters.

On this fellow, the arms and the hat are separate pieces. The hat is actually made from two separate pieces. Instead of having just a straight pointed hat, I thought that it would look nice if it had a bend to it. So, I cut the point of the hat in half at an angle, rounded off the edges, and glued it back in place.

With this figure I did a lot more experimenting with blending colors. I don't know what anyone else thinks, but I like how it turned out! This is one of my favorite figures to date.

Headless Horseman

2008-10-18T08:42:00.000-07:00

This past August we went to New York state and passed through the village of Sleepy Hollow. This was the setting for Washington Irving's story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Check out the picture of the Old Dutch Church above It was built in 1697! I have read the story and have always loved the Disney cartoon based on The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, so I just had to see this place!

Anyway, with Halloween approaching, it seemed the right time to make some Halloween characters, and Sleepy Hollow's Headless Horseman was a th the top of the list. For this figure I knew that I would have to try something new by giving him an extended arm. He had to be able to hold that pumpkin!

What I did to make this figure was to first carve out the body on the wood lathe, and then then use the rotary tool for a little extra detail on the collar. Next came the pumpkin, which was made from a separate piece of wood. For the extended arm, I drilled a hole in the side of his body at an angle so that his arm would be lifted up. After figuring the length that the arm would need to be, I took a craft stick, cut it to length, then cut it in half at an angle to make the elbow joint. After gluing those in place, I used half of a wood bead for the hand, and then glued the pumpkin on top. The cape is made from a piece of felt, glued to the back of the Horseman's collar, and has an added piece of string around the cape and collar to serve as the tie for the cape.

One of the best features of this figure? The pumpkin face, as well as the Horseman's hands buttons and seam down his shirt all glow in the dark!

Sesame Street characters

2008-10-18T08:36:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of the Sesame Street lineup all together.

Cookie Monster

2008-10-18T08:29:00.000-07:00

I wasn't sure how well Cookie Monster would turn out, but overall, I'm satisfied with the result. His head took a LOT of carving to get close to the head shape of the Cookie Monster puppet! When painting, I tried to give more of a texture to his blue fur brushing a darker blue wash over the lighter blue.

Oscar the Grouch

2008-10-18T08:22:00.001-07:00

This is not the first Oscar that I have made, but he's the first one that I've kept for myself. This time around, I tried to make his garbage can look a lot more grungy and rusted by adding a few more colors to it, as well as a few dabs of metallic looking silver to give the trash can more of a realistic look.

The lid of the trash can is a separate piece with a staple glued in place for a handle.

Ernie

2008-10-18T08:13:00.000-07:00

Bert needs a buddy, so here he is! Don't they look happy to finally be together?

Ernie was a fun one to make and I am pleased with how he turned out. Like Bert, his hair was made out of black yarn and his ears were made from the cut off ends of craft sticks.

Kermit the Frog: Reporter

2008-10-18T08:06:00.000-07:00

Remember Kermit as a reporter on Sesame Street? Well, here's my attempt at making a wooden version of him.

It may not look like it, but Kermit's head took quite a bit of work to get the right shape! It still may not be quite right, but it's as close as I'm going to get this time around.

The hat is actually a separate piece carved out of a piece of birch from my back yard.

Bert

2008-07-31T06:51:00.000-07:00

The top two pictures are of my new Bert and the bottom one is of the original Bert made by Fisher-Price. Quite a difference isn't there? Bert was a lot of fun to make. I had been thinking about making him for a long time. Months ago, when I was first thinking about making him, I knew that I wanted to use yarn for his hair, but I didn't know how I could glue it on so it would look right. I also couldn't figure out how I could make his ears. After a long time thinking about it, I think I've figured out a way that worked! For his hair, I used the same method as I did for the Zoe figure in an earlier post (drilling a hole in the head, glueing the yarn into the hole with epoxy, triming to length). For the ears I cut off the rounded ends of some little craft sticks that I found at the dollar store. They are also glued on with epoxy. Now I need to make Bert's best buddy Ernie!

New Sesame Street figures

2008-07-29T17:08:00.001-07:00

Here's Zoe, Elmo and Grover from Sesame Street! As hard as it is to part with them, I have them up for sale on Ebay. This is the first time I have ever tried making Zoe, and I really like how she turned out. Her little pigtails are actually yarn. What I did was drill a hole in each side of her head, put a little epoxy glue in the holes, as well as on the ends of two strands of yarn, and twist them into the holes. Then I just trimmed the yarn to size, put a little more epoxy around the yarn and that's it!

An Update!

2008-07-29T17:05:00.001-07:00

How about that, a new update! These guys here are based on the old Droids cartoon series from the mid 1980's. Here we have R2-D2, Jann Tosh and C-3PO. Droids had some great characters (with colorful costumes!) and I plan on making more from that series.

Kermit and Fozzie for sale!

2008-06-05T17:59:00.000-07:00

These guys are now for sale on Ebay! The sale ends on June 9th.

Lego Star Wars in wood

2008-06-05T17:50:00.001-07:00

Here's an update showing all of the Lego Star Wars figures that I have made so far. The new ones in this picture are Darth Vader and an older version of Anakin Skywalker (which is based on the picture of the action figure). Darth Vader was a challenge to make. To make his mask, I had to make several cuts with the rotary tool, as well as grinding down some parts to make everything look as even as I could get it.

Anakin Skywalker

2008-06-05T17:38:00.000-07:00

Wow, It's been a long time since I updated this! This Anakin Skywalker Lego style figure was actually finished about a month ago, so it's high time I add him to the blog. He is based on Anakin's appearance in Attack of the Clones.

Han Solo

2008-05-02T09:02:00.000-07:00

Seeing my boys Star Wars Lego game gave me the idea to try making some figures based off of the characters in the game. A few days ago I made the Luke Skywalker figure that you can see in one of the pictures above. Realizing that I forgot to give him a neck, I decided to give it another try yesterday. The new figure I painted as Han Solo. I think that adding a neck and giving him a slimmer look makes him look a lot better than my original Luke figure. Both Luke and Han were made out of a table leg that our neighbors were throwing away. It is a very hard wood, and is by far the best wood that I have used yet. If you want to see what Han Solo looks like in the game, check out the Star Wars Lego website here: http://www.lucasarts.com/games/legostarwarsii/

Fozzie Bear

2008-04-25T07:18:00.001-07:00

A Muppet pal to go along with Kermit! Fozzie was made out of our Christmas tree, with the exception of the ears. I would like to make more Muppets, but I just can't figure out how I could make Gonzo's nose or Miss Piggy's snout and hair so that they would look right.

Pumpkin and Scarecrow

2008-04-25T07:10:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of seasonal guys made in the wrong season! The scarecrow, with the exception of the hat and arms, was also made out of out Christmas tree.

Snowman

2008-04-25T07:07:00.000-07:00

This snowman was actually made out of our 2007 Christmas tree!

Ronald McDonald 2

2008-04-25T07:05:00.001-07:00

Here's another Ronald McDonald. He was made from a branch that our neighbor cut off of one of his trees.

Oscar the Grouch (green)

2008-03-24T18:55:00.000-07:00

Here's a new Oscar figure, this time in green. His lid is a separate piece, glued on to his head. The handle on the top of the lid is actually a staple. There are a few chips on the top rim of his trash can, but on Oscar that isn't really a bad thing, as it adds to the look of his grimy, beat up old trash can.

Oscar the Grouch - Sesame Street Old School

2008-03-14T06:41:00.000-07:00

Here's my first figure from Sesame Street Old School: the original orange Oscar the Grouch.

Saint Patrick

2008-03-12T21:02:00.000-07:00

The reason for St. Patrick's Day: Saint Patrick! This was a fun figure to make, and was the first one to have more "realistic" hair (actually made out of yarn). He is styled after the picture posted above. This one took about 3 hours to paint.

Leprechaun

2008-03-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

Here's a nifty little guy for St. Patrick's Day!

McDonaldland: Grimace & Big Mac

2008-03-10T18:50:00.000-07:00

The McDonaldland collection is growing! Here's two more colorful characters, Grimace and Big Mac. There really isn't a whole lot to Grimace. Besides the arms, there couldn't be much more of a simple character to make. Painting him sure was easy! That wasn't the case with Big Mac. He took quite a long time to paint. I'm liking how these burger-head guys are turning out though!

McDonaldland

2008-03-07T06:17:00.000-08:00

Remember all those neat characters from McDonaldland? Besides Ronald, we havn't seen much of them in a long time. I don't know what got me started on these, but they are interesting looking, colorful characters and I think they are turning out nicer than I expected. They would go really well with the McDonald's playset that Fisher-Price made way back when. I don't have one of them to show, but if you would like to see what one looks like, just check on Ebay. There are usually some listed.

Anyway, these figures are, from left to right, Mayor McCheese, Ronald McDonald, Uncle O'Grimacey and a hamburger from the Hamburger Patch.

The first one that I made was Mayor McCheese. Like the Kermit figure from a previous post, I used a wooden bead cut in half for his cheeks. I also used a rounded toothpick for his nose. He took a long time to make, but I think he looks nice.

Next I made the little hamburger guy. Remember those little hamburgers that grew on the bushes in McDonaldland? Well, this is what he is. That's why I painted the bottom to look like green bushes.

Uncle O'Grimacey came third. I don't remember ever seeing him before, but he was a real McDonaldland character. I found out about him by looking up these McDonaldland characters online. McDonald's used him to advertise their shamrock shakes that they sell around St. Patrick's Day. Since it's that time of year now, I figured that now was the best time to make him! His arms are made from some wood craft sticks that I found at the dollar store. I cut them to size, rounded the ends, drilled holes in the figures body and glued the arms in place. The cane is made from part of a rounded toothpick with a wood bead for the top.

Last is Ronald McDonald. Those wood craft sticks came in handy here as well. I cut one down the middle to make a flat side that I could stick to the body, cut them to length, rounded off the hands and glued them in place. His hair is made from little fuzzy red balls that I found at the dollar store. I used the glue gun to stick them in place, and they seem to be really secure. Ronald also took a long time to make. It may not look it, but painting him actually took several hours.

Super Grover

2008-03-07T06:06:00.000-08:00

Another Grover! I think he turned out ok. The little part sticking up on the top of his helmet is actually a piece of a round toothpick. I drilled a hole in the top of his helmet and glued it in place with epoxy. The cape is made of felt and is also glued in place with epoxy, so it shouldn't be going anywhere.

Farmer Grover

2008-03-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Good ol' Grover in a farmer outfit. He actually was dressed up as a farmer in a few shows. His outfit is based off of a picture on the cover of a book.

Laurel & Hardy

2008-03-07T05:43:00.000-08:00

It's Stan & Ollie! No colorization here, I wanted them to be in black and white, just like in the films. The faces were hard to do, especially Ollie's. Looking at him now, his eyes annoy me. They're too far apart! I'll have to try again some day.

Kermit the Frog

2008-03-07T05:35:00.000-08:00

Kermit turned out a lot better than I thought he would. At one point, while I was carving his head with the rotary tool, i almost gave up. But in the end, he turned out to be one of my favorite figures yet! To make his eyes, I cut a wooden bead in half, smoothed down the flat part of it, and glued it on with epoxy.

Veggie Tales Bob & Larry

2008-03-07T05:29:00.000-08:00

Here's Bob and Larry from Veggie Tales! I wish their eyes had turned out better. This was before I bought some new white paint. The new stuff works a lot better! Oh well, I still like them.

GANDALF

2008-01-26T17:15:00.000-08:00

GANDALF THE GREY

This is the third figure of January 2008. Gandalf, who, as most people probably know, is the good wizard in J.R.R. Tolkien's books The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and in the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy. Believe it or not, it took a long time to make that hat!

ELMO

2008-01-26T17:05:00.000-08:00

ELMO

Elmo is the second figure that I made in January 2008. This is also the first figure that I sold. He is actually the second wooden Elmo that I have ever made. The first one was made on a lathe about ten years ago. He's still around, so I'll have to post a picture of him on here some time.

ANDREW

2008-01-26T16:54:00.000-08:00

ANDREW

Andrew is the first figure that I've made in nine years, and only the second completly hand carved figure that I've ever made. This Andrew figure is based on my six year old son. He's wearing jammies that he got for his birthday and holding his Blues Clues blanket.