beetlegrass

Freaky Fingers Side Show: Armstrong "Arms" Akimbo, the Strong Man

Armstrong "Arms" Akimbo is Freaky Fingers Side Show's resident Strong Man.
Where else COULD he have ended up, given his name???

Armstrong has hair in very select areas which just don't happen to include his head.
His mustache is fake fur to which I've applied Elmer's glue -- to give it its stiffness and to create the handlebar shape.
In addition to the stitched arm & armpit hair, you may notice the chest hair patterning.
This patterning may or may not have been inspired by the chest hair growth patterns of 1 or more of the males in my family.
And those chest hair patterns may or may not have the nickname, "Jingle Bell Man".
I can neither confirm nor deny.
But it just shows ta go ya: Just about anything can serve as inspiration.

Above, Left: Remember when I showed you this WIP? Now you're seeing the FP (Finished Product).
My Inner Engineer had fun coming up with this new spin on what a "finger puppet" can be.
Above, Right: Here's a detail of the barbell, which is made from felted wool balls and a wooden stick colored with a silver Sharpie. The funny thing is, considering how STRONG Arms is: I store him lying down, so as not to stress the arm that's holding the weight.

Thanks in part to his popularity at Freaky Fingers, Armstrong has been able to take advantage of many lucrative endorsement deals. (Strong AND rich ... and he's single, Ladies!)
He's proud of his Fiber-Os box, as it shows his massive back with its stitched-in shoulder blades.

Before settling down with the side show, Arms circumnavigated the globe for various weight-lifting competitions and sweat rag conventions.
(Photographed with a flea market globe and a card from a Mexican Bingo game.)

Couldn't resist taking a shot of Armstrong with his hero, Charles Atlas, in one of that muscle man's classic ads. They're both wearing animal prints... awww....

I made a YouTube music video with Arms and Charles; click on the link to see the silliness.
The challenge in making the video was that I had to do everything in one take. With my left hand occupied with operating Arms, this meant my right hand had to operate Charles and the other props AND turn on the stereo and the camera.
Needless to say, I had to practice a few times.
Making life easier: the recent purchase of a tripod.
Who'da figured.

For other puppets in this series:

• Midget & Dwarf 
• Pierced Man 
• Fat Lady 
• Bearded Lady 
• Pinhead 
• Siamese Twins 

The concept & design of this puppet and its stories are the property of Megan E. Jeffery.
These images are © Megan E. Jeffery.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Freaky Fingers Side Show: Fatima Toubafore, the Fat Lady

Every side show needs a Fat Lady, and Freaky Fingers is no exception to this rule.
Fatima Toubafore is not so much a finger puppet as she is a fingerS puppet.
Created her body form by wrapping/wet-felting wool roving around all four fingers instead of just my index finger. Her legs are also finger puppets.
Click on images to see them larger.

Above, left: Stitched on felted wool balls to create Fatima's cheeks, which are resting on her eyes just a bit to heighten the chubby cheeks effect.
Eyeshadow is light blue felt glued behind the googly eye.
"Eyeliner" is a stitch over the eye with at least 3 strands of black embroidery floss.
Extra chins are suggested with rows of stitching. (Pulling harder on your stitch makes the felt "plump up" nicely.) (Yes, pun intended. Who do you think you're talking to here?!?)
As always, shading done with real blush.

Above, center: Fatima's earrings and brooch are from a collection of doll's jewelry that I got at a tag sale.
Her bun is a black felted wool ball to which curly hair was attached. She needed Higher Hair; she has that kind of personality.

Above, right: Fatima's dress was made from hot raspberry sequined material that a friend gave me, suggesting I use it to outfit a transvestite puppet...
And speaking of Men in Drag -- right before I started making this finger puppet, I had seen the movie Hairspray, and was mesmerized by John Travolta's/Mrs.Turnblatt's gigantic caboose.
Wanted to emulate that, so BIG felted woolen balls were attached to the back side (appropriate placement), then carefully molded the sequined fabric to them using Fabric-Tac. Wanted to play up the disco ball-like effect, and I think I achieved that.

Fatima's friends call her "Fatty Fatty". She doesn't mind. So don't get all defensive on her behalf.
Remember this playground taunt:

"Fatty, Fatty, 2-by-4,
Can't get through the bathroom door!" ?

Now it should be painfully obvious how this puppet got her name.
I'm not one for subtlety.
Set up my childhood dollhouse (Creative Playthings) to take this photo.
Looks like Fatima wandered into an IKEA showroom.

Above, left: Once-white shoes are a Barbie doll's that I colored with a gold leaf pen. Stuffing Fatima's legs into these too-small shoes gave the ankles that blumpy water-retaining look I was after.
Lyrics: apologies to Rod Stewart.

Above, right: Fatima can kick, strut, and kick! With help of fingers, of course. You can also operate her by putting your four fingers into her body. Options! We like options!

To see her in action, go to the Fatima YouTube music video I made.
It's my very first effort, and in no way can it be considered "good", but I can guarantee at least ONE chuckle.

When I first linked my sister to the video, her comment was, "Fat Gal, you're makin' me dizzy!"
Heeheehee... Yeah, Fatima's plus-sized, but man can she shake her thang.
Especially when I'm operating her.

Ping & Pong are suspicious that Fatima is harboring another set of Siamese twins.

For other sideshow puppets:

• Bearded Lady
• Pinhead 
• Siamese twins

These puppets: their concept & design are the property of Megan E. Jeffery.
These images are © Megan E. Jeffery.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Lizard Grillz

Everybody's probably already seen this SoBe commercial, but I didn't watch the Super Bowl (gasp! and me living in massachusetts too!), so I didn't see it 'til today.

Musical/Visual Interlude

Some songs/videos I'm enjoying of late. Not surprisingly, all of them are about relationships. Cuz the best songs are about relationships.

• Alison Kraus & Robert Plant (yes, the Led Zep RP) in Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On). Nice to see some "seasoned" rockers getting the job done and having their video butt-up against those of pre-pubescents. This is one of those songs that if you hear it first thing, you're going to sing it all day and there's just no gettin' 'round it. Always had an affinity for break-up songs that are, well, peppy. The video is worthy, too, in that real deliberate "what was old is new again" way: drapey gold lame and tinsel curtains, a lounge, a bubble machine, disco balls and go-go dancers. The wind-socky things could have been tacky, but there are so many of them that the scene transcends tacky and bravely ventures into the land of FUN.
• Kate Nash's song/video Foundations. Clever lyrics ("My fingertips are holding on to the cracks in our foundation/ I know that I should let go/ But I can't.") delivered in a quirky voice, passing off the seriousness of the relationship "issues" by being kind of sly & snide. The video (colorful, kitschy, kawaii-cute) continues this tongue-in-cheek vibe, letting the visuals add a layer of surprising & enjoyable "jokes". Will let you discover what they are for yourself.
• The most positive take on romance out of the trio I'm sharing today is Ingrid Michaelson's The Way I Am, a lazy, sweet, warm love song. After hearing over-produced artists, it is so nice to hear this pure, clean, stripped-down voice. The lyrics show a practicality in the way that love is conveyed ("If you are chilly, here take my sweater"), and there is a realness about The Way Things Are that the moon-june-spoon-swoon songs just can't touch -- they never mentioned Rogaine, after all. Oh, and the video features a clown nose. How can you go wrong with that? :O)

Things Purchased in the Past Week

Had a niece visiting me last week, so we traipsed all over Providence: seeing the sites; experiencing the shops; feeling the rain. :-)
Here are some of the things I came away with...

This swivel chair ($13), part of the Designer Chair series from reac JAPAN, was purchased at The Curatorium, a great shop on Wickenden Street that I've mentioned before.
Wanted to show you Fabriczio (who loves all things designer-y) sitting in the chair to show scale.
I think I really really really need to get some more chairs. They are soooooo cute!!!

Little rubber elephant (50 cents) was another purchase at The Curatorium. 
Now he has found a buddy in a plastic elephant I have. Big Elephant helps Little Elephant see over the crowds at the parade.

Above, left: Stickers by Bob's Your Uncle; got 'em at The Curatorium.
Above, right: Red drafting tape (was in dire need), purchased at The RISD Store.
My alumni discount applies. Does yours?

Two hackey sacks ($1.50/pc.), cut up for my own nefarious purposes. (No, I didn't buy them this way.)
Purchased at OOP! on Westminster Street.

Movie ticket to JUNO; seen twice in two weeks.
It's really really rare that I'll see a movie twice in a theater, but this one is so worth it.
The writing; the acting; the animation sequence; the music: go see it. Really great.
Also saw: Atonement, and, while beautiful to look at, I'm not really getting all the hype.
Just felt kinda empty.

The above book, NOT purchased but rather was hand-bound by my niece and given to me. Nice!

Click on images to see them larger.
Images are © Megan E. Jeffery, 2008.
Finger puppet's concept, design, name, and image are the property of Megan E. Jeffery.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Booty Call

Santa saw fit to pay me another visit this year, even though some would say that I have been Nothing But Naughty.
Fortunately for me, my Santa is fairly lenient with me as regards behavior.
Without further ado, here's the bounty of treasures that was bestowed upon me:

Above: A sock giraffe! Asked my sister what I should name him, and, after a moment's consideration, the answer came back, "Nehi." Heeheehee... I said, "Nehi needs a necktie!", so of course, there needs to be a kids' book entitled, Nehi's Neckties, wouldn't you agree?

Awesome pail, more pix below...
Too-cute Ladybug racers, more pix below...

Wooden zwieback, so funny. Toast seems to be becoming a theme in my work right now. Guess I'll have to ride that wave for awhile.

A Box O Fun! Nehi's maracas are just ONE of the treats (out of 25!) that were inside. I will save the others (each individually wrapped) for dinner parties, etc.

Above: Ladybug races often bring out the worst in their participants.

Above: Zapp welcomes the Robot Pail into the fold. The inside of the pail is cool, too, with stars and a moon and the earth at the bottom.

Above: Robot puzzles (contains 3!) and miniature toys which I can't wait to use in future photos!

Above: Close-up of the miniatures.

Above: Stuff for the home and for the home office... Chopstick holders, Hello Kitty chipboard pieces (for scrap-booking or what-have-you), Lego coasters (perfect colors for my dining room), notebook paper reinforcements in funky colors/patterns, Santa Post-it notes, stickers, and Tiki pencil toppers!

Above: Fun crafty things: stickers & elastic & sequins & ribbon & postage stamps & a funny head pen.
(The Inanimate stickers are to put on items around your home to turn them into 'friends'. I'll follow up with photos on how I use these, don't worry.)

Above: A close-up of the Polish postage stamp featuring finger puppets! So cute. Love the blue hand on the left.

Above: Ways I can entertain myself... a movie, a homemade CD of Christmas music, and a reprint of a 1940s book, called How to Get Along with Boys. It may be too late for this book to have any good effect. Here's an excerpt:

"Dates" rarely happen. You must first meet a man and manage to impress him sufficiently to be asked. Then, if you like, you may affect surprise.

Do not neglect your girl friends; some of them have brothers; or their boyfriends have friends. In the normal social activities of a group, you may meet someone you like.

If you live in a small town where the eligible males are numbered and it is impossible to meet other men, you might prevail upon your family to move to a larger city. It is not advisable to consider moving to improve your marital opportunities unless you have family there or at least obtain your parents' consent and approval.

Also: A lip balm and some ham & egg bandages will see to my health care needs for the next year.

Above: More books to read! Hooray! All comedic memoirs, too, even better...

Above: Chocolates & Gum!
(Notice how I've cropped the cookie box and the blue bag of Kisses... Yeah, they've been opened and are being eaten...)

Above: Close-up of the gum with quite possibly the best. name. ever.
I'm almost afraid to chew it, I mean: look at those sad eyes! How do I dare?!?

Above: 3 tags that were on the gifts -- Santa is a right artsy old elf...

Singing in my Elvis voice: Merry Christmas, Santa, sure did treat me nice...

Click on images to see them larger.

These images are © Megan E. Jeffery, 2007.
The concept/design/image of the robot finger puppet is the property of Megan E. Jeffery.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Clumsy

I'm sure that everyone-n-their-mother has already seen this Fergie video for her song, "Clumsy", but if not, go admire the pop-up techniques employed. Oh, yeah, and the song is poppy & catchy. Some nice Big Band riffs in there.

Dance, Clowns, Dance

Ever since I saw this Wade Robson dance routine last week on Dancing! With! the Stars!, I've been waiting for someone to post it on YouTube. Someone finally has, yay!

A thrilling routine choreographed by Mr. Robson, that he also dances in as the Circus Ringmaster.

I am a fan of his work, particularly of the angles and shapes that he creates with his performers. The movements are intriguing: often staccato, often graphic, often 'broken', but in all that: there is a playfulness in his routines that is utterly winsome.

In this piece, reallllly like how he considered the space before the curtain goes up, and how the ending comes full circle, and in the parlance of the circus world of 'the curtain coming down'.  He builds excitement from 'act' to 'act', replicating a real circus experience, until the spectacle of the '3-Ring' stage appears. This is clever design.

The costumes, make-up, and sets that he uses in this piece, and in other pieces of his that I've seen: really well considered (color ways!). There is absolutely nothing there that does not NEED to be there.
These 'accessories' serve to augment the dance; they don't take over, they heighten the experience. You get the feeling he spends a lot of time getting everything right so that the final piece is edited and flawless.

With the costumes in particular, I love how he explores them, a la: What will they do?, and let's make THAT DISCOVERY a part of the dance routine.
Take for example the jesters' hats in the box scene, and how it has been discovered that by the twirl of a head, a propeller-type feeling is created.
How many other choreographers would let the infrastructure of a hoop skirt just hang there?
He doesn't do that, and the results are more than 'just' entertaining; they're artful.

It's apt that he plays the Ringmaster in this piece; he is a Showman of the first order.

Dance, Little Monkeys, Dance

I love this Arby's commercial featuring Irish step-dancing chimpanzees. (I think they're doing the hornpipe.)
I used to 'Irish', so can totally agree with the chimps: this music always makes me want to dance, too.
Pavlovian response.
I was never this hairy, though.
I think.

After a recent (public) dancing 'experience', I was telling my sister that Irish step-dancing has ruined my 'other' dancing life.

She asked why, and I told her, "I can't move my arms!"
She said, "Let me guess... they have to stay down by your sides?"
Me: Yes...
Sister: And your hands have to stay slightly curled, as though cupping small rocks?
Me: Yes!!!

Something tells me that dancing to Timbaland requires a different body posture.

The Maccabees: First Love

Like the song. Like the video. Engaging visuals.
Pay particular attention to the hands' activities, and to the "imperfect" pairings.