Music – Page 2 – Geek Crafts

TMBG Finger Puppets

A little something special from me this week. I’m going to see They Might Be Giants in concert in a few weeks time and I’m pretty excited. Since They came out last, eleven years ago, I’ve had three kids, who are big fans just like their mother. Meaning the three kids dvds (Here Come the ABCs, Here Come the 123s, and Here Comes Science) get a lot of air time in our household.

In the first two dvds, John and John appear to introduce the song segments in the guise of puppets. Large puppets. But it seemed to me, these would make great tiny puppets too. Tiny finger puppets. So I made some. And because I’m so generous, I wrote down the pattern, to share here, exclusively, so you can have your own tiny Johns too! Keep reading after the jump for the pattern!

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Hey Hey They’re the Monkees…

…. and every week from 1966 to 1968, we’d tune in to see what antics they’d be up to. The four young musicians trying to make a go of it and the trials they met along the way. While they were the first of the manufactured bands, earning them the nickname of the “Pre-Fab Four” at one time. But they proved they were good musicians and ended up with quite a list of successful albums and concerts, at one time having a young man named Jimi Hendrix as an opening act for Hendrix’s first live tour.

Mike Nesmith, Mickey Dolenz, Peter Tork, and Davy Jones were not only great musicians but quite funny as well with comedy in their episodes that harkened back to the days of the Keystone Cops. When I was a preteen and young teen, they were one of the top bands going and, yes, I admit to having a fan crush on Davy as most girls my age did.

Oddly enough, one day my eldest daughter came into the house at that same age I had been raving about “a new band that was even on television in their own show”. Imagine my reaction when I heard it was a band called the Monkees. Yes, the four had become a hit again and my daughter inherited those vinyls from their original days which could be heard playing from her room for the next few months.

We lost Davy the other day, suddenly and surprisingly but the memories he and the other three gave many, especially me, will last forever.

In tribute to them, I found this free pattern for a Davy Jones crocheted block by Lee Mac of Totallee.net. Lee also has patterns for Mickey, Mike, and Peter, among others available at her site.

To the Monkees, thanks for the music and memories

To Lee, thanks for great patterns to remember them with.

A S’Minchin of Miraculous Matilda

Matilda is one of the quintessential geek kid’s books; the story of a nerd girl who uses her brain to bring a pinch of justice to the world is bound to resonate with swots of all ages. A couple of years ago I managed to get myself to Stratford ‘pon Avon to see the RSC’s christmas musical version of the book and was completely blown away by it – one of those performances that remind me why I work in theatre. Anyway, since then the production has transferred to the West End, won a load of awards and caused a considerable dent in my finances from ticket purchasing.

Laura, or LollyPolly as she is known over at the Minchin fan forums (the music for Matilda was written by our very own rock nerd Tim, who of course did a fantastic job with Dahl’s dark comedy), made this brilliant cushion commemorating the show’s opening song – which echoes the prologue to the book in that we get to hear about how miraculous all the children except Matilda are. It’s a fantastic example of how effective even simple embroidery can be if the colours, fabric and design are well chosen. With any luck Laura will now have caught the needlework bug and will go on dazzling us with her work in future.

Matilda the musical official site

Angry (Feet) – Tim Minchin’s fan forum

Round Up: 5 Fun Yo Gabba Gabba Crafts

Is Yo Gabba Gabba geeky? I’m not sure, but it is on a lot in our house, and I am geeky, so I say yes. Plus there is a magic robot on the show, and who can complain about a show that takes a couple minutes here and there to teach kids how to beat box? Not me. So I scoured the web for five of the most fun Yo Gabba Gabba crafts (one for each character, excluding DJ Lance Rock).

1. Felt Muno

Muno (he’s tall and friendly!) is perhaps the most recognized Yo Gabba Gabba character, which is why Catango, on Craftster, remembered him when left with two hours before a birthday party, and no gift! Yes, that’s right, in two hours, she went through her fabric, googled Muno, and stitched this awesome Felt Muno doll together for a friend’s child (who, of course, picked it up and danced around with joy)!

Big kudos to Catango for whipping this guy together under pressure! Procrastinators bow to you!

2. Foofa Tee Shirt

Foofa (she’s pink and happy!) is an odd little monster with a head shaped like a tear drop, and a big flower on her head, a big hit for little girl Gabba fans.

You can find this adorable Foofa Tee Shirt in the CarouselCraftsWI Etsy shop, along with all the other Yo Gabba Gabba monsters. The face is felt applique, with a machine zig zagged border–and the finished product is awesome (the model is pretty cute, too).

3. Brobee Fleece Soaker

Brobee (the little green one!) is a fuzzy, long armed monster that is best known for having a party in his tummy.

BugOnARug makes these awesome fleece soakers featuring Brobee and all your other favorite monsters and you can get them from the BugOnARug etsy shop! For those not “in the know” a fleece soaker is a type of cover for cloth diapers, and fleece shorties are a popular choice for parents using “fitted” cloth diapers.

4. Toodee Amigurumi

Toodee (she likes to have fun!) is what seems to be a cross between a cat and a dinosaur. She seems to get into lots of trouble, but manages to get along well in Gabbaland and, of course, have lots of fun!

AlieCat30, a poster on Craftster, crocheted this super cute Toodee Amigurumi as the fourth in her series of Yo Gabba Gabba amigurumis. I personally love the attention to detail on Toodee‘s eyes and whiskers.

5. Plex Cookies

Plex (a magic robot!) is the robot responsible for getting special guest stars, DJ Lance Rock, and even snacks in and out of Gabbaland.

Edeliu826 bakes and decorates these Plex Cookies that you can purchase by the 2 dozen on Etsy. You don’t have to read Geek Crafts very often to know if there are two things we love, they are robots and things we can eat. Plex Cookies fit both of these requirements!

Phantom of the Opera Plushie

As soon as I saw this Phantom of the Opera plushie, I fell in love. Created my Lita Mitchell of Custom UFO Catchers, this plushie even has a removable mask. Mitchell’s site has dozens upon dozens of custom dolls from every fandom one can imagine; she also accepts custom commission.

I dream of the day I have the spare money to buy one of my very own. Yes, I’m 23 years old and my fondest wish is to cuddle with this little plushie Phantom.

Synthetic Division Out Of Time

Remember a long, long time ago, when we interviewed author Shawn Decker about his book My Pet Virus? Well, the thing about Shawn is he is a geek chic trifecta. In addition to writing an amazing memoir he is also a member of Synthetic Division (how’s that for a geeky band name?), and their latest video, Out of Time, was too good not to share. Yes, those are Lego Men, in a teeny Playmobil hospital. Yes, that is synth pop. Yes their band is named after math. Yes, it is pure, golden fried awesome!