A Really Cool Video!

So this isn't for everybody.  My husband is SUPER into car, so if you enjoy a good Nascar or Indie Race or have a son or husband that likes loud cool car chases in movies, show them this!

Ken Block is a Rally Car Driver that started a little clothing business called DC.  He also makes the craziest stunt driving videos, they are super cool!

For All You GleeKs Out There...

I had to share this video to all my fellow GleeKs....
(and if you don't know what a GleeK is, don't even bother)

I think this is probably THE cutest little boy EVER!

So Sorry....

So I know I haven't posted much recently, that's because we've had some tragic family concerns. We lost a VERY loved & (will be) VERY missed member of our family. If you happen to be a friend or family member I just want to Thank You for all the love & support that you have given Lance & I. It only gets easier with time....

So because of the family stuff going on I have been lacking in inspiration with my art work & with my blog. Time heals, and this past weekend I was a vendor at the L.A. Renegade Show. I did WAY WAY WAY better than I was expecting, so if you are a new friend that I met yesterday or an old friend that maybe has been missing me...

I AM BACK!!!

Super motivated & excited about making some awesome piece after this past weekend. So, starting tomorrow I promise to start working & posting stuff more!! Will have a few picts from my booth tomorrow!!!

Thanks!!

Chrissy P.

OMG!! I'm so there!!

So Lance happened to show me a News clip of a dinosaur walking around a Japanese Mall, and from that I have found WALKING WITH DINOSAURS: LIVE!!!

OMG!!!!! I am so there!! It's a beautiful live show with life sized dinosaur puppets!!! From what I've seen, they are so beautifully sculpted & AWESOME!!!

I don't think I can emphasize how freak'n EXCITED I am about going to this!!! The show is going to be in Los Angeles in September & I am SOOOO going (even might have to pay for the most expensive seats because I want to be up close!) I LOVE dinosaurs & this is so awesome.

Here are a couple of videos of the dinos. I am just soooo impressed with how beautifully sculpted the costumes are & how awesome the puppetry is.....

What a Week!!

So last week was pretty awesome (hence the reason there was no posting). Last Wednesday was my 30th Birthday!! Lance & I went on a vacation... VEGAS BABY!! I love Las Vegas!! We did spend quite alot on the Penny Slots, but I also just love walking around the strip. We spent a good 9-10 hours each day just walking. I love stopping in the casinos & walking around the malls. We didn't buy anything, but it was fun just looking & watching people. Here are some picts from out super fun trip!!







A beautiful picture that Lance took of the fountains at the Bellagio. This is probably one of favorite things in Vegas! It makes me so happy!!












The typical "Party" shot that needs to be taken in Vegas. I have to admit that I didn't get drunk AT ALL!!! We were to full of food & RockStar Energy Drinks to drink much. But felt the need to have the shot!












Lance's first trip to Hoover Dam. It's really beautiful there, but also DAM hot!! It's a nice day-trip if you have the time. About 45 minutes from Vegas.












They are building a giant bridge across the valley of the dam. It's so huge! This picture looks like I'm standing in front of some sort of fake, printed backdrop!














And a decent picture of me! We were at our traditional breakfast at Terrible's Casino. It's the kind of place that has like $5 steak & eggs breakfast. Needed coffee cause it's amazing how you can be hanging out in Vegas & the next thing you know, it's like 3 am. So crazy!!

I love Vegas & miss you already!!!







And I have some drawings to share tomorrow!! I have been working, just needed a break. Have to finally finish the Sparrow today & then working on a fun little project!!

Being Inspired... Part II...

So I spent the morning & early afternoon trying to get inspired by drawing in my sketch book! I finished a couple of drawings & have a few new ideas for pieces I might start. I'm starting to look at my sketch book as creating more of a conceptual journal, rather than the way I used to use it by just drawing & ironing out the details of my next sculpture. It's kind of like photography, not every picture you take is a masterpiece, but 1 out of 100 is AMAZING!!

Concept drawings of Sugar Skulls!!!

I've always loved the traditional "Day of the Dead" images. I especially love the ornately decorated Sugar Skulls. You can do so much with them. These would make great wall hanging pieces... or something even better....




Concept for Swallow Tattoo!

Would love to make more wall hanging pieces like the Koi. I also like the graphic styles of traditional tattoo designs. I think it would be fun to make a 2-d , 3-d version of the traditional Swallow / Sparrow!

A Bit Under the Weather...

Sorry I haven't posted much this week, but I think I've gotten some sort of cold-ish type sickness. It's lame cause I don't feel bad enough to call in sick to work, but just bad enough to go to bed the minute I get home. Hopefully I will be feeling better today!! Promise I will have fun & interesting posts in the next week, once I'm feeling better!!

Unique Los Angeles!

If you are in Los Angeles area, be sure to check out the Unique Los Angeles show this weekend!! I was going to be a vendor here, but with everything going on, I decided to ship it this year. We are going today as visitors & to spend money on awesome Handmade Goodies!! The show runs this weekend April 24th & 25th from 11am- 7pm in Down Town. Be sure to go and support your local crafters and see some excellent work!!

And tomorrow, we are going to take an awesome Sunday PCH drive! I love driving up to Mailbu at maybe stopping at Neptune's Net for lunch!!!

Have a great weekend!!

My New Favorite Animal!!!

So I was looking through Yahoo News to get my daily dose of useful & useless info, & came across this article about my new favorite animals!!!

The woolly mystery known as the Sheep-Pig!!!

At first I thought this was a joke (it reminded me of that South Park episode with Al Gore & the "Man-Bear-Pig"). But to my surprise & delight, it's a real animal!!!!

It's a combination of 2 of my favorite animals Sheep (cause of their wool) & Pig (because of bacon)!!!!!

OMG... So awesome.. need to felt it!!!

Waiting for the Rain....

Figuratively & Literally!!

It's supposed to rain here in SoCal for the next couple days, but hopefully it will clear up by the time my parents get here on Friday!! I'm so excited... but... also have to clean the house :( PLUS I might be starting back on the movie job that I was working on last month again next week. Tranformers 3 here I come... maybe... again...

It's funny cause I have FINALLY caught up with my everyday life, and FINALLY started to read my back log of blogs that I've been neglecting, and FINALLY have time to work on some new sculptures...

then...

"Here Comes the Rain Again...."


But I will share a few picts of the newest felted piece that I started a couple days ago. I'm really excited about this one because I'm making it to display at my job - Blick Art Supplies. Once it's done it will be on permanent display so if you live in the L.A. area, you can come & see it!!! (and buy some most-awesome art supplies while you're at it!!)




This is a picture of the Koi Wall piece that I took with my hand so that you could see the scale of the piece. It's definitely the LARGEST sculpture that I've ever started. He will eventually be totally airbrushed & have a wood base so that he can hang on the wall.







This is just a reminder of how BRILLIANT I am!!! I got the bright idea to use Wool Yarn for my black line work for this piece. It just takes forever to felt long lines of... well... yarn, by hand, so I thought I'd try using the real stuff!! It's going really well & fast & even the package states -

"Alpine Wool... This soft, natural 100% wool roving yarn is ideal for garments, accessories, and felting projects"

We have a winner!!!









And just a picture of how the fish is starting out! I'm pretty excited to see what I do with it!! i'm pretty sure it will be awesome by the time I finish!! HAHA!!

Great Weekend!!

Had an awesome (busy) weekend!! Lots of fun family time! Spent Saturday with Lance's family, great time, great food!! And my brother was in town for business Sunday. We met down at the Lakers Game. Great seats, great food!! We even got into the secret "Celebrity Bar" where all the stars go during half-time. Saw a couple celebs: George Lopez & Adrian Brody. Then we met Kobe Bryant after the game (and by-the-way... Kobe is a "hugger")

Here are a few picts from the game yesterday!





Picture of the Famous Lakers' Girls!!
















Picture of some of the game action from our seats!!















Pictures of me & my Bro on the court!!


































And just to remind you...

Here are some pictures of the Black Mamba Felted Sculpture that I made for Kobe Bryant!!

HAPPY 3-Day WEEKEND!!!

And Happy Easter!

And Happy Passover!

And Happy April Fools Day!

And Happy... um... Spring!!






Hope everyone gets to spend some quality time with your loved ones this weekend! Take the time to reflect & appreciate the things you have in you life, not the things you want!









And just to let you know, I'm off this next week so I have plenty of times to post some awesome Bloggy-Goodness!! (and just for a preview... I will be
sharing some super-awesome Hollywood Trick-of-the-Trade tips!!!)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Today everyone claims to be a little Irish!! (I am... a tiny bit... on my mom's-mom's-dad's-mom's side!)

Don't forget to wear green, or you will get pinched!
Don't drink too much, you gotta work tomorrow!
Spread the Love o' the Irish!!

Green inspired stuff from my shop!!

Need Your Advice...

So this goes out to all my fellow Crafters, or just really busy friends & family.....


How do you find a balance between your Day-Job, your house & family, and your Crafty Business???



Man, I know I've only been working at my new job for the week, but I'm going through Crafting Withdrawal. I still get up at like 7 am, and try to do my crafty computer stuff (FB, Twitter, Etsy, Blogging, etc), then get like an hour of creative work done. Then I head off to work. Get home and am too tired to get anything done at night. I haven't been able to put my time in on Etsy & marketing, which makes me scared because it was hard enough to get the little exposure online when I had all day, everyday to work on promoting.

I also have so many ideas that I want to finish up & start on.... I know that I'll get used to working & won't be so tired after a couple weeks (that's a major bummer of being unemployed for like almost 2 years). And I know that I'll get into a groove where I can schedule my time better & get things rolling again... but in the meantime...


Do you have any TIPS or advice on how you found a non-stressful balance between your Crafting Life & the Real World!?!?!?


A Very Big Thank You!!
Have a Great Weekend!!!

Hawaiian Dreams....

So I don't know what it is... It could be the fact that my mom is going on a Caribbean Cruise next week, or the the T-Shirt Lady is blogging from Jamaica, or that the EtsyBloggers Blog Carnival is themed this, or that I just started my Day-Job a couple days ago... but I'm dreaming of a VACATION!! I don't have the excuse of being snowed in all winter like many of you, but I don't remember the last time I went on an official Vacation (not just visiting friends or family).



If I could go on vacation anywhere, I think I would go to Hawaii!! My boyfriend is Hawaiian & his whole family is amazed that I've never been there. I love going to the Hawaiian Festival every year here in L.A. I love watching the Hula Dancers, and love vintage Hawaiian themed stuff like advertisements, figurines, kitchen stuff, etc.






I also love Plumerias!! They have quickly become my favorite flowers!! I have 4 small plumeria plants that don't have flowers yet but I haven't killed them, so not too bad!! There are so many varieties, some smell so sweet, and the colors are so vibrant & different!! I think if I were to get more tattoos, I would get some plumeria flowers to surround the rose on my shoulder.







This is a painting by Mark Ryden. I like this image, and it shows that so many people are inspired by the Hawaiian culture. I can confirm from personal experience, that the laid-back, slow-going, no-pressure, no-stress stereo type of the Hawaiian is actually pretty accurate (as far as my boyfriend goes!!) He's so level headed, on the quiet side, but totally balances me out. I'm pretty high-stress & anxious, but he is always there to remind me that there are more important things than work, money, worries. This weekend was our unofficial 2 year anniversary, we didn't do anything special & I'm pretty sure he didn't remember, but that's okay. We don't need to do anything extra special to celebrate, we have fun every other day.

So we'll see... being poor kinda puts vacation planning on hold for a while... But I'm not getting any younger (turning 30 in a few months)... We should make the effort.

A Week of Ups & Downs....

It's been a crazy weeks of Ups & Downs here at the FeltedChicken Headquarters. Haven't got much crafty work done, which is bad cause I have the Pink Parlour Festival coming up in about a month. Need to crack my own whip & get down to some serious felting. It's not going to be as stressful as the Unique L.A. show because I only have a 8' table space (instead of a whole 10' booth), but that doesn't give me the excuse to slack off!! So here is a short list of the Ups & Downs this week.....



Got Super SICK last weekend. Sick enough that I had to go to the doctor & get some meds. This was bad cause I'm pretty poor & I knew that every time I go to the doctor, it costs me like $500. I have crappy Health Insurance, so I was hesitant to go....







Got a call back for a possible job! Of course it was on the day that I was couch-ridden & felt like POO! Called back & had a phone interview... Pretty much got the job....






Woke up feeling better yesterday.... BUT... then saw that some Punk-A$$ stole my credit card number & decided to drain my bank account. Luckily I didn't have that much money in it, but some little PUNK-A$$ is going to get like $400 worth of Rock 'N Roll Tee-Shirts... no joke, those were the websites they bought from...





Got a call, then went & filled out my final paperwork for the possible job... AND... Start TOMORROW!!! YEA!!! It's been years since I worked retail, but I thought working at an Art Supply Store would be pretty fun. Lots of artists working there, probably a rock'n discount on supplies, and a chance to brush up on my some customer service skills.



So overall, the week looks like it's gonna end on an Up... but I'm not going to get too excited, the trend shows that I'm due for another downer today.... But pretty happy & trying to stay positive & totally going to get some crafty work done today!!!! Hope everybody has a great weekend....AND...




Wanted to wish my Mom a

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TODAY!!!





And want to wish everybody a

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY
on SUNDAY!!!

Being Sick is LAME!!

Been sick for the past couple days, and it's LAME!! You'd think that being forced to sleep on the couch & reading all day would be like a vacation, but it's not when you have crafty stuff you want to do!! But feeling better today & going to try and get some stuff done!!

Even though most of you have seen this, I thought I'd share my favorite commercial from the Super Bowl. When I saw this is made me so happy!! My favorite part is when the Sock Monkey is getting the MOM "tattoo"!! Oh, and when the Robot does the "robot" on the dance floor.

Hope it brings a smile to your face today!!

Filming Commercials is Hard Work!!

I'm still tired after my long day of work on Thursday!! Got to work with my brother on filming a commercial for his company, and learned alot about setting up lights, cameras, and green-screens. It was a ton of fun, got to hang out with my brother for a couple hours, and got to meet Kobe Bryant! He was the star of the commercial! He's super nice & he is who I made the Felted Snake for!! his nickname is the Black Mamba & he was really excited & loved the snake!!

Here are a couple pictures of the action from Thursday....




















Here are also a few nice pictures of the Black Mamba....






DON'T FORGET.....

Tomorrow is your last day to Enter the FELTED CUPCAKE GIVEAWAY!!! I'm going to check out the links right now!! So many awesome people have taken the time to comment & so many nice comments!!!

TOMORROW NIGHT AT MIDNIGHT....
THEN ANNOUNCEMENT ON MONDAY!!!!!

Cooking on a Budget...

So yesterday was the first (of many I'm sure) Job Hunting Days. Yep, being poor sucks, and with movie production in Los Angeles down like 20% in the last year, my prospects of landing a great paying Union Gig are next to nothing. I'm okay with that I guess, it's been 10 years of hard work and ups & downs, but I think it's time for a new stage in my life... We'll call it the "FeltedChicken Era". But since my little felting business can't support me right now, I've been learning to shop on a budget & need to find a day-job to help pay the bills.

So I'm willing to share some of my secret tips to cooking on a budget (which you probably already know, but I'm slowly learning).....

• Even though it's pretty gross, roasting a chicken at home is pretty cheap & delicious!! We used to buy the store roasted chickens, but for the same price I can get twice as much chicken! I was surprised to have to pull the guts out of the chicken, but it's well worth saving the few dollars.

• Stock up on FROZEN VEGGIES!!! This is my favorite cause I can beef up any meal by just adding a couple cups of mixed frozen veggies to anything. I add them to tacos, chili, pasta, roasted meat, etc. And they might not have quite as many nutrients as the fresh ones (slightly) you can get pounds of them for a couple bucks!

• Make Tofu your friend. Tofu is a great protein substitute that is comparatively cheap. I use Tofu in my taco & lasagna. It's a great filler coupled with some frozen veggies, that costs only a couple bucks.

• Shop the "Bulk / Discount " stores. We don't have a membership to Costco or anything, but we have a local bulk grocery store called "Smart & Final", some places have "Sack 'n Save", "Food for Less", etc. They don't have the widest selection, but you can get meat cheap, buy gallons of Soy Sauce (which runs like water in my house), and one of the best things I've gotten there, a giant box of Mashed Potato Packs. I got like 12 for $8 & they are super fast & easy to make in the microwave. OH, also got like 2 pounds of whole-wheat pasta for like $5.

So those are a few of my cheap eat'n tricks. If you live, or have ever visited California you know that the "cost of living" is slightly above average here. Gotta watch those grocery ads & learn how to cook. I personally HATE to cook, but am slowly learning cause it's the best way to eat healthy & watch your wallet. If my boyfriend had it his way, we would order Take Out (preferably steak) every day. At $50 a meal, that's really why I'm kinda in control of the house-hold finances!!!

*Went to Home Depot yesterday & am going to start building the mechanical parts for the Koi & Frog today!!! I'm no carpenter, but I can use a circular saw & screw gun, so it shouldn't be that difficult!!!

** Totally just jinxed myself....

*** OOHHH!!! And I don't care to hear what your Political views are, or tell you mine, but remember to watch the "State of the Union" speech tonight. It's everyone's responsibility to be informed on what's going on in our nation. The more we all know, the stronger we will be. I never miss it, been watching it for like 10 years, it's kinda like my SuperBowl!!

.

Holiday Diet & Blog Awards!!

So if you were to stop by my shop in the next couple weeks, you'll notice alot of yur favorite items missing. Don't worry, they will be back after the Holidays!! Angler, Jelly, Godzilla, they will all reappear after New Years.

I'm heading back to Dallas tomorrow & have cut back my shop items to those Holiday Inspired ones. So if you need any last minute gifts, just check in. I'll be back to full speed after January 1st. I will be blogging while on vacation (although probably sporadically).


***********************************************




I'd like to Give a Big Old THANK YOU to Needle Felted Art by Robin for awarding me these awesome Blog Awards!! She is an amazing Felting Artist who makes some of the most beautifully detailed, and Super Cute needle-felted animals that I have ever seen!! She also donates a percentage of most of her sales from Ebay to some Amazing Animal Charities (something that I really need to do too, cause there are so many lonely, homeless animals & with the economy the way it is, many Rescue & SPCA organizations are really hurting).

Here are the rules for the award acceptance:

(1) Thank the person giving the awards
(2) Copy awards to your blog
(3) Place a link to their blog
(4) Name 7 things people don't know about you
(5) Nominate 7 bloggers
(6) Place a link to those bloggers
(7) Leave a comment on their blogs letting them know of their awards

Now for the 7 things you probably didn't know about me.

1. Hmmmm.... My favorite T.V. show of all time is the Nickelodeon Cartoon "Invader Zim". It's an awesome cartoon about an Alien that is trying to take over Earth with his totally inept sidekick GIRR the robot.
2. I grew up in Dallas, Texas. Then moved to Baltimore, Maryland for College. Lived there for like 7 years, then moved to Los Angeles to work in the Movie Business. I've been here for almost 5 years.
3. My favorite foods are butter, spam sushi, biscuits, and green tea mochi.
4. My family always eats BBQ on Christmas Eve. We order-out awesome BBQ Ribs, Turkey, Sausage, etc. It's basically a "MEAL OF MEAT!!" YUMMY!!!
5. I only play 3rd person, action-adventure RPG video games. I'm super picky & returned "The Game of the Year" cause I hate first-person shooter games. I do love to play me some Video Games though!!
6. I rarely talk politics (I learned that hard lesson a year ago) BUT am a complete News & Political Junkie. I listen to talk radio ALL DAY LONG, don't listen to music that much, and listen to the News at night. I could talk your ear off about all the goings-ons in Washington... but I won't.
7. I love Elvis, Frank Sinatra, Niel Diamond, & Tom Jones. I think I was born like 20-30 years too late. This is the kind of music that I have on my iPod. I'm a lame geek... whateva...

Wow! That was harder than I thought it would be!!!

My 7 nominees for the award:

1. The T-Shirt Lady
2. Adventures in Catnip - Jake & Micah
3. Beneath the Rowan Tree
4. Dude Craft
5. Gourmet Felted
6. Pinkkiss Pottery
7. Sea Star Studios