Damnation plush toy
23rd November 2009 – 5.57 pmThe Damnation command ship is a beautiful piece of engineering. The sleek lines of the prow give it a menacing apperance, but the plump, stubby wings make it look comforting. The Damnation has the capability of hurting its enemies whilst welcoming allies with a warm embrace. Almost as an invitation for over-analysers, I mention that I would like a cuddly plush toy of the spaceship.
No sooner do I post that I want a plush toy Damnation than I wonder if I could actually make one myself. Within the day, I am looking for suitable fabric on-line. I have never made a plush toy before, and I doubt a couple of tails are quite the same, but I find some fleece material that I think I ought to be able to work with and which will be cuddly enough. I place an order and, whilst waiting for the delivery, spend a few days pondering the design.
I have enough screen grabs of the Damnation to be quite familiar with its general shape, but I print out a few images to mull over in my spare time. I have some ideas about how the plush toy will look, what the component parts can be to stitch together, but surprisingly am struggling to 'explode' the individual parts so that they can be made from flat fabric. I grab a sketch book and draw a Damnation on paper from various angles, hoping to gain some insight.
My fabric turns up and I get to work. I think I have the main shapes decided, particularly after I realise that the nose of the Damnation need only be similar to the tip of my fox tail. Even with this insight, I find that I am improvising nearly everything as I go, my initial thoughts not translating quite as expected to the fabric, and some material needing to be reused or discarded as a result. Unfortunately, it also means I abandon my intention to photograph my progress from start to finish.
The tail-tip nose section of the ship works well. I make the body a simple rectangular cushion, with a bit of added shape. I struggle again trying to create the right shape for the wings, until I realise that I just need a squashed and elongated dome. Having made a dome for the tip of my tiger tail it is a simple matter of modifying that shape, and working out where I want the seams, to reproduce the stubby look.
I luckily stumble on some directions on how to stitch an invisible seam a little while back, which I don't need at the time but the stitch is perfect for attaching the various parts together. Not using the machine for the invisible seams makes stitching them a long task, but it's quite satisfying work and certainly worth the effort for the result.
Like Dr. Frankenstein and his creation, I make the Damnation plush toy quite large in order to ease construction, almost entirely using up the last of my stuffing material. But that just makes the Damnation more cuddly. A little bit of detail is added, and I can finally give my spaceship a big squish! I hope the damage control module is working and active.
6 Responses to “Damnation plush toy”
You scare me... yet I cannot look away. ;)
He he, thanks!
It was going to be a shot of the Damnation plush toy by torchlight, but my batteries are dead. Aww.
Awwwww.....it's a squishy Damnation....awww......
:P
Aw, that's so sweet! :-) (and disturbing)
I like it! It looks so snuggly and dangerous.
Thanks!
I gave a brief tour of New Eden to a visiting friend. She later saw the plush toy and instantly recognised it as 'my ship', which I also take as quite a compliment.