Miss Squid and the Shadow of Death

She looks innocent, but a dark shadow follows Miss Squid. It whispers to her in the night, demanding she seek revenge on those who've feasted on her relatives.
"Kill!Kill to avenge your Cousin Calamari!" comes the shadowy voice. "And get me some ice-cream while you're at it!"

Monsieur le Monstre - a stunning creation in any language

Reasons why learning French is useful #412:

so that when you're introducing Monsieur le Monstre* to the world, you can say something other than 

"Je voudrais un café et un travesti s'il vous plaît".

Yes, the ONLY thing I can say in French is "I'd like a coffee and a transvestite, please".**

*Who is clearly French because he is wearing stripes and a beret

**Don't ask. And especially, don't ask for this next time you're in Paris...

A critter shows his stripes

I don't have a heap of stuff to say about this guy, so here are a few random thoughts I thunk while making him.
1. Striped socks are THE BEST.
2. Socks with black foot-parts and striped uppers are supremely ace to make sock critters with. The contrast lends itself to tres chic creations. Here, the foot part forms the head, and the upper forms the legs, obviously. A heel forms his mouth (a bit hard to see in this picture since black things are notoriously hard to photograph, as black absorbs all the light. Did you know that?).
3. Therefore, when I'm emperor, I shall issue a royal decree: that all sock makers must include at least one pair of striped and one pair of striped-with-contrasting-foot-part socks in their collection. And that black things will be easier to photograph.
4. That I will need a sex change to become emperor.
5. But apart from that, I am TOTALLY QUALIFIED.

Focus on craft

In Bangkok, buying T-shirts is a bit like breathing - you don't really notice you're doing it, it just happens somehow. T-shirt vendors line the more touristy streets and the designs are so good (and the prices so low) you can't help but buy a few every couple of days. OK, hours. I visit Thailand every year or so and have amassed a huge collection of T-shirts, but not all of them fit. Sometimes I donate those ones to charity, other times I turn em into MONSTERS! This little guy was made from a T-shirt printed with a pattern of cool retro cameras. I used part of the shirt to make the flap part of a courier-style bag (I called it my camera bag, geddit?) and used the remnants to create Mr Cameraman here. Sometimes he goes by the name Papa Razzi. You can read more about him here.