I took almost 2 years off from designing jewelry to experience the world of custom vinyl toy making. It all began as a 3 month internship with Huck Gee which led to a creative director position. I had a lot of fun working with many different types of medium- wood, clay, paint, fabric, etc. Not to mention, working on a larger scale than jewelry was quite freeing. The figures I customized are called Dunnys. They are a product of Kid Robot. I think the name Dunny comes from the combination of the words bunny and dummy. Anyways, the best part of my toy job was that I got to create a few of my own special Dunnys to keep.
This is my apprentice geisha, or maiko. I decided not to give her the white make-up because she is a geisha in training. One of the skills a geisha must learn is how to play the shamisen, which is the instrument she is holding.
I was inspired by the movie “House of Flying Daggers.” The most intense part of this dunny’s outfit was weaving her hat. Let’s just say I have a new found appreciation for the art of basket weaving. This creation was well received by Kid Robot. They produced a 3″ version of it for Dunny series 5. You could only get this figure if you got 1 of the 600 golden tickets hidden inside the box. In other words, it was very exclusive!
Who needs camouflage when you have a panda skin hood and cape for a disguise? No pandas were harmed in the making of this ensemble. His wooden staff is actually a sword. Sneaky!
Do not mistake her ninja outfit for pajamas, she’ll cut you. Hiya! Who knew you could find Hello Kitty satin fabric? I couldn’t help myself.
