Why Handmade?

I'm going to talk about something that does the equivalent to giving me thought hives. It's something that's gotten into my head and bothers me on a minor level for a pretty significant amount of time. Sort of like the thought equivalent of me petting a dog. I touch a dog, and then for the rest of the day, whatever part of my body came into contact with that cute, fluffy doggy fur will itch. Some ideas are like that for me, and this is one of them.

Not too long ago, Etsy made some "clarifications" to their handmade policy. Etsy is often thought of as *the* place for handmade things, and for the most part it does an okay job at that. The rules a few years ago were that everything needed to be handmade by the person selling, and if they had help by family or friends, this had to be disclosed, and those people listed in the shop info. Then this changed to handmade by the person selling or someone in their immediate employ-- not a factory, but a handful of employees. This has changed even more, to now being the person owning the shop must design the things, but they can outsource to a factory if they wish (and as long as they disclose that in their shop info somewhere).

I can kind of understand this. For all of those people custom designing wedding invitations, T-shirts, etc. and having them printed somewhere else, then selling them as an original design-- that makes sense. What customers are paying for in those instances is the work that went into the design, not a hand sewn shirt or handmade paper. Sort of like the coloring books that Melanie and I made. She did all of the illustrations herself, I did all of the text, but neither of us were capable of printing and binding them on our own, so we got someone else to do that bit. Not knowing if that actually counted as "handmade" by Etsy standards, I never listed them on Etsy before, but such things also sell better in person, so I bring them to fall craft fairs with me.

I'm completely okay with all of that. What bothers me, and what's giving me the brain hives is that this is the same rule across the board. I'm sure it would be a nightmare for the Etsy staff to try to separate out how this rule would apply to the different categories (and I have no clue how the new rule applies to vintage things at all). So it's a blanket rule for everyone. This, I'm not fond of.



When I started making sock monkeys, I didn't intend to start selling them, I just needed more monkeys to do a photo challenge. When people started asking to buy them, I started selling them, and to me, part of what makes them special is that they really are handmade. I mean handmade in every sense of the word-- there aren't a dozen (usually underpaid) people sitting in a warehouse somewhere stitching together Monkeyville Sock Monkeys. There's me.

This is George, the very first sock monkey I ever made.

I really do make each monkey by hand. I sew the bodies on a regular sewing machine (I got it at Target, it's not anything special, but it has a stretchy fabric setting), I stuff each monkey, and I assemble them. The limbs, ear, tail, mouth, and all of the facial details are hand stitched, the felt for the hearts and other tummy adornments is cut by hand (freehand too most of the time) and that's attached by hand too. On very rare occasions, I have a bit of help stuffing them, because when things get busy, I'm often not physically capable of stuffing all of the monkeys. I have arthritis, so I occasionally have friends and family help me with that. I also always ask for help with names, because I've made so many monkeys now, that I just can't think of anymore, and everyone I know people with really good ideas.

I could completely outsource monkey manufacture. Just write up some schematics and send them off to some factory somewhere and say "make these guys, and make them all look like this" and I could sell them on Etsy if I wanted. It wasn't a strict adherence to Etsy's rules or some kind of loyalty to that particular site that has stopped me from outsourcing the monkeys.What stopped me, was that to outsource the monkeys would defeat the whole purpose of making them.

This is where the fact that I never set out to sell the sock monkeys is a factor. I started out making them because I needed something that would distract me from everything else in my life being broken. I gave away a bunch of monkeys, but I needed something else to do with them, so I started selling them. When things got hard again, the monkeys saved the day again, providing much needed income when I was unemployed, and a much needed distraction from the constant "OMG! I MUST JOB!"

An old photo of in progress monkeys. The technique is different, but the process is the same.

If someone else was making the monkeys, none of those things would have been there. I'd like to think the fact that each one is unique and made by me makes a difference in the monkeys too-- at the very least, they don't get ruptured stitches that require intensive surgery the same way. My concerns aren't producing as many sock monkeys as cheaply as possible to maximize profit, I make the monkeys because I like to. I love sock monkeys, and as I've said before, they're my way of making the world a bit better. Paying other people to make them just doesn't do the same thing.

The current Monkeyville Fall/Winter Flock, waiting for adoption!

Each one of those little guys takes me at least a couple hours to make. The more complicated the details (more than one heart, the skeletons) mean more time. Am I ever going to make hundreds of these guys a week? Not likely, but I make as many of them as I can, because I like to make things, and I like making things that make people happy even more.

Sock Monkey Monday: *Hums Pink Panther Theme*

 Introducing, probably the hardest monkey I have ever made, Sherlock Holmes!!!

This little guy took a lot of work, and a lot of research to actually make. There aren't a lot of patterns for sock monkey sized clothes.

Not only did I make his suit, I made his wee little tie!

He's quite dashing in his little suit too:

I also made that top hat pin cushion. If anyone wants one, I'd be happy to make one for you too. The thing I love about it is that it's tall enough that the needles (except the 3" ones) don't go all the way through.

Of course, without the coat, it's just a guy in a suit, not Sherlock Holmes.

He's showing off the interior of the coat. By the time I made that, I had gotten much better than when I made the suit coat, and realized it needed a lining.


Now *that* looks like a Sherlock Holmes sock monkey!

I can't do a little hat, because in order to make hats, you need things that I don't have like mad sewing skills, and a pattern. If I can find it, I have a little magnifying glass charm that would be perfect with him. I have to look through the Monkeyville stock to see if I can find it though.


I'll post much better photos once I have time to really take them. Sherlock had mysteries to solve though, so I didn't have time. Also, there are still a few pattern making marks on him that I need to clean off. I made my own patters for everything except the little tie. That I used a website for. All of his clothes are removable (including his tie) though I really, really, really don't advise removing anything except his outer coat because it's Really Hard to sew little monkey clothes, so much of the work is hand stitching.

Sock Monkey Monday: Ah, Love...

Love is in the air here in Monkeyville! I know that Eli and Sirus have something planned, but they've been quite mum on the subject whenever I ask. Maybe because sock monkeys, unlike real monkeys, are always quiet. Of course, there's also the Very Special sock monkeys for Valentine's Day too, which are making the house look quite festive.

I've never been a big Valentine's Day person myself, but I have to say, seeing the monkeys all dressed up for the holiday has put me in the spirit. Usually, I think of this time of year as Cadbury cream egg time. Oh how I love those little chocolate eggs filled with mysteriously delicious goo. *Gets egg. Noms egg*

While I nom my cream egg, here's some sock monkey photos for your enjoyment.

What I've been working on this weekend:

That's a Valentine's Day Ninja in the back.


Even Ninjas need some love!


I was trying a new technique for sewing the monkeys, so this guy has a longer body than I typically give them. I may put him up for $20 on Etsy instead of the typical Ninja price of $25. There's nothing wrong with him, I just don't think he's quite perfect.

Yeah, for some reason, sock monkeys are all male in my head.


This guy is one of the heartbreakers. He's sporting a broken heart of his own after all.


He doesn't look too upset about it though.

I'll be honest, I REALLY wanted to make this guy a skeleton, but I really couldn't without him looking too much like the Zparkleys skeletons. I certainly didn't want that, so I settled for skeleton-esque details.


These socks screamed to be made into a sock monkey, but they were ankle socks, so I had to improvise. The fuzzy body means he's extra cuddly.


Okay, even I can see this is a girl sock monkey. Not sure what her name is yet, but she has a lot of personality (she posed herself like that).

This is Jasper. He's the first I've done in homage to vintage cartoons, and while I wanted to keep him so bad, he's already sold and in his new home.

He's made from various ankle socks, because I saw these in the men's department of a store in the mall, and I just had to use them to make these monkeys.

Before he left for his new home, Jasper posed with Val, the second Valentine's Day monkey. I have to admit that I love the socks Val is made out of.

SoMoMo 10: Ho, ho, Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

 I REALLY need elves. Really bad. Of course, since I'm not Santa, I don't have access to loads of elves. I do however, I have access to lots and lots of sock monkeys.

Sirus took over the sewing bit of things for a little while.

While Eli and Cosmo worked on the other end of things.

Eli cut the fabric that Sirus would sew, while Cosmo helped assemble Barnaby and Obi Wan.

I wanted to get so much more done tonight, but I just can't. I've been working 18 hour days between the day job and Monkeyville, and I need sleep!

SoMoMo 5: Getting Inked

It's day 5 of Hanukkah



Today, it was a visit to the Monkeyville Tattoo Studio for Sorento Monkey. Eli and Sirus Monkey were there to hold his hand, but Sorento was too tough for that and just gritted his teeth.

Step one, the layout.

Have to make sure that tattoo is on right, and doesn't end up saying "WOW" instead of "MOM".

Second step, black "ink".

That's the hardest part, but not painful for Sorento since it was done off of his arm.

Next step, the white and red ink. This had to hurt:

That is one big needle. Three inches to be precise.

Finally, Sorento with his finished tat:


Aw, cute, widdle tough guy!!!

Sock Monkey Monday: So Much To Do!

I think every week I say that it's been an incredibly busy week here in Monkeyville. This week was no different. With Halloween closing in, there's lots of Monkeys to work on, some special order monkeys to finish, and I had a couple experiments I wanted to fit in too.

I didn't get as much accomplished as I thought I would, but I still got a fair bit done. First, there was the new Sock Monkey Photo Studio to set up. The new area is Excellent! It's finally possible to take photos of the monkeys when it's raining!

Ezra and Phrixus decided to be the first monkeys to pose. The new area is so much brighter that the details on both monkeys is easy too see.

It's even possible to see the gears that are on Ezra's chest. I've tried to get decent photos of these before, but it's tough to photograph the different layers.

This is my favorite shot of the day. I love the Gratuitous Monkey Bum shot, and with Phrixus, it's even better because of the wings.

Laertes and Earl got their photos taken again too. I'll have to update their Etsy pages soon. 

 I have to say, I love the new Photo Studio as well as the camera. 

It hasn't been all photos here in Monkeyville though, the Magic Monkey Making Machine has been going steadily all week too, and while most of the orders are in progress, I did get the third (!) Phantom of the Opera Monkey completed. 

This phantom is for a two year old, so he's specifically made to stand up to lots of cuddles, and without all of the easy to swallow parts that the original Phantom has.

The cloudy, moonstone eye has been replaced with a light blue felt eye, and the expression is much happier as well.

After the Phantom was done, it was time for a break from Monkey Making and to try something a bit different.

It's a glove bunny! While this little guy wasn't too hard to make, I think I'll stick to using socks. The gloves are much hard to sew well, and to get all of the limbs the same length, etc. The gloves just don't make good stuffed animals the way the socks do.

However, today during my monkey break (Leela the sock monkey was being difficult), I attempted to make something out of actual fabric. Not t-shirt, gloves, or socks, but fleece.

It's a Boolet! Compared to the bunny, this was Really Easy to make, the hardest part was getting the face right. I'm glad that the Boolet worked well because I have plans for some holiday things later that pretty much require me being able to make things out of regular fabric like fleece instead of socks. Hopefully, I'll be able to get to those things, I have lots and lots of orders to fill, so time will tell.

Still No Jack...

Laptop Jack is still sick, so unfortunately I can't do a really good Sock Monkey Monday today. All of the photo editing software is on Laptop Jack. Almost every major component in Laptop Jack has been replaced, with no results.

Thankfully, the guy from the repair company is very nice about having to repeatedly come to my house, and have none of his work actually do anything. He's also cool with Boo getting in the way while he's trying to work. This would annoy me, especially when a kitty tail knocked over the box holding all of the screws, but Scott the repair man doesn't seem to mind too much. I've been saying this for about two weeks now, but the end of this week, Laptop Jack should be up and running again. If he is, there will be a good Sock Monkey Monday next week.

I do have some photos to share. Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to get out and take photos in the areas around Monkeyville, so please excuse the desk background. A clean desk is a sign of someone who doesn't work, just remember that!

First up, Belfry:

I really like the way Belfry's face came out. He's just so expressive. I think that style will be showing up on many more monkeys to come!

Next up, Sebastian:

This is silly, but I don't have a clue where that photo was taken. I know it was in my house, but I don't have anything black and that height... weird.

Sebastian is completely traditional. I was worried that Sirus Monkey might get a bit upset, and think that since he's not native to Monkeyville, he's not as special (okay, so I'm way too attached to my toys). However, Sirus gave his approval.

Sirus Monkey, looking bashful, but happy posed with Sebastian. I think they're cousins. There does seem to be a strong family resemblance. Also, it's very rare for Sirus Monkey to actually look happy in photos, so I'm glad that he didn't look sad in this one!

Even though Laptop Jack is sick, there are still orders to get out. The Ninjas and I named this little guy Waldo:

He was for a friend from work's granddaughter (he was a birthday surprise!) He's been renamed Red Monkey by his new best friend.

I have had four fish named Fishy. Red Monkey sounds good to me!
Now, the Ninjas and I have been fighting against the Evil Pirates of the world for a good year now. Some days are easier than others, because the Evil Pirates are very good at trying to put a stop to Ninja Time (9pm, every night) by slowly attacking the Ninja computers one by one. In Laptop Jack's case, they got him good. Not only did they break his memory, but when Laptop Jack wouldn't let that stop him, they also broke his motherboard (twice)! Sneaky Pirates, they put a defective graphics card in him, which has made Laptop Jack Very Sick.

Not all Pirates are evil though. Sock Monkeys aren't evil, so Pirate Sock Monkeys certainly can't be evil. The Sock Monkey goodness wins out over any possible pirate-y evilness.

The cannon is about two minutes up the street from my house. It was all gray stone colored, but it was just recently painted. When I drove by and saw it, I just had to use it for a SoMoPho! Pirate Monkey, cannon... it just had to be done.

The cannon happens to be outside of the VFW, and while I was shooting (and trying my best not to squish their flowers), a woman walked up to me and said "I drink, a lot, but not enough for this to make sense. What are you doing?"

I think she got a good laugh when I explained that I make sock monkeys, and when I saw the cannon, I just had to stop and use it for a photo with a pirate monkey. She shook her head and walked away. Sometimes, I forget how silly it looks for an adult to be photographing sock monkeys in random places.

I also finished the Very Big order I was working on. I wish I had more time to get more photos of these guys, but I didn't. I had to get them in their boxes before the holiday.

It's Dog the Bounty Hunter and his crew. I really like how these guys turned out. I have to say, I'll always have a soft spot for Beth now. She was the one that I spent the most time with by far. Sewing that chest was a challenge, but I was so happy that it came out symmetrical! I got to try lots of different thing with these guys, and expanded beyond my normal materials of socks and felt.

This fall, I'm hoping that I can get a spot in one of the local fairs the Village Artisan's Collaborative will be having. Since these will be in October and November, I've been trying to think of seasonally appropriate monkeys. Not just the typical Monkeyville ones, but some monkeys that would really make Monkeyville stand out from the other sock monkeys out there. The monkEmos like Laertes are part of that. Then, there's this guy:

Here lies poor old Fred
A great big rock fell on his head.

 Fred should have a headache from that rock, but I don't think he needs to worry about headaches anymore, because Fred is the very first....

 Monkeyville Zombie Monkey!!! Who knew that guts and mold could be so cute?

Now, there are some things all good zombies must have.

1. Exposed Brains:

Brains-- check!

2. A blank, nobody's home stare:

 Dead looking stare-- check!

3. Some missing flesh:

 Missing flesh, and exposed organs-check! Bonus for the moldy lung!

4. Last but not least, mold. All zombies are a bit moldy. 

 Moldy lung and moldy tongue-- check! (I feel the need to mention that the little red thing in the background is my desk vacuum. It's a robot, just like my calculator.)

 

Fred was going to go to the Monkeyville Shop on Etsy, but he's been adopted already! In fact, instead of going into the shop, Fred will be going all the way to Australia. That sort of makes me wish I was a Zombie Sock Monkey.

However, Fred is just the first Zombie, and definitely not the last. I have lots of socks that are more colorful, and that look even more like diseased zombie flesh, so there will be plenty more zombie monkeys to come.

Hopefully, this will be the last improvised Sock Monkey Monday, and Laptop Jack will be back next week. At least, I REALLY hope it is. I'm a bit lost without my Laptop Jack.

Sock Monkey Monday: What the Monkey Maker Sees

This week, I'm doing things a little bit differently for Sock Monkey Monday. See, it's been very, very busy here at Monkeyville Headquarters (um, what used to be my dining room). There are lots and lots of monkeys in the works, so I thought I would share a bit about the Monkeyville Monkey making process.

Sock Monkeys start out like this:

They don't look like anything much at this point. Just a bunch of ruined socks. That's okay though, all monkeys go through an awkward phase (just like us people!).

Next, after sewing, it's time for stuffing!

They still don't look like much, but they're on their way. Most don't have arms and legs yet, because it's easier to do other things first, without the arms getting in the way. 

These are all identical, because they're a set of five that I'm working on for a special order. I liked getting them all sewn in one bunch, and I think from now on I'll do it like that. All of the light colored monkeys for the week in one group, all of the dark colored one for the week in the next. That way, there's minimal thread changes on the Magic  Monkey Making Machine (sewing machine to non-monkey makers). It's also much easier to get a lot of them done if I do it in more of an assembly line way. 

Last night, I was working on one of the girl monkeys for this order. She's based on a real person, so I had think of some new ways to do certain things. Normally, I use either embroidery floss or yarn for the eyes. Occasionally buttons, but I'm trying to steer away from those and stick with all CPSIA exempt materials. Because the monkey I was working on is supposed to look like a real, human person, I had to do her eyes differently.

There are faint blue marks on her face, that's okay, those are my guides so I could make sure the eyes were the same size. I'm better with yarn and floss than a pen though, because I didn't follow the guide lines very well! There is also a very large knot in the center of her face. That's fine because that knot will be hidden later. (Shhh! Behind the scenes secrets!)

I'm very happy her eyes. They came out just like I imagined in my head, which makes me happy. I love it when that happens!

I also put her hair on, but that was a bit of a mistake. Next time, I'll leave that step until after I do the rest of the sewing, so it doesn't get caught in anything. I used a very nice, "blond" colored yarn for hair, this is the second monkey I've made with hair, but there will be a few more coming. I have at least one that I would like to put in the Monkeyville Etsy store.

After her face was done, it was time to do something I've never, ever done with a sock monkey before-- make her voluptuous! She needed a very well endowed chest, because that's what her human counter part has.

There is a bit of me that's still 14 I think, because I cracked up the whole time I was sewing. I was also talking to my Ninjas via yahoo instant messenger. "Brb. I have to sew a boob on" is probably one of the more random things I've ever said!

Side boob. Not so sexy actually. Also, there's no way I'm going to give away the secret to how I did this. Though experienced sock monkey makers out there will probably be able to figure it out. Getting them both the same size was really hard. Kudos to all the plastic surgeons out there!

I had dreams about this all morning before actually doing it. In my dreams, I was sewing basketball sized boobs, and I gave them felt... um [must consult google]... areolas with french knot nipples. The real monkey is not quite so life like.

A Monkey Maker's point of view. This induced much laughter, and I'm trying really hard to keep this PG, but at this point, it certainly felt perverted. Next time, the... stuffing entrance... gets sewn shut before I do this. Hopefully that will make it at least a little bit less dirty.

After the chest was completed, it was time to attach the arms, legs, tail, and mouth and get her looking less like a blob of sock with a face and boobs, and more like a person. Then, it was time for a bit of a fashion show. I've sewn t-shirts for monkeys before, but I wasn't quite sure if what I wanted to use would fit.

Thankfully, it did. I did the hem a bit later, I didn't leave the edge raw like that. She has her hair put up because I didn't want to get it tangled. I still have to make her pants though.

While I was working, I realized that her hair up like that made her look like a very well endowed Alice, from Alice in Wonderland. I have some less fancy blond colored yarn, and plenty of the black, so I think whenever I get a bit of a lull in orders, I'll do an Alice one... without the boobs of course!

This is what I really love about sock monkeys. They start out as just a plain old pair of socks, and with some work, they turn into something completely different, and no two are ever exactly the same. The socks that I used to make this monkey are the exact same style as the ones that I used to make this little guy:

The techniques to make both aren't all that different either. Just a few changes and the monkey is completely different! I often see people using the same socks that I do (there are a ton of reverse Olivers on Etsy) but it doesn't bother me at all, because as Albert demonstrates, it's not what socks you use, but how you use them.

Next Monday, I'll be posting a how-to for making sock monkeys. I'll be doing a more traditional one like Albert, not like the girl monkey above. However, like I said, the techniques I used to make Albert are the same that I use to make the girl. I just changed a few things and made her much more detailed.