Not too long ago,  I once again made some tiny critters…

Making this first guy was pretty easy, but I liked all the colors. He was kind of a warm-up.

Colorful caterpillar

Then I decided to make a stark black-and-white ladybug, but I changed it up a little from my usual ladybugs by opening up his wings a bit, preparing for flight.

Ready for take-off

Now this little fella makes me happy every time I look at him! The look of befuddlement on his tiny penguin face cracks me up, and his feet and beak glow in the dark. I’m planning to pop a magnet on his back and keep him for my own.

*waddle waddle* What?

Then someone challenged me: make a praying mantis. Hmmm. This would be much, much more difficult than the tiny, fat-bodied little buddies I usually make. So I pulled up a picture, pulled out some wire, and got to work.

The result is a LOT larger than any of my other works… he’s about 3/4 as tall as a regular coffee mug without the antennae. The work is a little sloppy, as I’m not used to working with such thin and complicated limbs and bodies, and it took forever to get the legs glued on. This was also the first time I did a 2-parter: I made and baked the body, then made and baked the wings separately and glued them on. The downside was that the wings do not fit perfectly. Hmm… they say practice makes perfect, but I’ll be honest: I much prefer making tiny adorable things to making larger fellas. That said, I do like how this guy’s face turned out. The slight inquisitive tilt of his head, and the shape overall came out well, and I’m pleased that he’s still standing on those spindly wire legs.

I WILL EAT YOUR FACE

I think “tiny and adorable” is just going to be my clay forté!