September 24 - Smoosh Monsters, Inc.

Sulley: Mike, this isn't Boo's door.
Mike: Boo? What's Boo?
Sulley: That's... what I decided to call her. Is there a problem?
Mike: Sulley, you're not supposed to name it. Once you name it, you start getting attached to it. Now put that thing back where it came from or so help me...

~ Monsters, Inc. (2001)

Not only have I made a Mike Wazwoski on this blog before, but I've done it this month!

This time I was thinking to use Scott Tripp's Smoosh! balloon concept to make some Tsum tsums. Tsum tsum's (literally "Stack stack") are a small plushie created specifically for Japanese Disney Stores, roughly the shape of a sandbag guinea pig. They were an instant hit (remember Kawaii - the Japanese 'cuteness factor'), and now there is a dauntingly huge collection of them.

I first made Tsum Tsum Sully on the left, below, when playing around -- but thought to simplify him.  The face of the actual Sully tsum-tsum is simple, like the build on the right with no mouth - but now that I see them side by side I like the first face best.    Mike also started as a tsum-tsum, feet but no legs - it kept a nice scale between the two balloons.  He needed arms, and once he had those - legs.

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Other Smoosh:

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Other balloon designs by Scott Tripp:

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