Modern Puppet Makers

1 - I can do better 2 - Jury's out 3 - Pretty darn good 4 - Splendiferous 5 - Awesometastic by 8 people | Log in to rate

Ranked #4,952 in Arts , #120,229 overall

Continuing an old tradition

There is a surprising number of modern puppet makers, some of whom are in the mass market and produce very good puppets for children to use, but in this lens, I am not concerned with them. The puppets here are probably not ones you would give to a child, some would be too heavy for a child to operate and some you just wouldn't want anyone else touching if they were yours.

I would love to be able to make a puppet myself, it must be wonderful to be in complete control of the character of the individual you produce, naughty or nice, it's up to the maker to bring out the aspects of human nature he wants to see the puppet portray. If I could make puppets, I would find it very hard to sell them, it would be like selling one's children.

In my opinion, some of the very best makers working today are in Czechoslovakia and I provide a few links further down this lens which will help to elaborate on that opinion if you investigate them. It should be no surprise that puppet making is alive and well in Czechoslovakia, there is a long tradition of puppet theatre in Eastern Europe, a folk art which has all but disappeared from our entertainments in the West.

Even so, I do recognise there are skilled puppet makers currently creating in the West and I have featured the work of one below.

Cockerel - Handmade in the UK

Purpleparsley and the eBay store 

There is a UK seller on eBay named purpleparsley with a store, idigbo puppets and flying models, selling products which are often from recycled wood. The 11 inch tall cockerel above and to the right is just one of their beautiful creations, you'll find more below and a link to their store just below the guestbook in this lens.

Eventually I hope to find one of these exquisite puppets on the second hand market but I'm guessing I may have to wait quite a few years for that to happen, maybe I'll win the lottery and be able to afford to buy from their range.

More modest in price than the Czechoslovakian puppets, these sturdy and beautiful animals are entirely handmade in Staffordshire, England by Jane and her partner, Ian. At present they are only available through eBay.

Hippopotamus

Hippo 

This hippo is 11 inches from nose to tail and another of Jane and Ian's creations. Quoting from their description, the Hippopotamus is hand carved from high quality recycled birch ply, with eye details painted in wood stain. His teeth are pine and he has a bound cotton string tail. His legs and jaw have traditional wooden joints and the neck has bead and flexible wire joints for extra movement.

Jane and Ian have been making puppets for the past 14 years, at first as a hobby and later developing their craft into a career. Jane told me that the first puppet she made was a man and the success of creating him led her to wonder if she could make a camel. Why a camel? Even Jane can't recall the answer to that question, but the camel turned out really well and from there the range has grown.

I adore this hippo, he has such character in his expression and, as you can see from the small picture, he can even look quite fierce.

Punch and Judy

Traditional Punch and Judy 

These stunning Punch and Judy hand puppets are also made by Jane and Ian, eBay sellers purpleparsely. They may seem expenxive at first glance but when you realise that any set of these is made specifically to order, they are handmade and therefore unique, and are made from quality materials, the price does seem perfectly reasonable.

I would call these professional Punch and Judy characters. Punch is 29 inches tall and Judy is just a little shorter at 24 inches and Jane and Ian can also make the full range of characters for your Punch and Judy show. The characters have hand carved wooden jelutong heads, recycled pine is used in other parts of the making.

These outstanding quality hand puppets are made to order and can take up to six weeks to complete, depending on the workload Jane and Ian have at the time.

Dragon

 

This is the final puppet made by Jane and Ian which I will include here for now. The dragon (above and right) is 12 inches tall and made from durable recycled birch ply, hand carved, hand painted and sealed with a satin varnish for a beautiful and hardwearing finish.

This stunning creation can lash her tail and, despite the soft look those long eyelashes give her, she can even bite if you annoy her.

Exquisitely made, Jane and Ian's puppets come with instructions for operation and as each puppet is hand carved and painted, they are all completely individual and as a small company, Jane and Ian only make a few of each type of animal and bird puppet in any year, so you have the immense satisfaction of an exclusive item.

But that is not all, if there is a puppet you really want to have made, talk to Jane and Ian about it, email them through their eBay listings and discuss your requirements with them, you might just be pleasantly surprised at what they can do for you.

I love their style of marionette and wish them every possible luck going forward in their business.

Minstrel

My Minstrel 

This was one of the first Czech puppets I acquired and he's so cute, I love his podgy face. Sadly (for the seller) I was the only bidder on this gorgeous puppet and I picked him up for a silly price.

He is entirely handmade and stands approximately 16 inches tall in his fabulous velour outfit. As he walks, he jingles from all the tiny bells sewn to his outfit.

You will have noticed that I only give the height of the actual figure when I talk about puppets and that is perhaps because I realised long ago that children 'don't see' the strings on a puppet. Of course, a child is aware of the strings or any other mechanism operating a puppet but they have the inate ability to ignore what is not relevant to them and a puppet's strings are absolutely not relevant (unless you want to learn to operate a puppet yourself).

Three Little Soldiers

Help - I seem to be surrounding myself with miniature armies 

There are my Action Man figures, well over a hundred of them, and there are my puppets, numbering amongst them several soldiers of various eras.

From the left above we have an approximately 14 inch tall soldier who could be one of Richelieu's men, a possible English Knight who is 13 inches tall (I'm not including feathers here) and a very cute moustachioed Eastern European soldier at 12 inches tall.

I'm not sure what I'm prepared for here in terms of any invasion but when asked 'you and whose army' I can easily say 'the army I have at home'.

These three puppets are all Czech in origin.

Small Witch

Little Witch 

This small witch must be the sister of one I have hanging in my kitchen at the moment, pictured above and to the right.

She may be just one foot tall but it's 12 inches packed with witchy character, whether she's flying her broom at the time or innocently sweeping the kitchen floor, somehow she just doesn't pass for a sweet old Granny. Don't you just expect her to start cackling any minute?

I think it's wonderful that we live in a time when it's easy to travel and bring back such treasures from abroad or, if we can afford to, we can buy these beautiful hand made items from thousands of miles away to hold in our own hands within days. A century ago, the only time a child might have seen some of the fabulous craftsman made marionettes pictured here would have been with their nose pressed against a frosty shop window in the approach to Christmas.

What a wonderful World we live in.

The lens photo

The Wanderer - a Czech Puppet 

I know the polaroid above is a bit big to view in one piece but I wanted to be sure you could see the wonderful detail, even down to his fingernails, on this puppet so I hope you'll forgive me.

I was extremely fortunate to pick up this wonderful puppet, The Wanderer, for a ridiculously low price at auction. He is currently still in production and you can see him, or at least a very similar Wanderer, online. He is a handmade Czech puppet and I am delighted to have added him to my collection.

I liked him from the first time I laid eyes on the auction and when he arrived and I unpacked him, I just fell in love with him. No photograph could ever do him justice and he reminds me a little of my Grandfather.

I know there are puppet collectors out there and it always puzzles me how these stunning puppets are not fought over. Yes they are modern but they will not always be modern and the quality is stunning, he even has leather shoes. Each of the puppets made within one design will vary as they are truly handmade.

It is the attention to detail and quality finish which sets this puppet apart and shows its quality. He is surprisingly heavy.

You can see another of these puppets on this website. You might notice he has something in common with the witch above.

You might also be interested in 

featured lens A Passion for Puppets

I know a lot of people dislike puppets, puppets give them the creeps. While I sympathise, I can't really say I understand why but I hope I can spread some of my passion for puppets through this and a few other lenses I plan on the subject. I di...

 

0ctavias0fferings - GiantSquidAngel

Could you choose a favourite among the makers? 

submit
Show All

Puppets from Purpleparsley 

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

Puppets on eBid 

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

Puppets on eBay US 

Loading Fetching new data from eBay now... please stand by
eBay

My lenses sorted by interest 

... those in italics are groups of lenses

Making it easier
My Lensography
0ctavia's Second Century
My Group-ography
... and a sprinkling of Angel Dust
Be guided by your Angels

My Newest Lenses
Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi
The Truth About The UK National Health Service
Surviving abuse
0ctavia's News

Politics and Life
Low cost electricity in the UK
Purely Politics

Shopping and selling
Auctions starting at 1p/1c
My kind of shopping
Stay safe shopping online
My eBid Stores
Sending a Press Release
All Hallows Eve - Hallowe'en
Online auctions and me
DerivativeImages.com
WantOneGotOne.com
Zolanta.com

Action Stations.
The Action Man Group

The Arts
My Art Cards
My Poetry
Originals, Cards and Prints by 0ctavia and Raven

Recycle and Re-use.
Recycle and Save
Stitches to help you recycle clothing
The Foody Group

Hobbies and interests.
Netsuke, Ojime, Inro
The Postcrossing project
My Music Video Showcase
My Favourite Movies
How Does Your Garden Grow
Pelham Puppets
A Passion for Puppets
Modern Puppet Makers
Dollhouses as a hobby

The Natural World.
The Natural World

Handmade Dollhouse Miniatures
Deb Jackson Dollhouse and other Miniatures
www.cdhm.org

Divination
The Tarot and Spiritual Group
The Map of the Tarot
The A to Z of Fortune Telling

People and Places
My Scotland
You Are Not Alone
Aleister Crowley
Countess Elizabeth Bathory
Vladuz and eBay
A Walk Around Nethy Bridge
Zimbabwe

Help lens.
How do you Squidoo?
Octavia's Hothouse

Spirituality
Debunking prehistory
Everyone is psychic
Past Lives

The Zolanta Sellers' Group
The Zolanta Sellers Group

0ctavia's News 

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

0ctavia's Stores 

Each of the items which displays below will take you to one of our stores.

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

 

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

 

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

Submit your lens to this free directory 

Submit your lens to NetStoreSearch Directory free. There is a section specifically for Squidoo lenses.



Go on, you know you want to.

You can follow me on Twitter 

Follow 0ctavia's Twitters

Loading Fetching RSS feed... please stand by