Nilla Sixty-Five

Nilla in the kitchen., originally uploaded by sugar-cookie.

Here it is, another Thursday NILLA Day. Here is our one and only taking it easy in the kitchen.


I have to say, the kitchen is Nilla's favorite place. She likes to paw at the fridge when she wants to eat. We joke saying that it is her treadmill.

Occupational Hazards 2

Today at work: BALLOONS BALLOONS BALLOONS cluttering up the hallway and media room adjacent to the ART DEPARTMENT...just another one of those days here at b+B...everyone speculated that the PINK BALLOON SCULPTURE was actually the bottom level of a multi-layered cake...Missy decided to pop out of it, stripper-style, while a cloud of colorful balloons hung ominously above rows of empty chairs, waiting for the party to get started. The rubbery smell of latex was inescapable. Out in the hall, Missy towered over a lonely little BALLOON PALM TREE, floating on a tiny island...

Happy Birthday, Cynthia!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CYNTHIA! Just wanted to give a birthday shout out to my baby sis, who is no doubt celebrating with the rest of the fam back in sunny Southern California today (wish I could be there!). I found an old photo of Cynthia striking a pose with DRAGUN, one of my SHOGUN WARRIORS from way back in the day...ah, memories!

Craftsanity 101 Sponsor!

Me and our clay Tofu Babies and one Nilla and one Molar (Julie's cat that Audrey made)., originally uploaded by sugar-cookie.

If you check out the CRAFTSANITY PODCAST this week, you will see that I am a proud sponsor! I am so excited to endorse of one of my favorite podcasts. If you have not listened to Craftsanity, I suggest you download some right away. They are full of inspiration and information for crafty people. Thanks, Jennifer, for helping me live a better crafty life!

The above photo was taken last summer when my crafty friends Julie and her daughter Audrey helped me sculpt, fire, and glaze some TOFU BABY MINIATURES and a NILLA. Thanks, Julie and Audrey!

Snuggle Bunny Monday

Look how sweet Nilla and Oreo are together!, originally uploaded by sugar-cookie.

Here are our pets, Nilla and Oreo together, if you notice it is before renovation with my parents in our craft room. As you can see, Nilla and Oreo are getting along very well. Sometimes they do the same thing and mirror each other, too. Nilla loves poking Oreo in the butt so she hops faster! They are so silly.

Weekend Wind-Down #65

Missy has been getting a major jump start on making a bunch of STUFFED ANIMALS for the big PLUSH YOU! exhibition happening in Seattle this coming October. The first thing she worked on was this GIANT SNAKE, which ended up being a little over a yard long. Missy stuffed the snake while we sat in the living room watching our new CORALINE dvd....apropos to the movie we just watched, the snake is currently waiting for a PAIR OF EYES to be added to it's head:









After getting most of the snake stuffed, Missy drew up some patterns and cut out shapes for a set of stuffed PINK ELEPHANTS that are based on some original drawings she did...so far, they just look like pink blobs...but they'll be super cute once they get stuffed and embellished:













FAVORITE MOMENT OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Finding out that I'm in Plush You! again!
RAOUL - Finally getting some crafting done.

WORST MOMENT OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Being stressed at work.
RAOUL - Not being at the XX Merge music festival.

FUNNIEST MOMENT OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Nilla and Oreo playing together.
RAOUL - The crack addict that hit me and Jay up for money in the Stevi B's parking lot.

WORD OR PHRASE OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - "Sprinkle cheese!"
RAOUL - "Body farm"

FAVORITE MEAL OF THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Pizza last night.
RAOUL - Vegetarian hawaiian pizza from Transmetropolitan.

FAVORITE STUFFED ANIMAL / CHARACTER / OBJECT IN OUR COLLECTION?
MISSY - Stuffed beardy guy made by Jenny of Prairie Dog, Inc.
RAOUL - My frowning stuffed "Malfi" from Friends With You.

FAVORITE CRAFTING SKILL?
MISSY - I'm starting to do more embroidery.
RAOUL - Sewing by hand.

PERSONAL RESOLUTION FOR NEXT WEEK?
MISSY - Clean up.
RAOUL - More cardio!

PERSONAL SOUNDTRACK FOR THE PAST WEEK?
MISSY - Of Montreal, Elf Power, R.E.M., Danielson, Hawk And A Hacksaw, Beirut.
RAOUL - M Ward, Guv'ner, King Tubby, Buffalo Daughter, Tom Tom Club, UUVVWWZ, Depeche Mode, The Breeders, Galaxie 500, Pterodactyl Squad's 8-Bit Weezer tribute compilation, The Moth podcast.

New Kneehigh Zines Are Here!

Kneehigh Donuts, originally uploaded by sugar-cookie.

Hello! I have made six new thrilling titles for my Kneehigh mini series. You might remember the first batch of Kneehighs I made, including Cats I Know, What I wore for Halloween, and the perennial favorite, Favorite Dresses. Now there are some new ones to read! Hooray!

Check out Donuts! and read donut memories past and present. I can't talk about it so much cos I really don't want to spoil these minis.


I never made a Dogs I Know until now. I did not think I knew enough dogs to make a mini, but I guess this shows that I really do. That's Jamie's pup Baloo on the cover!


Speaking of my pal Jamie, she inspired this next zine. This Kneehigh showcases all of my Blythe dolls and some of my friend's girls, too.


Since I know so many cats, I thought I should write a part two of Cats I Know. This tells about the wonderful kitties my family and friends have! Oh, and my kitty, too.


Back in high school I read all sorts of zines. One girl would write and draw what she wore and when she wore it, so I used that idea here. I am not sure of the zine I read, but it was either in Daffodil or Muffin Bones (remember those, anyone?)


Last, but not least, here is Kneehigh Cupcakes, and you guessed it, it is all about cupcakes! This makes me want cupcakes now, so I might just go do that.

I added them to MY PERSONAL SITE and SHOPPE SUGAR COOKIE on Etsy! Get reading!

Nilla Sixty-Four

NILLA 5275 from Raoul de la Cruz on Vimeo.

NILLA and OREO have a funny way of playing with each other...Nilla will taunt Oreo by pawing her toys - in this case, a corrugated piece of CARDBOARD and a jingly LOOFA CARROT. Oreo will get annoyed that Nilla is touching her stuff and she'll lunge at her; Nilla in turn, will swipe a paw at the bunny as she runs away. This is an almost daily occurrence now, usually after we get home from work...

NILLA 5274 from Raoul de la Cruz on Vimeo.

Then, as their playtime winds down, Oreo will lay down by the side of her pen and Nilla will roll around on the rug beside her, occasionally petting the bunny's backside. Nilla gets so excited that she can't contain herself and all she can do is run out of the room...

Blast From The Past: Giant Exhibit

I was recently reminded of a whirlwind weekend trip that Missy and I took out to California in December of 2007 - a jam-packed weekend jaunt that included (among many many other things) a visit to DISNEYLAND and watching the ROLLER DERBY CHAMPIONSHIPS in Los Angeles. Our main reason for going out to California though, was to see the TAKASHI MURAKAMI exhibition at the GEFFEN CONTEMPORARY in LITTLE TOKYO, which happily coincided with the GIANT ROBOT MAGAZINE biennial at the nearby JAPANESE AMERICAN NATIONAL MUSEUM. The Murakami exhibition was awesome to say the least...unfortunately, because of the super tight security, I was only able to sneak one photo of one of his "MR. DOB" installations:



From the Geffen, we took a short walk to the shiny Japanese American National Museum. At the Giant Robot exhibit, there were actually signs posted that said that photography was prohibited...yes! We happily clicked away at all the amazing pieces and installations...









One of several original drawings from comics-guru ADRIAN TOMINE:



I think this piece was done by SEONNA HONG...been so long it's kinda hard to remember:



Missy exploring one of the galleries...the red booth in the corner had these surreal sculptures hanging inside it:







One of my favorite pieces was this PAPER CUTOUT by SAELEE OH, depicting a pair of LAND WHALES. Her framed art was surrounded by paintings she did on the walls and other paper cutouts stuck to it:









A couple of colorful paintings by the awesome SOUTHER SALAZAR:





A giant mural by artist DAVID CHOE, which was peppered with razor-sharp NINJA THROWING STARS that you didn't notice until you got up closer to the wall:







Our absolute favorite room was the one that featured an entire wall decorated with art from GRASS HUT GANG members APAK. We loved their candy-colored paintings and prints and the super cute sculptures and plush objects. It truly was the cherry on top of an amazingly inspirational art exhibition:



















Later that day, we headed out to MELROSE AVENUE, on the WEST HOLLYWOOD-side of town, to visit my sister at her very "MELROSE PLACE-STYLE" apartment complex. On the way there, we encountered a growing MASS GATHERING of drunken SANTA CLAUSES hanging out on a street corner. They taunted cars as they crept along the avenue, creating one of those "only in LA" kinda moments. Driving in traffic and trying to take pictures at the same time was pretty difficult, and I nearly rear-ended the car in front of more times than I cared to...one Asian-looking Santa Claus yelled at Missy as she gawked out her passenger-side window...pointing at her, he bellowed in his best gruff and jolly imitation of St. Nick..."Santa's getting YOU a Wiiiiiiiiiii!!!"