P&F Alphabet

My kids and I have made something of a tradition of watching Phineas & Ferb every Saturday morning, so I created this piece for them. Have fun guessing who is who:

Depicted are: Agent P, Buford, Candace, Doofenshmirtz, Eliza, Ferb, Gretchen, Holly, Isabella, Jeremy, Katie, Lawrence and Linda, Major Monogram, Norm, Bridgette Oshinomi, Phineas, Queen of England, Reginald, Stacy, Baljeet Tjinder, Uncle Sabu, Vanessa, Winifred, Xavier, Yeti, Gertrude Zupermühltienatör

The Horror Icon Alphabet

After seeing the recent glut of kid-friendly fright flicks (ParaNorman, Hotel Transylvania, Frankenweenie), I knew what I wanted to get out of my system before Halloween... The Horror Icon Alphabet, featuring all of (or perhaps some of) your favorite classic horror characters and movie monsters:

What was fun with this one is that I tried to take some decidedly non-kid friendly characters and turn them into cute letter figures. I also tried for a mix of old-school horror and more recent films while including as many classics and subgenres of horror (J-Horror, horror comedies, etc) as possible. My biggest regret is that Gremlins didn't make the cut.

EDIT: Full key to who is who is as follows: Ash (Evil Dead), Beetlejuice, Chucky (Child's Play), Dracula, Elvira, Frankenstein's Monster, Ghostface (Scream), Hannibal Lecter (Silence of the Lambs), The Invisible Man, Jigsaw (Saw), Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street), Leatherface (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Michael Myers (Halloween), Norman Bates (Psycho), Otis Driftwood (House of 1000 Corpses), Pinhead (Hellraiser), Quint (Jaws), Regan (The Exorcist), Samara (The Ring) / Sadako (Ringu), Jack Torrance (The Shining), Uruk-hai (The Lord of the Rings), Jason Voorhees (Friday the 13th), the Wolfman, Xenomorph (Alien), Yellow Bastard (Sin City), Zombie Bub (Day of the Dead)

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Classic Toy Story

Classic team
Classic characters
Classic film
Classic design

I wanted to pay tribute to the everlasting appeal of the Toy Story gang with a design based on the style of early Disney black and white animated shorts. Just as the early Disney films were pioneers of animation, Toy Story introduced the world to the wonders of computer animation and the joys of returning to our childhood.

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Candy Alphabet

Just in case the Breakfast Mascot Alphabet didn't satisfy your sweet tooth, take a bite out of the Candy Alphabet just in time for Halloween:

Depicted are: Aero bars, Blue Sharks, Caramels, Dubble Bubble, Eat-More, Fruit Slices, Gummy Bears, Hershey bars, Ice Breakers, Jelly Belly Jelly Beans, Hershey Kisses, Life Savers, M&M's, Nerds, Oh Henry bars, Pez, Quench Gum, Runts, Skittles, Twizzlers, U-No bars, Victory Vs, Winegums, Xtreme Peppermint (Ford Gum), York Peppermint Patties, Zombie Sour Patch Kids


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Batman, eh?

For all my fellow Canadians:

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Character-Themed Birthday Party Letters

Are you looking to personalize a birthday party?

I’ve had a lot of inquiries from parents looking to use my alphabet creations for birthday parties and it is exciting to know that I'm helping make someone's party that much more special. Images using the Muppet theme I designed for Deliciously Darling Events can be found on party sites such as Kara’s Party Ideas, Hostess with the Mostess and People.com.

So with that in mind, I thought I would take the time to share some of these designs in case there were others out there looking for a little inspiration for that special child’s birthday. Potential ideas:

Monsters University theme

 Despicable Me Birthday theme 

 

  Bubble Guppies birthday theme

Sesame Street Birthday theme

Superhero Birthday theme

Winnie the Pooh birthday theme

Super Mario birthday theme

Dora the Explorer birthday theme

Pixar birthday theme (could also do film-specific, such as Cars or Toy Story)

Ben 10 birthday theme

Pet-themed party 

Featuring Clifford the Big Red Dog, Tweety Bird, Custard (Strawberry Shortcake), Pascal (Tangled), Marie (The Aristocats) and Pluto

 Trash Packs birthday theme (visit Hostess with the Mostess for more images)

So let me know if you are interested in any of these themes or if anything else inspires you. Some other ideas could be Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Spongebob Squarepants, Disney Princesses, Angry Birds, Star Wars, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and much more. The possibilities are endless.

Just email me at mikebaboon@gmail.com and I'll see what I can do. Pricing is dependent on theme and number of letters.

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Gizmo the Great

Just a goof I came up with when my Gonzo and Gizmo POP Vinyls ended up beside each other on the shelf:

Careful: Don't get him wet or feed him after midnight.


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The Great Muppet Alphabet (the sequel)

One of the most nagging issues I had with my original Muppet Alphabet was that there were some key players like Floyd and Scooter who didn't make the cut simply because of the first letter in their names. So I've decided to give them a chance in The Great Muppet Alphabet (the sequel). Or perhaps I should have called it The Muppets Take Lowercase Letters...

With the first Muppet Alphabet, I tried to stick pretty closely to characters from the original Muppet Show and original three movies (with the exception of Pepe). I've expanded this one out of desire and necessity to include Muppets from some of the more recent films, the Jim Henson Hour and Muppets Tonight, but it is still mostly focused on older characters. And, as with the first one, I still had to make some tough cuts. Sorry Sweetums, Marvin Suggs, the Snowths and George the Janitor (you just didn't look right with the smile of a small g).

Key: Angus McGonagle, Beauregard, Camilla, Doglion, Eric the Parrot, Floyd, Gary, Link Hogthrob, Inspector LaBrea, Dr. Julius Strangepork, Female Koozebanian Creature, Lips, Mahna Mahna, Nigel, Old Tom, Pops, Queen, Rizzo, Scooter, Thog, Uncle J.P. Grosse, Dr. Phil van Neuter, Walter, Blue Extreme, Youknow Bird, Zeke


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Breakfast Mascot Alphabet

Follow your nose to the Breakfast Mascot Alphabet. It's Gr-r-reat!!!

Who doesn't love sugary sweet cereal for breakfast (well, besides moms everywhere). I wanted to pay tribute to these memorable mascots with this magically delicious design.

This was a lot of fun and left me craving some of the cereals of my youth. I tried to restrict it only to animated characters who were designed specifically to sell cereals. Given the abundance of characters whose names start with C and S, though, I had to make some unfortunate cuts. Sorry to Sugar Bear (Sugar Crisp), Count Chocula, Sonny the Cocoa Bird (Cocoa Puffs), Cornelius Rooster (Corn Flakes), Snap and Crackle (Rice Krispies), Chip the Wolf (Cinnamon Toast Crunch) and Sunny (Raisin Bran). And yes, I cheated a little with Buzz Bee. He was too iconic to eliminate in favor of some of the others I was considering for H.

Depicted are: King Ayummayumma (Fruit Islands), Boo Berry, Cap'n Crunch, Dig 'Em (Honey Smacks), Eet (Kellogg's Eet and Ern), Frankenberry, Sir Grapefellow, Honey Nut Cheerios' Buzz Bee, Ice Cream Jones (Ice Cream Cones), Jean LaFoote (Cinnamon Crunch), King Vitaman, L.C. Leprechaun (Lucky Charms), Mr. Mini-Wheat (Mini-Wheats), Newton Owl (Cocoa Hoots), Officer Krum (Cookie Crisp), Pop (Rice Krispies), Quisp, Trix Rabbit, Toucan Sam (Froot Loops), Tony the Tiger (Frosted Flakes), Undercover Bears (Undercover Bears Instant Oatmeal), Baron Von Redberry, Wendell (Cinnamon Toast Crunch), Extreme Creme Taste Oreo O's mascot, Yummy Mummy, Zuco Bear (Nestle Snow Flakes / Zucosos)

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Angry Birds Pigs in Space

The Pigs in Space and Angry Birds mash-up I’ve been picturing ever since the Birds left the planet. 

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Muppet Babies Numbers

After the popularity of the Muppet Alphabet, I had quite a few requests for "Muppet Numbers". So here they are:

I went with the Muppet Babies so that I could include the most popular Muppets without necessarily copying the same images from the Alphabet image. Besides, they are awfully cute.

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Super Mario Alphabet

Yes, I've done another one. No, I don't see an end to these... :)

This time, I wanted to pay tribute to one of my favorite Nintendo franchises. I limited the characters only to those who have appeared in a game that directly featured Mario (so no Donkey Kong or Wario exclusives). I've posted the key below, along with each character's first appearance. Don't highlight the text if you don't want to know.

Depicted are: Ackpow (Super Paper Mario), Bowser (Super Mario Bros.), Cheep-Cheep (Super Mario Bros.), Donkey Kong (Donkey Kong), Professor E. Gadd (Luigi's Mansion), Freezie (Mario Bros.), Hammer Bro. (Super Mario Bros.), Iggy Koopa (Super Mario Bros. 3), Jibberjay (Super Mario Galaxy 2), Koopa Troopa (Super Mario Bros.), Luigi (Mario Bros.), Mario (Donkey Kong), Ninji (Super Mario Bros. 2), O'Chunks (Super Paper Mario), Princess Peach (Super Mario Bros.), Queen Bee (Super Mario Galaxy), Rosalina (Super Mario Galaxy), Shy Guy (Super Mario Bros. 2), Toad (Super Mario Bros.), Ukiki (Super Mario 64), Virus (Dr. Mario), Wario (Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins), X-Naut (Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door), Yoshi (Super Mario World), Zip Toad (Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door)


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It's a World of Hellos and a World of Goodbyes

I found out about the It's a Small World T-shirt contest over at Threadless about 4 hours before the deadline. I wasn't going to enter but I had an idea I wanted to get out there.

The background: It's a world of "Hello"s and a world of "Goodbye"s with this fun and educational shirt inspired by the end of the "it's a small world" ride, where boaters are wished goodbye at the end of their voyage in several different languages. The front of the shirt welcomes others in many different languages while the back wishes a fond goodbye.

Star Trek Alphabet

Everyone seemed to have a fun time guessing the Harry Potter characters in my Harry Potter alphabet before I posted a key, so I thought I would do the same here. Have fun! By the way, two of the letters are identified by their races, not their character names.  (EDIT: Key now available at the bottom of the post in white text).

Prints, skins, iPhone cases, T-shirts / hoodies and more available as a licensed product at Redbubble.

Depicted are: Jonathan Archer (Star Trek: Enterprise), Benjamin Sisko (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Pavel Chekov (Star Trek), Data (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Elim Garak (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Quark the Ferengi (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Geordi La Forge (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Hikaru Sulu (Star Trek), Ilia (Star Trek: The Motion Picture), Kathryn Janeway (Star Trek: Voyager), James Kirk (Star Trek), Leonard "Bones" McCoy (Star Trek), Montgomery "Scotty" Scott (Star Trek), Neelix (Star Trek: Voyager), Odo (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Jean-Luc Picard (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Q (Star Trek: The Next Generation), William Riker (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Spock (Star Trek), Tribbles (Star Trek), Nyota Uhura (Star Trek), Valeris (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country), Worf (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Xindi-Reptilian (Star Trek: Enterprise), Tasha Yar (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Zefram Cochrane (as depicted in Star Trek: First Contact)

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Toy Story Vinylmation - Series 2 Proposals

A big thanks goes out to the folks at Destination Vinylmation for featuring my Toy Story Vinylmation Series 2 proposals over the last week. I've gathered all of the designs below, but you can also check out all of the original posts at http://destinationvinylmation.com/category/mike-boon

Mr. Potato Head
Toy Story (1995)
Voiced by: Don Rickles
Licensing issues with Playskool no doubt put a damper on any attempts to include Mr. Potato Head with Series 1, but he would be a vital addition to a second series. The head of the figure and one ear could be clear plastic along with, perhaps, the feet. This could give the impression of his feet being just barely attached (as on the real Potato Head). The back could either show the inside of his little compartment (for example, his other eyes) or a different expression.

Mrs. Potato Head

Toy Story 2 (1999)
Voiced by: Estelle Harris
If you are going to include Mr, Mrs Potato Head makes for a terrific partner. She’s been designed to complement Mr. Potato Head on the shelf and could be approached in much the same way with options for clear plastic and a possible alternate expression on the back.

Dolly
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Voiced by: Bonnie Hunt
This sassy rag doll didn’t have a major role in Toy Story 3 but will no doubt be seen in future efforts (such as the Toy Story toons, books, merchandizing and more) considering how she is one of Bonnie’s toys. Plus, she’s cute.

Mr. Pricklepants
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Voiced by: Timothy Dalton
Like Dolly, Mr. Pricklepants – a thespian with a love of lederhosen – had a relatively minor role in Toy Story 3 but will be part of the Toy Story crew for years to come. His entire back would be covered in his “prickles”.

Slinky Dog
Toy Story (1995)
Originally voiced by: Jim Varney (Toy Story)
Like the Potato Heads, licensing issues likely got in the way of having Slinky appear in Toy Story Series 1. But considering his prominence in the series, that’s a wrong that would need to be righted. I pictured the body component to be clear, with the slinky coils stretching around his midsection.

Stinky Pete the Prospector
Toy Story 2 (1999)
Voiced by: Kelsey Grammer
The crafty and deceitful villain in Toy Story 2 can participate in all sorts of adventures with Woody, Jessie and Bullseye from Series 1. I tried to stick to the limitations of the mould, but this would obviously look great with a hat accessory and/or a pick-axe.

Chuckles
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Voiced by: Bud Luckey
The perpetually dour Chuckles isn’t fond of Lotso’s scheme to turn Sunnyside into a prison. Eventually, Chuckles makes his way into the home of Bonnie (along with Andy’s other toys) and he finally smiles after seeing Bonnie has drawn him with a big grin on his face. Chuckles with a smile would make a great variant.

Trixie
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Voiced by: Kristen Schaal
Rex’s dinosaur partner from Toy Story 3 – on-line name Velocistar237 – would look great with some real horns (Disney can use the same ones they used for Buttercup). If not, they could be painted on the ears.

Chunk
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Voiced by: Jack Angel
This rock-like toy starts off as one of Lotso’s henchman, but is reformed by the time the credits roll. His expression changes with the press of a special head spike. I thought this played really well with the Sunnyside Daycare logo. One side (the Sunnyside one) shows a smiling Chunk. The other side shows an Angry Chunk with a variation on the logo to play up the prison-like atmosphere of Sunnyside. My only concern with this is the size of it. It may actually make a better 9”.

Peas-in-a-Pod
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Voiced by: Charlie Bright, Amber Kroner, and Brianna Maiwand
The most minor character I chose for this series, mostly because my daughter sleeps with her own Peas in a Pod every night but also because I was happy with the end result. The peas – Peatey, Peatrice and Peanelope – are shown pea-king out of their pod.

Babyface
Toy Story (1995)
The leader of Sid’s mutant toys in the first Toy Story, Babyface consists of a baby doll head atop a spider-like body made of an erector set. Though Big Baby in Toy Story Series 1 was a disappointment, I like the mix of dark and cute in this character design.

Woody’s Roundup Woody
Toy Story 2 (1999)
Voiced by: Tom Hanks
I wanted to include either Buzz or Woody in this series. I thought about a Spanish Buzz, but the puppet Woody from the TV series Woody’s Roundup seemed like more of a treat. I tried to tie the design into the Woody from Series 1. This would be the chaser for the series.

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Color Me Sesame - Threadless

For over 40 years, Sesame Street has inspired, entertained and taught children all over the world and all of different backgrounds. For many kids, Sesame Street opened up their world to people of different skin colors, beliefs and abilities. Most importantly, everyone on the show was treated with the same level of respect and understanding, even if they happened to live in a garbage can or be a bumbling superhero. 

With this entry in the Sesame Street Threadless contest, I wanted to pay tribute to this diversity and history with a colorful design. 

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Sesame Street - T-shirt proposals

I'm currently hooked on designing T-shirts for Threadless' Sesame Street contest. As usual, more ideas than time to get them on paper. Here's what I've contributed so far:

POCKET GROUCH: Let your pocket do the talking with this tribute to everyone's favorite grouch. Lucky for you, his friend Slimey came along for the ride. Does not come with actual pocket or actual Oscar. ;). 

REMEMBERING MR. HOOPER: When considering ideas for this challenge, I searched through my memory banks for some defining moments in the show. But nothing on Sesame Street still resonates with me as much as when, as a youngster in 1983, I learned that Mr. Hooper (and actor Will Lee) passed away. The child in me still gets very upset as I remember it but, viewing the scene as an adult, I am shocked at how expertly the Sesame writers handled that moment. A truly amazing moment in children's television. 

C IS FOR COOKIE: C is for Cookie (and Cookie Monster). That's good enough for me. 

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Harry Potter Alphabet

I thought I'd take more of a minimalist approach this time.

Depicted are: Albus Dumbledore, Sirius Black, Cho Chang, Draco Malfoy, Elf (Dobby the House Elf), Argus Filch, Hermione Granger, Hagrid, Igor Karkaroff, James Potter, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Bellatrix Lestrange, Mad-Eye Moody, Neville Longbottom, Mr. Ollivander, Harry Potter, Quirinus Quirrell, Remus Lupin, Severus Snape, Nymphadora Tonks, Dolores Umbridge, Lord Voldemort, Ron Weasley, Xenophilius Lovegood, Yaxley, Blaise Zabini


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The post formerly known as the Dr. Seuss Alphabet

Unfortunately, I've had to remove the Dr. Seuss alphabet from my blog at the request of Dr. Seuss Enterprises. 

Instead, please enjoy my other alphabet artworks available on this blog, including Muppet Babies Numbers, the Evil-phabet, That's Alphabet Folks, ABC3PO, the Sesame Street Alphabet and the Super Mario Alphabet:

 

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Sesame Street Alphabet

Yes, I've done another alphabet. I keep coming up with these and they kind of become an obsession until they are finished. This time, I wanted to pay tribute to another Jim Henson creation after the success of my Muppet Alphabet and my continued appreciation of these characters, but Sesame Street spans so many years and so many generations of fans that it was difficult to try to restrict to only one character per letter. After all, how do you choose between Bert and Big Bird? Elmo and Ernie?

So in the theme of education, I opted to expand this alphabet to include upper and lower case letters for more of an epic creation. Even with this, I had to put some popular characters aside, including Hoots the Owl, the Twiddlebugs, SAM the Robot, Sully, Biff, Barkley, Betty Lou and Baby Bear (that's a lot of B's). How many can you name?

Legend: Anything Muppet, Abby Cadabby, Big Bird, Bert, Cookie Monster, Gladys the Cow, Don Music, Dorothy, Ernie, Elmo, Forgetful Jones, Farley, Grover, Guy Smiley, Herry Monster, Honker, Ingrid, Invisible Man, Mr. Johnson, Joey Monkey, Harvey Kneeslapper, Kermit the Frog, Little Bird, Lefty the Salesman, Murray, Mumford the Magician, Dr. Nobel Price, Natasha, Oscar the Grouch, Ovejita, Placido Flamingo, Prairie Dawn, Queen Olivia, Queen of Six, Rosita, Roosevelt Franklin, Mr. Snuffleupagus (aka Snuffy), Sherlock Hemlock, Two-Headed Monster, Telly Monster, Uncle Jack, Umeko, Count von Count, Captain Vegetable, Wolfgang the Seal, Slimey the Worm, X (star of The X-Files), Ex-Ray, Yip, Yip, Zoe, "ZZ Blues" lead singer (from the band Over the Top)

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