Here's a fun post sharing some pictures sent to us all the way from the UK! This is a JACK NICHOLSON JOKER Art Bust Statue painted by a Bat-Blog Fan named Lee. Like I said he lives in England and also likes to be creative every now & then. Well, he recently painted this "Mike Hill Sculpt" of the Joker and it's pretty amazing! The detailing is really nice. He said he, "added that fake flower later", and I think it really accents the piece nicely, great job Lee!
I was a little kid back in the 1970's so much of the Batman Toys and Collectibles from that era have a deep nostalgia for me. It's just that I remember actually playing with them, ha! So, here's a nice assortment of groovy 70's items!
Then, here's something you don't see a lot nowadays. This is a Fanzine Magazine, COMIC ZINE #1, from Oct 1971. I'm totally digging the Golden Age artwork on the cover here! These are usually pretty hard to find because they were so limited & usually distributed regionally. Like, only sold in certain areas.
Last, but not least, is this 1977 BATMAN STAMP 'N PRINT SET made by Ahi Brand ( Azrak-Hamway Int'l Inc ). This is one of those cheesy toys you would see at 7-Eleven or you might remember begging your Mom for this at a Grocery Store, ha! I totally love the vintage graphics. It's also cool that it contained a lot of Super-Villain character Rubber Stamps.
OK, Arts and Crafts Fans are gonna freak-out over this news! A Good Friend to the Bat-Blog, named Jennifer, sent us some wonderful photos of a brand-new set of DC Comics Licensed-Products, BATMAN Cotton Fabric!! Oh yeah, here's some new Bolts of Cloth with graphic appeal! Right now many Creative Bat-Blog Readers are thinking of a hundred uses: Custom Shirts, Dresses, Handbags, Quilts, Baby Blankets, etc... but my idea is that this stuff would make very excellent curtains, ha!
Jennifer sent us some amazing examples of the diversity of design they all have but I gotta say that the very 1st photo is my personal favorite. I love that all-over design & the clip art they used. Of course, the other ones with a simple Bat-Symbol Logo could be great for for projects too. ( Thank You Jennifer ). Hey, if anybody makes some stuff outta this fabric then please let us know. This fabric should be available at your neighborhood Fabric Store, but if not, then contact the place where Jennifer gets hers, just click HERE!
OK, here's a brand-new craft art project for BAT-BLOG.COM Readers who like to have fun and are also creative! Here is a "Crouching Batman" Paper Toy Figure you can make that looks extremely AWESOME!
Basic Instructions: Download the PDF File of this toy model kit, print it on card stock or stiff paper, cut it out & put it together... it's fun & easy! Here's the download link, just click HERE!
There are some people out there who are totally unaware that there's a complete sub-culture of Craft Artists who make really fun stuff. These Artists are totally dedicated to their artwork & make some extremely clever items. One such person is "Kittyzilla!". Well, her real name is Jennifer & she's also a writer of a Craft Blog called "Handmade Stuffs" where she talks about her projects. Recently she made an extremely AWESOME set of BATMAN AND ROBIN Plush Dolls, or as some people call them, "Plushes". I love these fun toys, they're great! If you're a Fan of this kinda stuff you should check out her website, just click HERE!
I recently came across a wonderful blog called "Sewing Cafe". It's a personal site of an Artist named Lynne Williams. There, she posts a lot of "How To" Articles & Tutorials on Craft Sewing Projects. This girl is an expert at making "Adam West-Style" Costumes. Just like the one seen on the 1966 BATMAN TV Show. The cool thing is she shares a lot of this information on her website. So, if you're in the market to create a cool new bat-suit, check it out! You can visit her site by clickingHERE!
Oh yeah! Here's a wonderful craft project to keep you guys busy! Over at the PAPER INSIDE website they have some templates you can download & print so you can make your own paper models of these 1960's-inspired BATMAN AND ROBIN figures!! While there you might also notice they have some other DC Comics Comic Book characters, like: Superman, Captain Marvel, Green Lantern, The Flash, Aquaman, Green Arrow and Black Canary! Here's the LINK to check them out! Also, if you're a big fan of these cool toys & you want to see all the "Paper Toy" posts we have done here recently at the Bat-Blog then click HERE!
OK, You know I love me some paper-craft toys! This is a niche within the custom toy field that's just a lot of fun & anybody with a PC printer can join in on the action. Basically you download a PDF or JPG file of some artwork, print it out, then cut / paste...TAA DAA! You now have a fun toy to display! Here's a great example, Check out this HEATH LEDGER JOKER By Ewout Van Lambalgen. He's an awesome Illustrator & Web Designer in the Netherlands. He was inspired by Heath Ledger's amazing performance of THE JOKER in THE DARK KNIGHT Batman movie & made this free Paper Toy for everyone to download ( click on the image for a larger version ). If you would like to see more of his awesome artwork then just click HERE!
Here's a couple of craft project photos from our buddy named Dallas. He created this Custom Light-Up Bat-Signal by converting a Kotobukia Statue of Batman perched on top of the Bat-Signal. Of course, it's the version from "THE DARK KNIGHT" movie. Basically he took the Bat-Signal piece & retrofit a light inside it. He also added a different lens cover ( I think ) so that light would shine through it. overall, Dallas did an amazing job on this new piece because it now looks extremely cool! OK, I have seen a few other people do this & it makes me wonder, "Why didn't Kotobukia do this in the 1st place? I mean, it seems so obvious". I'm sure it had something to do with production cost. Plus, they make art statues & they're NOT in the lamp business. Anyways, I didn't mean to loose track here. Plus, I also wanna thank Dallas for sharing his photos. If any other Bat-Blog Readers have any Bat-Craft Projects going on then please let us know. We always love to hear from creative people.
I love when creative people become inspired by Batman & make a few items to decorate their house with, that's cool! Here's some photos sent in by a Bat-Blog Fan named Ben showing a few things that he & his Girlfriend have crafted. The 1st one shows a Batman Effigy Pot they made. Now, I think this thing is totally cool visually but I was wondering, "What is an Effigy Pot?". So, I did some quick research & found out that "Effigy Pots are Jars, Bowls, Bottles or Vessels made in the shape of humans or mythological figures. They have been made for 1000's of years & are thought to have healing powers". Cool! I guess some Bat-Blog Readers are gonna learn a little Art History today, I did, ha ha! The next item is something most of us are pretty familiar with. It's a large Stained Glass Window piece & this one has a beautiful Bat-Symbol Logo on it. To be specific, it's the one from the current Christopher Nolan movies ( Batman Begins & The Dark Knight ). This thing is awesome! I bet if this were hung somewhere that sunlight could shine through it it would be really striking. Actually, both items are really really great & I want to thank Ben for sending these pics into us. You guys made some very cool stuff!
Alright, I thought I'd share some news on a few brand-new unusual BATMAN: THE BRAVE & THE BOLD products that are out there now. The 1st one is an EASTER EGG DECORATING KIT that was sold at Toys-R-Us. Now, how did this piece of merchandise get by me? I never knew they made it until later. I'm not sure if they're still out there ( maybe on clearance? ) but I hope they release them again next year. It's not really a big deal but the graphics are kinda cool. Now speaking of graphics, the next product is loaded with great images from the TV cartoon! It's a "Provo Craft Cricut Batman Activity Shape Cartridge". This cartridge contains images of Batman, Green Arrow, the Blue Beetle, Aquaman, Red Tornado, and The Joker, along with an action-style font that would be ideal for your child's room, homemade comics, or scrapbook pages. You can also cut out an exciting assortment of party supplies, such as costume pieces, party favors, gift boxes, cards, envelopes, and 3D gadgets that will make your birthday kid feel like a Hero. I gotta say that I totally love those 2 Batman & Joker Paper Toy Figures in the pic, they're very cool! But I don't think I'll be buying this because to use the cartridge ( which is around 50 bucks ) you gotta have a special Cricut Machine. It's basically a "printer & shape-cutter" all built into one. They have different models & the cheapest one is around $120.00. Now on eBay you can buy a used one for around 60 dollars, but the whole package is sort of too expensive for me. But if you're an Arts & Crafts person who already has this machine then the cartridge is pretty cool. I've supplied a link down below for where to buy one.
Over at the Professor Plastik website they have a ton of very cool BATMAN PAPER CRAFT MODEL KIT ACTION FIGURES you can download & create...for FREE! Shown here are The Dynamic Duo, Batman & Robin! They also have a lot of wonderful Super-Villains too! As an example I am only showing The Joker & Riddler, but they also have: The Scarecrow, Dr. Hugo Strange, Two-Face, & Clayface. Now, keep in mind that these are the "Golden Age" versions like the characters existed in the 1940's. Personally, I think they are total works of ART! For more information, & the location where you download the PDF files, be sure to click HERE!
Shown here is a totally insane Paper Craft Toy designed by J.P. Cote of Paper Empire Toys. It's the JOKER'S "I SCREAM" ICE CREAM TRUCK Model Kit in 1:24th Scale!! For people unfamiliar with this type of thing, basically what you do is: You download a few PDF files of this model onto your computer, you print them out with your PC's Printer on "card stock" paper, & then you cut them out. After that: you bend, fold, & paste them into this vehicle. Think of it as a Car Model Kit made out of paper! But just check out the photos here, this thing is CRAZY, ha ha! It comes with Rocket Launcher Silos, Joker Head Turret on the Top, a Rocket Exhaust on the Back, & even a Specially-Sized JOKER Action Figure! For more information & to download this wacky version of the Jokermobile, just click HERE!
Over at the THINGIVERSE website an inventor gadget-guy named "Wizard23" has created a pretty cool Batman BAT-LAMP! It's small & compact. Plus, it shoots a Bat-Signal on the wall. It's really cool & at the website there are very detailed plans on how you can make your own. So, get busy! Go get the materials, read the website, & make one. In fact, while you're at it, please make me one too because I am not that talented & if I made one it would probably not work, ha ha! For more detailed plans, click HERE!
Over at the TOY-A-DAY website they have a cool new paper craft art project you can download for free & make. It's HARLEY QUINN from the Batman Animated Series! Of course this is the Joker's girlfriend & since they also have one of these of the Prince of Crime himself you can now make them a couple! For download information be sure to visit their website by clicking HERE!
One thing about the Internet is I'm totally loving the "Urban Paper Craft Toy" movement! Basically, a ton of different Graphic Artists are creating some fun toys that you can print with your computer & then put together to have figures or fun stuff. It's really neat, very creative, & highly addictive. Here are 2 figures of BATMAN & JOKER from the Dark Knight movie. Of course this is the "Heath Ledger" version of the Joker & he's just great! The Batman figure is fun too. You can download these, & many other projects, from a website called PAPER INSIDE. It's a fun place & you can get there by clicking HERE! Oh yeah, this link is to the Batman Figure ( and a few other DC Comics characters ) & to get the "Heath Ledger Joker" Paper Toy just look for the small text link at the bottom of that story...have fun!
Shown here are some photos of an amazing Custom Toy made by a Bat-Blog Reader known as "Turkey Bowinkle". Yeah, that's his name. You got a problem with that? But seriously he's a very creative person & he made this LITTLE JOKER Jack In The Box! It's a small wooden box with painted Joker Card graphics. When you open the lid - BOOM! - The Joker pops out! The Joker Figure is some sort of sculpted clay ( painted later ) with cloth clothing & green hair. I really love this little toy. It's so cool! The facial expression on Joker's face is really great & he does sort of look a lot like Cesar Romero from the 1966 Batman TV Show! So, "Turkey Bowinkle" is a very talented artist in deed! I wanna thank him for sending the wonderful pics & also invite all other Bat-Blog Readers ( with special art or craft projects ) to please send us some pics as well.
I met a new friend the other day who's a very talented artist. She loves Batman & also likes to create arts & craft projects. In fact, here are a few examples right here. Check it out! She knitted these character plush dolls by hand. I mean, the knitting must have taken hours, if not, days to make. Here are BATMAN, THE JOKER, & HARLEY QUINN!! They each measure around 15" tall & the last photo shows her with one of the dolls for scale-size. I knew my readers would love seeing these & she was kind enough to send some great photos. Thanks Maris, they're true works of ART!! She has also made a few others worth looking at like Jimi Hendrix, Boba Fett, Star Wars Stormtrooper, etc... Here's a link to check it out:
Here's an awesome Paper Craft Toy Figure of Adam West as Batman from the famous 1966 TV Series. The instructions are pretty easy. 1. Print it on card stock, 2. Cut it out, 3. fold & glue. It's an easy as pie. But I gotta warn you that once you start making these paper toys you're gonna go crazy & want to make more, more, more!((( You have been warned ))).
