Hello, hello! These are some of the pieces we recently finished for the wonder-duo, Jolby! The dolls are based on the lovely illustrations of Colby Nichols and Josh Kenyon. We are so stoked to have been a  part of this awesome collaboration, Home is Where You Make It, taking place at Subtext Gallery in San Diego, CA. The show is running for the next month, so if you find yourself in sunny San Diego, drop on in and make yourself at home.

Here are some of the fabulous prints you can see at the show. On the left is Danny, the grandfather, and William on the right, grandson. There is a wonderful story behind this show, very sweet.

The final journey for Danny, as wonderfully illustrated here. Being a part of this show has been a wonderful experience. Working with Josh and Colby has been great fun, they are a great team, and fabulous artists! We hope to have more opportunities to work with them in the future, and wish them the very best on their first solo show.

Dolls for Friends was recently approached by the wonderful art/design duo, Jolby, to contribute some custom plush pieces to their upcoming gallery show, Home Is Where You Make It. The February show will be held at Subtext Gallery in San Diego during the month of February and early March 2009.

Jolby asked us if we would be interested in creating some plush versions of the characters in the show to help bring another layer of depth and texture to the event. Once we read over the backstory/premise for the show we couldn’t refuse. We were hooked:

“Jolby’s work takes us on the journey of a boy named William who, after suffering a great loss, leaves his familiar town of Seaside to discover what “home” really means inside the depths of an aging forest. Throughout this story we are introduced to a detailed world filled with odd characters, illustrious patterns, vibrant colors, and hand-rendered type.”

Who could resist being a part of that? Coupled with the fact that Colby and Josh are two very talented (just take some time to check out their work at Tangible Worldwide) and cool guys (not to mention that they get what we do) PLUS the fact that we live for the collaboration made it a must.

So there it is. We will be part of the upcoming Home is Where You Make It show in February. We will be doing updates and sneak peeks of the pieces as we progress through this wonderful project.

Cate Anevski

Cranky Yellow

Love and a Sandwich

Plush Goodness

Cat Rabbit (big love for Cat Rabbit)

We were to thrilled to receive our half of a trade we recently initiated with Dawn Ramerman of Look What I Can Do. Jill contacted her on the off chance that she might be willing to share one of her wonderful creations with us in exchange for one of our pieces. Thankfully, she was up for the trade. Patty the owl came to us a few days ago in the mail, and we just love her. The craftsmanship (craftswomanship) of the piece is top notch and her choice of fabric was wonderful.

The art of the trade is something that is essential to the DIY/craft experience. There is so much wonderful and talented work out there that if two artists are in mutual admiration of each other’s work, it’s wonderful when a trade can be arranged between the two to foster that mutual appreciation.

If you are interested in seeing the piece we sent Dawn, you can check out her post on the Hanetori we sent her and all about here work on her weblog. Better yet, after you’re done with that check out her Etsy store to see what she has available for sale. Her pieces would surely be a welcome addition to any home.

Thanks again Dawn!