On "Animated Classics: Disney Alice in Wonderland": A Book Review

Title: Animated Classics: Disney Alice in Wonderland
Genre: Fiction/Picture Book
Publisher: Studio Press Books 

About the book...
A short adaption of Disney's 1951 movie Alice in Wonderland with artwork from the Walt Disney Animation Research Library including the works of artists such as Mary Blair, Frank Thomas, and Ward Kimball.

What I Think...
I actually bought this more out of interest in the art rather than as movie to book adaption and am really quite pleased with it. The story is, as expected, a very simplified summary version of the Disney movie meant to accompany the the images that were chosen. In terms of the art, I really enjoyed seeing the mix of concept art, story sketches, and animation cels all in one place and variation between the artwork, although as a warning it is primarily made up of Mary Blair's work (being a huge fan of her, I never mind adding new books with her work to my collection).

The book concludes with a brief write-up about the Disney movie, which I thought was a nice way to tie everything up and offer a tiny bit of movie history, and a glossary that provides a short biography of the artists included along with the page numbers their artwork appears on.

Overall, the book itself is well bound, having a cloth cover and a ribbon bookmark (though, for an adult, it is very much a quick one sitting book). The cream colored paper used is a very nice quality and the artwork is beautifully printed.

To sum it all up...
A lovely little book for any fan of Disney's Alice in Wonderland (1951) and some of the art that was used in the making of it.♥

On Random Movie Related Thoughts

I've been in a rather nit-picky observatory mood this year when it comes to horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and noir movies, and have been recording some of my more amusing thoughts on them. I now subject you to them.

Frankenstein (any and all versions)

-Why does the topic of smell never come up given what the monster is made of especially given the fact that it's basically been fried to bring it to life? There has to be some sort of odor!

Labyrinth (1986)

-In regard to the Bog of Eternal Stench, why doesn't stepping on the rocks make them smell? Those rocks clearly came up from the blog all covered in goo and, therefore, should be just as smelly.

-Why does the dad ask if she's home at the end? Did they expect her to run away because she was so upset? Isn't it night time?

The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947)

-If you're not a child in an old movie, you really should avoid milk. Especially if it's glowing. (This builds on thoughts in relation to Hitchcock's Suspicion, in which he intentionally made the milk glow.) 

Earth vs. the Spider (1958)

-If the spider has to break down the wall to get out of the gym/auditorium, how in the world did they get it in there in the first place? 

-Yet another example of a giant bug/insect/arachnid movie in which the creature can miraculously move about stealthily without creating any air current and therefore sneak up on everyone before they can run. 

The Thing That Couldn't Die (1958) (Semi-spoilers in this one, although it's pretty predictable) 

-Soooo many oddities in plot of this B movie. 

-The hundreds of years old talisman is wearable, but the chest has to be guarded from theft? And given that there were only a few people who knew about the chest in the first place, what merited the need for it to be locked up in a room and guarded by not one, but TWO people?

-If you found a head in a chest wouldn't you just close it?

-Given the purpose and value of the talisman, how and why did it end up at the base of the tree? Also, very convenient finding it the same time as the chest after all those years.

Invisible Ghost (1941)

-How terribly sad to be "Attractive Blonde" in a news article describing one's death rather than to be described by profession or by name.  

Dracula (1931)

-Why are there armadillos!?! Are they just running around the house? Could they not get rats for the scene? Isn't it too cold for them?

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)

 -What is boiling in the pot that's in the fireplace? Why isn't anyone concerned about the fact that it keeps bubbling over? Clearly it must have something that either doesn't evaporate or is important enough that keeps getting refilled since it's in multiple scenes.

 ♥ ♥ ♥

On Celebrating Hatter Day in This Style!

For those unaware, today in places where the date is written month first, 10/6, is considered Hatter day (for others, it is June 10). This unofficial holiday is based on the price tag on the hat of the Hatter in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which rather than the date actually stands for 10 shillings and six pence, but provides an excellent excuse to acknowledge, contemplate, and celebrate "Chapter 7: A Mad Tea-Party".   

Over the past few months, I've been very slowly working to finish the Mad Tea Party set from the November 1965 Woman's Day magazine (Alice and Dormouse both finished in 2012) and a Cheshire Cat from a 1960's issue of Woman's Day that contained a set of cat patterns, and thought it a fitting way to celebrate the day by sharing my finally completed set!

Rather than just sharing them like I normally would, for fun I decided to stage them in scenes from both Chapter 6 and 7!

Some sewing details for those interested in how I almost went mad in finishing up the set and started wondering if I was offending Time in how long I was taking in doing so.   

The Cheshire Cat 

"Did you say 'pig' or 'fig'?"

The Cheshire Cat had the least amount of adjustments primarily due to its simplicity, so I'm going to start with it. I downsized the pattern from the original, so that it would fit in with the other dolls. This made the seam allowance on the inner portion of the legs a bit tricky, which is why my Cheshire Cat doesn't exactly sit flat. This, however, I think it makes him a bit more whimsical, so I don't mind a bit. 

 

Additionally, I opted to leave the tail bare rather than put yarn loops and along similar lines decided I really liked it without stripes. I also tried what I'm thinking of as under-sewing the felt on its eyes and nose (meaning I stitched through the middle of the felt instead of coming all the way up through it) and am happy with how secure they seem to be. For some sparkle, since he might disappear at any moment, I used metallic embroidery thread for the whiskers! 

 The Hatter

The Hatter was a small scale lesson in lining, as both his vest and jacket are lined. I decided to try my own thing on the first sleeve of the jacket; let's just say doing the second sleeve according to the actual instructions went better. 

Next, his hat! Against my better judgement, primarily because I just wanted to be done and it was in my stash, I used poly-poplin. It does not crease or hold in place where you want it to and is certainly one of the most uncooperative fabrics to have chosen. On top of that, I had just barely enough stabilizer, which in the case of the primary piece had to be hand sewn on to the outer layer to make sure the hat didn't fold in on itself. As can be seen, the support for the top of the hat is made up of scraps shoved in there, so that will need to be replaced when I get more. Once again, though, despite spending over 6 hours on the silly thing, I was pleased with how it turned out.

The March Hare

I adjusted quite a bit when it came to the March Hare. The instructions called for the shirt opening to be at the back and the collar piece to be directly tacked to the March Hare's neck, but I didn't like that the Hatter's shirt actually buttoned in front, while the March Hare's didn't. Based on this, I ended up cutting the front of the shirt open, adding a placket, and hand sewing the collar piece onto the shirt (a truly maddening task that was made worse by not cutting the collar piece base at enough of a curve). The shirt was to be closed with hooks and eyes, which I did end up doing except at the front with the buttons covering the stitching from them.

Other minor changes I made were giving him a bow tie instead of ribbon, swapping out the pom pom tail for a gathered circle piece of fabric and not finding any fake wheat shoots that I liked and not wanting to buy an actual wheat bundle, I ended up using raffia on his head, which I think denotes his madness quite nicely.

Now, there is actually one more Wonderland pattern for the White Rabbit included in this particular magazine. I didn't really feel compelled to make it because the White Rabbit does not attend the mad tea party in the book. Additionally, one of my first stuffed animal projects that I drafted and sewed completely by hand was the White Rabbit and being ever so fond of it, I'm willing put this last pattern on hold for a much later date. 

Wishing everyone a happy Hatter day filled with muchness of tea, contemplation on ravens and writing desks, the singing of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat", any other mad tea party activities you should chose to engage in, and, of course, the wearing of a hat!  

 ♥🎩♥

On Cabbages

As promised, a short post randomly rambling on about cabbages. 

Cabbages are a rather versatile vegetable. They can be boiled, steamed, pickled, fermented, chopped, eaten raw, creamed, or prepared using any number of other methods, and they come in a variety of colors, shapes, textures for those picky enough to take notice. 

Babies, of course, can be found in cabbage patches or under their leaves, making them a serviceable vegetable beyond the table. Additionally, in parts of Europe they were believed to have the power of showing one or helping one determine who one's sweetheart was, which in turn allows for the perpetuation of the legend of babies being found in cabbage patches. Should one partake in eating cabbage, however, this may keep a potential sweetheart away making it advisable to avoid consuming them while seeking out one's sweetheart.

And least we forget, there is always the option of using a cabbage as a substitution for a table top Christmas tree decoration because no party could be considered complete without one!

From Garnishing: A Feast for Your Eyes, 1987. (source: yuckylicious.blogspot.com)

 ♥ ♥ ♥