As the official Coraline movie web site loads, words are displayed that are likely to intice any crafter.
“You are about to enter a world where everything you see has been created by hand.” And as the site completes it’s loading, “The glue is still drying. Enjoy.”
Coraline, the stop-motion movie based on the book by Neil Gaiman, options nation-wide tomorrow. Crafters will appreciate the movie’s artistry along with its frequent nods to the craft world. From knitting and sewing to buttons and seam rippers, there appears to be some beautiful examples of craft throughout the film.
Coraline crafts have been popping up all over blogs, and Evil Buttons has a nice round up of many of them.
A handful of these boxes was distributed as part of the Coraline marketing campaign. Donovan Beeson of Murmurs & Musings didn’t receive one of the original boxes, so she decided to make one herself and created an Instructable for anyone who wants to do the same.
Along with these small Other Mother boxes, the creators of the Coraline assembled 50 boxes filled with handmade items and trinkets from the movie and delivered them to 50 bloggers (including MAKE). The boxes are amazing, and reached the craft blogosphere through sites like Ravelry and Knitty.
And for bloggers who weren’t lucky enough to receive one of the coveted Coraline boxes, My Little Mochi is considering organizing a Coraline Mini Mystery Box swap for readers of her blog. For more information and to express interest in the swap, check her post here.
A big part of the amazing artistry of the movie comes in the form of tiny knit sweaters and gloves created for the characters by Althena Crome, whose projects are sometimes completed with knitting needles that are the “dimension of a human hair.” In the following video, she explains how long her projects take to create, and what makes them so special.
“When one shrinks a craft or skill in to something so tiny it asks the viewer to imagine how it was done. “
The Coraline web site even has a pattern available for download so knitters can create their own star sweater. (Check out the drawer in the bottom drawer of the vanity to find it)
Also on the Coraline web site is a gorgeous downloadable vintage button poster, complete with the movie-inspired descriptions for the objects to be used as “eyes.” (if you’re exploring the house on the Coraline web site, you’ll find this poster through the painting on the wall of the living room, closest to the chest of drawers)
Watching some of the behind-the-scenes videos on the Coraline web site is incredibly inspiring. I love watching such creative and talented people coming together, solving problems and finding new ways to look at every day objects and repurpose them into something amazing. In the following video, artist and rigger Oliver Jones describes how a rubber dog toy he picked up in a grocery store was transformed into a magical blooming flower.
It’s this kind of creative crafty collaboration that creates magical projects, and makes me very excited to see the film. What other Coraline-inspired crafts have you encountered on the web? Leave them in the comments!
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