QuteWear at Etsy offers a wide selection of fleece hats for anime fans and cosplayers. 28-year-old seamstress, Carolyn, says the hats are “perfect for cosplay, ski, snowboard, club gear, or just to be original. It’s a great gift or buy it for yourself. All items are brand new, hand made with a sewing machine (not hand sewn), created using an industrial serger. Please check my store for different styles and colors.”
Welcome to Qute Wear studio, based in Toronto, Canada.
Each item is individually cut, sewn together and made by me. All my items look similar but unique in its own ways because it was not mass produced.
BABY? TODDLER? CHILDREN?
Any item that you see in my shop can be made for baby, toddler and children of all ages. Just convo me and let me know before or after your purchase.
If you have any questions please contact me using Etsy “CONVERSATION” because I don’t check my email. Thanks.
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Every hat is handmade upon order here in my studio. I’m a one woman person and I do all the cut and sew all alone. Please allow min. 1 WEEK before shipment.
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~~~>>>VERY IMPORTANT<<<~~~
Please check my profile for terms and conditions.
So glad you dropped by. Enjoy your stay. (^_~)
Hat designs to choose from include cats, bears, bunnies, foxes, pandas, and characters from anime series. Japanese-inspired headbands and arm warmers are also available. Very kawaii!
Love robots? Love art? Award-winning artist Lawrence Northey of Robot Art takes commissions, so you can combine your two passions and make any robotic creation you dream up a reality. One possibility he suggests is “a robot with a built in MP3 Player Docking Station. The robot could feature either built in speakers or, remote ones jacking into one of the robot’s feet. Combining this design along with the technology from Digital Photo Frames would be fantastic!”
One of the most anticipated books of 2008 was J.K. Rowling’s The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a collection of wizard fairy tales referenced in the final book of the Harry Potter series. Prefaced by an introduction by Rowling, the slender volume contains the stories “The Wizard and the Hopping Pot”, “The Fountain of Fair Fortune”, “The Warlock’s Hairy Heart”, “Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump”, and “The Tale of the Three Brothers”. The latter tale appeared in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, where it aided Harry, Ron, and Hermione in their quest to unearth the Deathly Hallows and thereby defeat Lord Voldemort, but the other four stories are completely new works. Scholarly notes attributed to Professor Albus Dumbledore, which “appear by generous permission of the Hogwarts Headmasters’ Archive”, with occasional footnotes by J.K. Rowling, add an air of verisimilitude to the book, as does the title page that quite fittingly credits Hermione Granger for translating the book from the original runes. Rowling’s charming illustrations, black-and-white line drawings perfectly suited to Beedle‘s Brothers Grimm-style storytelling, reveal another facet of the author’s creative talent, making it even more interesting to guess at what she’ll produce next, post-Harry Potter.
The Tales of Beedle the Bard was released in both a Standard Edition and a Collector’s Edition, the second offered exclusively by Amazon.com. The Standard Edition contains the five fairy tales, a new introduction by J.K. Rowling, illustrations reproduced from the original handcrafted book, and commentary on each of the tales from Professor Albus Dumbledore. The Collector’s Edition features all five fairy tales from the original The Tales of Beedle the Bard; an outer case disguised as a wizarding textbook from the Hogwarts library; 10 ready-for-framing prints of J.K. Rowling’s illustrations; an exclusive reproduction of J.K. Rowling’s handwritten introduction; 10 new illustrations by J.K. Rowling not included in the Standard Edition or the original handcrafted edition; a velvet bag embroidered with J.K. Rowling’s signature; metal skull, corners, and clasp; replica gemstones, and an emerald ribbon. Available only in limited quantities, Amazon.com recently posted a sold-out notice for the Collector’s Edition:
Thanks to the incredible enthusiasm of Harry Potter fans, we have sold out of all copies of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, Collector’s Edition available in the United States. To ensure that we have enough replacement copies (for example, for books damaged during shipping), we will be holding a limited number of copies in reserve. If you missed out on ordering your copy of the Collector’s Edition, it is possible that a small number of copies will become available in the weeks following its release on December 4, 2008.
J.K. Rowling has waived her royalties for The Tales of Beedle the Bard, and net proceeds from book sales will be donated to the Children’s High Level Group, a children’s rights charity co-founded by Rowling to benefit children who have been relegated to residential institutions. A press release from the Children’s High Level Group — J.K. Rowling Delighted as Beedle Sales Raise More Than £4M for CHLG in First Week — thanks Muggle fans for their support of this very important cause.
Check out the full range of Harry Potter titles, aside from The Tales of Beedle the Bard published specially by the Children’s High Level Group, at Raincoast Books. In addition to the original books, Raincoast Books offers adult, large print, “magic”, deluxe gift, foreign-language (Latin, Welsh, Ancient Greek, Irish), and box set editions, as well as the textbooks that Rowling wrote for Comic Relief, Quidditch through the Ages and Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them.
While London’s upper crust is growing bored and falling asleep in its posh salons, a new style of club has seen the light of day. The Draconis Club, very much in style at the moment, offers English aristocrats in need of a good rush the opportunity to face fear in an extraordinary trip to Draco Mundis, the Valley of Dragons. The luckiest among them will be able to come back covered with glory, and able to brag about their feats while proudly displaying a trophy worthy of the British Museum. Dragon season is open!
Draco Mundis, available in both English and French editions, is a strategy game similar to Dungeon Twister in its game mechanics. Its rules are fairly simple, relying on a player’s strategic, tactical, memory, and bluffing skills, with diplomacy and the forging of temporary alliances becoming factors when there are more than two players. There is no luck involved. Each player is able to take Actions such as moving, exploring the jungle, fighting or spying on enemies, using Special Abilities, and, in the case of a Cannibal, capturing prisoners. As the back of the box hints, “Each character has a very specific ability; you’ll have to learn how to use each character at their best to adapt to whatever hot water your opponents put you in.”
Turn-based Draco Mundis plays much like an RPG. The fictionalized Valley of Gangtok is laid out on a gridded game board that resembles an antique, sepia-coloured map — down to the ornately drawn compass rose in the top-right corner — and the game has an alternate reality back-story that reads like the preamble to an old British adventure film:
Tired of the daily mundanities and good manners, the English aristocracy of the early 20th century is trying to while away the time by looking for thrills wherever they can. The latest craze is a chase as madcap as it is illegal. In the heart of the Punjab region of eastern India, their contest is centered around the capture of a sacred, rare and protected monster: Draco Septentrionus Verdatis!
Armed to the teeth with hunting rifles and blades of all sorts, the lordly teams, accompanied by their ladies, themselves followed by Sherpas burdened by piles of pointless luggage, will face the wild animals of a hostile jungle. Their secret goal will be to capture one of these enormous legendary beasts, dragons from northern India, in order to bring it back to England as a hunting trophy.
The aristocratic adventurers will be surrounded by the screams of a myriad of apes, spider monkeys and baboons, masses of poisonous snakes, angry herds of elephants, and especially the infamous Bengali tiger, bristling with ferocity and whose fangs are true saw teeth. The fire-breathers come out of nowhere in the heart of the night, setting ablaze the villages made of hovels or the most highly protected camps, spreading around them more than just fear, but sacred terror.
The best trick in the hunters’ arsenal will be the use of an infallible trap, a female Dragon made of odds and ends and supposed to irresistibly attract the monster by the imitation of its cry.
Intrigued by the hunting arsenal and all the preparations for capture, journalists have decided to discreetly follow the uncaring, happy go lucky expeditions in droves. They’ll be able to turn the details of their adventures into scoops for tabloid papers, before reporting their sacrilegious doings to the local police.
But beyond all the dangers and the pitfalls, the English aristocrat fully knows that success in his enterprise will, surely, grant him the favor of the crown, and perhaps even, with a bit of luck, from the hands of His Majesty himself, the title coveted by any self-respecting Lord, that of honorable member of the “Order of the Garter”.
Box contents:
— 1 game board,
— 80 tokens (11 Characters, 1 Item and 8 Lands for each of the 4 colors),
— 4 game helps/screens,
— 1 rulebook.
Characters:
Explorer (2), Journalist (1), Hunter (1), Sherpas (2) — one of whom may be sacrificed per game to gain an extra Action for the current turn, Dragon (2), Cannibal (1), Biplane (1), SS307 Machinegun (1)
Item:
Dragon Traps (1) — deployed in alternate rules to limit the power of Dragons
The use of a bad, upper-crust British accent is not included in the rules, but should be, as it adds a great deal of fun to gameplay. If your companions are like-minded, then agreeing to award extra points for cheesiest accents and most stereotypical, old-time slang will add a whole new layer to the game. Bonus points for wearing a pith helmet, as well.
The game ends when every token on the game board is revealed, and the winner is the player with the highest total of Victory Points. Points are earned for infiltrating a Campsite with your Journalist, destroying Campsites (not your own, of course), eliminating opposing Characters and Dragons, and controlling Character tokens on a Jungle or Mountain token of any color. Points are lost if you place your Bengali Tiger Territory on a square adjacent to your Campsite at the beginning of the game; setting up camp next to a bunch of tigers merely makes you eligible for a Darwin Award, and a smart player will try to get his opponents taken out by the big cats instead.
“May the best Lord win!”
Draco Mundis supports 2-4 players, ages 12 and up. Game length: about 60 minutes.
If “mechanical dragons” are more your thing, Asmodee Editions also has two new car racing games out, Hurry’cup! and Formula D.
Order now at Amazon.com: Draco Mundis (not listed yet) Hurry’cup! (not listed yet) Formula D
Draco Mundis, Hurry’cup!, and Formula D are distributed by Asmodee Editions (US), a subsidiary of Asmodee Editions (France), in partnership with Hazgaard Éditions for Draco Mundis. For more information on Draco Mundis, visit the official game website at Draco Mundis (in French).
“Play is discovery and exploration, and joy, and growth, and learning, and so much more,” explains Manhattan Toy. “And for us play is serious work. So when we bring play to life, we do it with a commitment to the finest in craftsmanship and creativity. All of our products, from the newest concepts to our time-tested classics, are innovatively designed to inspire imaginative play and delight our consumers large and small.” For the company whose motto is “Imaginations at Play!” the three essentials of toy creation are Originality, Developmental Value, and Quality & Safety:
Founded in 1979 by Francis Goldwyn (grandson of motion picture studio owner Sam Goldwyn), Manhattan Toy pioneered the use of non-traditional fabrics in toy design and introduced delightful new body styles in soft toys. Although Goldwyn is no longer involved in the ownership of Manhattan Toy, we remain true to his vision of marching to the beat of a different (toy) drum.
Play is not only fun, it’s essential to a child’s cognitive, emotional, and social development. Our design process blends science and whimsy to produce toys that offer children a rich array of visual and tactile stimulation and unlimited opportunities for imaginative exploration.
Our unsurpassed quality standards ensure that our toys are both durable and safe. Prior to manufacture, each Manhattan Toy design is thoroughly tested to comply with the most rigorous international standards for children’s products. Our quality assurance team continually reviews designs and procedures to ensure that products exceed both existing and new safety regulations.
In addition to making heirloom-quality toys, Manhattan Toy strives to be a socially conscious company. They teamed with the Girl Scouts to donate more than 60,000 Groovy Girls brand dolls and plush toys to the youngest survivors of Hurricane Katrina, and have created the Girl Scouts’ own line of Troop Groovy Girls dolls, which celebrate the empowerment of girls and were voted “Girl Toy of the Year” in 2008. In the realm of science, they promote awareness of the natural world by padding their zoo of plush animals with alternate choices to the traditional bears and bunnies. One of these animals is the critically endangered cheetah, which is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list of vulnerable species. According to the Cheetah Conservation Foundation, there are only about 10,000 cheetahs left now. Like Manhattan Toy, the CCF recognizes the importance of inspiring children to connect with nature, reaching out to tomorrow’s scientists and conservationists with their Kids4Cheetahs program.
Manhattan Toy currently offers two plush cheetahs, one of which is the Lanky Cats Cheetah. “Big, curious, yellow eyes standout on this loveable cheetah,” says Manhattan Toy. These eyes, a signature of the Lanky Cats collection, really are mesmerizing, seeming to follow a person’s every movement. In half-light, they glow green and shimmer like a real cat’s would at night. Also true to life, and thanks to heavily weighted paws, the Lanky Cats Cheetah can drape lazily over objects, dangle like the “hang in there” kitty, crouch in a ready-to-pounce stance, or be contorted into any other feline shape. “His understuffed, extra long body makes him incredibly poseable. He’s made out of a silky, soft fabric that begs to be petted.” Best of all, though, the cheetah markings on this toy are accurate. Many items marketed as cheetah-print are actually a leopard pattern; leopards and jaguars have rosette markings rather than the cheetah’s simple spots. Kudos to Manhattan Toy for the attention to detail!
The other cheetah toy is the colourful Cha Cha Cheetah, a Petrageous Pet from Manhattan Toy’s popular Groovy Girls line. Cha Cha is stylishly dressed in an outfit and “bone” hair bow that looks like it was borrowed from baby Pebbles of The Flintstones, and will appeal to little girls who love the Groovy Girls dolls. She’s incredibly soft, with weighted, oversized feet that make it easy to pose her, and the velcro fasteners on her removable vest and collar make changing clothes simple for little fingers. Trendy Groovy Girls Fashions and Furniture & Accessories are available for additional dress-up fun.
In the name of scientific exploration, Manhattan Toy even replicates long-extinct animals, like the Mesozaurs Stegosaurus. “Bright green with contrasting orange plates and blue tail spikes, the Stegosaurus is one of the most colorful dinos you’ll find. He’s soft, cuddly and highly textured for tactile appeal. With loads of prehistoric personality, he’ll come to life in any youngster’s hands.” The Mesozaurs Stegosaurus is an amazing piece of craftmanship. Unlike most statically posed stuffed dinosaurs, Manhattan Toy has designed their dinosaurs in dynamic action poses. The Stegosaurus’ tail is whipped to one side, ready to strike, its head angled in the opposite direction, warily alert of predators. The fabric used for its plumply stuffed body is roughly patterned and textured like cut velvet to suggest a scaly hide, the orange back plates are made of a sheer material that’s ridged to look like bone, and the toenails and tail spikes are shiny black and blue vinyl, with little inserts of lavender and blue material for the eyelids and mouth. It’s hard to stop running your hands over this sumptuous toy.
While the Stegosaurus is the expected dino-green colour, the rest of the Mesozaurs Dinosaurs — a red Brontosaurus, blue T-Rex, and orange Triceratops — are a vibrant rainbow that reflects modern science’s theory that dinosaurs were likely as diverse in appearance as the animal species of today.
For fantasy and mythology lovers, Manhattan Toy also has a range of plush Dragons (wizard included) and Dr. Seuss characters. Whatever your plushy passion is, Manhattan Toy fulfills your wishes with top-notch playthings that are beautiful to look at, irresistible to touch, and fun to play with.
Academy Award-nominated writer, director, executive producer, and actor Joss Whedon has written a celebrity blog for us [Amazon.com] to promote his new release, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. Whedon is best known for creating well-known TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly. –Jordan
When Amazon asked me to review this movie, I was hesitant, as I’m not too familiar with the genre, and also I made it. But I found Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog quite rewarding, which is to say, if you buy it, I will be rewarded with a small sum of money. But what’s in it for you? A few surprises, I won’t lie. THE SECRET OF ETERNAL YOUTH. The Dark Knight doesn’t have that, does it? A CONTROLLING INTEREST IN EUROPE. Not available with Mamma Mia! BEES. Deadly, hideous bees are contained in certain shipments, sorry. We’re trying to control that. But already, a pretty extraordinary disc.
The film itself I didn’t really get. Apparently young people today think it’s okay to make fun of supervillains. In my day we treated them with respect and fear, especially when they were singing. I did like the jokes, except when one man mentioned his secret love appendage to another, which I find crass. But the tunes are very hummable, and many of them ran through my head as I fell asleep before the ending, which I’ll bet was a humdinger. In fact, the whole movie humdinged. I give it forty eight billion stars.
The extras (Eternal life, Europe, Bees) were mostly exciting. There is a whole second musical, called “Commentary!”, which harkens back to the days of Radio and of writing things really poorly. I can’t recommend it enough. (That should read “I can’t recommend it. Enough!” Sorry.) Seriousfully, it’s not so much a commentary as chance for the cast and writers to make fun of each other in every musical style possible. I give it forty eight billion stars.
The extra extras are all solid fun, especially the many applications to the Evil League of Evil, sent by people who know how to show a supervillain the proper respect. I was promised eggs, but did not find any eggs, only horrible, stinging bees, but I am told the eggs are good. That is my review. I think you should buy the DVD every day forever, and I am totally unbiased. Happy Holidays! –Joss Whedon
Evil has returned to haunt the keep… The lich has been reincarnated. Hero, the immortal king, defeated the lich years ago, but now the lich has returned, hungry for vengeance, leading his army of undead. But valiant adventurers have invaded his lair and seek to fight their way to his throne, in order to confront him and send him back to his grave. Whether you are the lich or the adventurers, in order to triumph, you will need to prove yourself with the wisdom to choose the right path, the strength to strike down your enemies and the luck to forge your destiny! Whether you prefer the hardness of stone, the finesse of paper or the edge of the blade, your fate is in your hands!
When it comes to role-playing (RPG) card games, there is usually an investment of time and energy to learn to play that can often be intimidating for an inexperienced or first-time player. Like a traditional card game, winning or losing is a mixture of strategy, luck, and the combination of cards in your hand. In RPG/Strategy card games you “build” a deck, customizing your selection of cards before the game begins, to play to your strengths or game strategies. Many card games I’ve picked up require a huge investment in “boosters” to build a useable deck, and then you have to find someone to play with, typically facing your deck against theirs. While luck, strategy, and skill is involved, usually whoever has the best cards wins. Unlike other games I’ve played, Hero: Immortal King (or Hero IK) from Asmodee Editions is ready to play right out of the box. While you can buy additional boxes to build your own deck, it is not necessary in order to play the game. Also, you don’t pit your cards against someone else’s since both players use the same deck.
Hero IK is designed for two players, with one player as Adventurer and the other as the Dungeon Master (DM), but it also includes rules for a Solitaire game so you can play the game as soon as you crack it open. In the role of Adventurer, you have to navigate your way through the passageways (represented by Dungeon Cards) of a dungeon in search of the Final Monster. As the DM, you can use a series of ambushes and traps to foil the Adventurer and keep him from reaching the Final Monster. Instead of scoring, a series of colored chips is used to keep track of how courageous (Courage tokens possessed by Adventurer) or demoralized (Fear tokens possessed by DM) the Adventurer is. If the Adventurer runs out of Courage tokens before beating the Final Boss, the game is over. In addition to the Fear and Courage tokens, the Adventurer has Mana tokens that can be used to access special abilities, and the DM has Tenacity tokens that can be used to boost Dungeon Cards’ attack strength.
In the solitaire game there is no DM, so traps, ambushes, and other special attacks don’t come into play. Instead, the use of Fear tokens is modified. Whenever the Adventurer loses a fight and a Fear token is added to the DM’s pile, the new number of Fear tokens is selected from a list of scenarios to tell you the outcome. For example, in The Lair of the Lich’s easy scenario: If the DM gains a second Fear token, “The Greenskins are mobilized. Greenskins gain a bonus of +1 Strength”. There are three Solitaire scenarios included in the instruction manual: The Dead of Night (Easy), In Search of Abunakkashii (Medium), and Meet the Lich (Difficult). You can create your own additional scenarios or download more from Asmodee Editions.
Presently there are three Hero IK games: The Lair of the Lich, The Infernal Forge, and the Den of Dementia. They all follow the same gameplay rules and can be played individually or combined to build a customized deck. The cards are even numbered in the lower right-hand corner so you can easily separate them if you decide to play the standard game again.
While most of the battles are decided with the role of a die, plus whatever special skills, abilities, or attacks the Adventurer (or DM) adds, the Greenskins (kind of like trolls) have a different way of settling things in a two-player game: Rock, Paper, Scissors. This brought about a few laughs when timing was off, so you might want to play a few rounds of RPS with your partner before the game begins, just to make sure you aren’t showing on the third count when they are going on the fourth. The game is fairly well-balanced, but is geared towards the Adventurer. The DM only has so much they can do, but it is fun to watch the Adventurer squirm as you lay ambushes to thwart their progress. In The Lair of the Lich, there are no trap cards, but they have been added to The Infernal Forge and Den of Dementia, as well as additional heroes, monsters, and Final Monsters to make things a bit more difficult.
The instruction book is actually more detailed than you realize the first time reading it through, and it is a bit difficult to understand until you actually start playing the game. Maybe I’m a slow learner, but I used the book for just about every hand for the first five or six Solitaire games I played. Every time I played, I learned more or understood an aspect of the gameplay I didn’t really get before. The cards have everything on their face that you need to know once you know how to read them, though, and eventually the book won’t be necessary except for the Scenario chart when playing the Solitaire version.
After familiarizing myself with the Solitiare version of the game, I played Hero IK as DM with my 15-year-old son as Adventurer. He used to play Yu-Gi-Oh! and other similar games when he was younger, so learning a new, more mature card game appealed to him. About halfway through our first game, when I asked him what he thought about it, he replied, “Much better than Yu-Gi-Oh!” As we discussed the game, we both agreed that while it is fun the way it is, its real strength will be in the unlimited possibilities opened up once it is customized. We are already making plans for customizing our game rules and decks once we are more confident with the three standard games (with and without constructed decks).
The cards are about the same size as, but more durable than, standard game cards, with rounded edges to cut back on getting dog ears on the corners. The artwork is a Manga or Anime style that at times reminds me of the animated films The Lord of the Rings and The Last Unicorn. In addition to the 60-card deck, there are two die (one standard 6-sided die and one 8,10 or 12-sided die) and 28 tokens. Everything stores away in a sturdy box about the size of a paperback novel. The lid fits snugly so it will be easy to take the game from its place on your bookshelf and toss it in a bag or backpack when you head out to hang with friends. It’s fairly easy to learn how to play and, after many of the possible scenarios have played out, Hero IK has lots of potential for expansion and customization without getting bogged down in some of the more complicated game rules seen in other games. Some hard-core gamers might say this is a watered down or “lite” version of a RPG/Strategy card game, but that would be overlooking the possibilities of this streamlined and enjoyable game. Whether you are a solitary gamer, one who doesn’t have time for long games, or someone who has wanted to try their hand at a card game but has been too intimidated to try it, I recommend picking up Hero: Immortal King.
Contents
• 4 adventurer cards
• 7 equipment cards
• 48 dungeon cards
• 1 final monster card
• 1 6-sided die
• 1 12-sided die* or a 10-sided die** or an 8-sided die***
• 4 Mana tokens
• 4 Tenacity tokens
• 10 Courage tokens
• 10 Fear tokens
Hero IK supports 1-2 players, ages 9 and up. Game length: about 30 minutes.
Hero: Immortal King: The Lair of the Lich, Hero: Immortal King: The Infernal Forge, and Hero: Immortal King: Den of Dementia are distributed by Asmodee Editions (US), a subsidiary of Asmodee Editions (France).
With The Hobbit and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader both currently in production, now is the ideal time to invest in a related costume piece from Stansborough Fibres, one of the authentic suppliers of The Lord of the Rings and Narnia product lines. Stansborough Fibres has been selling the Authentic Magic Fellowship Costume Cloak under full license and endorsement from New Line Cinema since the completion of The Lord of the Rings, and continues to supply Weta Workshop and New Line Cinema (now a division of Warner Brothers) with costuming, cloaks, and accessories made from the fabrics created for the fantasy trilogy.
Magic Fellowship Costume Cloak with Brooch
“Our Fellowship cloaks are of very high quality, all hand-made individually and numbered as a registered limited edition. These are the only ones in the world that are made from the actual fabric used in the movie and from the yarn and fleece which is grown at our farm, Stansborough. It’s the only wool of its kind in the world. We take great care in making them as close to the original design as possible and sewn with every care when creating each garment,” says Cheryl Eldridge of Stansborough Fibres.
In addition to the full-sized cloak, there’s an adorable Mini Fellowship Cloak, made from the same fabric but without the double-lined authentic hood. This is a smaller replica of the Fellowship cloak, meant for a teddy bear or doll.
Mini Fellowship Cloak
“The images on our website of the cloaks and the other products made from the same fabric are a good representation of our movie costuming,” Cheryl Eldridge continues. “Of course, the fabric is much better in real life and all the clients who have them are thrilled with them when they arrive. They are always more impressed with the actual products when they arrive.”
If you’re ever in New Zealand, escape to the real “Middle Earth” by staying at Stansborough Cottage or taking an interactive Experience Stansborough tour, with personal and group tours available by appointment. Elle Canada did an article in their May edition on what to see in Wellington, New Zealand, and Stansborough Fibres was featured as the place to go and purchase some unique New Zealand-made products.
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe: Mr Tumnus Scarf
For artisans wanting to make their own “Stansborough Grey” designs, Stansborough Fibres offers a Spinners & Weavers selection of washed fleece, roving slivers, and knitting yarn. There’s a wholesale Buyers Range for commercial clients, as well.
When Cheryl and Barry Eldridge looked to diversify the farming activities on Stansborough, their New Zealand sheep station, sixteen years ago, they had no idea the results would eventually be seen on cinema screens around the world. The unique fibre created by their flock of rare grey sheep was used to costume most of the main characters appearing in the blockbuster Lord of the Rings trilogy and was seen again in two other major Disney productions, Narnia’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian, along with The Waterhorse, BBC’s Kidnapped and several other projects. This New Zealand couple says that producing the fabric for the “Fellowship Cloaks” and major costuming in the Lord of the Rings movies was their ultimate challenge and their biggest achievement to date.
In 1991, Cheryl and Barry Eldridge concluded that their hill country sheep and cattle farm, situated in a picturesque valley in the Wairarapa, two hours drive north of Wellington, was a marginal farming operation. Instead of following the example of many others that turned their properties into pine plantations, the Eldridges looked for more imaginative options. Their search resulted in them obtaining a small flock of grey sheep and several alpacas. These sheep are also now registered as a wool breed in their own right, “Stansborough Greys”.
These grey sheep, that historically originate from an island off the coast of Sweden, now have wool that is unusually silky, soft and lustrous. This is the result of many years of selective breeding and hard work, producing a “Stansborough Grey” flock of over twelve hundred. There are also sixty alpacas on the farm whose fibre adds warmth and variety to many of the end products. When on display in New York, the unusual qualities of the “Stansborough Grey” fibre caught the eyes of the Lord of the Rings costume designers and led to the order for the costumes for Tolkien’s creations, and other subsequent movies.
The Eldridges personally attend the shearing, hand sorting and grading of the fleece of each animal. After the fleece has been professionally spun, the yarn is then woven at their own small weaving mill in Wellington. 100% grown, inspired, designed and created in New Zealand, the end product is totally eco-friendly, from the sustainable way the animals are farmed, to the finished textiles. Fibres used are in totally natural colours or dyed with only biodegradable overdyes.
Cheryl Eldridge, who has a background in the creative arts, along with daughter Kiri, designs all the fabric, accessories and end product range. Barry Eldridge draws on an engineering background to expertly operate the historic looms they use in their factory. Both their sons, Jamie and Gavin, help with the farm and the accounts. The looms, that came out to New Zealand in the early 1900s, were developed in England in the 1890s to make fine worsted textiles and are themselves masterpieces of design and engineering. These were among the very first commercial looms manufactured, at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, and have the ability to still create heirloom textiles from a byegone era.
Cheryl and Barry Eldridge are constantly developing their range of original and unique fashion, interiors and baby wear. These are now marketed through outlets in the United Kingdom, Europe, USA, Canada and Australia. What originally started out as an idea to keep a rare sheep from extinction and a farm operating profitably, has grown into a family business that begins out in the paddock and ends in high end fashion outlets or boutique hotels around the world, and increasingly on blockbuster cinema screens!
For more information, and the latest on Stansborough Fibres’ involvement in Disney’s The Chronicles of Narnia, visit the Stansborough Fibres website.
Featuring MST3K Film Episodes Mad Monster, Manhunt in Space, Soultaker and Final Justice, Limited-Edition Mini-Posters, and All-New Bonus Content
In Stores Nationwide February 3, 2009, from Shout! Factory
From 1988 to 1999, the hilarious and widely beloved space travelers on The Satellite of Love from Mystery Science Theater 3000 skewered B-movies and in the process made them masterworks of comedy. Hot on the heels of the recent Mystery Science Theater 3000: 20th Anniversary celebration, Shout! Factory in association with Best Brains, Inc. proudly present the Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XIV 4-DVD box set on February 3, 2009. Poised to satisfy the appetite of fans for ritual viewing, as well as a perfect Valentine’s Day gift for pop culture geeks, the awe-inspiring 14th collection of the side-splitting Mystery Science Theater 3000 features the show’s never-before-released film episodes Mad Monster, Manhunt in Space, Soultaker and Final Justice, 4 limited-edition mini-posters, along with a wealth of new bonus content, including a brand-new interview with Soultaker star and MSTie favorite Joe Estevez; a new interview with Final Justice writer/director Greydon Clark; Mike Nelson, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot on ESPN’s Cheap Seats without Ron Parker; and original trailers. Join the banter as Joel Hodgson, Mike Nelson, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot supply their own playful brand of commentaries on some of cinema’s most misunderstood “masterpieces” in Shout! Factory’s Mystery Science Theater 3000: Volume XIV. This collectible 4-DVD box set is priced to own at $59.99.
Mad Monster
Obsessed with getting revenge on those responsible for the demise of his career, Dr. Lorenzo Cameron concocts a serum that transforms his unsuspecting gardener into a deadly wolf-man. Join hosts Joel Hodgson, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot as they send up the very best revenge-fueled-wolf-monster-created-by-a-mad-scientist film of 1942! This memorable episode of MST3K also includes the short Commando Cody & The Radar Men from the Moon.
Manhunt in Space
Launched into space with the mission of rescuing the lovely Vena from a gang of notorious space pirates, Rocky and his copilot Winky are once again ready to fight evil to the very end — even if it takes them to the furthest edge of the galaxy! Composed of reassembled episodes from the short-lived 1950s television series Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, Manhunt in Space is unable to escape the cinematic critique of Joel and the ’bots of the Satellite of Love. Also includes the short General Hospital, segment 1!
Soultaker
After four youths are involved in a serious car accident, a mysterious man in black is sent to claim their souls — but these feisty teens aren’t yet ready to pass into the afterlife. Now they must return to their hospital-bound bodies before their parents decide to pull the plug or, worse yet, the Soultaker catches them. Starring MSTie faves Joe Estevez and Robert Z’Dar, Soultaker is perfect fodder for the sarcastic wit and wisdom of Mike, Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo aboard the Satellite of Love.
Final Justice
When tough-as-nails Texas Deputy Sheriff Thomas Jefferson Geronimo captures a member of the Italian mob, only he can successfully get his prisoner back to Italy to stand trial. But the Mafia declares war on Geronimo. That was their last mistake. The hard-hitting crew of the Satellite of Love — Mike, Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot — pulls absolutely no punches when riffing on Final Justice (starring legendary Mystery Science Theater 3000 antagonist Joe Don Baker), making this one of MST3K’s most beloved episodes of all time.
The way Daryl Hall and John Oates tell it, they met at Temple University by chance while fleeing a riot at the Adelphi Ballroom Battle of the Bands in 1967. They both ran to a service elevator when shots started getting fired. It was two years before they became a duo, and another three years before they recorded their first album, but that fateful meeting led to the formation of one of the best-selling duos of all time: Hall & Oates.
Thirty-five years ago, after the release of their first album, they opened for Harry Chapin at the Troubadour in Los Angeles. They went on to a successful career that spans several decades, with such a unique flavor that they continue to inspire and influence today’s new music. In May of 2008, thirty-five years and 60 million albums later, Hall & Oates returned to the stage at the Troubadour for the first time since that long-ago premiere. For two nights they performed to sold-out crowds and, fortunately for us, it was all captured by ten remote-controlled HD cameras by Blaze TV. Featuring their greatest hits like “Out of Touch”, “Maneater,” “Private Eyes,” “Rich Girl,” and “Kiss on My List,” it is now being offered to us by Shout! Factory in 3 formats: DVD, Blu-ray and a 2-CD/1-DVD combo.
Growing up with them playing on the radio, they were one of my favorite bands. I’ve always been attracted to lyric-driven music and Hall & Oates never let me down. I loved the way that they integrated emerging technology into their multi-cultural and multi-genre influenced music, creating not just songs but events. While many bands were trying to do something different to stand out from their contemporaries, Hall & Oates had a unique sound and style that seemed to be less a marketing ploy and more like a couple of guys unapologetically loving what they were doing and having a lot of fun with it. While I was a fan, I didn’t have all of their albums, so when I began listening to Live at the Troubadour I was surprised by how many songs I knew well. Without the added sound effects and electronic noises I enjoyed in many of the originals, this largely “unplugged” performance surpassed my expectations. The lyrics don’t get lost in the studio polish. Even songs that relied on the electronic sounds like “Out of Touch” transition extremely well in this laid-back “jam” session.
Perhaps it was the intensity of coming “full circle”, as Daryl Hall put it, that his vocals started out a bit reedy, but he quickly warmed up with the music and within moments of the first song his voice flowed smooth and rich like silk slipping through your fingers. I can’t really explain why the term “organic” keeps coming to mind, other than noting, perhaps, how warm and genuine the performance feels. Listening to it is pure pleasure. (I’ve had the double CD playing on repeat for three days now and still haven’t gotten my fill.) The folksy storytelling with jazzy and bluesy flavors kept my toes tapping and head bobbing as I sang along. They still look great, sound great, and seem to be enjoying themselves even more than the crowd, if that’s possible. Daryl’s Cheshire grin never seemed to leave his face as he played his keyboard and the audience masterfully. We even got to hear John perform his “Had I Known You Better Then.” The band played wonderfully and the vocal harmonies blended so well that the audience (and you, via camera) can’t help but be lulled into a sense of intimacy. I especially loved the 9 minute and 38 second long rendition of “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)”. It reminded me of some of the jamming in Sting’s Bring on the Night tour. If you liked Hall & Oates at all, you are going to love Live at the Troubadour.
The 2-CD/1-DVD combo includes the following songs:
CD Disc One:
1. Everything Your Heart Desires (Daryl Hall)
2. When the Morning Comes (Daryl Hall)
3. Family Man (Tim Cross/Rick Fenn/Mike Frye/Mike Oldfield/Morris Pert/Maggie Reilly)
4. Say It Isn’t So (Daryl Hall)
5. It’s Uncanny (Daryl Hall)
6. Had I Known You Better Then (John Oates)
7. She’s Gone (Daryl Hall/John Oates)
8. Getaway Car (Gary Haase/Billy Mann)
9. Cab Driver (Louis Brown/Alan Gorrie/Daryl Hall)
CD Disc Two:
1. One on One (Daryl Hall)
2. Sara Smile (Daryl Hall/John Oates)
3. Maneater (Sara Allen/Daryl Hall/John Oates)
4. Out of Touch (Daryl Hall/John Oates)
5. I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do) (Sara Allen/Daryl Hall/John Oates)
6. Rich Girl (Daryl Hall)
7. Kiss on My List (Janna Allen/Daryl Hall)
8. You Make My Dreams (Sara Allen/Daryl Hall/John Oates)
9. Abandoned Luncheonette (Daryl Hall)
10. Private Eyes (Sara Allen/Janna Allen/Daryl Hall/Warren Pash)
DVD Performances:
1. Everything Your Heart Desires
2. When the Morning Comes
3. Family Man
4. Say It Isn’t So
5. It’s Uncanny
6. Had I Known You Better Then
7. She’s Gone
8. Getaway Car
9. Cab Driver
10. One on One
11. Sara Smile
12. Maneater
13. Out of Touch
14. I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)
15. Rich Girl
16. Kiss on My List
17. You Make My Dreams
18. Abandoned Luncheonette
19. Private Eyes
All New Interviews with Daryl & John Oates
It’s Monty Python Fluxx — the card game where it’s fun to make your brain hurt.
Get a shrubbery for the knights who say NI! Build a giant wooden rabbit! And since it’s Fluxx, you can expect the rules to constantly change… but don’t expect the Spanish Inquisition!
Monty Python Fluxx is based mainly on Monty Python and the Holy Grail, but squeezes in a number of fan-favourite references from Flying Circus and the other movies. There are 100 cards in the set, laden with colourful illustrations of such iconic Monty Python jokes as the Coconut-Laden Swallow, the Finger of God, the Ex-Parrot, the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, and the Legendary Black Beast of Aaarrghh. (Sadly, Spam and Fish Slapping cards are absent.) Most entertaining of all are the “What is Your Quote?” and “I Want to Sing!” cards, which turn a player’s trivial ability to quote lines and sing songs from Monty Python into a game-winning asset.
“The random and chaotic nature of the Fluxx engine makes it a perfect vehicle for the crazy world of Monty Python!” enthuses Looney Labs. “Fluxx is the perfect medium for the group that brought us Something Completely Different at every turn.” The company further says, “Yes, that crazy card game where the rules keep changing has joined forces with Monty Python to create the Looneyest card game ever! Help King Arthur and his Knights find the Holy Grail. Bring a Shrubbery to the Knights Who Say Ni! Lob the Holy Hand Grenade at the Killer Rabbit with Nasty Big Teeth! Just do it quick, before the Goal changes again!” This is clearly a game that no Monty Python fan should be without.
In addition to the game, Looney Labs offers a poster that’s “an awesome composite of the cover art and other elements from Monty Python Fluxx, including the catapult, the cow, and the Trojan Rabbit.” The 11×17 inch poster was included free with games pre-ordered directly from Looney Labs, but is now available for anyone to purchase through Looney Labs’ Web Store.
Monty Python Fluxx supports 2-6 players, ages 8 and up. Game length: 10–40 minutes.
Or order directly through the Looney Labs website.
Monty Python Fluxx is distributed by Looney Labs, published under license with Toy Vault & Monty Python. For more information on Monty Python Fluxx, visit the official product page at Monty Python Fluxx.
And for all you international folks — we have not forgotten about you! The disc is region-free! Whee!
We hope you love “Commentary! The Musical” as much as we loved creating it — exhausting as it was. Of course, there’s more to the special features — ELE applications, making-of’s, regular commentary, an egg lying around here and there…
Our pre-order page launched last Friday and we sky-rocketed to the top 50 sales rank in the TV & Movie DVD category. A million thank you’s would never be enough. Your support has us all overwhelmed and it makes us especially cheery this holiday season.
Check out a note from the man himself… re: the DVD.
We’ve got a lot more in store for you. A CD. More shirts. Be excited because we are! Check out drhorrible.com for the most up to date information.
Again, thank you, thank you, thank you to you! Our fans! This literally would not have been possible without you. And because of you, there is more to come…
