Moleskin Rabbit: pen, pencil crayon on paper.

Boy Marionette: pencil on paper.  Some of you may recognize the silhouette of the rabbit around this boy's head; it's a Lucky Rabbit!  Sometimes sketches overlap each other, not for lack of room on the page, but just because.

Owl Marionette Sketch: pencil on paper.  I like that little peeping guy in the bottom right.  I didn't see him till after editing the picture.  I hope he isn't looking up that owl's skirts.

When I go to make a new(for me) style of puppet I usually make a few different test ones to see which I like best.  I have been making marionettes for a number of years now, but they weren't moving the way I wanted them to, so I  experimented with different ways of construction.  This style of puppet is influenced by Hazelle marionettes.  It is made with a wooden block, muslin, wire, and stones to weigh the limbs down. 

The advantage to building the marionettes this way is that the head is now much more expressive and mobile, and more movement can be gained in the legs by having them on a separate controller. I also prefer the look of this kind of marionette over what I was doing before; it is a little more old fashioned.