Stupid Sock Creatures are what result when imagination runs wild.
Crazy, no-holds-barred wild.
Artist John Murphy started making little stuffed monsters called Stupid Creatures back in 2003 as an outlet for his off-the-wall ingenuity and a way to pay his bills. He eventually wrote a how-to book on making lovably hideous creatures from socks, and now he’s back with a follow-up, Return of the Stupid Sock Creatures: Evolutions, Mutations, and Other Creations.
This time he enlisted guest designers ranging in age from adolescents to adults, who share their instructions for making wacky beasts that span all manner of bug-eyed, snaggle-toothed, abominably endearing weirdness. Murphy’s entertaining text makes the little stuffed beings all the more appealing.
He covers the basics of creature-making in a non-intimidating style, so budding sock artists will be equipped to take on the projects in the book or branch out with their own brand of eccentricity.
Return of the Stupid Sock Creatures is published by Lark Crafts and sells for $17.95 in softcover.
— Mary Beth Breckenridge
