Once of my nieces is obsessed with Dunnys… and she just turned 2 years old yesterday. Yea, sounds crazy doesn’t it? Once she saw my insane collection a while back (commonly referred to as “The Dunny Museum”) she was completely floored. Her jaw dropped and she screamed “Dunny” over and over. I figured it was only a natural progression to give her a custom Munny for her birthday… even if she is only 2.

When Kidrobot introduced their new do-it-yourself MUNNYWORLD shapes, I saw Bub and instantly pictured him with a beard. I haven’t had time until now to actually create the custom, but finally I’ve nearly completed this guy.

Got a little inspiration from Samurai Jack and (one of my favorite toy designers) Huck Gee. I still think he needs an accessory of sorts. We’ll see what I can come up with.

Behind The Scenes:

For the past few months I’ve been taking pictures for my buddy, Matt. He customizes tons of vinyl toys and needs pictures for his store. As a “thank you” for all the pictures I’ve taken, he made me this little “Honey Dunny.” It looks awesome. Thanks Matt!

Another year, another Dunny Series. That reminds me – I need to update my vinyl collection list. I have… so many… it’s… obscene. I love Dunnys the most. Whenever a new series comes around, it’s like Christmas. Opening all those tiny boxes, not knowing what’s inside, fun little toys with great designs. It’s really exhilarating. And the toys always look different in person. Always. So this afternoon around 12:45PM at Kidrobot NY, I grabbed a case of the new Fatale Series. With the purchase of a case, they were giving away a free limited edition colorway of the KLOR Dunny.

Obviously I assumed it to be sold out by the time I got there, and sure enough when I asked about it, they were. Then just as I was finishing up my transaction, another associate comes from the back room and gives me the toy. She said “Someone reserved this but they don’t need it anymore.” Well, hallelujah for that. Great altruist toy sellers.

I get back to the office and a buddy of mine was dying to open up a few. So I let him open up a couple. Eventually he convinced me to open up the whole case right then and there. Now, he customizes toys and appreciates them, but he’s not into the whole “collecting” aspect. Though he had to admit, it was pretty great opening up all those Dunny boxes. He says I’ll always have to buy them at the store so we can open them up together. HA!

Well, I got nearly the whole set, grabbed one I was missing on the bay, and a the rest from a retailer I know well. Peter, you’re a great guy.

So besides the Baroness Chase, I’ve got the whole set now. But…I always get the whole set… watch out Baroness Dunny…

Commissioned Mini Munny for Southside Slim. I was experimenting with the larger Sharpie Paint Markers I have. They definitely feel nicer than the Extra Fine Tip. The paint flow is much more even and there is less clogging/drying – but it’s frustrating that I can’t achieve fine detail. I still have a few more brands of paint marker to try though, so we’ll see. (SIDENOTE: I despise DECO COLOR paint markers even more than before. After clear coating my R50 Munny, the marker seemed to be “sealed” – no longer sticky. Well, several weeks later, the paint has seeped through and is stick once more. I gave it two more coats of clear coat tonight, almost ruining the toy when handling. Gross.)

I’ve also got a Green “Letters” Mini Munny in the works for him as well. I’m trying to get some more foam letters though, so it might be a week or two. Stay Tuned.

When I made my first Munny a bunch of people asked if he was for sale. He may not have been but this little guy is. If you’re interested check him out at the store! And hey, if you miss out, I may be able to make you one of your own. Just ask. Check him out at the Honey Design Store – i’m a design whore.

Now that I’m on the “custom vinyl toy creation” bandwagon, I really wanted to test out some paint markers, so I made this little guy. And… I really hate paint markers. I tried two different types:

Sharpie Oil-Based Paint Markers: I feel like even with an Extra Fine Point, the tip is still too large. The paint flow was alright, a bit bumpy on the Munny’s surface though. I didn’t have the precession I would have wanted.  It’s just really frustrating when I can’t achieve the kind of precision and detail I would like. Also a bit annoying was the fact the tip dried out pretty quickly, and I had to start the flow again on a test sheet. The paint dried well on the toy and it didn’t run, thankfully. After spraying with some Krylon Satin Finish clear coat, the colors did not run and felt a little more stable. I mean, they are pretty decent markers. I’d use them again if I had to but for small detailed areas I feel I can do better with a brush. (We’ll see. Perhaps I’ll get used to them…)  I’m definitely going to try the larger tips for different kids of designs.

Decocolor Paint Markers: Sharpie did not have the color selection I wanted in their Extra Fine Tips, so I went with another brand. These markers are horrible. First, I had problems achieving an even flow of paint. The marker was shaken well, as per instructions, but the paint would not flow evenly. It took forever for me to get a consistent bead of paint. Also, the tip came right out of the marker. Paint was leaking everywhere. It was a mess. After battling for several minutes and despite my frustration, I decided to still try the marker on the Munny. It was a hot mess. The paint was all blotchy and sticky and the tip was getting all gunked up. I had a rough time… but that’s not even the worst part. After about 7 hours the paint did not “dry.” It was very tacky and would smudge easily. Thankfully I had a plastic eraser that removed the smudges. And even better, the clear coat sealed in paint and allowed the toy to be handled. I definitely would not recommend these markers for this project. I don’t think I will ever be using the again.

Even though the process was horendous, and, I still think the Munny looks pretty good. I like the design, so I may even try it again using different techniques.

I prefer Silver to Gold and Dunnys to Diamonds. My favorite Christmas gift this year is this doughnut link necklace in silver from Tiffany & Co. with a silver Dunny charm from Kidrobot. That is all. Thanks my.

I finally completed my first custom Munny. (Tribute to Tilt) Hooray! OK, so there are a bunch of problems, it’s not perfect, but overall it came out pretty nice. I’ve got to give myself a little credit. I’m new at toy customization, and I’ve never used an airbrush before today. Sure, I made a lot of mistakes, but I’m looking to find out the error of my ways. Few things I’ve learned already…

• Give light coats (thin mist) and let each coat them dry thoroughly between applications.
• Do not overcoat.
• Do not come too close to the object you are painting.
• Apply in a well lit and well ventilated area.
• Be patient.

The main problem I have is that, the coating feels too soft. It can be dented with your fingernail pretty easily. Though, it is not sticky at all.

I used the following products:

Priming
Krylon – Indoor/Outdoor All-Purpose-White Primer

Airbrushing
Createx Colors – Airbrush Paint

Clear Coat
Krylon – Satin Finish

I got the airbrush and compressor (not shown) on eBay for a sweet price.

Airbrushing came easier than I thought (thought I still need a lot of practice). After 2-3 coats.

The original color, Pearlized Magenta, looked brilliant.

Mmm, candy coating…

Not too shabby in this shot.

Artist signature – too bad I only have fat tip Sharpie Paint Pens.

After several coats of primer, I think this guy is ready for airbrushing. I’ll probably get to that sometime this weekend. He is either gonna be Pearlized Magenta or Fluorescent Raspberry. I’m thinkin’ the former.

Check out Part One.