OOAK Panda

"Carpe Diem"

... sieze the day!

One Of A Kind Mink Panda

This special panda was created in celebration of my daughter

earning her Master of Social Work degree

I'm calling this panda "Carpe Diem", a term from the movie Dead Poets Society that my daughter and I watched together several times when she was taking a film class.

The panda is a symbol of gentleness and strength,

                         calm determination, and the ability to take time to reach your goals

This mink panda includes some very special features:

~ a pocket watch necklace with a handsculpted koi

~ handmade hand painted glass eyes

~ needle sculpted wool paw pads

~ this is one of my larger panda standing at 10 1/2 inches tall

~ embroidered, waxed and sealed nose

~ 6 joints including a double jointed neck

~ wire armatured in arms and legs for gentle posing

~ gentle hand painted details

~scissor sculpted face

~ panda is completely lined for durability

The pocket watch symbolizes how time passes so quickly that we may not realize that there may not be enough time to accomplish all of our goals. So, it is important to enjoy life, appreciate the opportunities come our way, and to live our lives with passion.

This panda has a double jointed neck which gives it more

interesting posing abilities.

It also has an embroidered, waxed, and sealed nose.

The panda's muzzle has been scissor sculpted.

These are One Of A Kind glass eyes that I made and 

hand painted myself.

This is the first time that I have made wool paw pads 

with needle felted details that have been waxed and sealed

Koi Pocket Watch

Sculpting koi fish inside of pocket watches is my newest personal hobby and this is the first time that I am releasing one of my Koi Pocket Watches. But it seemed to be a necessary detail to be included with the panda theme to honor my daughter's accomplishment ... because while it is a struggle for anyone to earn a Master Degree it is even more of a struggle when you have a serious chronic illness, like my daughter who has Cystic Fibrosis. So her struggle was very much like the legend of the koi that swims against the current to reach their destination:

The story of koi overcoming adversity has been in Japanese culture for generations. The story says that koi climb a waterfall in spite of the heavy current attempting to keep them in their pool. Koi battled perseverance to climb the falls because it wanted this outcome so badly.

An alternate version of the koi story from Chinese culture says that the koi swam the length of the Yellow River in spite of the current to reach the Dragon Gate. When they finished this feat they turned into a dragon. This adds a more advanced note to an already inspiring tale.

Please CLICK HERE for more photos and details about my Bas Relief sculptures

This panda was adopted prior to its completion by a very dear friend .... she has named the panda "DeDa"