A few of our past presidents chillin' on my chair at home. I love Tobie's type treatment.
Flipped one so you could check the handpainted, hand stitched detail on the back. See the updated designs here: A Wahl Designs.
This past spring I had the pleasure of getting to know Tobie through my great pal Shannah. Tobie is pretty much all cute all the time. She's the kind of girl who can do anything she puts her mind to—from cooking to creating. And, she was a behind-the-scenes super helper with our Diorama-O-Rama fundraiser and all of us organizers adored her for it. Before her and her man moved to Austin in September she designed these pillows. Here's what she has to say about them.
Over the
summer you lived in Dallas and you filled time with lots of neat creative projects, one being these radical pillows. Where did the idea
come from?
One day I found
myself bored and homesick for my home state of Washington. So I searched Google images for "Washington" and, as fate would have it, up popped a picture
of George Washington. His iconic silhouette immediately struck me so I drew him
out and printed him on some muslin I had laying around. The lettering followed, and then it morphed into a pillow. My artistic process is all about trial and
error. I have an idea and run with it—sometimes it works, other times it doesn’t.
George worked, then Obama, Jefferson, and Lincoln followed.
I doubt you
can tell from these amateur pictures of my pillows that a lot of handwork goes
into making them. What's your process?
Each pillow is 100
percent handmade at my home in Austin and takes about two hours
from start to finish. I hand print the silhouette and lettering onto muslin,
and once it’s dry, I sew it to a lightweight red canvas. Next it's stuffed and
then closed with hand stitching. Each pillow is a slightly different shape, which makes each one original. Even though they take quite a
bit of time and energy to make, nothing beats the satisfaction of seeing one
completely put together and ready to mail off to someone. It’s the best, and I
love that people enjoy them as much as I do.
So, why
these presidents? And have you designed others?
Jefferson, Lincoln, and
Washington were picked for their silhouettes. Obama was a must, but I struggled
with him at first because he doesn’t have facial features as defined as the
others. But he’s working for me and is my best seller by far. I love
an Obama with a founding father, old school meets new school. I have a blog and am selling Obama’s on Etsy. Since I’m in school
I’m making pillows when I have time and as they are ordered. Obama’s the only
one on Etsy, but special orders are welcome. Maybe you’ve always dreamed of a Martin Van Buren pillow? Let's talk.
