Why are there no Sesame St/Muppet patterns?
This is a misnomer: many people want to make muppet-type puppets. Yes there are plenty of patterns to be found to make them. This article discusses the specific characters (Miss Piggy, Kermit, etc) found on the TV shows The Muppets and Sesame St. No, there are no patterns to make them… Read on…
A lot of people do searches on the net in order to find Miss Piggy, Kermit, Janice, Animal, Ernie, Cookie Monster, Gonzo, Elmo, Swedish Chef or other Sesame St and/or The Muppets patterns. They don’t find many, if any at all. Why?
BECAUSE THESE PUPPETS ARE COPYRIGHTED. Think about it for a second… You spend your entire life learning a trade; you invent a new design. Then someone comes along and makes an exact copy of this design. Maybe they want to sell knock-offs. You’d be pretty pissed off, wouldn’t you? Well, it’s exactly the same here. UPDATE 03/11/08: You can now get sued for selling knock offs from The Muppets and/or Sesame Street.
If you really want a puppet that looks like any of the Henson designs, then I suggest doing the following:
- Buying a puppet replica from
Master Replicas(read below for new seller) that produce poseable Kermits (etc.), which are made using the exact same pattern as the original (or you could buy other official merchandise - check out the info at Muppet Central) UPDATE: FAO Schwartz offers personalised ‘Whatnot’ muppets for about $90 US; although some people told me they ship overseas, when I enquired to the company itself, they stated they did not. - UPDATE 15 June 2009: eFX Inc is now selling poseable replicas. You can read more about it here.
- Learning how to make your own muppet-type, which while may look similar to the Henson designs, don’t actually copy them. The great thing about the muppet technique - and why it’s so popular - is the building methods are the same, but can produce a zillion unique characters. (UPDATE: Check out what Henson himself is reported to have thought of replicas) Trust me, nothing pisses off us professional puppet makers than seeing someone rip off the Henson designs. We WILL report unofficial replica makers to authorities and relevant parties. UPDATE: Not only can you rip off Henson and co., but you can be ripped off yourself from dodgy puppet makers. Check this out for more info.
You can try using this Kermit pattern or Scooter pattern from Puppet Planet.com. These are simply ripped apart toys, so they’re hardly what I would call patterns, and certainly won’t end up looking like a real puppet. I don’t recommend building puppets that are copies; for a start, it’s not nice to steal other people’s designs. Secondly, it’s much more fun making your own. Neither of the above patterns come with instructions, and there’s probably a reason why.UPDATE 20 Sept 2009: I really regret writing the above stuff. It appears as though I say, "don’t make a replica", and then say "here’s some patterns". I was merely trying to post as much info as possible; but now I really don’t want to be associated with the suggestion that anyone should be using those two above links to make their own work. Furthermore, as over a year has passed and I’ve commented more and more on replicas and how bad they are for the puppetry industry, I’m really starting to get pissed off with the subject and those willing to buy - at any cost, mainly to the pro puppet maker - replicas. Add that to the fact that I’ve read more and more from other puppet makers how infuriating it is to see their own work, or the works of others, ripped off, and I’m even more militant in my stance against replicas. (There is a line between inspiration and replication to be sure, but when we speak of buying Kermit, it ends up being replication and not inspiration) Those who appreciate the work should just stick to buying official merchandise, and support their favourite artists by putting their money where their mouths are.
I don’t recommend approaching anyone to make you a replica, nor do I endorse replicas of any sort.
As mentioned in my post on NOT making puppets from The Lion King, it’s not ethical of me to provide step-by-step instructions of how to make your own Kermit. Puppeteers make their living from Henson’s work, so do yourself a favour and just buy a damn soft toy from The Muppets website. At least you’ll know it comes from the Henson company, won’t be a knock-off, and will be enjoyed as a true way of honouring the brilliant and simple puppet designs. You might want to also read this post from Andrew at PuppetVision, who also rails against replicas.
For some more info on building your own muppet-type puppets, check out this post. Additionally you can find some helpful forums about buying muppets here. Wanting to know a bit more about Avenue Q puppets? Read this post. Read the article on dispelling some myths about free patterns.
There’s no Sesame St/Muppet patterns, but there are ones you can use to make your own muppet-type character. Check out my patterns here and here!
This post AKA How to make a puppet from the Muppets and/or Sesame St, AKA
Where to Buy The Muppet Show Puppets, AKA where to buy muppet replicas,
AKA muppet replica puppets, AKA tutorial on designing Ernie puppet, AKA why are there no muppet puppets for sale [there are, just not useable ones for performances; see FAO Schwartz comments], AKA create sesame puppet
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