Invite an Ipp to come Hang Out with You!

The Ipps are loose and they want to come see you...

They want to come to your house.

They want to come to your office.

They want to be your friend.

So far there are a space, viking, rock and roll and sports Ipp.

They are magnets, so you can put them where you want and accessorize as you like.

Since they are hand-assembled, they come in a fashionable sandwich bag. Since that's what I have. And I want to use after-market and salvaged materials as much as I can.

It says there's one in stock for each style, but that's not really true. I can make more.

So, invite an Ipp to hang out with you! Or get several and mix their accessories up. Or give one to a friend - they are good karma I'm told.

An Ipp, a Bad Day, and Non-Linear Storytelling

An Ipp, a Bad Day, and Non-Linear Storytelling
Originally uploaded by betsystreeter

This is a non-linear tale of one Ipp's bad day. In my past as an information architect I tended to work my way from a central thought out to various "framing" thoughts, like spokes on a wheel (I call them mandalas).
That's what I'm doing here in this comic - from one angry Ipp in the center to the various reasons the Ipp is angry. Noise, customer service menus, being sick, bad stuff in the news. Together, they tell the story.
And yes, this is actually my bad day - and as I worked my way outward, I felt better. So I framed the whole thing with an "architecture" made up of peace, love, music and art.

What's that new colorful thing over there?

Hey, you may notice on my main blog page - there's now a "mini" of my store where I'm going to be selling handmade Ipp stuff! This is a grand experiment for me - the first things I've put up there are Ipp magnet sets, which come with fabulous accessories like space stuff, sporting equipment, and viking helmets. So take a look - you can buy stuff with a credit card and everything. So very high tech. And if you think someone you know would like these, by all means send it on!! I'm told these little guys bring good karma.

New Ipp Strip: Booga Booga!

2008_05_01_monsters
Originally uploaded by betsystreeter

In this one, the Ipps demonstrate their amazing smooshy capabilities. It's one of the things I like best about them.

Yike, they've invaded my fridge too.

Maybe I wasn't fast enough with the ice cream. They look like they're having a good time, though.

An Ipp has invaded my yard!

Yike. It's about 8 inches tall and it looks hungry. Perhaps I will offer it some ice cream.

If you've never seen an Ipp, they've got some cartoon strips here. They're small, they're punk, and they're made of felt - or used gum, or dough or something.

A New Ipp Strip!

Hey this is neat - I'm posting this straight from my Flickr gallery! Anyway, here's the latest Ipp Strip which involves a stubborn candy wrapper. Click on it to see it full size!

Ipp-O-Rama

One of the things I'm liking about the Ipps is that they are so pliable. They are, after all, made out of some sort of squishy Play-Doh-like substance. So, they can squash and stretch to their heart's delight.

They are also pliable in terms of what they are doing. Which makes it possible for me to design Ipps for individual people. My four-year-old son designed this Viking:

Anyway, I'm starting to put together a new Store, on Zazzle. I wasn't happy with my old store's merchandise - the quality wasn't really as great as it could have been. And this is one of Zazzle's strong suits. So look for Ipp stuff to begin appearing in there. Shoot, I may even hand make some of these buggers. They look good in felt!

A Toothbrush, A Hairdryer, and Some Ipps

Don't try to read it here, silly. It's too teeny. Go see it on Flickr.

This is based on an incident that occurred in our bathroom many years ago. My husband and I were living in an apartment and were getting ready for work. He was brushing his teeth, I was drying my hair. He turned and looked at me and opened his mouth to show off his icky toothpaste. I aimed the hairdryer at his face. The laws of physics being what they are, toothpaste ended up covering pretty much the whole bathroom. It was fabulous.

Stealth Ipp Strip!

Last time I uploaded some Ipps, I actually loaded two strips - but only blogged about one of them. Here's the other one! The Ipps are diving for prizes in this one.

New Ipp Strip!

Anybody who's ever observed two kids and a noisemaker from their most recent birthday party will recognize this one. Click to see it bigger on Flickr. And feel free to comment!

New Ipp Strip!

Here's how the Ipp Strip is shaping up. I think you can start to get a feel for their personalities. There seems to be the one with the little mohawk and the one with the three horns. I think there will be others shortly. They behave pretty much like your standard comedy duo so far. Click on the strip to see it bigger on Flickr.

A New Experiment!

Okay, so this whole Web 2.0 thing is really cool, don't you think? You can have online profiles splattered all over the whole Web! With different logins and files that you've uploaded in three formats and social networks that may or may not have the same people in them... wheeee!

No really, it's great when you're a publisher of original content like me. Because all this collaborative tagging, and searching, and profiling, and the lot of it mean that my drawings go on even more fabulous journeys then they ever could have as mere email attachments.

I'm having great fun putting artwork all over the place, experimenting with what I can accomplish with the accounts at all these sites, and deciding what's best for what kind of work.

Which brings us to my next experiment. You see, the Ipps really want their own feature. And I want them to have it. So I went looking for the best way to let them express themselves. I didn't want to plunk them in a Web page somewhere. So... I'm going to put their strips on Flickr! They'll have their own section called "Ipp Strips." That's right, I'll put new work here, and then archive it over there. That way the Ipps can have their feature and people looking for them can find them. Even people not looking for them can find them. What fun! Let's see how it goes!

Soon I will run out of storage space over there and then we'll figure out what to do next... better keep those files small!

More About Ipps

Well, it's about time the Ipps got their own page on my site. Because they're starting to get their own stories, in addition to their own t-shirts and stuff.
So watch the Ipps' page for new sketches and stories. I'll post here when there's something of note in the Ipp Universe as well.

Take an Ipp to the Store!!

Alright, one of my favorite people in the world helped me come up with this bag with a tree-hugging Ipp for groceries and all your various whatnot.
If you're trying to convince your friends to stop using paper or plastic bags, one way to do this is to give them a great bag to use.
It's also a great way to say, "I love the Earth so much I'm using these bags. Which makes me extra cool."
This one is washable too, which is great when your groceries get icky stuff on the inside of your bags.
Tip: I have quite a few bags like these, and I keep them both in the house and in the car - because sometimes I get to the store only to realize that I forgot to bring bags. Then I put them near the kitchen door too so I see them on my way out and get em back into the car...
Anyway, enjoy! And if you think someone you know would like these, send em a link! You can just click the little email button at the bottom of the post to send it along. Yay!

What the Heck is an Ipp?

Well, an ipp is... um, well, it's this thing.

They may be made out of jelly beans.

Or marshmallows.

We're not sure.

What I do know is, I've put one on a t-shirt.

And, there are more where that came from.

So watch out for the Ipps!