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Silly Clogs
Silly Cloggs- Legged Fish
It’s probably a fair guess to say that many of you are parents, so maybe some of the following will chime to some extent. I’m not but I have a niece, Astrid, who at the time of writing is 9 and 10 months old. Apparently, it’s very important to get the months correct.
We get along pretty well; I’m pleased to say that she has a childish sense of humour, much like my own. Admittedly she is a child and I have no excuse but that’s a topic for another day.
A little backstory: One day Astrid and I were “working” in my workshop; that’s to say I spend hours trying to keep her limbs attached as she delves into the most dangerous tools, chemicals and sharp things that she can find in a workshop full of the above. I have only admiration for you “full-timers”, one afternoon and I need wine, forget supper and early bed!
At the time I had a metal sculpture of a whale’s tail – Fluke, as I entitled it – Astrid was amusing herself pretending to save the whale from drowning. Her story went along the lines of: “The whale thought it could dive to the ocean floor, but it was too deep, even for a whale. It thought it was a Clever-clogs but it wasn’t. It was a Silly-Clogs!” Genius child – I may be biased.
The phrase stuck in my head and came alive upon another interaction with Astrid. With a little help from her mother, Astrid would write me multi-page stories – she drew, mum wrote. One of these stories involved a creature called a “Legged Fish”.
A Legged Fish lives in the shallow seas and searches for food in the muddy bottom. It’s favourite food is boiled eggs which it feels around for with it’s paddle-like feet. It has a black “stinger” on its head for protection from the predators that stalk it – un-named and un-defined, but a serious threat nonetheless.
Christmas was looming and Uncle Nick hadn’t got a scooby what she’d like. So I made her drawing into a metal sculpture. There was a little artistic licence on my part, but if the proof is in the pudding, then the fact that 4 years on it still stands on a shelf in her room seems to say that it went down well.
It kinda started a trend, which I think is brilliant, though I’ve never actually had this corroborated by Astrid. She now has Turtles, a Spider with magnetic feet, Candle-stick flowers, “Uni-coins” and a Unicorn Treasure Chest. Some of which seem to like living in cupboards – make your own conclusions!
A shameless advert would be to say that I have a section on my website – called Silly Clogs obviously – whereby I would take your child’s drawing and make it real. I think it’s a nice way to capture a moment in their life that would otherwise be a two-week display on the fridge before it disappears forever.
If you think Silly Clogs might just provide the perfect Xmas present for a child in your life, find out more at https://www.nicholasbaker.co.uk/sillyclogs
Listen to Nick's Radio interview here