Clive and Sunshine Animals are in Rare Form

I recently saw these wonderful animals by Clive and Sunshine in one of my favorite stores, and completely fell in love. Their natural forms and realistic details remind me of my mother's fabulous Steiff collection, from when she was a little girl. Her set was quite extensive and featured such rare mammals as the okapi, which became my trump card whenever playing animal guessing games with friends.

From Brooklyn artist Jennifer Muskopf, Clive and Sunshine's line also includes such rare beasts as the springbuck pictured above, as well as an octopus and wildebeest. But even the old standards - dogs, pigs and bears - have real flare. Jennifer perfectly captures each animal's personality in the postures she chooses and in the visages, which she embroiders by hand. While the faces and forms are extraordinarily lifelike, Jennifer often plays with the animals’ coats, carefully selecting vivid colors and textured fabrics for the body, which further enhance her creatures' individual characters.

I'd love to buy one for my son, but am having a hard time choosing. Yup, Jennifer makes a real good argument for starting my own collection.