Ready for the holiday gift giving season? Me neither. But I do have something to consider: Folkmanis’ adorable Chipmunk in Watermelon. This company makes the most adorable puppets, and this one’s no different. There’s wonderful attention to detail, and the colors on the melon have a lovely blended watercolors look. And don’t get me started on the “vine”; it’s twisty and sproing-y and had me stretching it out just so I could watch it snap right back into place. I’m one for the simpler pleasures in life.
Then there’s the chipmunk himself. The colors are lovely and natural looking, and his little ears are made of a different fabric, giving a look that mimics a real animal. But y’know, with fabric. This puppet may have me ooh-ing and ahh-ing, but I do know the difference between a puppet and a living being. Living chipmunks don’t tend to allow you to snuggle them. Or if they do, a shot is usually on order afterwards.
My only problem with this puppet? As beautiful as it is, the chipmunk doesn’t go out of the melon very far. When it comes down to it, this melon is a delivery device for a wee finger puppet, and with the short length of said finger puppet, there’s not a lot of outside-the-melon movement that’s available. Unlike the Pumpkin, where there’s plenty of room for the animal to move, this poor chipmunk feels stuck. I had to push the melon down just to get more than the tip of the nose to make an obvious appearance. The photo Folkmanis uses on their page – the same one I’ve used in this review – shows a great deal more of the chipmunk. Mine? Mine looks as if he’s suffering from agoraphobia. Exo-karpoúzi-phobia, maybe?
But as a fabric sculpture, it is a lovely piece. Collectors and fans of the fruit and animal will want to add this one to their collections. Sad it’s not really that great for playtime, unless a child wants to take the whole thing as-is, and not do too much puppeting.
