Steff Bomb’s plush creations
The Robot
“I started sewing in 2004. I was 21. At first, I made basically shapes with teeth. I had read about the plush art thing, and fabric made sense to me. Everyone I knew was in bands. I wanted something to call my own. ... This was supposed to be a robot. It was the first thing I did. I have never used a pattern before and I would like to know how to do that, actually. I make everything from scratch, figuring out shapes, angles, perspectives. So this is crude. The first thing I made that was recognizably me was asparagus with a face.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
Chicago Tribune
Stephanie Baum, who crafts under the name Steff Bomb, shows off a few of her clever creations.
The Asparagus
“I moved here from Philadelphia six years ago. I came because I was selling (merchandise) for my boyfriend’s band. He lost the van keys and they canceled the tour, and we were stuck in Chicago. And I fell in love with Chicago. When I started making plush here, I was intimidated by other people who did plush here. I did a craft fair in Berwyn (at FitzGerald’s), then Renegade Craft Fair, and I did really well and got some confidence. My biggest seller is vegetables -- carrots, asparagus, with faces. ... In Philly, I made a lot of poop with faces, and sold a lot of it. Once I was in a bar there and this guy said, ‘Hey, are you the turd girl? Yeah, you’re that girl who sells turds.’ When I moved to Chicago, I didn’t tell anyone about my plush poop.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
The UFO
“When I first started, I was attached to my things and didn’t want to sell, but you have to decide: Is this a hobby? Or more? I decided, for me, the fun is in making, not owning. But there are still things I get extra attached to. The UFO abduction: It’s hard to say why. It’s called ‘You Are Not Alone.’ The house is sad because its friend is being taken. It’s not personal. I just wanted to figure out how to get the beam right.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
The Chain Saw
“I made this originally for (the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo). It’s ‘Evil Dead’-related -- a nod, basically. I charged, like, $30, $35 for a chain saw. I still try to keep everything in the $30 range. Which is why I am so poor. When I was starting at this, I figured that if I could just scrape by, that I would be happy doing what I was doing. I should ask more. ... I don’t really know who buys my pieces, but Kip (Aaron Ruell) from ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ owns one of my severed hands.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
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Rambo’s Knife
“‘First Blood’ is the best. I can recite it by heart. I had to make something for an art show about violence or something. I am not a violent person. I didn’t know anything about violence. I was hanging out with my friend (poster artist) Ryan Duggan, complaining that I didn’t know what to do for the show, and he suggested this. I was like, ‘Don’t tell me what to do!’ Then I got home and, yeah, a brilliant idea. It has a detachable compass.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
Han Solo’s Blaster
“Also for C2E2. It has a plush holster. Halfway through making this, my hand stopped working. I had carpal tunnel. That day, I learned to do stretches for my hands. And realized I was making plush 24 hours a day.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
The Tree
“I don’t have free time. I am always filling orders, basically. So one day I said, ‘Wait, I am going to make something to make it.’ That’s this tree. I like the idea of things connected, now torn apart. It was going to have guts coming out. ... I also made an Etch A Sketch in plush that said, on the screen, ‘Nothing is permanent.’ It was the first time I made something where I put feelings in, where I made it from a personal place, not just because it seemed fun. Things were stressful because of my move. Normally I put my stress and resentment into my work, but I think I needed a reminder, a plush object saying everything would be OK.”
- Stephanie Baum (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)
