What is all this?
Why a blob?
The blob began as a doodle by my creative but bored middle-school mind in 2002. During biology class, while my classmates hovered over microscopes taking notes, I drew the amorphous shape I observed. Rather than labeling the parts of the cell as instructed, I added large eyeballs and a happy face and called it Bob the Blob.
​Blobs continued to develop with the urging of whimsical likeminded classmates and were allowed to thrive by the loving amusement of patient teachers. Along with the frigid and long winters of Fairbanks, Alaska, I used my time stuck indoors to creatively explore my imaginary world of blobs.
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High school, college, moving, working, marriage, and kids put nearly twenty years between whimsical doodles and adult responsibilities. Blobs popped up through the years - they faded but weren't forgotten. They appeared on napkin doodles for friends and a mark on unattended whiteboards. One even made an appearance for an oil painting class during my college years.
Once my toddler twins discovered the power of crayons, a spark of creativity reignited in my sleep-deprived mind. As my children scribbled, I would doodle a blob on their papers. It made me smile.
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That spark led to artistic freelance pursuits in the form of photography, graphic design, and illustration. I explored the world of self-publishing with the prompting of a Craigslist client and was suddenly immersed in a career as an illustrator and publisher. After producing a handful of books for other authors, I decided to pursue my own book. In 2020, amidst the chaos of COVID and uncertain times, I created my first blob book.
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The year that followed was filled with creativity and personal growth, and a growing mountain of its evidence. My sweet husband gently requested I attempt to find new homes for the increasing pile of art. In a moment of insanity, I created the business Jules Marion Art and registered for my first tradeshow in June of 2021, one of the first outdoor events after COVID.
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I purchased folding tables and set up my paintings, greeting cards, and books. With the help of my encouraging and charismatic friend, Jo, I began talking to people in the community. While my art was complimented, the greatest attention was given to the diorama I made to draw eyes to the neighboring books.
The diorama showed a blob’s day at the lake, with tiny clay blob figures roasting marshmallows over a sponge fire, a popsicle stick bench, shadowed by a paper mache tree, bordered by a resin lake. While the event was successful for a first-time vendor, the feedback was clear – people wanted the blobs.
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Encouraged by the enthusiasm of my interactions, I registered for the Tanana Valley State Fair. Most people attend a few small events before jumping into a ten-day fair, but I went all-in. I sculpted clay blobs to “adopt” (with actual adoption papers), ordered stickers, and created more blob books. I was exhausted, but thrilled at the success of the fair. It became clear that blobs were the future for my art and Blobbify was born.
Here we are!
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Long story short, I have continued to expand the Blob World. I established a seasonal shop at Pioneer Park (Alaskaland), attend the Alaska State Fair, Tanana Valley State Fair, Tanana Valley Farmers Market, and the Holiday Marketplace, as well as other events throughout the year. I filed trademarks for Blobbify and Adopt a Blob, as well as multiple copyrights. Beyond the studio (which is half of my living room), I teach art part-time, lead drawing and blob-making classes, and travel the state as a caricature artist.
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What started with a doodle, led to a book, and has transformed to a collection of two hundred unique figures, over 13,000 blob adoptions, eighty sticker designs, more than twenty books, stuffies, squishies, keychains, earrings, clothing, and personalized “Blobbify” portraits. ​
I am the creator and manufacturer for my products. I illustrate, author, publish and format my own books, sculpt and manufacture the resin, clay, and silicone blob figures, and paint, illustrate, and design the art prints and trading cards. There is no 3D printing or artificial intelligence used in Blobbify products.
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As Blobbify has grown, I have expanded to encourage the creativity in others. I partner with other small businesses where I can offer products that I am unable to manufacture on my own. Michalla’s Blankets created a crochet pattern and produces the snuggly handmade blobs, and Christine with CB Gifts AK expertly machine embroiders blob “stuffies,” that are then stuffed plump and stitched closed.
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Blobbify is nearly five years old now, and I’m so excited to see where the next chapter of the Blob World leads us.
