Bongo is a Beanie Baby that I’ve had for a very long time — probably since my 20s, I would say. I used to keep him at the office and he’d guard my desk or stare out the window in Downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin a few years ago.
This was, essentially, my very first costuming project.
The challenge was to make outfits for a beanie monkey using items only found in the office. This included a few things I kept at work, like my origami papers but I never brought anything into the office intentionally to make a project.
Count Bongo
Materials: Post-It Note Top Hat in Sharpie Black, CD Sleeve material cape, and Origami paper bangles.
Sir Reginald FeatherBongo
Materials: Post-It Note Top Hat in Sharpie Black (shhh… yes, it’s the same one), Paperclip Lapel Rose, and Paperclip Rose and Coffee Stirrer Cane.
Caesar Bonginus
Materials: Printer Paper Laurel and Eyeglass Cleaning Cloth Toga.
Hattori Bongo
Materials: Origami Samurai Hat made from paper from a failed print job. If you look close, you might be able to make out some postscript errors. Katana made from a Coffee Stirrer, Post-It Note, and a Paperclip.
The Falconer
Materials: Origami Eagle (I don’t know how to make any other birds) with highligher coloring and a napkin arm guard.
King Bong
Materials: Origami Eagle (I don’t know how to make any other birds) with highligher coloring and a napkin arm guard.
The Masked Bongo
Materials: Mask and Cape made from a CD sleeve. One of those ones that Microsoft Volume License media comes in.
Birthday Bongo
Materials: Yes, he does birthdays too! This one might surprise you… paper, paperclip. Boom. Mind blown.
Borf, Son of Mogh
The other, other son of Mogh. Unfortunately, this one has been lost to the ages. He had a Post-It goatee, forehead ridges, and a Batleth wrapped in shiny origami paper 🙁