So it begins…...

Galactic Greetings!!!
This is my first Blog on the "Information Super Highway"! This Blog will serve as my  showcase of custom Star Wars figures (with a few Joes customs sprinkled in for some flavor), my Star Wars collection, simple figure upgrades and some custom dioramas.

I never created a website or started a blog before, so fully expect a some grammar errors with a dash of misspellings until I get the hang of this. I have always considered blogging an " emo generation" thing but my friend Eric over at Insidious Customs (Cough! Cough! Cheap plug) convinced me to give it a try. Once I thought about it I do have a lot to say, show and share. After spending the last 10 years in the toy industry as a designer I have a unique perspective on the world of toys, collecting and customs. In addition to the custom postings here there will be the occasional showcase of a few cool toys I designed from time to time. (It will be past products and I may even raffle some off here once a healthy following is established!)

I have a very large Star Wars collection with a dedicated room that has a custom display set up. (Yes, I am married.) I update the pictures frequently and will have some more in depth postings on some aspects of it as the blog rolls along. You can see it here in it's own dedicated section on the right hand side of the page.

I have been collecting Star Wars figures since 1991, a time when no one gave a rats behind about the brand. One verbal challenge from a schoolmate at a lunch table during my Freshman year in High School would turn out to have a profound impact on my life but that is another tale……..onto the main purpose of this blog, custom figures!

So without further adieu, here are the goals for this blog....

1) Show off my custom figure work of the past & present. I will also preview some of my latest projects. I free style week to week so you never know who and what may show up here!

2) Give you some insights into my thought process behind each of my custom pieces including ones that you can make that require no paint or drilling!

3) Give collectors some insights (and hopefully some inspirations) into my customs diorama & collection display set up. (My years of making prototypes/kit bashes for real Toy Companies have taught me many tricks that go a long way into making a piece look awesome without going overboard on cost and time.

4. Post some funny stuff that appeals to our nerdy tastes. If you are actually going to follow my blog I have a feeling I know the kind of humor you dig.

If you haven't read my bio, my alias is JACKOFTRADZE and I design real toys for a living! I started my career at the biggest toy company in the world, Mattel and worked there for 5 years at two different offices on two very different coasts of the country. I have personally created and led teams on various lines of products, presented them directly to retailers and even helped produced the commercials for some of them. I've worked on everything from Radio Control to Pre-School toys and have a vast knowledge of toy lines spanning the last 30 years. That "useless knowledge" does come in very handy from time to time! The coolest part about working in the toy industry is meeting the very people who designed the most iconic toys from our childhood. (The guys who designed the video game Joust are pure awesome and the dudes who worked on all of those great Kenner toy lines of the 80's are the true Toy Overlords!!!) Feel free to ask me your burning questions about the toy industry! If I cannot answer them well, look it up on the internet!

Finally, if you see something you want send me an email. There is only one custom figure that I will not part with, my mascot "Snooty giddy Up" the Kubaz Pimp! I hope you enjoy the blog, now...

THE BATTLE RAGES ON!!!