US based toy inventor Steve Casino, 48, has spent almost two years turning peanut shells into these tiny figures. He has made almost 100 of the tiny four-inch statuettes to date- including well-known stars like Elton John and Johnny Depp. The intricate designs can often take up to 20 hours to create. Steve has even turned his unusual passion into a business, selling privately commissioned peanut statuettes as gifts and wedding cake toppers. (Photo by Steve Casino)

California-based glass artist Loren Stump specializes in a form of glasswork called murrine, where rods of glass are melted together and then sliced to reveal elaborate patterns and forms. While the murrina process appeared in the Mideast some 4,000 years ago, Stump has perfected his own technique over the past 35 years to the point where he can now layer entire portraits and paintings in glass before slicing them to see the final results. His most complex piece to date is a detailed interpretation of Leonardo da Vinci’s Virgin of the Rocks, which involved hundreds of glass components that were melted into a final piece.

A boy sitting with his family looks up at a traditional Chinelo costumed dancer during a celebration 40 days after the birth of Jesus, in Xochimilco on the outskirts of Mexico City, February 2, 2015. The tradition of the Chinelo dates back to colonial times and the outfits and masks, which are supposed to resemble the faces of the Europeans and always sport an uptilted beard, became more elaborate between the 1800s and 1900s to make fun of the upper social classes. (Photo by Edgard Garrido/Reuters)

Belly dancer Nagwa Fouad sailing on the river Nile, 1972. Egypt is one of 23 countries represented at the Dubai Photo Exhibition, showing off photography that dates to the 1920s. Dubai Photo Exhibition is in various venues of Dubai’s design district from 16-19 March. (Photo by Farouk Ibrahim)

An anti-Gaddafi fighter tests an anti-aircraft gun southwest of Sirte, Libya one of Muammar Gaddafi's last remaining strongholds, September 16, 2011. A timeline of images dating from 2010 from Sirte, Libya, the home town of deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Libyan forces battling Islamic State in the city of Sirte say they have defeated the militant group after months of street to street fighting backed by U.S. air strikes. Islamic State took control of the city more than a year ago and set up its main base outside Syria and Iraq. (Photo by Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Though schools around the globe have different start dates, calendars and traditions, the first day of a new term is an exciting time filled with the prospects of gaining more knowledge, making new friends and building community. Here: Schoolchildren attend their first lesson on Knowledge Day in the town of Turov, Zhytkavichy District, Gomel Region, Belarus on September 1, 2017. Knowledge Day marks the beginning of a new school year in Belarus and is celebrated on September 1. (Photo by Viktor Drachev/TASS via Getty Images)

Evan Leversage, who is terminally ill with brain cancer, is greeted by a Christmas decorated dog with his mother Nicole Wellwood (L), and his father Travis Leversage (2nd R) in St. George, Ontario, Canada October 24, 2015. Evan Leversage is a seven-year-old boy who has been living with inoperable brain cancer since he was two years old. His family has organized a Christmas celebration in October complete with a full parade, in case Evan does not live to celebrate his last Christmas day on the traditional date of December 25, according to local media. (Photo by Mark Blinch/Reuters)

In this artist's impression supplied by the ESO (European Southern Observatory) on April 25, 2007, the planetary system around the red dwarf, Gliese 581, is pictured showing what astronomers believe is the most earth like planet found outside our solar system to date. Using the ESO 3.6-m telescope in Chile, astronomers have uncovered the planet which could have water running on its surface. The planet orbits the faint star Gliese 581, which is 20.5 light-years away in the constellation Libra. (Photo by ESO via Getty Images)