THE COMMISSION

This is... so much. And better known as: Six FFVI-inspired Beadwoven Panels, Two Displays, and One Storage Box.

A long time in planning, a long time in making, and a couple of tricks discovered. Mainly that I can make little wooden boxes! The beadwork was already a thing I did, clearly, and this time I sort of had to force myself to actually keep track of how much time they took to make. "A lot", is the answer that everyone else knew and I refused to think about, but once I had a little working system in place, I enjoyed the challenge. And very much the demon chocobo.

The easel stand is a modified mini-easel with a solid panel for the (otherwise floppy) panels to rest against. Tiny black wire loops keep them from sliding off.

The hanging holder was a bit more of a process, since my first iteration was an "over-design" involving a hinged panel with a clear vinyl window. I'd still like to do that for something, but I'd have to figure out how to keep the vinyl from getting scratched up from being breathed upon, let alone actually used. This design was the better option: a solid curved backing acting as a counter-weight, three thin black wires to hold the panel against the backing, and two padded clips on either side to actually keep the panel attached to the board and also to serve as a point to hang the displayed panel from interchangeable chains.

The storage box was the one thing I was least certain about, but turned out to fall together easily once I actually started figuring out how all of the pieces fit together with some reinforcement and so much sanding. I also put a bit of wire at the bottom front and embedded two tiny magnets into the lid so that it snaps closed and stays that way until enough force is applied to open it.

Nera's Choker and Earrings

Commission for both the earrings and the choker from the Dragon Quest series' Nera Briscoletti. Not gonna lie; while there was plenty of initial annoyance regarding materials and some things that had gotten damaged and needed replacing, I had a lot of fun getting these together, though.

The earrings themselves are "plunger-style" clip-on gold-plated hoops, gold-plated base metal beads, and... cardboard. Layered, reinforced, hardened, and then made to look like gold. No, it's most definitely not going to bend, warp or fall apart anytime soon. The beads themselves are dangling from 4 extra-strong beading thread... er, threads. So they're dangly!

As for the choker, I tried quite a few fabrics to see if I couldn't simulate the texture and look of gold, and ultimately settled upon some lovely soft suede. With a nice little mostly hidden bar clasp, there's enough comfortable stretch to the suede itself to allow it to be worn without, you know. Choking every time you try to take a drink of something. (I know cosplay isn't about practicality, but I have my priorities.) The jewel is a little sky blue fiber optic/"cat's eye" cabochon.

The gold coloring itself? Took (4-6 layers of) one paint, one pigment wax, two additional iridescent pigments, and a variety of mediums to get that shine.

With Abandon

Gonna level with everyone here. This is the result of doing things I deeply do not enjoy. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy them! But the process... no. Just, no.

It started with the choker. Which I didn't even really plan to be a choker; just a couple of inches of a brick stitch demo with these incredibly lovely scale/spike beads because I wanted to try out other shapes and textures. And let me tell you, I had no idea I would dislike brick stitch as much as I do (and yes, I know it "looks better" with uniform beads, but I really wanted to play with the slightly "chunkier" ones for texture reasons). But it looked good and I... just kept going even through the mental grumbling. And of course near the end one of the beads turned out to be fragile and broke, so I had to go through hoops to replace it and there's one row at the back that looks crooked, but it's in the back and if anyone complains they're welcome to do it all over again themselves. ...Ahem.

After that harrowing experience, I then decided, "You know what else I don't like doing? Plain strung necklaces." GIANT SHRUG, I have no idea why this seemed like a challenge to take on, but it did. I dug through my bead drawer and came across this hematite pendant I'd had for years, just part of a random grab bag of things, and designed around it while keeping the look of the choker in mind. Instead of just one or two threads, there are five holding the weight of the pendant and holding the necklace itself together. Because I never trust single-thread necklaces.

Like I said, I'm actually really happy with the result. I just. Never want to do this again.
(For Sale)

Link-bo and Zelda-bo

Best rainy day activity for kids and chocobos? Totally dress-up. Grab some fabric, make some props, make a mess (...then clean it up...), and have a blast!

Story of my life: I hadn't really meant these to turn out quite so large... or with so many accessories... but things happen and I'm really, really happy with the result. I don't even know if anyone else will love these as much as I do, but I am remarkably hopeful. The chocobo bodies themselves are redesigned from the inside out, with a much more solid structure to allow more stability, and feature fully wired and poseable toes, legs, wings (along with the first three primary feathers of each wing; the rest are un-wired for easy folding), necks, heads, and feature limited articulated top and bottom beak-jaw-things.

And then the costumes, oh boy. Initially I'd had the idea to do just a couple of super-fancy accessories for each of them, but I just kind of... kept coming to the thought, "Remember when dress-up used to be fun, and cosplay wasn't about exacting proficiency?" So, I decided that I would do something "simple" and make it look at though excited, unpracticed hands made these things. ...I was, at that point, not aware of how insanely difficult it would be. I mean yes, lots of things got simplified, and it was a lot of fun putting it all together! But. That came with figuring out how to make everything look super-simplified while also making them stable and ultimately well-made. I think I finally fulled it off, anyway. And of course they can swap outfits. I mean, come on.

Thank you burningdragoon for your generosity with a final bid of $719.00!

Sephiroth and Cloud Dragons

Well it made sense at the time, alright? And I'd wanted to try something different, so... Sephiroth and Cloud dragons!

Man, the things I went through for this. I'd wanted Cloud to look battle worn and fed up, but Sephiroth to look eager and cocky, and both of them to be separate sculptures in their own right, so... Well, I'm still happy with them. Even if the angles of that folded wing of Cloud's was the most maddening thing in the world to work around, because even then I pushed myself way too much without thinking of the consequences. A long tradition! I'm still so proud of how Sephiroth's wing came out. And, well, I'm happy with these two.

As a side note, dragon!Cloud did at one point have a Buster Sword. Of all the damn things to break during a move, that did. Along with wing parts of dragon!Vincent, which is why you don't see him here. (He is salvageable. The sword was not. Besides, Cloud can't really hold it, so I didn't see the point.) (For Sale: Dragon!Sephiroth, and Dragon!Cloud)

Miss Diana

Miss Diana is all gussied up and ready for a long drive. A long, long, long drive. Well hey, it's for charity!

My first completed Desert Bus for Hope 2014 chocobo! And wow did that take... some time. In extremely massive hindsight, maybe I should have waited until Desert Bus 10 before making a Desert Bus-themed chocobo, but... Desert Bus 8, ∞, infinity and beyond... uh, there was a reason in there somewhere. Not important.

My initial thought had been another armored chocobo, which I was perfectly prepared to do, and then... well. I wanted to change up the legs a little. Changing up the legs kind of required changing up the body type a touch, which I was perfectly okay with since I'd wanted to incorporate various chocobo types. But then that meant changing up the tail and the head/face a little too, and... well, the body became more advanced, so I thought instead of armor (and accidentally making her look far too much like another chocobo I'd already made; they're each individuals) I would just go ahead and make her a little hat. Which was a production in itself, but the Desert Bus for Hope symbol came out decently (and unfortunately looks much better in person) and the hat worked out. I knew that I wanted her to have a sash of some kind, so I just decided to bead one so that I could add an optional expanding section to turn it into either a choker or a double-wrap bracelet for whoever's lucky enough to wind up with this little lady for a companion. Then came the little tail decoration. Because... I'm me and she needed more sparkly.

The result: a fully poseable bus driving chocobo! Her bottom jaw, crest, head, neck, legs, toes, wings and each individual tail feather are all individually wired. And she's just so stylish, too.

She was ultimately sold for $1,300. I'm still recovering.

Exy and Tecate

"Exy" (green and gold), some nickname from a forgotten past. They call him a Storm Chaser because he's got a death wish: treasure hunter, pirate, lunatic. That pendant belongs to something bigger, and trying to find out what has already driven him mad. He's a gentleman, though, and he's glad to help out who he can along the way. Try to touch the gem, though... well. There aren't any left alive to tell what happens after.

Very few have ever met Tecate (blue and black), with good reason. Palisuade is one of many dead cities destroyed by wars, but Tecate knows the city was targeted because of the heirloom around his neck. One could call him rather forcefully fated to follow Exy--though exactly why is a mystery even to him. He's no pirate himself, preferring to move through night shadows and follow rumors of Exy's wanderings. Some day he'll either get the pirate to join him... or get the pirate's jewel by any means necessary.

Another pair of decade-old sculptures that I've decided to spruce up. Actually trying to photograph the sheer shine on these guys was nearly impossible.(For Sale)

Baby Jewel Dragon Pendant and Bracelet Set 1/10

Preferred element: water
Current favorite food: fruit (all of it)
Sex: female
Size: 2 inches long, 1.5 inch wingspan

Jewel dragon mothers are the most notorious for gathering a pile of shiny stones with which to circle their nest.  Once their clutch starts to hatch, the babies naturally gravitate toward one stone in particular, partially "feeding" from it for the next several months.  Here you'll find all you need to care for a baby jewel dragon, should you choose to take one into your home.

Baby Jewel Dragon Pendant and Bracelet Set 1/10.  Yup, 10.  Ten.  First.  Of ten.  What am I doing.

I had this idea in my mind for a very long time, picking up an intensely gorgeous set of "fancy onyx" (brilliantly heated and dyed onyx to make the most spectacular color combinations).  It was a spiral of inspiration and insanity from there, I suppose.  I enjoy the result: a reversible, adjustable bracelet and a little dragon pendant which can also be converted into a bracelet.  Full disclosure: the baby dragon pendant is so comfortable with the satin cord that I forgot I was wearing it while I was dumping and editing the pictures right up until I went to scratch my neck and had a "WHAT THE HELL IS--oh" moment.

(For Sale)