Jabba The Hutt Diorama (The Viewing Frame WIP)

Ovy wrote:Great job, like that misty atmosphere. And the light lines on the backdrop look very effective, especially the shadow pics. Still not a fan of the character printed on the backdrop though (but well they can be hidden)

Getting along nicely, will you finish it this year?

Thanks. The misty atmosphere is really a trick of the light — the directed overhead lights in the diorama are what creates that effect — I just prevent the flash from going off and push a button. I’m hoping I can get the cabinet done this year, but we’ll see. My garage isn’t insulated, nor does it have drywall — so it’s hotter than the sixth level of Hell in the summer (like now), and colder than a polar bear’s nut sack in the Winter; no happy medium this year, so far.

skywalkersaga wrote:Looks amazing with her new ‘face up’! And you got that hazy grainy aesthetic with the lighting and photos so well. Since the Leia is the centerpiece here, I can only imagine how happy you must be to have an improved sculpt. All we need now is a better/matching tbleague body, though the Jiaou one works fine, too. ^.^

Thanks. And yes, I’m very happy to have what could be considered a quintessential Carrie Fisher for this dio — at least for the head sculpt. And believe me, I’d give anything to be able to put her on a TBL with the right height and build for her tiny frame — not to mention a bra top that actually fit. I’ve been debating getting one of those newer Jiaou bodies with the narrow shoulders and smaller bust, hoping it will look a little more accurate. But money’s getting tight — particularly since every time I turn around a new batch of prior POs pops up.

The diorama looks better than ever with the upgraded Leia in it. Love the atmosphere and depth you've managed to achieve.

Thanks, Guv. I honestly didn’t know if the camera was going to focus on Leia, or Luke’s shoulder, or maybe even the Gamorrean. It wasn’t until I could see the pics on my computer that I could actually see how they turned out. It reminds me of the “old days” before digital cameras when you had to get all the rolls of film developed, and then you realized out of all the shots you took, maybe only a handful were any good.

Look at the size of this thing! And the detail! And the lighting! and all the characters! Its all amazing.

ZombieTestSubject wrote:Look at the size of this thing! And the detail! And the lighting! and all the characters! Its all amazing.

Welcome aboard, and thanks very much for the kind words.

Stryker2011 wrote: Welcome aboard, and thanks very much for the kind words.

Thank you! They are totally deserved.

I second that!

Wooooooow amazing pictures!!!

The upgraded Leia is gorgeous, and the shots are really cool, so happy I could be a small part of that incredible creation (with your choice of angles the background works so well).

Simply fabulous Mark!

blackpool wrote:Wooooooow amazing pictures!!!

The upgraded Leia is gorgeous, and the shots are really cool, so happy I could be a small part of that incredible creation (with your choice of angles the background works so well).

Simply fabulous Mark!

Thanks, Alex. And trust me, your contribution to this project is far from small — I don’t think this diorama would work half as well without the awesome backdrop you made for me — it ties it all together and gives it a level of realism that I wouldn’t have been able to achieve with paint or colored pencil.

Amazing looking diorama!

Thanks, BWolf. Appreciate it.

It's been slow going, but I've been working on building the cabinet to house this monstrosity (from the ground up). My back isn't so good anymore, so I have to take my time. I'm using oak MDF plywood, regular oak, and oak beams (it's what I had on hand to work with), so everything is REALLY heavy. I started with the "table" top, and then worked down to the legs. The castors themselves weigh about 8 pounds -- probably bigger than I needed (they can hold up to 1800 pounds), but I wanted to be able to roll the cabinet away from the wall if I needed to so I could get to the back of the display to access the lights if they happen to burn out. I haven't started the shell of the cabinet yet, as I've been working on getting rid of a dead tree in my back yard -- before it falls down and destroys my tool shed. The entire thing will be built in the garage, but due to its size, it will be assembled in my basement Man Cave. Right now the only things that are assembled completely are the legs, and it all looks pretty rough. I'm not going to stain it, but paint it either a deep dark brown, or just black (haven't really decided).

Pictures like movie scenes, Fantastic. I watch Your avatar and the figure in Your dio. Great match. But the hairstyle in Your avatar is high in the back of her head. I like to know how her hairstyle is made exactly from the back. It looks like it starts with two pigtails on the Head becomes one in the neck....
A great Tribute to Carrie Fisher

If there´s someon who has pictures from Carries hairstyle from the back, that must be You

Wow, that is indeed quite a project to do from scratch. I was wondering how you would get it down to the basement, so assembling it down there makes sense. Good luck!

Ephiane wrote:Pictures like movie scenes, Fantastic. I watch Your avatar and the figure in Your dio. Great match. But the hairstyle in Your avatar is high in the back of her head. I like to know how her hairstyle is made exactly from the back. It looks like it starts with two pigtails on the Head becomes one in the neck....
A great Tribute to Carrie Fisher

If there´s someon who has pictures from Carries hairstyle from the back, that must be You

Oddly, there aren't that many images of Leia from the back (one scene really):




It looks like it's only one braid, with more hair added to make the bun.






Here's the back of the Gentle Giant bust, how accurate it is, I have no idea:




And here are a couple of YouTube video tutorials by a couple gals doing it themselves:

skywalkersaga wrote:Wow, that is indeed quite a project to do from scratch. I was wondering how you would get it down to the basement, so assembling it down there makes sense. Good luck!

Thanks, and yes, indeed it is a massive undertaking. (I'm currently working on cutting out the shelf top that will go between the legs as a spacer and storage).

Your project looks well on its way. It's funny how we don't associate wood with anything space age, and yet Star Wars sets included tons of carpentry, even when it was not visible. The reason I even thought of it, is because your clean, geometric construction makes your wooden design appear modern and even futuristic. Anyway, well done. Your diorama promises to be both unique and even more impressive than it already is.

Thanks, Guv. I hope once it’s painted it doesn’t look like wood too much.

Even if it does, it will still be cool and stylish.

This is gonna be the cabinet of the century... I'm amazed everyday by the level of dedication and attention, the quality that is put in each part, technical or decorative, this is craftmanship at its best... luv it!

I'm late to the party, but this is amazing! Looking forward to seeing that cabinet finished!

blackpool wrote:This is gonna be the cabinet of the century... I'm amazed everyday by the level of dedication and attention, the quality that is put in each part, technical or decorative, this is craftmanship at its best... luv it!

Aww, shucks... Thanks, Alex, for the kind words, but it isn't all that.

AerynDiana wrote:I'm late to the party, but this is amazing! Looking forward to seeing that cabinet finished!

Thanks, Diana. This whole thing has been quite the endeavor, and taken a long time... but it's slowly moving along.

Finished another step in the process: the lower storage shelf (again, nothing is attached -- aside from the castors to the legs -- and all of it will be taken apart and painted before being moved one piece at a time to the basement; I'm just making sure everything fits).





Right now it looks like a workbench, but I'm going to add a "skirt" to the bottom run of the legs to cover the surrounding edge and give it cleaner lines.

Looking really good!

Looks like the project is coming along very nicely.

Thanks, Bad-Wolf. It’s certainly been a long project.

You might not be able to make it look 100% like metal, but there are many techniques out there for making wood look more metallic. A quick search turned up several tutorials, and it sounds like it could be fun. Not that you need more work to do, but just putting that out there in case it's helpful.

Looks good and heavy duty, I really want to see how the entire thing looks like once you've worked your magic on it. The heavy duty wheels are in my opinion the best option, sure they might be for heavier loads but in my experience those smaller ones are generally too weak.

skywalkersaga wrote:You might not be able to make it look 100% like metal, but there are many techniques out there for making wood look more metallic. A quick search turned up several tutorials, and it sounds like it could be fun. Not that you need more work to do, but just putting that out there in case it's helpful.

I actually don’t want it to look like metal, to be honest; I’m a traditionalist, and even though I’m not going to stain it, I’ll just go with a dark paint. I generally don’t like the “industrial” look.

Theboo-bomb wrote:Looks good and heavy duty, I really want to see how the entire thing looks like once you've worked your magic on it. The heavy duty wheels are in my opinion the best option, sure they might be for heavier loads but in my experience those smaller ones are generally too weak.

Yeah, the wheels are probably a bit of over-kill, but that damn thing is already super heavy, so those wheels are going to be a bonus, that’s for sure.

Stryker2011 wrote:

I actually don’t want it to look like metal, to be honest; I’m a traditionalist, and even though I’m not going to stain it, I’ll just go with a dark paint. I generally don’t like the “industrial” look.

That sounds great too! I had just misunderstood when you said you hoped it didn't look like wood. : )

skywalkersaga wrote:

Stryker2011 wrote:

I actually don’t want it to look like metal, to be honest; I’m a traditionalist, and even though I’m not going to stain it, I’ll just go with a dark paint. I generally don’t like the “industrial” look.

That sounds great too! I had just misunderstood when you said you hoped it didn't look like wood. : )

No worries. I guess I wasn’t very clear.