[2/22/21] The Children of the Monsters - Snow hike

The experiment is a success. I think it looks stunning in every shot. I realize for face paint it could have been more expansive or blatant or asymmetric (like a clown face or Kiss, though neither seems appropriate here). Then again, that might distract from the likeness (which is important to me as a collector of these scale likenesses, though perhaps not important to the characters in your scenario). But since they wear masks anyway, perhaps the face paint need not be too heavy. I like what you've got, wouldn't go farther with the face painting on this character myself.

Oooh, wow, loving where you're going with that face paint! He looks incredible! :O 

I think your idea about the jewelry being something that wouldn't make too much noise is spot-on. 

As always, amazing work, Ovy!

Nice job on the face paint. Looks appropriate for the character.

GubernatorFan wrote:The experiment is a success. I think it looks stunning in every shot. I realize for face paint it could have been more expansive or blatant or asymmetric (like a clown face or Kiss, though neither seems appropriate here). Then again, that might distract from the likeness (which is important to me as a collector of these scale likenesses, though perhaps not important to the characters in your scenario). But since they wear masks anyway, perhaps the face paint need not be too heavy. I like what you've got, wouldn't go farther with the face painting on this character myself.

Thanks, maybe some tweaks, but I won't change that much. And I don't think a Kiss face would be inappropriate.

skywalkersaga wrote:Oooh, wow, loving where you're going with that face paint! He looks incredible! :O 

I think your idea about the jewelry being something that wouldn't make too much noise is spot-on. 

As always, amazing work, Ovy!

Thanks a lot! Mom incoming.

Stryker2011 wrote:Nice job on the face paint. Looks appropriate for the character.

Thanks.

First pics of Mother's headsculpt. Symmetrical facepaint again, like her daughter. I started to shave and root yesterday, but ran out of time. Don't know if I can finish it that weekend but here is some WIP.

Ahh, awesome, the red paint is a brilliant choice! Looking forward to seeing the fully rooted version!

She does look very promising.

Looks like she's gonna be a cool character.

they are coming along very nicely. i'm getting some pikts vibe from them, they could fit in a 13th warrior themed setting just as well. especially like the girl in the fur boots,plus kudos for having the guts to trim down a head sculpt and root the hair. been there myself and you need a steady hand and hardened nose for sure at least if you dremel it down, quite the stench.
all the best for you and your project

Tjolnir wrote:they are coming along very nicely. i'm getting some pikts vibe from them, they could fit in a 13th warrior themed setting just as well.

Now this is funny. 13th Warrior was exactly the movie I mentioned to Ovy on another forum when looking at his designs

skywalkersaga wrote:Ahh, awesome, the red paint is a brilliant choice! Looking forward to seeing the fully rooted version!

Thanks, glad you like it!

GubernatorFan wrote:She does look very promising.

Ty, your Arnie&Co. tutorials were a great help and inspiration.

Theboo-bomb wrote:Looks like she's gonna be a cool character.

Thanks!

Tjolnir wrote:they are coming along very nicely. i'm getting some pikts vibe from them, they could fit in a 13th warrior themed setting just as well. especially like the girl in the fur boots,plus kudos for having the guts to trim down a head sculpt and root the hair. been there myself and you need a steady hand and hardened nose for sure at least if you dremel it down, quite the stench.
all the best for you and your project

Thanks, I have heard that 13th warrior connection before.    Picts vibe sounds good, the blueish color is inspired at least. Wanted to make it blue first, but then I chose than dark crimson.
And I didn't dremel, I just used the knife. The hair is so dense, I didn't need a smooth round head surface.

Valiarde wrote:

Tjolnir wrote:they are coming along very nicely. i'm getting some pikts vibe from them, they could fit in a 13th warrior themed setting just as well.  

Now this is funny.  13th Warrior was exactly the movie I mentioned to Ovy on another forum when looking at his designs

Yeah, I remember.^^ I guess Zraikos of the Mediterranes would make a good culture shocked Antonio Banderas alone in the woods.

Well, I finished the head rooting.

I now get why the cut has to be that deep for the head parting.


Fluffy haggy hair


Pulled down a bit


And with water and combed with my favourite legendary toothbrush.


Quite happy with the result, but don't know what kind of substances I will put in there, gel or conditioner or sugar, still have to experiment.

Looks friggin' awesome, my friend! Amazing work. And yes, good point on the groove for the part, I'll bear that in mind.

Ovy wrote:

GubernatorFan wrote:She does look very promising.

Ty, your Arnie&Co. tutorials were a great help and inspiration.

Quite happy with the result, but don't know what kind of substances I will put in there, gel or conditioner or sugar, still have to experiment.

You are very welcome, and I do believe you have fully matched or bypassed my level of skill with your own.

She looks excellent. With this material, I strongly recommend you dilute the conditioner with water -- maybe much water (I was diluting combined shampoo and conditioner) -- because otherwise you will end up with a very clumpy or wet look. But of course, no harm done, and you can always rinse it off and start again. I wouldn't go with sugar, unless you want your figures sticky and attacked by giant ants and wasps.

Regarding gel, I have been using L'Oreal 'Invisi-hold' hair gel, strength 8, and it seems to work ok in terms of holding a style on the lamb hair without creating an ugly, flaky appearance or too much stickiness. To use it to emphasize the lamb hair's natural waves or curls, just wet the hair and apply a small amount with fingertips, and then 'scrunch' the gel into the wet or damp hair. It won't leave it looking wet, rather the hair will eventually dry, but will at least keep the natural lamb hair waves/curls, more or less. Alternatively, if you want smooth hair, you can use the same product, but just smooth it over the top layer of the hair to keep the frizzies in check, and then let dry. It's not industrial strength and wouldn't hold up in a wind, but it kept my Padme's hair smooth while on display indoors at least. ;p

She turned out awesome. Carol has been completely transformed into a new and cool looking character. Excellent work on the hair and paint — the technique you used to shave down the head is the exact thing I did on my first hair job.

Great Figures, Characters and Hair Job. Also the background story. Thanks for showing. Can´t wait to see more...

skywalkersaga wrote:Regarding gel, I have been using L'Oreal 'Invisi-hold' hair gel, strength 8, and it seems to work ok in terms of holding a style on the lamb hair without creating an ugly, flaky appearance or too much stickiness. To use it to emphasize the lamb hair's natural waves or curls, just wet the hair and apply a small amount with fingertips, and then 'scrunch' the gel into the wet or damp hair. It won't leave it looking wet, rather the hair will eventually dry, but will at least keep the natural lamb hair waves/curls, more or less. Alternatively, if you want smooth hair, you can use the same product, but just smooth it over the top layer of the hair to keep the frizzies in check, and then let dry. It's not industrial strength and wouldn't hold up in a wind, but it kept my Padme's hair smooth while on display indoors at least. ;p

Thanks, still have to try something other than random styling gel.

Stryker2011 wrote:She turned out awesome. Carol has been completely transformed into a new and cool looking character. Excellent work on the hair and paint — the technique you used to shave down the head is the exact thing I did on my first hair job.

Thanks! Ye was afraid of little accidents with a powertool,  like touching the forehead or nose.

Ephiane wrote:Great Figures, Characters and Hair Job. Also the background story. Thanks for showing. Can´t wait to see more...

Thanks! Well, you had to wait some weeks but here you go:

Just a first base layer of clothing for the mother. I call her Shryett. Or Shryette?


Thinking about adding a leather layer later and some belts etc.


With black bear pelt or something like that. That's roughly the look I am aiming for. A bit wintery.

She looks great with the bear pelt.

She is looking awesome. Wonderful 'galdrakona'!

I second Stryker. She's coming along great, and the bear belt is a very nice touch.

Stryker2011 wrote:She looks great with the bear pelt.

Thanks a lot, I hope the scale-illusion works here.

skywalkersaga wrote:She is looking awesome. Wonderful 'galdrakona'!

Haha, ye, I had to google that. Glad you appreciate.

GubernatorFan wrote:I second Stryker. She's coming along great, and the bear belt is a very nice touch.

Thanks, our forestgirls want to be stylish, too. Not very vegan outfits, though.

Btw, I just realized you three, my most faithful commenters, are all having Star Wars avatars, while everyone has a specialization on another topic. Anyway, I think Shryett (or Shryette?) in her beige gown looks like an extra from a Star Wars desert planet. I don't have 1/6 Star Wars equipment, though.

Some wrapping an colouring of the tools.


And some equipment upgrades for the daughter, which I named Trikiljuf, btw. Found a good source for 1/6 feathers: the hole in the upper right edge of my sleeping cushion. Some water and hairgel helped with sculpting.
The transparent yellow pearls are supposed to depict amber.

Some good looking accessories. It will be interesting to see how all this fits together.

She turned out pretty good. The long hair reminded me of a grandaunt of mine, small lady (about 4 feet tall) but with a commanding presence.

Stryker2011 wrote:Some good looking accessories. It will be interesting to see how all this fits together.

Thanks! Wanted to make some outdoor shots today but there was not enough room during daylight hours.

Theboo-bomb wrote:She turned out pretty good. The long hair reminded me of a grandaunt of mine, small lady (about 4 feet tall) but with a commanding presence.

Hah, thanks. Commanding presence, I like it.

After I finally got some base clothing done for Shryett (or Shryette?), the mind is free for more detailed stuff on the microlayer. I wanted some neo-wolf fangs for necklaces , so I tried to make some from polymer clay. Might look better with some color on it I hope.
Then I tried some more appendages for necklaces, tiny mask like totems. I like to imagine they represent spirits living in plants, trees, the earth, stars and all the creatures living there, including humans.
Once I finished the real masks for the characters, I want to make tiny copies of those for each one. Like a Personal...Spirit. When one dies, the personal mask they possessed all their adult life is put on a tree in a sacred part of the forest, while the tiny totem is kept by the family.
I wanted them to look a bit 'naive', don't know if they are carved from bone or made from clay, maybe both.

I like the totems. They look cool.

I vote Shryett -- maybe even only one t (which, by Egyptian tradition, would actually be silent). The -ette ending begs for something more "sophisticated" and French like Nicolette or Henriette or Claudette, and that hardly seems appropriate here.

The little details are amazing as always and add so much realism. I like how the blades turned out in the final photo featuring them -- otherwise I was wondering whether (if stone) they shouldn't have more light and beige coloring to them. The amber is perfect, as are your tiny feathers and discovering such a viable source for them. I think your fangs and totems already look very good for what they are meant to be, teeth and bone carvings.

Stryker2011 wrote:I like the totems. They look cool.

Ty, I made some more, bit they will be in another post.

GubernatorFan wrote:I vote Shryett -- maybe even only one t (which, by Egyptian tradition, would actually be silent). The -ette ending begs for something more "sophisticated" and French like Nicolette or Henriette or Claudette, and that hardly seems appropriate here.

The little details are amazing as always and add so much realism. I like how the blades turned out in the final photo featuring them -- otherwise I was wondering whether (if stone) they shouldn't have more light and beige coloring to them. The amber is perfect, as are your tiny feathers and discovering such a viable source for them. I think your fangs and totems already look very good for what they are meant to be, teeth and bone carvings.

Thanks, Shryett sounds good enough. Let's say she is sophisticated in her own special way.

About the blades, still thinking about making them shiny black or even get some slightly translucent polymer clay


Now, winter solstice is over, all the big fires on the hills burned out, the elder totems with them, sent as sparks to the stars and as ash to the ground.
Hundreds of animals were sacrificed, their blood filling the stone rings, their flesh the tribesmens' bellies, the children carved effigies from the bones and gave them to the fire. Every tribesman deceased this year was honoured, especially the elders who were given to fire, not soil. The young adults burned their last child masks, painting themselves with the hot ashes, turning them into women and men. The shamans shared the soil's holy medicine and guided the young to find the spirits for their final mask.

The dwellers of the Atlantic Cargo cities and the fenced Mirror Communities watched in fear and awe as they listened to the throaty chants and howling neo-wolves on the burning hills. Showing them that despite all their knowledge and technology, they are no match to the numerous masters of the forest.

Trikiljuf needed a break from people and family, wandering the forests on a foggy day. Not a lot of snow had fallen this year.































Little friends, buglet spirits visit her.




But what's that?


Why is she throwing that stick?


Something moves behind that hill....

Wow, amazing addition! Stunning scenery as well — you did an incredible job of angling the photos to look to-scale. She’s gorgeous and formidable, and I love her outfit. It’s aesthetically pleasing but also still practical for being in the woods. I’m of course curious what is behind the hill .... ; )

Beautiful shots. She looks really awesome out there in the wild.

Very nice work -- from the detailed backstory to the beautiful outdoors photos which could very well be stills from pseudo-medieval fantasy movie. And way to leave us with a cliffhangers. My bet is on a carnivorous bunny rabbit who feeds on unwise knights venturing into the forest.