Hawk Update
The wings are finally starting to come together! I’ve been having lots of fun trying to figure out how to add wings to the jointed-ness of a human arm. My workshop is now a fabulous wreck; littered with feathers, fur samples, failed attempts and various wing parts... it looks like the aftermath of some epic hawk battle! I’m just glad that I’m not renting; I don’t think I could explain this to a landlord.
Here’s the wing I’m using as a guide:
I settled on polycarbonate sheet for the flight feathers, wrapped in muslin to give a feathery texture and to take the airbrushing. The light comes through the feathers very much like real ones. The quills are aluminum. Here’s how the first wing looks so far, without the feather markings or coverts in place yet:
Fully folded:
Partly splayed:
And fully splayed:
So far, everything has been pretty straightforward mechanical stuff, but now I’m about to venture out of my comfort zone and try to airbrush the feather patterns and hand sew the covert plumage... I just got an airbrush, still need to figure out how it works. I really regret not having developed some useful art skills before now... Guess I better prepare a lot of practice feathers, hmm?
Going to try some painting and sewing this weekend. I'm already preparing myself for the heartbreak of total aesthetic disaster. :o
Here’s the wing I’m using as a guide:
I settled on polycarbonate sheet for the flight feathers, wrapped in muslin to give a feathery texture and to take the airbrushing. The light comes through the feathers very much like real ones. The quills are aluminum. Here’s how the first wing looks so far, without the feather markings or coverts in place yet:
Fully folded:
Partly splayed:
And fully splayed:
So far, everything has been pretty straightforward mechanical stuff, but now I’m about to venture out of my comfort zone and try to airbrush the feather patterns and hand sew the covert plumage... I just got an airbrush, still need to figure out how it works. I really regret not having developed some useful art skills before now... Guess I better prepare a lot of practice feathers, hmm?
Going to try some painting and sewing this weekend. I'm already preparing myself for the heartbreak of total aesthetic disaster. :o