Sorcery And Glue

Comic Con Episode IV: a Fan's Hope arrives!

2011-08-07T01:13:00.000-07:00

I'm going to be updating more about our costumes and creatures we made for SDCC at Crabcat. They turned out amazing! For now, the documentary that I've been talking about for ages is finally is revealed next month at the Toronto Film Festival! Here's a picture of us in Variety magazine...I can't wait to see what comes out next!

E3...The Arrival!

2011-06-06T15:26:00.000-07:00

Now that you've all seen the trailer...

If not go to www.origin.com and watch the Mass Effect trailer to see the Project we've been working on at Crabcat! We made the costumes, the husks, and some of the Alliance News designs!

The rest of Crabcat Industries and myself worked crazy hard to get this done, and we were super excited to be on set and pretend we were in the future. Woooo!

Check out some more stills from the set here!

That said, I'm sure you'd like to see some behind the scenes pictures.....more to come soon!!

Art show!

2011-05-19T18:28:00.000-07:00

Here's your last chance to be bombarded with ridiculousness from me until the art show starts. Watch and enjoy!!

Monster Tea Party: Holly's Art Show! pt. 2

2011-05-13T13:12:00.000-07:00

Monster Tea Party: Holly's Art Show!

2011-05-10T23:56:00.000-07:00

Well folks it's that time again, I have an art show! If you're in the LA area, and want to come hang out and have tea with me and a bunch of monsters, you should head over on MAY 20th! at 8:00 PM at The Secret Headquarters on Sunset! I hope to see you there! Come as a monster and get a prize!

Friday Fun Times Tutorials

2011-04-10T22:08:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Myself and the Crabcat team have been hard at working making tutorials on a few techniques we use while making costumes! Every other Friday I make a "Friday Fun Times Tutorial" with questions, comments, and informative rambling. Usually with the help of a questioning dinosaur. The first two episodes are below. If there's anything you'd like to see in Fun Times, please comment and we'll get to it in the videos! Enjoy!!

HUGE GIGANTIC UPDATE form PAX East!

2011-04-02T10:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been gone for a while! Which makes me sad, because I've been meaning to update quite a bit. PAX East was a complete success, we had a blast, took amazing pictures, and met awesome people. Here are few pictures from super talented photographer Ian Travis Barnard who captured us at the con...

I was super happy how Hawke turned out, all those days of sanding fiberglass paying off.

After that, we had our panel! The guys at Nerd Caliber were nice enough to film it, so below are the videos of me fidgeting and Jessica getting points:

Until next time everyone....weee!

~Holly

Hawke vs Shepard Round One

2011-03-08T17:04:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the silence everyone! I've been trying to make the deadline of PAX East for our upcoming panel of Hawke vs Shepard! Below are a few pictures that we got featured in this Kotaku Article.

I have tons of pictures and videos of how we did the armor, and if you watch one of our livefeeds (I tweet them @Hollyconrad) then you can see us in action!

Anyway, more work to be done, so here's some pics!

If you're going to PAX East, we'll be at our panel at 7:30 Saturday in the Cat theater!

Meeting Doodles and Samara Update!

2011-01-31T13:16:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update, we've been having more meetings lately getting ready to have no life for the new con season. As you know, Crabcat and myself are going to be at PAX East this March, and joining us will be Rana, the face model for Samara/Morinth! Myself and the rest of the team are art directing/creating her costume for this year's Comic Con! She's awesome, and her and a few other artists (who I will be talking about soon and introducing) are really excited to be doing crazy crap in the Crabcat studio/garage.

Anyway, here are some sketches I did later in the weekend while talking about Crabcat. Enjoy! And I'll keep you guys posted on more progress soon!

Grunt made it to BioWare!

2011-01-28T01:18:00.000-08:00

And once I get pictures of him there, I'll see if I can get permission to post them here!

I'm super excited that it got there alright, and I've gotten a lot of awesome feedback from them. I had so much fun all last year on that project, and now it's finally grown up and a piece is in the BioWare head office. So thanks again BioWare and the wonderful artists and concept artists and writers who make their games so inspiring. YOU ALL DESERVE REAL SPACESHIPS.

All right! I see in the poll that I need to do more busts! I may do a few original designs (so, you know, I can be original) and then Mordin, Legion, or Garrus. Ideally I'd love to make another animatronic head, but time-wise that may have to be next year. But we'll see. Expect a new Hawke update soon, this weekend is an epic leather-working fest. It'll be Medieval good times.

Keep watching!!

Poll!?

2011-01-24T09:28:00.000-08:00

I know I have a billion projects, but I'd like to ask everyone something. You all know I love making anything Mass Effect/Bioware due to my love and admiration for their stories and artists, but I'm working on improving my original character/costume/creature design portfolio!

So! Would you guys like to see an original character sculpt by me? Which is then possibly molded and sold on Etsy? Maybe a whole sculpted figure? Illustrations?

Check out the poll to the side *points* and vote!

But first, here's some random nonsense:

Now back to your regularly scheduled blog posts...

~Holly

Fiberglass Armor Fun Pt.1

2011-01-23T22:20:00.000-08:00

Well, usually when you make fiberglass armor you do so by sculpting a detailed sculpt, molding it in silicone and plaster, and then casting it in either a quick casting plastic, or more fiberglass. BUT! Here at Crabcat we do things quick and dirty. Errr, or something. ANYWAY!

Here's how to make a fiberglass claw arm. It's pretty fun! You should try it....what you need...

BondOooooOoOo! You're going to be mixing this with the resin. Why? Because we sculpted hawke's crazy shoulder armor out of water based clay. Resin won't cure over that, so we have to mix resin, bondo, and BOTH catalysts to add a coat over the top!

Green wax! This is for putting on the fiberglass mannequin so your other fiberglass won't stick. You can get it at any local plastics shop, or ridiculous chemical retailer.

Resin!

This is not wheat Germ. This is MEKP, it's the catalyst for resin. We broke the lid, so we put it in a jar. It'll make you blind, so be careful!

Oh and don't forget your safety gear!

Bondo-resin it a cup! Catalyzed and ready to brush onto the sculpture.

Brushed on! Isn't is pretty?! Now that that's on, we let it cure...and you can go play some Mass Effect while you wait for the next exciting update....or something. Also I need to make a video of this, I'll do that soon!

Next up is the actual fiberglass cloth. Make sure to cut it in vaguely the same shape as your armor, and have lots of extra chip brushes for your friends. Then you use regular resin, catalyze it, and tap out the cut pieces (that's a fancy term for pressing the brush into the cloth to wet it). Make sure not to kick it too hot (add too much catalyst) or your resin will jell up while you're applying it, and you'll cry silently to yourself in your dirty hands.

Steph is using proper safety signage. Are you?!

Tank decided to make hot dogs at 2 am. Then he fixed my car! Thanks Tank, you're a trooper. (Jessica is back there stitching Hawke's leather bag. Awesome!)

SO anyway, after wetting the strips and tapping them onto the clay/bondo-resin sculpt (making sure to get all the bubbles out!) We stick it outside to cure and hope for the best.

Next comes the cleaning, sanding, and prettying up. Keep watching!!

And it begins...epic music

2011-01-22T05:51:00.000-08:00

Quick update of a few other bits of recent progress. My next few posts are going to detail to you guys how to do a quick and dirty bit of armor fabricating. The best way to do it would be to sculpt it and then mold it. But since we're working with such simple shapes and no time (because I never got that time machine working), we have a few other options.

This is a bit of sculpting I did in about an hour on a reagular mannequin. You can probably guess where this is going...

First you sculpt your base in WED clay (that gray clay there, water-based) and then I'm going to fiberglass on top of it. *gasp* Pictures of that to come.

Anyway, anyone see any resemblance of this pointy arm accoutrement? Hmmm...

Please excuse the blurry pictures, insane creativity only arrives at 5 am.

Two Grunts!

2011-01-18T11:07:00.000-08:00

A while back BioWare helped us get to PAX by bidding on a new Grunt mask. And here it is! Finally after a few months, New Grunt is next to Old Grunt, and ready to get shipped up to Edmonton.

New Grunt is a slip latex brush in, with translucent sculpy teeth, airbrushed with FW inks, and made with space magic.

No really, I was going to post a tutorial on mask painting, but that'll have to come with my next mask. I got too carried way on Grunt and had too much fun to remember to tape it. Ha.

I was thinking my next mask should be something original, or possibly a design we haven't seen in Mass Effect yet that I come up with and sculpt for funsies.

So there you go! More to come soon, working on new t-shirts as well! Hand screen printed by us in my garage.

As you can see, we've finally managed to make proper t-shirts. WoooO! Eventually they'll be on the Crabcat Etsy store, so if you feel like you need a piece of obscure geeky wardrobe, check them out!

I promise to post more in-progress of the visor as well as my other projects soon! Right now I'm in the *buying supplies* phase, which takes a while.

Keep watching!

Kuwashii Visor

2011-01-04T14:21:00.000-08:00

Knowing that I have no free time on my hands between the massive work load of projects this year, I've decided to do more! This mini-project of mine will be starting soon, making a replica of the Kuwashii visor from ME2, seen below:

All it needs is to be sculpted onto a bust (not necessarily mine) and then molded. It has quite a few small parts that need LEDs or fiberoptics embedded in them, so we'll see how those turn out...but you'll get to watch it on here! Wooo! Space!

Another project on the Shepard front is to improve the body suit I used last year. I didn't have time to create the screen-printed lines on the actual suit, and this year that's going to change! I'm still doing research into places that do that sort of thing in the LA area though...

Anyway, more to come soon....

New Year!

2010-12-31T14:37:00.000-08:00

Hey there everyone!

I've decided to start posting more of my insightful, tutorial-based posts because the new season of conventions and sleepless nights has started. Get ready for a tornado of raptors.

Sometimes in the off season of conventions, I feel like I forget what we've accomplished that year. 2010 was an awesome year. I got the best group of friends to help me make the best costumes I could, in one last space-explosion at the comic con masquerade. We did it, better than I'd ever hoped for, and in the process I got a lot of new friends, supporters, compliments, and a random part in a major motion picture. Speaking of which, my plans for 2011 are going to be revolving around making new costumes, promoting Crabcat, waiting for Comic Con Episode 4: A Fan's Hope to come out so that I can see how ridiculous I look on the big screen, and then not-so-patiently waiting for ME3 and the conclusion of Shepard's story (DIE REAPERS DIE).

If anything, this year has changed me a lot. In what I want to do with my life, and what I want to do to give people something they will remember. Bringing games to life like we did really made a difference, I think, and gave people something else to escape reality with.

But either way, we have a saying that comic con gets better every year, and hopefully that stands true this year as well. So thanks to everyone that donated, and that became a part of this awesome new costume-creating group of awesomeness.

Awesome. (again)

~Holly

Crabcat Pancakes

2010-12-16T16:42:00.000-08:00

Another update from the Crabcat team!!

We're starting a new con season, so expect rainbows to go flying out of my eyes at any moment. (listen for the muffled sobbing as I get no sleep...)

Enjoy!

Working and Drawing!

2010-12-01T22:09:00.000-08:00

Laitly I've been trying to draw more to get a better concept/costume portfolio together. Here are the fruits of my occasional labors...keep looking for updates!

Flying Chunks

2010-11-23T21:24:00.000-08:00

So my amazingly talented and hilarious outspoken grandpa has published his first book! Not only has he helped me immensely over the years artistically and as a mentor, but he's always been an inspiration and is one of animation's visual effects legends. Here's a quick little blurb about it from the Cartoon Boom blog ...

"Dorse A. Lanpher is one of a handful of artists who can say he worked on Disney classics like Sleeping Beauty and 101 Dalmatians as well as contemporary features like Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Aladdin, and Tarzan. Lanpher recently self-published a memoir called Flyin’ Chunks and Other Things to Duck: Memoirs of a Life Spent Doodling for Dollars. His 48-year-career as an effects animator also included an extended stint with Don Bluth on projects like The Secret of NIMH, Dragon’s Lair and An American Tail, which is why Don Bluth penned the book’s foreword. The book sells for a modest $18 on Amazon, and judging from the preview pages on that website, it’s filled with a lifetime’s worth of important and untold stories about working in feature animation."

So yeah, that's my Grandpa! He's as cool as he sounds, and you should read his book.

Especially because he calls me a brat at one point. Now I KNOW you want to read it...

CRABCAT IS GO

2010-11-18T20:32:00.000-08:00

So we've finally published our costumed/reality defying/insanity-promoting website!!!!

Come check it out if you like explosions! CLICK THE CRABCAT

ENKINDLE THIS...

2010-11-08T00:36:00.000-08:00

So I decied to make a Blasto the Hanar Spectre Puppet for this upcoming charity event from G33kwatch! Check out their flier below, and go watch them play Mass Effect for an excruciatingly long time, while donating money and possibly getting your very own Big Stupid Spectre Jellyfish made by me!

Crabcat Halloween!

2010-11-03T01:33:00.000-07:00

What have we been up to at Crabcat Industries? Not much that's productive, but I carved a pumpkin and Jessica ripped her face off. Oh, and we met some Zombies! Come see!

New Video!

2010-10-15T21:48:00.000-07:00

More shenanigans from the Crabcat Team! This time: Failed Taxidermy. Make this your next obnoxious email forward to your co-workers.

Back to the grind and Panel Videos!

2010-10-03T18:56:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all who supported us at PAX! I'm posting the panel videos below, they're long, but if you watch the third video you'll see the Q&A, which is easily the most entertaining as well as the line up of costumes! Enjoy!

Wooo! What an awesome panel, and awesome people. If we get to go again next year expect more costumes, more of Crabcat, more shenanigans, and present! ;D

Now with everything dying down in convention land, it's back to job hunting for me. I've gotten a few temporary jobs but to keep myself making things and Crabcat going, I need to find something more secure.

So, it's job hunting time!

Which, honestly, can get me kind of down. While I may have a lot of designs, costumes and sculptures, I feel like I'm no where NEAR the caliber that they expect in the movie industry. That's not going to keep me from trying though. Ultimately, one day in the distant future when there's either a zombie apocalypse or a cure for cancer, I'd love to be an actual designer of costumes/creatures/etc for movies, games, what-have-you. You know, the one that gets to illustrate the ideas, etc. Creative stuff. But, as lofty as it is, it's a goal I'm holding on to, and I won't give up.

I have lots of plans for costumes coming up, one being a Dr. Strange costume along with Nightmare (two of my favorite Marvel characters) as well as some post-apocalyptic battle armor! So once the funds begin those will as well....keep watching this blog for updates!!

The Real Samara wants to dress up as Samara

2010-09-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

So this is super exciting.

Awesome lady and cancer survivor Rana McAnear wants to cosplay as Samara, the character she actually modeled for in Mass Effect 2. She's acepting donations, and maybe if I'm super nice I might get to help. Or watch. Or consider how awesome it is and run around in circles.

Anyway, check it out!

Click me to check out her site!!

PAX Video!

2010-09-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

Well, we're still looking for footage of the panel, but for now here's an awesome compilation of clips and shenanigans. Enjoy!!

PAX

2010-09-11T13:32:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!

PAX was awesome, I'm still waiting for footage of our panel to make a new video, but needless to say it was packed. There were tons of people there, in costume and not, all just wanting to hear about how we made things and have a good time. I really, really hope we got a panel next year! While I'm waiting to get the footage, I've started working on the Crabcat website, as well as my Etsy store. So take a look, and keep watching for the new PAX video!

~Holly

Pre-PAX Palooza

2010-08-26T02:52:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone! Here's our Pre-PAX video!! Thank you to everyone who has donated and helped us get here....Bioware won the Grunt mask for their office in Edmonton! So Grunt will be immortalized around whatever other cool things they have there. But to ALL of you that gave us your hard earned credits...you did save a krogan, and you won't be dissapointed with our shenanigans!

~Holly

More pictures!

2010-08-13T23:10:00.000-07:00

Between raising money for PAX, fixing things, and going between LA and Highland it's been crazy! But I have enough time before I go to bed to post a few pictures....here they are!! Pretty soon I'm going to be posting more about PAX as well, so keep watching!

~Holly

Message from Miranda

2010-08-03T00:16:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

This is XO Jessica wanting to clear some things up before people go imagining stories.

Some people have expressed concern about our money management skills and feel we are trying to con people out of their hard earned money.

Let me clarify one very important thing. We did not spend all our money “at” Comic Con. To my knowledge, the only thing we bought at Comic-Con was a “Mass Effect: Redemption” comic book ($15), and we ended up getting some free ones from Dark Horse Comics later anyway, oops! Our money was spent making these costumes that everyone has enjoyed so much… and when we were making them, we had no idea our group would become popular. Holly sent in the PAX panel information long before that happened just as a “let’s see if they’ll accept this!”

The costumes you see in the youtube videos cost thousands of dollars. Hell, the reporter dress alone cost several hundred. We all dipped into our savings, and still are (my Miranda costume for PAX has to come from somewhere!).

The way we see that little “donation” box on the left hand corner is this: Holly could be selling ad space on her blog and youtube. Many people do that and no one thinks that is begging. The way we are approaching it is more like that crazy person in the subway who is seriously playing his guitar with passion. If you feel so inclined, throw a dollar into his guitar case. If not, walk away and enjoy the music. We also have tangible things for sale on Etsy and will add more as we can.

We really appreciate the emails, comments, and awesomeness that has come from the people we have met online and out in public. But we’re a bunch of 20somethings that decided to do something really big and if we want to keep sharing our passion, someone either needs to give us a Business 101 lesson, get us better jobs, or put a dollar into our proverbial guitar case.

For those of you who have donated or bought Tali Bands…. I am giving you guys a look of disbelief and thinking this would make a really good Christmas special if it was at all relevant. We will not forget you, and I will make sure we thank you some way!

Cheers,
Jessica

PAX and Shore Leave with Crabcat Industries

2010-08-02T07:16:00.000-07:00

Well, the documentary crew is gone (until the movie comes out next year!) But that doesn't mean we're parked the Normandy for good. We want to go to PAX in Seattle Washington, and we're trying to get there with a crazy fundraiser!!

So, if you guys want to see more awesomeness on this blog, or in general, click DONATE to the left, watch our video, or visit our ETSY store. More to come soon!!

For now....SHORE LEAVE!

Comic Con is Over

2010-07-26T05:14:00.000-07:00

And we just got back!!! I promise a more detailed explanation of it all later, the film crew was awesome, the days were amazing, and here is our finished skit! We were all so proud. More to come soon!!

Last minute gluing and blogging!

2010-07-22T11:37:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys!
This is Jessica blogging because Holly is otherwise engaged. No, we're actually packing everything up right now and we'll be leaving for Comic Con in the next half hour!!!!!! We decorated the big van we're taking to represent the Normandy!

Honk if you love Tali.

For those of you following this whole ordeal, Holly and I will be tweeting our locations (@Fyriel and @PopCulturePie) and passing along funny things that are happening. We can't wear the costumes on the floor until Sunday, so if you want to come say "Hi" to Grunt or snag a picture of Shepard punching out the reporter, check our twitter accounts for a nerdy play-by-play and where we are.

Thanks everyone for being so cool and following Holly's art!

P.S. We can finally tell you that WE GOT THE DOCUMENTARY! Just thought you might like to know.

See you at comic con!!

2010-07-15T13:18:00.001-07:00

Sorry that I haven't been in touch everyone, I've been crazy busy! Anyway, here's Grunt's head all set up...and hopefully I'll see you at comic con!

After that I promise many more blog posts!

Only 20 days! AHHH!

2010-07-01T13:28:00.000-07:00

We're actually getting a lot done! I know comic con isn't far away, but things will come together and it'll be amazing! Anyway...here's the newest video update...with even MORE Tali!

Update video and new website!

2010-06-26T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Here's the most recent update on the shenanigans going on in the garage, hope you enjoy it! I've also made a brand new portfolio website (www.fyriel.com) and I'm glad it's finally done! More updates to come soon, and a tutorial on foam latex mask seaming! oooh fuun....

Tali!

2010-06-24T13:50:00.000-07:00

Tayler has been working long, excruciating hours perfect Tali's rediculously-broken looking legs, and here's your first sneak peek of what we have so far!

Tayler designed the fabric and had it printed online, so we actually have a lot of it for making awesome bags/clothes later.

Tali legs! They still need some armor pieces on the toes, but they're looking awesome!

Eyebrows and songs!

2010-06-19T15:13:00.000-07:00

So we've been working hard on the audio for the skit with Mike , AKA "Lobos" (who I knew from my WoW days!) and he's been doing a totally awesome job. It's super secret though!!! So you'll have to wait until comic con to see the skit.

For now though, I have an awesome song that Lobos made (He's the lead guitarist in the band Descendants of Erdrick) and I'm eventually going to use when we actually have something finished to show you guys (haha). But listen to it now! Go! It's amazing.

Also, here's a quick peek at Grunt's eyebrows! They're working!

Armor Making, Krogan Style pt 1

2010-06-13T23:38:00.000-07:00

Well today we started to piece together the armor for Grunt. really it's just a lot of thin, durable fiberglass work.

Now, this is only one way you can do something like this. If this project had the time and money of a movie, we'd probably be sculpting, molding, and casting all of these armor pieces perfectly. Which I would love, love to do. But this is not the case (cries). So! We're building the body suit on the body cast, and then piecing the armor on top of that. I didn't take any pictures tonight (I was too busy making things) but I'll for sure be getting some up tomorrow as I cut up the pieces into actual armor.

So keep watching! In the meantime, here's the video I just posted of me in the Shepard armor....enjoy!!

Oh, and here's Tayler working on a Tali leg. Or making a flux capacitor. I'm not sure which. Dangerous SCIENCE!

Edit:

The lovely Shumworld over at Deviantart drew us a bit of fan art for this video...wait for the end to see the inspiration. I love it!! He's done a few others too, so go see!

I'm Commander Shepard....And apparently I'm big in Norway

2010-06-13T02:56:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I talked about old school costumes and Mass Effect on this lovely podcast here:

http://wirelessexpressshow.com/?p=117

You can go listen to it and hear me be awkawrd, and two Irish guys be awesome and like cool shit!

Go go go!

Also, apparently I got a spot on Norway's biggest TV channel. Not even joking. Here's the link! Go Norway and your metal-songs-about-dragons!

http://nrkp3.no/filmpolitiet/2010/06/mass-effect-2-blir-virkelig/

Anyway, So I took a ton of pictures today, but I'm not quite done with the costume yet. I think I'm going to save the mystery for comic con and just post a few. But I really liked this one.

Keep watching!

A Sneak Peek of what's to come...

2010-06-11T12:11:00.000-07:00

So I have a crap ton of stuff to do today before the N7 armor is finished and all assembled so that it won't stab me in places that CG never thought about, but here are a few pictures of some of the pieces that look pretty. It's like those puzzles where you have to guess what part of the armor I'm taking a close-up picture of...

Also, the title of Holly Conrad Verner has made me laugh.

"Where did you get that armor??"

"You can get pretty convincing replicas these days..."

Yes, yes you can.

I'll be updating soon!

Holy Crapcakes

2010-06-10T16:35:00.000-07:00

So, I get back from space-armor-undersuit shopping (after failed space-armor-undersuit-making #1 last night) and I'm like, hmm I might check my e-mail!

*checks e-mail*

WOW where did all these e-mails come from did I get hacked?! Wait...this one is from...wait.....wait..........

Well, here's my answer!!

http://kotaku.com/5560453/this-could-be-the-beginning-of-a-beautiful-mass-effect-2-cosplay

We got on Kotaku!!! One of my good friends was kind enough to send them a link with my video, and they were kind enough to throw us on their blog.

Also, I've been getting so many freaking amazing comments from all over the internet. Form other costumers, Mass Effect fans, from people from Bioware, to even Matt Rhodes (I love your art Matt! And seriously, Reboot was an awesome show.)

So most sincerely, and seriously, thank you, everyone, for watching us make these awesome characters into costumes! I promise to have a lot more super cool posts and videos before they're all done! Grunt's armor is up next, and we've already started on a few parts!

Also, this goes out to you Bioware folks, because you guys really do tell the best stories and make the best games out there. I've played them all, and I remember fighting my best friend Sophomore year in high school over who got to play Baldur's Gate for only 10 minutes before school. They're completely artwork, not just games.

Anyway, I have to clean the house still, and I still have costumes to make!!! I'll get to all of the lovely comments and e-mails tonight....So thanks everyone, and expect some finished Shepard pics before Saturday!

Now Come The Sleepless Nights

2010-06-07T19:32:00.000-07:00

Needless to say, I was already nervous regarding this comic con endeavor and the size of the costumes. Now I have to wait for the chance of a life time to either pass me by or scoop me up. Fantastic. I'm going to be here piddling myself with my cats.

Anyway! I'm almost done with Shepard, expect MONDO SUPER FINISHED pictures this Friday, as I have to have the suit done for an Open House at work on Saturday. It's pretty cool, all these high-up theme-park-animatronic people are going to see my scary ass costume. I think it should be interesting to see their reactions...I'm pretty sure they don't play Mass Effect. If they do, I'll be pleasantly surprised.

Anyway, here's a picture of how I feel right now. More pics to come!!

Comic Con Documentary: An Audition Reel!

2010-06-05T01:02:00.000-07:00

Enjoy...and wish me luck!! More posts of actual costuming soon....Grunt's armor is getting done!

A quick peek...

2010-06-04T02:58:00.000-07:00

Now, I can't post too much of the reel, but here's a quick little peek just for you blog watches....let's keep our fingers crossed...., or three fingers, if you're a Krogan or a Quarian.

Comic Con Documentary....a call back?!

2010-06-03T16:57:00.000-07:00

All right, just a quick little update, and don't get too excited.

I got a call back and interview for the comic con documentary, I'm making a reel tonight and sending it in. Please, world of bloggers and the like, wish me luck! To get this spot would be absolutely fantastic. I mean, to not get it wouldn't be the end of the world, I'd still be costuming, I'd still be working towards getting in the movie industry, but damn. It would be awesome.

I'll be keeping you guys updated, of course!!

A Night Off for Computer Things

2010-05-31T18:03:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been working non-stop outside in the garage, and after fitting the body suit tonight I'm going to finish my new website! Of course this blog will stay the same, but I'm using Wix to make a super snazzy new portfolio. As for today, I made a fancy dessert and a new business card. I'm going to use this front of the card, and on the back have a custom stamp...which means I have to stamp them. But that's ok, it'll be fun, and it saved me a bus load of money.

So here it is, black and white. Classy. Etc.

Usually I agonize over how to make these damn things professional, yet interesting, yet well designed. So this time I just decided to go for it. A little humor, a little class, and the stamp is creative. Hopefully it says "I AM AWESOME" or something like that.

I never learned these things in college. Take that art students.

N7 Sneak Preview and a Blog Award!

2010-05-30T18:09:00.000-07:00

Well I wasn't going to post any of the N7 armor until is was done, but I think I'll give you guys a few little snippets....I also got a lovely blog award! One of the other awesome geeky bloggers out there, Eleni, from An RPG Called Life, gave me this:

Woo! First I'll grace you guys with my 10 geeky facts, and then some really frightening pictures of me as a few pieces of Jane Shepard, renegade extraordinaire.

1. I used to dress up in costumes as long as I can remember, starting as a very small child. A few of my favorite were (and this was when I was like....5....)....Raccoon Mario, a Koopa (this was created by me by taking a green pillow and taping it to my back), Pterodactyl, Dale from Chip n'Dale, Peter Pan, etc etc to name a few.

2. I've always loved RPG computer games. I played from Kings Quest 4 until the end, I started when I was around 5 or 6, and I've been playing them ever since. Oh and Quest for Glory, that was such a great series. I also had a Sonic stuffed animal I was thoroughly in love with, thus starting my unhealthy obsession with fictional characters. Baldurs Gate, was of course, my biggest influence in high school. I loved that whole series, and NWN. They were amazing.

Then of course came WoW, and my costumes based off of that. Then I realized that game was boring, and the rest is history.

3. One of my best friends and I wrote a book when we were 11-13. It was a fantasy/sci-fi epic with different dimensions, monsters, magic, space ships, and pretty much made of awesome. It was called The Three and was 340 pages long. We tried to get it published and failed. I sucked at PR back then.

4. I wanted to be an Ornithologist and study birds, until I realized chemistry was hard. Then I went to college and got a degree in Medieval Studies, and realized academia was boring. Now I'm an artist, go figure. I should have known, I got most artistic in high school, painted murals, won money in sculpture competitions, and got scholarships...all based on art. Oh well, same place different means.

5.I love old comic books, and I love Marvel comics. I've read every Dr. Strange comic out there, and have decided that he seriously needs more love. And a movie. Where I make the costumes (hint hint).

6. I've played D&D multiple times, even DMed a few games. I'm always a tiefling sorceress (one of my first costumes I made, too). Go figure.We tried to make a D&D club in high school, and ended up getting pulled into the principles office asking if we were going to be doing any "blood sacrifices" and "witchcraft". I wish I was joking.

7. I used to watch Buffy with my parents as a kid, and Xena and Hercules. Then it moved onto Stargate and Star Trek, both of which I love. I still even now watch Star Trek while I'm working in the garage. Come on, Picard is such a badass. I also went to the Hilton Star Trek experience before it closed, and it was freaking amazing. I think I was like, 13. Also, when I was that age my favorite movies were Independence Day, Men In Black, and Appolo 13. I see a theme here.

8. I have a bookshelf full of books on magic, demonology, herbs, astrology, and just about any other awesome mystical pseudo-science you can name. And yet I'm a total science-militant Atheist.

9. I lived in Scotland for a year and was the "north wind" in a crazy naked pagan festival, and loved every minute of it. I wish I was still there. I've been all over the UK, and not just because I liked Harry Potter. And had an owl with a letter taped to my ceiling. Mostly.

10. There's seriously a lot more, I'm just a massive geek. I can't help it. Also, I still have a picture of Valen from NWN in my garage workshop, and now there's one of Garrus. But really, I'm TOTALLY normal.....on to the pictures!!

Here's a few of the makeup, wig, contacts, shoulder pieces, arm pieces (minus a lot of detail) and some of the butt pads. Don't get me started on the butt pads. The light colored pieces are missing the carbon fiber sticker, and are just bondo. Hence, more sanding!

Anyway, a TON of work to do, but it's good to see the pictures, right?! Anyway....enjoy...

Bored Shepard is bored.

I'll be updating soon!

Mass Effect Movie

2010-05-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

http://www.heatvisionblog.com/2010/05/mass-effect-video-game-on-way-to-movie-screen.html?loc=interstitialskip

Well, there it is. They've officially announced a Mass Effect movie. I'm excited, to say the least, but I'm more excited that it's only in the early stages of development. Why? Because if the world loves me one day I'll be working on that movie, or a movie like it, making/sculpting costumes. And I'm definitely going to try to get there, I don't think it's an impossibility at all.

So here's to hoping, and hoping that the masquerade goes well and so does giving out my portfolio.

Argh!! MOVIE!!!! ok I'm done. Well not really, because I'm super excited to see Garrus. Now I'm done.

Anyway, I've gotten a lof of progress on the N7 armor and grunt, I just haven't taken any pics. Early next week I should have some video of Grunt's head....but animated.....!

Keep watching!

Grunt Test Skin, Foam Latex!

2010-05-12T21:21:00.000-07:00

Alright, here's another one of those processes I'm going to sort of muddle over. It's not that it wouldn't be fascinating, but it's one of those things that despite pages of blogging, it'll still be really hard to do if you try it. But, I do have pictures! We poured the foam latex test head at work the other day, using work's giant mixer and syringe. It came out with a few bubbles, but it's a test skin, so it's fine.

This is GM prosthetics grade foam latex, rather than animatronic grade which is a little more dense (and mrroe expensive, eeeew) Since this will be animatronic, it'll take a little beating, but it's not going to be any serious business metal parts, it'll mostly be fiberglass and plastic. Here's a pic of the head! it sort of feels like moist bread and smells like rotten pastries:

See how it squishes up?? Foam latex is super soft, it's practically just air, which is why it makes such good animatronics and prosthetics.

Ahhh skinny-faced krogan. It looks like I photo-shopped him, but I didn't! It's just that stretchy.

Now I have to do some more things to this test skin, including cut it in half, fiberglass the inside, make a head cap thing, etc etc, all so it can be worn as a real costume piece! But right now, I need to finish the N7 armor before the 22nd. Wish me luck...I'll be updating!

Betwixt Renaissance Faires and Space Armor

2010-05-07T01:06:00.000-07:00

Whew, everything has been crazy lately, I'm helping set up an Alchemy shop with some of the haunt people at the Renaissance Faire. That's been a blast, lots of skulls, bones, old books, bottles, etc. I've been showing them the ropes of becoming real fake alchemists like myself (lol). But I know, you're all wondering how the hell I have time to do that when I have unifinshed space armor in the garage. I'm mixing my geek genres, and that's just messy. Right?

Well I don't have time. But the Ren Faire is fun! Sooo...

Don't worry! Grunt's head is ready to be cast next week, I spared you blog readers some of the other molding crap, it'd be as boring to read as it was for me to do it. If you're really hankering for the details, I can do a follow-up post later. But expect pictures soon!

As far as the N7 armor goes, that's been going well. I've started to sculpt up and make the fiberglass parts. The chest should be molded in the next few days, and then we'll get to sanding and finishing.

For now, here's a quick WIP pic...enjoy!

"Hi I'm Commander Shepard, please don't grope me."

Mold Cleaning

2010-04-25T21:27:00.000-07:00

Whew! Thankfully it was nice and sunny today, so I took apart the Grunt mold and cleaned it out in the front yard. It's pretty much just scraping and then hosing out the excess.

I tried a bit of armor last night, but I'm not happy with the results. I'm going to a place close by tomorrow called S&W plastics to grab some different types for armor making.

Here's a few pics of the cleaned out mold and Tank's head cast that finally is revealed again.

Premature Costume Assembly

2010-04-22T23:46:00.000-07:00

Alright, here are a few pics of Tank and I taking apart the mold and holding it up to his body cast and giggling about how exciting it'll be to see it all together! But it's not. It's just the mold. But you can get a good idea of the size.

So now it's cleaning the mold out, and then making the core! I'll be posting about that soon!

I am Krogan!!

Molding party!!!!

2010-04-22T00:36:00.000-07:00

Well tonight we had a molding party for Grunt's head. That's right, it's molded, the sculpting is done! weeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!

So, here are a few pics of the molding party with pals from work and the haunted house ~~doing all the work~~ helping. But I make a mean cup of espresso.

First, I just liked this concept picture, really nice detail. I need to find out who did it so I can credit them appropriately. Definitely going to use it for armor reference. Anyway, back to the molding party!!

So here we've put crystal clear on it and green wax, and are trying to get it to not fall over because of my inability to make a functional stand. (that's me in the middle laughing about it! Har har! James and Ben look like they're not as amused.)

Jesus Krogan of Shem Stock.

Note: if you do a clay flange, it's neater and leaves no seam. But because Grunt has such a rough head, the seam will be easily fixed so we just used shem stock, which you can get at any home depot in the roofing area.

The first layer of Bondo-Glass, it gets the detail

Then a layer of mud

Ahh fiberglass! Quick before it cures and messes up everything whaa!

Three layers of fiberglass and some coffee and Kahlua later...

And the mold is done!

That's me in the middle, holding my scarf to my face in avid concern of the mold being done.

But it is! I'll spare all of you the hole drilling and core-making, and start updating more N7 stuff in the next few days!

And thanks again to all my lovely friends and fellow artists who help me on these massive project things. I would be complaining a lot more without you, and hurting myself with giant molds. ;D

And soon enough you'll get to see the first cast of Grunt. *excited*

A Few Things About Animatronics!

2010-04-22T00:14:00.000-07:00

Alright, Grunt is finally done! I'm posting pics of his finished face here, but first a FEW THINGS ABOUT ANIMATRONICS!

Grunt's face is going to be animated with a mechanism underneath the foam latex skin to create life-like movement! He's going to have an eye blink, a lip movement, a pupeteered mouth, and an eyebrow movement. All of these use little motor things called servos, that are programmed and hooked up to a battery.

THIS is why Grunt looks SLEEPY! No, I'm not making cute!grunt with squishy eyes, even though that would be awesome. When you sculpt an animatronic head, it needs to be in the neutral position. This means everything has to be as if you've decided to be super lazy and let your mouth sort of slack and your eyes droop. When he's cast up in foam latex, it'll be really easy to just lift his skin eyelid up and make him look awake again and not drunk. Also, those pink pieces are sculpy plates that I made. Those center plates will be made out of plastic so that Tank can see out of the mask. Hooray!

Alrighty, here are the pics...

Glowie things!

2010-04-16T23:21:00.000-07:00

Well, tonight I worked on Grunt some more, and then got the bulk of the Chavant on the N7 armor (what a mess, ew). Mostly today though I went shopping for EL wire. I needed a whole bunch of blue for both Grunt and Shepard's armor. I also got a strand of orange to make an Omni-tool for Tali. I'm actually really excited about that and might just make it when the wire shows up....anyway!

Here's the EL wire site!

Go have fun looking at glowie things.

I hate it when you find a better reference when you're done.....

2010-04-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

So I was just reading an article on the ZBrush art of Mass Effect, and I came across this...

Really?! This would have been helpful like.....weeks ago. Oh well! I'll chock up the little differences in the sculpt to artist's interpritation.....right?

Ah well, back to work!

N7 Update

2010-04-14T23:23:00.000-07:00

So I'm working part time now to focus more on my own projects, getting a better porfolio, and doing work around the house. Which is exciting, because while I might now be incredibly poor, I know I'm going to finish my costumes before comic con! Woo! lol

Well, tonight I took a break from Grunt (poor guy) and worked on melting some Chavant onto my mannequin for the N7 armor. Here's how I do it...

I get a crock pot from target for 14 dollars, dump the clay in, and let it sit for a while until it's melted. Then I take some sort of scooping device, scoop it onto the body and smooth it out with a rake. I'm using Chavant because it's harder and doesn't dry out, mostly. It'll be easier to get those angular shapes that are really subtle without having to let the clay dry enough to break off the base like wed clay would.

Here are some pics!

Chavant mess: Crock pot, heat lamp, alien-proof tin foil box for heating up.

This looks messy, because it is. I've just melted the clay onto the body (the tape is the edges of the armor) and now I'll start smoothing it, sculpting it, etc etc. It's going to take a while, but it's a start. I'll be updating soon!

Sculpture update!

2010-04-13T22:41:00.000-07:00

know I've been bad, but since I'm running out of time to finish these damn things I'll definitely be updating more! (haha)

Anyway, here's an update on Grunt....he's looking good! Should be done in a few days....then its molding time!

Here's a size reference to the rest of my garage...

Grrrr.

More soon!

Drills, Mermaids, and I AM KROGAN!

2010-03-23T01:02:00.000-07:00

Ugh, so I went to Lowes today to buy myself a lovely new drill. And it said it came with a drill bit, and it didn't. So I couldn't fix my head cast stand. BOOOO.

Lying drill.

For starters, my FeeJee mermaid up in NorCal at Barber Jon's Barber Shop is now officially in one of Fox News's 12 weirdest museums in the world, alongside the The Mütter Museum and the Icelandic Phallological Museum (haha, you guessed right). Fantastic! Here's the link....

But on to the important costume goodies, I spent a good 3 hours of tonight figuring out the skit, as well as doing a few more fun sketches while holding up the bajillion pound head. Here's the fruits of my labor, at least I didn't drop it!

Also, please excuse the drawings I did them with the mouse. I tend to just throw these things together for reference, but since I'm trying to post daily now until Comic Con.......we'll see how that goes.

Oh god the pain! Anyway, more soon...perhaps the drill saga continues tomorrow...

I AM KROGAN!

I'm Published!

2010-03-21T23:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I knew vaguely that I was getting published in a steampunk how-to book, but what I didn't know is how fabulous the book would be!! Jean Campbell wrote me a wonderful little blurb next to my picture in the "Dress Up" section of the book, here's a pic!

Look there I am! Eeee!

The book can be found Here at Barnes and Nobles (they're in them all across the country and the UK!) and it's on Amazon too.

So there you have it, my first published costume/character/whathaveyou.

Plus, it has a shiny cover. You can't go wrong.

Lots of New Things

2010-03-21T22:39:00.000-07:00

Whew, I've been crazy busy, but I've been feverishly working on my billion different projects!

First, the body cast has finally made its new home in my garage, scaring my cats. I've done a few proportion sketches here, getting ready for the suit building. First I need to buy the upholstery foam, sculpt, and encase that in spandex, then sew it into the main body suit.

As you can see, there's a screaming bus load of work to do, but I'm getting there! Note the motivational countdown on the side of my blog....yeah...

Also, I went to the Palm Springs Renaissance Faire today and busted out the old Orpheus Alchemy costume, which was really fun. I got to meet a lot of really awesome and talented people as well. Here's me looking confused...

N7 Fabric Adventure

2010-03-10T00:50:00.000-08:00

Well, while running a few errands today I ran into the most amazing thing....

In Mass Effect 2, there's this weird, meshy, woven, material underneath the solid armor in the N7 suit.

This fellow is wearing the man-version of the armor I'm making...

And now, look at this totally fantastic vinyl I found...

Isn't that amazing?! I was so excited. Now I don't have to paint something, or weave it, or stare at it until it melds into what I want.

So when I was at the fabric store, the lady that usually cuts my fabric (not sure of her name, picture skinny nice old lady) asks me, as she usually does, what I'm making. This time it goes like this:

Fabric Lady: "So what are you making this time?"
Me: "Space armor."
Fabric Lady: "Oh neat! And you're getting married in it right?"
Me: *laughs* "I wish, if I find a guy who'll marry me in space armor I'd be all for it."
Fabric Lady: "Oh I'm sure he's out there. Wearing an alien costume."

...........

good times.

Shepard...Grunt....

2010-03-09T00:11:00.000-08:00

Well, today was fun. After decideing that I needed to do a quick sculpt of the head for proportion reasons, I managed to throw out this vague likeness in about 20 minutes...

I need to extend his fringe, thicken the neck, small things. But I have to insert some foam into the inside to decrease the weight. I also need to attach the eyes to something symmetrical so that the eye-blink mechanism can work properly once it's installed.

Anyway, my owl creature is also going well, I'm calling him the Councilor. Maybe I see him coming out of a tree, or a bunch of them, judging people based on the will of the earth, or some alien fungus, or something.

Daww.

So that's it....more coming soon!!

Broken Things in My Garage

2010-03-06T23:57:00.000-08:00

Well, so far this weekend of costume has been discovering what does, and does not work in my garage. The drill, which is probably an ancient relic, does not work. It sparks when I turn it on.....and as far as my abilities go, nailing things together usually turns out poorly. But in the end, the head cast got a lovely stand to sculpt on...

Yeah, that messed up resin/bondo bit below his neck is a flange I made so that the head will extend far enough into the armor.

So now, I need to vaccu-form some nice eye forms, make a foam structure under the clay as well as a structure for the eyes (so that the animatronics inside the head aren't all wonky when I make the fiberglass shell). And then I can start to actually sculpt the head! woo!

I also patterned out the N7 armor on a mannequin with some tape and vaguely accurate measurements...I have a crock pot to melt my chavant and a form to pour it in so that I can place even slabs onto the form. Lots lots lots to do before the end of July.

Eeek! Nekkid mannequin!

But I'm working on it.

More to come soon!

Comic Con, Part....whatever

2010-03-02T21:38:00.000-08:00

Well, being the flaky artist that I am, I've changed my mind. Again.

But trust me....this costume is going to be AWESOME.

So the Ogre is now Grunt, and my whole Morrigan costume idea is going to be turned into Commander Shepard. Yes, this may just be some grand scheme to make myself a Commander Shepard costume.......maybe. But anyway, I'm officially starting sculpting this week, so it's final, I'll be making Mass Effect costumes and it's going to be magical.

Also, here's the finished, cleaned head cast....with a lovely monocle on it for garnishing.

The body cast is also done, but still at work, so I have to snag some pics of it as I make a giant armature for it. Also, I've been taking a sculpting class out in LA with Jordu Schell, and it's been super fun. We're doing a sort of half mask/creature and here is a picture of mine in progress...

Not sure what to call him yet......... not even close to being done, but looking neat!

Anyway, ever busy, but I'll be updating more with project pictures and cool crap....

~Holly

Sphynx

2010-02-15T23:20:00.000-08:00

Another quick sketch, obviously I'm stalling on the big costume, but not really! It's in the process of having a giant armature built for it. It's complicated, so for now, more art therapy....

Elcor.

2010-02-11T22:14:00.000-08:00

Alright, I promise to start working on more ogre stuff this weekend, this is the last Mass Effect drawing.....

That is a joke.

No, there's going to be more. Best game ever. Don't get me wrong, I loved Dragon Age, but damn.

Anyway, now this:

"Insincere endorsement: You have not experienced the true voice of Shakespeare until you have heard it in the voice of Elcor."

Mass Effect + Water Colors = Fun

2010-02-06T01:54:00.000-08:00

I'm obsessed, it's official. But I made a cute little drawing while watching Project Runway....

A little doodle...

2010-02-04T19:18:00.000-08:00

I might do a series of these, they're named after demons summoned by Solomon. This one is Rhyx Enenutha, who enslaves the minds of men. It's ink and watercolor.

Mass Effect 2, Damn You.

2010-02-02T19:30:00.000-08:00

Damn you Bioware. How is it that you make Dragon Age, and I'm like....wow, this game has to be the best game I've played since Baldur's Gate!

Then you make Mass Effect 2.

And you throw me from my safe, magic-filled fantasy world into the stark, silver-streaked mystery that is sci-fi. Then you throw in amazing characters, awesome badass dialogue, an epic story, and fantastically questionable alien-human romance options, and what am I supposed to do?! NOT make a costume?!?!?!

SO anyway, I've taken a break from the ogre for a bit to finish the game. I did, in like 5 days. I've already started it again though.......augh! It really is amazing, really. I can't wait until the third.

So ah, maybe Dragon Age, Mass Effect cross over skit? All I know is that I want to make a Turian and some Commander Shepard armor. That is all.

Creativity is a cruel master. Anyway, more official costume posts to come soon, now that the rain has stopped and we can fiberglass the other side of the body cast!

Fiberglass Is OK

2010-01-25T00:11:00.000-08:00

Fiberglass is not fun. But it's necessary. It's sort of what separates costumes from the good and the not-really-that-good-but-ok. It's a rite of passage into the world of real molding/costuming/badassery. Most of the time when you finish the algenate head cast mold, you pour up a plaster head. Instead, because of the size of this costum, we're doing everything in fiberglass then putting it together and making a stand for it. I'm not going to go too much into the fiberglass process, I'll leave that for when we actually make a mold of the sculpture, because that'll be much more crucial to getting it right.

I am going to post a few pictures though, so enjoy!

Shellack first! Also, guess what kids, it's flammable.......even without reading the container.

Now some mold release, I think we usually use something else, but we had this stuff so there you go.

Bondo! Doesn't that look like fun. It was cold too.

We did the same process to the inside of the head cast, this is just applying the fiberglass layer. It totally works! I'll post picture soon of the totally awesome finished head cast.

Uh yeah, that's me helping. See! I'm helping! I also found a nice kitty.

Anyway, until next time!!

FeeJee Mermaid Update!

2010-01-23T01:42:00.000-08:00

The FeeJee Mermaid finally settled into her home at World Famous Barber Jon's up in Northern California! She got to be on their local TV show, "Experience El Dorado". Barber Jon is pretty much awesome, part showman, part barber, part museum curator, part magician. Plus, he wears a totally snazzy cloak and top hat sometimes. Also, his room of curiosities is such a fantastic throwback to the pop-culture mysticism of the 20th century (which you all know I love). I can only hope to have such a great place of oddities one day. Anyway, check out the clip! The FeeJee mermaid shows up at around 5:25, but watch the whole thing to get a sense of the barber shop itself!

Ogre Head Maquette!

2010-01-11T20:58:00.000-08:00

I was in a more creative than technical mood tonight, so instead of planning on how I'm going to piece together the massive structure of the ogre costume, I decided to do a tiny maquette. I only did half as I got tired. I did it in about an hour-ish while I watched Iron Man. Enjoy!

Also, for anyone super bored, one of my favorite bands is Beirut, and one of their members is in THIS band, and they have a free EP to download, and it's awesome music for that post-sculpture down time. That is all. I love weird music, what can I say.

Head! Cast! Fun! Time!

2010-01-10T22:58:00.000-08:00

Alright, as said before, this weekend was head cast time! You can't have a body cast without a head cast. I will try to be as faithful as possible to what we were doing, how we did it, and how much pain was involved. A lot of the Haunted House people are there, and we're doing it at James's place (he runs the haunted house ...shameless plug...), so try to look in the background of the pictures to see if you see anything totally insane because his house is amazing. Thank you James for letting us ruin your kitchen and for listening to me whine (which is pretty much always).

Anyway! First we went out to LA (which is about an hour form here) and went to some art/makeup supply stores. Two of them are Frends Beauty Supply, and Carter Sexton. I proceeded to spend money I didn't have. We then went to a few other fun places, including Necromance over in Hollywood for some dead animals and bones and then Halloweentown where I bought a new demonology book (I kid you not, my free time is spent being a voracious heathen).

Here's the best picture I got out of the trip: It says Gifts, Cards, and Caskets. Obviously your one stop shop for buying gifts for a loved on and then killing them.

Anyway! After whining a lot and making it back alive (by some sort of miracle) we started on the head cast. Poor Tank had to shave some more, and then get ready. We started unwrapping the swag we got earlier in the day, AKA the plaster bandages seen to the side. They're super quick dry and the same as we had for the body cast. At the same time, we started to get Tank ready to be thrown into the head cast...

Hokay! Tank has a lot of hair, so we have to put it up in a weird telly-tubby-like tube so that it doesn't interfere with the head cast. This is what we're doing here.

He then gets a latex cap to cover his head, which is trimmed to fit and stuck on absolutely perfectly with Prozade (its a super sticky makeup/prosthetic glue). He gets Vaseline on eyebrows, eyelashes, etc, anything that could stick to the alginate.

The finished outfit is a stylish trash bag, bald cap, and weird head appendage. This is half the reason why I'm there to document these things. We then mix up the alginate in cold water. This is dental alginate, the stuff they use to make molds of your teeth. It's very expensive, but so is everything it seems that we use to mold people. So here it is being mixed up (ew) and then being put on Tank's head, making sure his nose isn't covered so he can breath. It'll slowly start to "kick" which means it begins to solidify as it reacts with the cold water. When that happens, we begin putting on the plaster bandages.

It's pretty much as unpleasant as it looks.

Bandage time! Same as last time, hot water plus bandages equals good times.

(I didn't get any pictures of James, as seen below, drying them out with a blow torch. It was pretty great)

The front half is done! You can see again where we've created a flange, that's where the other half will overlap (we cover it with Vaseline) so the two halves can be pulled off.

Uhh, apparently the above picture is tradition. I didn't draw it, but it is very stylish. If you notice Tank's head is leaning forward, that's because our good friend the Ogre has a very forward head and a massive back, we have to take all that into consideration before all of this is done.

Now that's the inside of the mold! Pulled off of Tank's head. All those little soft lines are actually skin, and if you look closely you can see detailed pores on it as well. It's amazing! Here's Tank, all done and smiling, either because his face is stuck like that or he's relieved he can see again.

Alright, that is not the end of the night! There's a lot more head casting fun to be had, but it's my bed time so I'll blog about that later this week.

PS. You get extra points if you can spot the giant crab, mask, cages and/or swords in the background.

Morrigan costume, amulet

2010-01-04T23:29:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday everyone. After work today I decided to go ahead and start some of the jewlery for the Morrigan costume. I've started the sculpt, which I'll mold in silicone and cast up in urethane, then make into neato fancy necklaces for myself and possibly Etsy!

I just did the sculpt tonight, if I get around to making the mold I'll make sure to post that as well. Here are some pics!

This was my set up, the clay is called "Chavant" you can get it online or at various art supply places and in different levels of pliability. Here's one site that you can buy it for cheap, this is a 'medium" firm. You can use a desk lamp and some tin foil to heat it up until soft (it gets firm again fairly fast) and because I wasn't doing anything large I didn't need an internal armature, but I did use that foam block and wooden bamboo stick to give myself a better view while I was sculpting.

Anyway, here's the nearly finished amulet, I need to tweak it a bit before molding, but it's close enough to the concept to work well.

Until next time...

Ogre Body Cast time!

2010-01-02T20:08:00.000-08:00

Today was the beginning of one of the most ambitious costume projects I've taken on, even more so than the Lady of Pain from last year. But thankfully this time I have help! Some of my friends over at the Haunted House are helping me body cast our lovely actor Tank, who will be wearing the ogre suit on stage while Jessica, myself, and a clan of darkspawn run around with magic and awesomeness.

The process is simple in concept but tedious and painful in application. Here you can see poor Tank trying out the bicycle seat he'll be sitting on for an hour covered in plaster. Not to mention the poor guy had to shave....all over. We're getting to that....

This looks as uncomfortable as it is. Especially since the haunted house people seem to use this as a hazing ritual to get extra friendly with everyone they know. Go figure. Anyway, after having shaved, plastic wrapped his boxers, and covered himself in petroleum jelly, then we start applying the plaster bandages! These bandages are the sort that you have to get from supply stores that carry special effects makeup, as they're fast-drying so the poor sod inside the cast doesn't pass out from being there too long (though they do sometimes anyway).

Alright, what fallows are a few pictures of the bandaging process. What you'll see is bandages being applied to the front, and then a flange created which will be wiped with petroleum jelly. Then the back plate of bandages will be made right on top of that so that the two pieces are separate. Sticks are put in the places along the arms and legs that will have the most resistance between them when the cast is pulled off.

That black line is the flange, that way the two pieces can be removed. We're using hot water and straight up plaster bandages, which is why you have to shave, otherwise it'll pull your hair out.

The feet are elevated up to fit inside of the legs of the costume, the ogre is going to have around a half a foot or more of foam under that actor's feet, giving the costume greater height than a normal human. Your feet have to be hidden in the leg above the foot, and hence at more of an angle. Like high heels, but scary. Here's a little example I drew up with a piece of concept art that is amazing, and not drawn by me except the red parts and where I drew a snap line on the head...

It might not have taken so many people, but no one can resist a party.

The finished cast! After being pulled off gingerly and Tank was allowed to be free and have a smoke. It only took about two hours. Not bad, right?!

Anyway, now next comes the final fiberglass mold of the body cast, and the head cast! But we ran out of bandages. So until next time...I'll be updating at least weekly, it's only 6 months until comic con and I have around 5 costumes to make. SO keep watching!!

*thumbs up!*

Dragon Age Alchemy in a Box!

2009-12-05T17:31:00.001-08:00

So I stumbled on this blog, and the promotion that Dragon Age sent out to people who would be reviewing the game. All I have to say is.....I'm so jealous. I want to be Grey Warden!

Go take a look! It's like a little Orpheus Alchemy in a box....

Dragon Age Promotion Box

Monocles and Costumes and Dragon Age

2009-11-29T20:05:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!

See, I can't stay silent for that long.

Anyway, a few things I forgot to mention after Halloween, I did a lovely monocle for Darchala, an amazing artist and tiefling-enthusist, here's a picture of her costume that she wore it with, I absolutely love it. Her claws are a great idea and all of it came together fantastically. So go see!!

Pics!

And now on a note of related importance: 2010 comic con. Needless to say I've been playing Dragon Age like a fiend, and the costumes are going to be based off of that. I know I want to make Morrigan and the Ogre, but my friend may be Leliana and I'd love to have someone as Shale or a Grey Warden (just someone in a full set of armor). It's all already in the works, it just depends who I can get to go through with it, since I'll be making all the costumes. I wish I had an Alistair, but unfortunately people that look like him have too many important things to attend to even when I try to bribe them with costumes (grrrrrr).

So if anyone has any suggestions, feel free to throw them my way. I may also want someone to be a darkspawn so that they can have a removable head (great for the skit, having heads go flying).

Anyway, more about these things later, here are a few inspirational photos of the costumes I will probably be makings...

Morrigan and Ogre

The Ogre is going to be a full body suit on stilts, sculpted and cast. I'm thinking of making the head a puppet so it can be taller with more realistic movements.

The Morrigan costume, this is what I'll be wearing. The clothed part. Everything I make looks like this anyway so I thought it was a good place to start. Not to mention I love the character idea.

Darkspawn!

Leliana!

Concept art of Alistair, I might make the Grey Warden armor similar. Right now I have a borrowed mannequin in my garage that I'm going to try sculpting armor onto, and then making a mold. Wish me luck...

So that's that, I have what....until July to finish?

Keep watching, I *might* just make it!

Halloween!

2009-10-15T21:37:00.000-07:00

Well, as you all know October for me is like being Santa Clause in December. I've been insanely busy! I've also made a costume and started working at a fabulous haunted house that some amazingly talented people from work put on. For now I'm going to post a few pictures of the costume I made and one of my co-workers/ fellow haunters in his super amazing sculpted demon costume....

Anyway, more updates soon, I'm working at the haunted house every weekend AND doing the usual Etsy stuff (Octobor is my most busy month by far, hmmm I wonder why....) so keep watching!

"9" Contest FInished!

2009-09-18T01:11:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone, go take a look at the final entry of the "9" contest on Deviant Art!

Click me!

Also if you want to see some more pictures of the sculpture in detail, go to my flickr feed HERE.

Familiar 9

2009-09-16T23:37:00.001-07:00

He's almost done! I just need to add a few more things like a small description above his head...and then I'll enter him in the contest!

Busy Busy

2009-09-09T22:24:00.000-07:00

Ugh, I'm so busy now! Its a good sort of busy though. I'm helping a friend with a project and working on the "9" sculpture. Here are some concept drawings I did for him:

They're his design, just rendered by and drawn by me. Anyway! I got this amazing chunk of carving foam from the dumpster at work (yes, I will shamelessly admit that, dumpsters are amazing). And it is SO cool. The stuff carves insanely well, and you can sand it! So I made the neck of what I'm now calling "Familiar 9" out of this foam. Here's a sneak peak of the general shape he's going to be, tomorrow I'll glue him all together and start laying on the cloth and latex and all of that. Then after that it's making the hands....

9 Sculpture part 2, and a job!

2009-09-05T23:57:00.000-07:00

Well after months of agony, I'm finally employed! And ironically it's only 15 minutes from where I live right now. I'm working at a company that makes sculptures, monsters, and pretty much anything for theme park rides, costumes, movies, museums, what have you. They're very awesome, their most recent project is the massive new 40 foot tall dragon for the Fantasmic show at Disneyland. Super cool! I'm working on character finishing (which is like, adding clothes, fur, horns, hair, etc to finish animations and sculptures) and in mold making and tooling. So! I'm busy, but not busy enough to stop working on my various projects....so here's the new pictures of the 9 sculpture:

I just threw some of his pieces on him with hot glue to see how they'll look, and I was pleased with the overall idea. I'm going to "sew" that leather on, like a piece of skin, and maybe add a bit more. The eye is a taxidermy eye covered in epoxy to look wet and the skill has been dyed twice and painted with black paint.Another view....anyway, this is a very early stage, he's going to get a big neck, a wooden mount, coats of latex, super scary clock parts, maybe a pair of duck wings....we'll see. Anyway, keep watching for more updates! I'll be posing again soon....

~Holly

"9" Sculpture Part 1

2009-08-31T01:27:00.001-07:00

Here's the beginning of one of my entries for the current Deviant Art contest based on the movie "9". Since all of the sculpture I make more or less look like things from that movie anyway, I decided, hey! Why not. My walls need another skull on them anyway.

So here I've started with a deer skull with some magic sculpt, I want to kind of do a bird-like creature, with mechanical attributes, mounted on a plaque with taxidermy eyes and lights. So we'll see how it turns out. Here are the first few pics!!

Thrift Stores

2009-08-30T16:31:00.001-07:00

So I have to say that I love thrift stores. I get a lot of the bottles for my shop there, weird metal parts, wooden things, mysterious fabrics, all of my totes and bags, pretty much everything weird I would ever need. I also occasionally get a few nice clothing items. Today I found such an amazing dress, its silk and cotton and tailored perfectly to me. I was so excited I had to share my find with the world. Plus, I might have an interview soon for a job that I would be SO excited to get (I'm trying not to jinx it, I'll be writing more later if it goes through) so I could wear my new dress to that!

So there you go, today's thrift store adventure. I'm going to be adding a lot of thrift store things to the new sculpture I'm working on, it should be amazingly awesome. So keep watching! I promise next post will have some actual art and not just blather...but seriously, amazing thrift store finds are golden. Maybe I'll make this a series.

Yours in buried treasure,
Holly

Blizzcon Recap

2009-08-26T16:42:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone!

I have to say, Blizzcon this year was a hit (I think I'll have to go next year now, I really missed the community, everyone is absolutely fabulous). This year I was lucky enough to get to go with two amazing costume creators. Here was Christina's and here was Alex's amazing costume. They were great to go with, and I had such a good time (even if I was, for once, the repair peon. Karma, right???). Alex and I might even do a collaboration for next year's comic con/Blizzcon good times. I think it would be beyond amazing. Plus he knows way more about electronics than I do, which as seen from how the Lady of Pain's eyes never lighting up, are not my forte.

So the meeting stone was a hit. John (the lovely fellow who commissioned it) wore it around, and on stage for me (though I got the credit for creating the monstrosity, of course) and later he actually had Ozzy Osbourne text me. No joke! It was pretty much awesome. I mean, I'm not a huge fan of Ozzy, but lets be honest, his ability to sound unintelligible and then get up there and do an amazing show at his age is really commendable. And his text message was quite proper.

Also, one more fun tidbit, my grandpa, Dorse Lanpher, is a legend in the 2-D animation world. He did special effects for more Disney movies than you probably remember, and he just got a lovely bio on the Creative Talent Network website, so if any of you care to take a gander, go see! He's awesome, and I wouldn't be here trying so hard to get where I want to be if it weren't for him. So take a look!

That's all for now, thanks to all my friends and readers, and I promise there will be new costume updates soon!

Yours in cons,

Holly

PS: I will be entering THIS contest. Because, lets be honest, all the stuff I make looks like that anyway.

Blizzcon

2009-08-16T11:26:00.001-07:00

Well, the rock costume is back in my garage and getting repaired for Blizzcon. The lovely person that commissioned it from me actually managed to get me a ticket, so I'll be able to get all the swag and play the new games, etc. Of course I won't personally be wearing a costume, which will be a test of my resolve of not being the center of attention (haha). But I have high hopes of it being a stellar time, for quite a few reasons...

Anyway! I've mostly been waiting for contacts to e-mail me, keeping in touch, putting together the hard portfolio to send to a grocery list of about 10 different companies who may or may not throw it in the garbage, lol. Good times. I'll most definitely post pics of that once its done for all of you lovelies to critique.

I took a few glamor shots of the rock in my garage, as seen here!

Also, I've listed a few things in my store that creep even ME out for the upcoming Halloween season. So keep looking!

Finally, more things to come, probably Blizzcon pics!

Obscure Costumes are the Best Costumes

2009-08-13T22:32:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone!

Recently my technologies have decided to hate me. My camera is broken, my lap top is broken, and my external hard drive won't work on my mac so that I can fix my lap top. Whew. So in the process of fixing all of these things I can't update my store, not can I take any pictures of what I've been working on.

So, I've decided to start thinking about a pet project of mine that involves costume illustrations, and then finally costume creation.

I know that I want to make a costume based on Clea, from the Dr. Strange comics. But lets be honest, her costume is simple, skin tight, and a little frightening. I love it , I do, but I want to make a few changes as if it were going to be in a movie instead of the pages of a comic book. While, of course, still being true to the original character and not making it look like a train wreck.

So here's my super quick sketch of my idea...

I know, I know. I cut off her feet. Imagine she's wearing boots. Anyway, I was thinking I would replace the ever-hated spandex look with leather. Make those leggings out of leather and burn the stripes into them. Also make the gloves and shoulders out of leather. The top part is going to be a crown, and not her hair. Because honestly, no one does their hair like that, and she's royalty so a crown actually makes sense. The parts that wouldn't be leather would probably be made of something vinyl like, but I'm not sure. The cloak and things would be linen, or something more convincingly other-dimensional. And I'd of course tone the color pallet down from OHMYGODMAGENTA to probably a lot darker shade of something in that hue.

But anyway, just musings, as always. The leather would be a pain because I would have to do it by hand, but I've done it before so it's not that hard.

Anyway, more to come soon!

My Car Broke, So I Went for a Walk

2009-08-11T10:17:00.000-07:00

The 30 Freeway. Two men Enter. One Man leaves.

Hello everyone!

The breaks on my car decided to start screaming at me, so I decidedly had to take the little fellow in. The car place I always go to is just up the street about a 45 minute walk, so I drive it up there and walk home through some of Southern California's best post-apocalyptic landscaping.

I realized its time to put a little bit of my unknowing inspiration on this blog, such as some of the horrendously ugly yet beautiful scenery of where I grew up. This was all taken between the mechanic's shop and the long stretch of track homes I live in. Along there is a Wal Mart, an Applebees, Ross, a Christian book store, and a few other things and like 3 gas stations. California is a diverse place, but here is a glimpse into the fabled and feared Inland Empire. Also, when these were taken around 9am, and it was already almost 100 degrees out.

Anyway, Enjoy!

The mountains. Sometimes the smog is so bad you can't see them.

Across from there was this sign left under a "One Way" post. I should probably get a pretentious photography award for this one.
Not a trail? But look at all the wildlife!

When I come back to make my Mad Max armor, this would be a sweet crown.

The world is a beautiful place. Some of the plants to the side of this that you can't see are Deadly Nightshade. Yeah, its a weed here.

Reel

2009-08-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I made a quick reel for my portfolio. Take a look!

The song is by Yann Tiersen....

More pics!

2009-07-29T21:01:00.000-07:00

Alright, time to post a few more pictures of the Lady of Pain, for your enjoyment (and maybe one of the trophies!) but first, if you guys take a gander at the last post, I got a comment from David "Zeb" Cook. Well, if you don't know, he "is particularly known for being the lead designer on the 2nd edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and the Planescape campaign setting." AHHHHH! I flipped out. He's D&D famous, and I have to say if he's still reading the blog, thank you SO much Zeb (I really wanted to use that amazing name there), for saying that I did the Lady of Pain justice, that's more than I could have imagined, and exactly what I wanted to do with the costume. It was an homage to a masterpiece of a world and a constant inspiration for me to this day, so, thank you to the most canny blood in the Cage! (I know, I know, I had to say it, I really can't help myself when I have a geek-out moment)

Alright, now that I'm done sounding silly, here are the pics...I found a video, but I can't for the life of me figure out how to get it off the site, so! If you'd like to see the video, go to this link http://www.acparadise.com/acp/vid/5368 and sign in under my name, FyrielArt, password 'kittens' to watch it. And please excuse the time it took for me to get on stage, they had the lights wrong and I was being a bit pushy....ah well! More dramatic!

Alright, on to some more pics..

(her eyes were glowing before the show started, and somehow they, along with our fog machine, magically crapped out. So sad!)

My trophies! I know, its cheeky to post them, but why not?

And finally, for no reason at all, me and this little kid who is dressed as Dr. Strange, who apparently reads the comics as well. It was the best thing ever.

Again, thank you all for the lovely comments. I'm going to start working on some new layouts for this blog, along with my portfolio to make them a bit more accessable, as well as starting a few projects for Orpheus Alchemy. So expect to see some more projects and costumes!

~Holly

Comic Con is Over

2009-07-26T23:59:00.000-07:00

Jessica and I on stage, Jessica is on the floor and I'm in
the skirt of the Lady....awkwarrrddd.

Wow, what a year. I met so many amazing people, went to so many things, and just had a blast. We won the Best Workmanship Award at the Masquerade as well as the Costume Designer's Guild award! I'll be posting a much longer post on all of these details later, but for now I'm home and I get to sleep. Woooo! 12 foot tall costumes are a lot of work......and I'm already thinking about next year...noooooo....

Final Stand!

2009-07-22T14:10:00.000-07:00

WoooO! I'm so happy, it's done. Now we have the Saturday show to do with super spooky soundtrack and fog machine...here's a pic of my friends who so kindly helped me put her together last night!!! Oh, also picture her with glowing eyes.Ok, I have to pack..boooo. We're off to comic con tonight...so look out for some post-apocalyptic zombie hunters on the floor!! More pics to come soon...

Finally!

2009-07-19T03:26:00.000-07:00

My friend/helper/city-cat-share member Jessica stands in front of the Lady of Pain

She's not finished yet, we have about 4 days to go. But here she is, without her accouterments and aging (to make those vaguely uniform tatters there on the bottom a lot better), and on the scooter, and in one piece, and floating.

Its a miracle. And yes, she drives, and it works.

A lot more work has to be done, but it'll be done before comic con!! Anyway, enjoy....12 foot tall motorized (and eventually) glowing Lady of Pain....

Ahh don't kill me it's 3 am and I've been drinking!

Jessica in the driver's seat

More to come soon!!

Structure of Pain

2009-07-14T01:41:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally finished the structure. It's in three parts. The bottom, the center, and the top. It's about 12 feet tall, exactly. I still need to add the chicken wire frame and the robe, as well as do some touching up. But she's almost done! And absolutely gigantic. Wooo! I'll be updating every day until comic con now, so keep watching!

Robe, pt 1

2009-07-10T00:04:00.001-07:00

Alright, I've been sewing the Robe for The Lady of Pain. It's been looking lovely so far, but I needed something a bit different for the huge-floaty-bottom thing. So here's a quick picture of the material I've been painting with neat magic-looking symbols for the skirt....enjoy!

A Meeting Stone Goes for a Walk

2009-07-01T23:19:00.000-07:00

Finally, with the stone done, I give you its big motion picture performance.....enjoy.

First Pictures of the Rock...

2009-07-01T00:33:00.000-07:00

Alright, here's a teaser of the Meeting Stone costume....it's not quite finished in these, I'll be posting more picture tomorrow so you can actually see it in daylight, and maybe even moving around. Ooo, exciting...

More pics coming soon!

Rock Costume!

2009-06-28T00:24:00.000-07:00

SO this is the commissioned rock costume! It's going really well, tomorrow its getting a door, a coat of paint, and some moss. I just thought I'd update everyone on how it's going. The glowing symbol will be on the other side as well, I'm resin casting that now and it should be done tomorrow too....Serious, giant rock costume. Amazing.

I'm essentially making this.

The inside, you can see the PVC frame and the backpacking backpack. Really nice, and its comfortable! There's going to be a hidden door on this side. The outside is made of foam, I forget what it's called, I'll have to remember but it comes in big sheets. It's stuck onto some muslin with spray adhesive over chicken wire and then the cracks were given a bathroom-caulking to make it look more rock-like. I'll be painting it with spray paint tomorrow, detailing with acrylics.

Here's me next to it as a size ratio. I had been working all night and was a little punchy.

I'll post pics when its done! Thanks for reading, everyone....

Sorcery And Glue

Comic Con Episode IV: a Fan's Hope arrives!

E3...The Arrival!

Art show!

Monster Tea Party: Holly's Art Show! pt. 2

Monster Tea Party: Holly's Art Show!

Friday Fun Times Tutorials

HUGE GIGANTIC UPDATE form PAX East!

Hawke vs Shepard Round One

Meeting Doodles and Samara Update!

Grunt made it to BioWare!

Poll!?

Fiberglass Armor Fun Pt.1

And it begins...*epic music*

Two Grunts!

Kuwashii Visor

New Year!

Crabcat Pancakes

Working and Drawing!

Flying Chunks

CRABCAT IS GO

ENKINDLE THIS...

Crabcat Halloween!

New Video!

Back to the grind and Panel Videos!

The Real Samara wants to dress up as Samara

PAX Video!

PAX

Pre-PAX Palooza

More pictures!

Message from Miranda

PAX and Shore Leave with Crabcat Industries

Comic Con is Over

Last minute gluing and blogging!

See you at comic con!!

Only 20 days! AHHH!

Update video and new website!

Tali!

Eyebrows and songs!

Armor Making, Krogan Style pt 1

I'm Commander Shepard....And apparently I'm big in Norway

http://wirelessexpressshow.com/?p=117

You can go listen to it and hear me be awkawrd, and two Irish guys be awesome and like cool shit!

Go go go!

Also, apparently I got a spot on Norway's biggest TV channel. Not even joking. Here's the link! Go Norway and your metal-songs-about-dragons!

http://nrkp3.no/filmpolitiet/2010/06/mass-effect-2-blir-virkelig/

A Sneak Peek of what's to come...

Holy Crapcakes

Now Come The Sleepless Nights

Comic Con Documentary: An Audition Reel!

A quick peek...

Comic Con Documentary....a call back?!

A Night Off for Computer Things

N7 Sneak Preview and a Blog Award!

Mass Effect Movie

Grunt Test Skin, Foam Latex!

Betwixt Renaissance Faires and Space Armor

Mold Cleaning

Premature Costume Assembly

Molding party!!!!

A Few Things About Animatronics!

Glowie things!

I hate it when you find a better reference when you're done.....

N7 Update

Sculpture update!

Drills, Mermaids, and I AM KROGAN!

I'm Published!

Lots of New Things

N7 Fabric Adventure

Shepard...Grunt....

Broken Things in My Garage

Comic Con, Part....whatever

Sphynx

Elcor.

Mass Effect + Water Colors = Fun

A little doodle...

Mass Effect 2, Damn You.

Fiberglass Is OK

FeeJee Mermaid Update!

Ogre Head Maquette!

And it begins...epic music