Halloween Wings

My favorite pair yet.

Fairy Wings: More & More

I'm gearing up to hopefully sell many pairs of wings this Halloween season through my etsy shop TruWings. In other news I'm also in the process of updated my portfolio website.

Never Ending Fairy Wings

Yup, they just keep coming. More and More coming available soon.

This pair now available on Etsy: www.etsy.com/shop/daniellehurleydesign

Faerieworlds: Fire Fairy

FaerieWorld

I've a friend at work who runs a festival in Eugene OR : FaerieWorld. I plan on getting all decked out and going for at least a day. That is - if I can find the time to finish the costume. At the very least I'll have a great big pair of wings to show off. The wings above are about 3 1/2 feet tall, the the whole ensemble will be about 6 ft.

Fairy Wings: So Many!

I've been making wings, so many wings. The first three pair posted to my etsy store, TruWings, last week have been sold and these two are now available. (They're on sale this week only though so they're going fast) I've about 7 more in the making though. Hopefully they will start showing up online next week.

Fairy Wings: On Etsy!

I've now begun to sell small fairy wings on my store: TruWings by DanielleHurleyDesign on Etsy!

Fairy Wings: Got It...Just About

I'm fairly certain I've got it worked out the way I want now, just need some minor adjustments. I've figured out how to make the wings perfectly symmetrical, having a metallic iridescence when front-lit and a vibrant jewel tone glow when back-lit. The only thing is I'm only really finding iridescent cello in green/pink or blue/pink. It would be ideal to find a silver toned cello so that it reflects pure white light but also allows light to pass through when back-lit.

Fairy Wings: Good Blots

Now this is more like it. I’ve figured out how to successfully blot the painted layers on the fairy wings – so long as I’m not going for detail. Turns out they look better when the paint is really wet and blurry since there is so much detailed being put into the veining instead.

Even this blot turned out to work just fine. I thought it was a failure; that there wasn’t enough alcohol in the wash and the colors were too harshly separated. But when I added a layer of veining over it everything came together.

I’ve also been finding that if I don’t plan anything out but just work freehand and do everything on the fly then, the pieces turn out much more interesting. This is true for both the paint wash layer and the veining.

Fairy Wings: Almost but Not Quite

Fairy Wing Sample

I'm getting closer to the intended effect using alcohol inks for the fairy wings. This sample is almost there, but not quite. There are still a lot of adjustments to be made in my process. At least I think I have the materials right now, and this is the right idea.

Fairy Wings: Rorschach

Failed Rorschach Blot - too dry

It is essential, in my opinion, that if I'm going to make painted fairy wings they must be symmetrical. It would just be odd to imitate any sort of insect wings without symmetry. The only solution I could come up with for perfect symmetry on hand painted plastic was to do a Rorschach blot. Simple enough - except it turns out to be quite tricky with alcohol paints which dry very quickly.

Alcohol paints can be blended with denatured alcohol; too much makes everything a soupy mess though and dilutes the colors, while too little doesn't keep the paint wet long enough to blot. The blotting process itself has a tendency to destroy any detail if there is too much paint or too much alcohol. I'm finding it very difficult to get a complete transfer and detail, so I may have to settle for less detail.

Small Angel Wings: Faux Feathers

Faux Feathers in Process

I've switched to using completely different materials and methods for making my faux feathers. For months now I've been experimenting with different means of achieving a compound curve in each feather, blacker black, and detailed texture so that the fake feathers will match the turkey feathers perfectly. I couldn't stand having such a disconnect between the real and fake feathers. For a while it seemed my only option was to make wings with only fake feathers which would mean a lot more hours of work on each piece.

BUT, I believe I've found the solution. I've switched from fabric to foam. It is a well known fact among wing makers online that good faux feathers are made by laminated layers of fabric with an adhesive. Usually these feathers are made with light weight fabrics and have some sort of shaft sandwiched between the layers. This works to produces great feathers, but it is very time consuming, somewhat costly, and there is always the problem of trying to get a true black.

I now use foam. I've found a way to mold the foam quickly so that I can have the feathers curve like the turkey quills. I've devised a means of adding texture quickly and inexpensively. I've also developed a means of stiffening the feathers so they hold the curve permanently after I've shaped them. They also take paint much better than fabric which means I can achieve a true deep black. The only thing that is not so simple is attaching shafts - I'm still working on this part but may have come up with a solution. As it is - structural shafts (as opposed to painted) are entirely unnecessary for wings that do not open or close.

That's all I can say for now. As far as I can tell, no one else is really doing this, so for now my method is a trade secret.

Small Angel Wings: Patterning

Small Angel Wings Paper Pattern

I've pretty much worked out the sizes I'll be offering for Fixed Frame Angel Wings. Starting with SM at 2ft tall up to XL at 5ft tall. All of them will have faux feathers which are what make them more realistic and proportional. Right now I am only working with a fantasy design which requires far fewer feathers. I may perhaps offer a realistic line latter which would be more strictly based on actual bird wings.