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Wip #1 – mermaid astray

You heard me.

Anyway, I’ve been hoarding materials for this for a while now. I’m ready to make a practice seashell crown.

You heard me!

I ordered some impossibly small sea shells, since I’m working with a real grade red frame astray. I’ve made all the frame pieces alclad ii copper. This is not my favorite copper, but I painted these a long time ago and I don’t really feel like redoing them. I actually think Anthony might have done them for me?

A frame piece where it lives in a plastic baggie in the box. These were painted a helluva long time ago.

These shells I ordered though, you guys. I’m so impressed. I got these off of etsy (hat tip to BOMSquadArts) and they’re just so cute. I’m impressed by the diversity of sizes, shapes, angles and colors.

Mother nature is the most beautiful artist. Ugh! Some of these are so impossibly small. Look at the COLORS. I love them. I love each and every one of them.

They’re just so the perfect size to make a shell crown for a Gundam at this scale. I plan on putting some on the finished armor as well, in strategic places, if it looks right. The seller on etsy included two shark teeth as an extra (excellent, just the amount of “edge” I was looking for). The local Michael’s was having a sale on these crystals, and I plan on using some of these for another project as well. I still want to get a few things – some jewel toned items or some impossibly small star fish or coral could be cool.

UGHHHHH!! IT’S SO PRETTY!!!

I put together a practice crown base. I figured I should make one before I commit to it for my astray.

I love the way the coral looks like antlers? It wasn’t what I set out to do, but I’m gonna embrace it.

It’s not symmetrical, but I like that. This coral is really cool, and there are definitely parts I’m leaving for the real crown.

I’ve done a lot of work today! I have to redo all of the candy black pieces I’ve made so far for the Mack Knife, that’s why I’ve been doing this instead haha. Back to the Mack Knife tomorrow, and probably more crown practice.

wip #1

A few weeks ago I was poking through the surprisingly excellent selection of gunpla kits at my local hobby shop. I’m used to not recognizing most of the kits – my limited knowledge is like, Gundam Wing and whatever of Anthony’s kits I remember the names of – but I’m not used to being surprised by the name of a kit. That’s when I saw the Mack Knife.

If you know anything about me, you know my ideal aesthetic is best described as “Stepford Wives meets Beetlejuice and The Craft”. And holy fuck do I love the golden age of radio.

Having never heard of this kit but being very, very familiar with Brecht, I picked it up and delightedly looked it over. The kit was $17. And absolutely adorable. I didn’t get it that day, but it was inevitable that I wound up with it, I decided then and there. I ended up getting it a few days later I think.

The Mack Knife is one of the more uniquely anthropomorphic gundams I’ve seen – I don’t know if it’s considered a Gundam, but whatever. At first I was considering turning it into an analog for Bobby Darin himself, colored like one of his more famous outfits, but the more I thought about the idea the less I liked it. I’ve currently got an idea to base it off a 1959 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud I with candy black main pieces and chrome detail. I found a listing for one in the UK with an amaaaaazing aesthetic to emulate.

1959 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud I [Cars-from-UK.com]

Look at it!! The beautiful shiny black! The chrome! The completely sexy gold stripe down the side! THE WHITEWALL TIRES! I’m in love.

Anyway, I finished the backpack this weekend. For my first pieces ever, I couldn’t be prouder.

The backpack out of the box. [Dalong.net]

I thought it would be cool to make the backpack like the chrome rear bumper.

The backpack from above.
Uuuuuuuugh that candy red is so pretty. If you take a look at the listing for the car, the brake lights are tiny and have a chrome border. I love it.

I wasn’t exactly kind to this part and, starting with my next kit, I’ll start sanding and finishing seams. This Mack Knife is mostly for learning how to use an airbrush anyway. Regardless I’m really darn proud of it.

I also did the flat black for the head and tried my hand at candy blacking the head parts.

His head pieces are so fun, I really love them. [Dalong.net]

The frame is flat black, and the red pieces on the face are candy black. I messed them up, and the black is way too think and the silver isn’t visible, so I have to redo them. But the white face pieces I’ve made chrome to emulate the front bumper. They look amazing. I’d put the head together to show off, but, uh, I forgot to put the face on the skewers and it didn’t get painted. It’s getting done when I do the chest.

Oh, and I found this thing!

Found at my local hobby shop.

It’s a metal model of a big rig etched out of really shiny steel. I have plans for a very specific piece on here to really jazz up the Mack Knife. I’m really excited to see how it works out!

That’s all I’ll write for now. This is a pretty sizable first post. Right now I’ve got the chest parts on skewers so I have something to attach everything else to.

Til next time!