Faerie Wing Epiphany

[bellevivre]

Not sure if this should be here or garbing, so move as needed...

I had, last night, as i was waiting for the ambien to kick in, an epiphany about my wings.

I admire the natural look, with a frame made of twigs and grasses and flowers, but they're not as much for me. I also really love the cellophane wings, but I'm concerned that 1) they would be too delicate for my 3 cat household, 2) to be best done they need to be showier and stick out a good bit, and 3) i am, honestly, concerned that I wouldnt be able to do them justice. The fabric covered wings I have similar concerns.

So, my epiphany:

I want fairly low-profile wings, so i am aiming for the look of a damselfly's wings when folded- one long, teardrop shaped lobe on either side, pointing down, flared slightly to the sides. That will reduce my overall 'space' (as a fluffy girl I am already conscious of this!) allow me to have my typical ease of mobility, and still have lovely wings.

The epiphany is that instead of ANY of those previously mentioned methods, I am going to WIRE WRAP my wings. As in, I will start from a sturdy, strong wire with the basic shape, then a smaller, more flexible which will add an interior frame, then smaller wire for artistic details. I will no doubt need to wrap the various joints, but with florists tape and gold paint, i don't see that that will look too poorly; I also plan on stringing beads along the smaller diameter wires, and adding crystals and bells.

My biggest concern with wings like these is that they may snag on things, but I think if the most 'raw' edges are somehow contained (and I may use the cellophane method for these) given my goal of low profile, there shouldn't be TOO much of a problem!

Thoughts?

[Marietta Graziella]

Belle, these sound like they're going to be amazing!  What fun they'll be to design and construct.

[Genievea Brookstone]

I am so glad I am not alone in *waiting to fall asleep* that my mind often wanders to what am I going to garb next hehehe.

The wings sound great Belle! I love damesflys.

[bmgjarvis]

Sounds like a great idea!

here's one back -- you know how bobby pins have that blob of glue on the end to prevent you sticking yourself with the raw metal? You can do the same thing with hot glue at the end of your wings.  Apply the glue and turn the point down. Count to 20. Done. Then cover how ever you like.

[Mythrin]

These wings are a lot like you described, as they are in the down position.  They were made from the metal frame of a inexpensive pair of commercial Halloween wings.  The center connection between the shoulder blades were torn apart to separate them into four sections - two large top wings and two smaller lower wing.  These were then attached to a wire "U shape that was padded to slip down the back of the corset. The upper part was covered with padding, leather and feathers to look a lot like a moth's wing. What is cool about these wings is that the individual wings are loosely wired into the body frame so with a statistic flip of the shoulders blades the wings will pop up and stay over her shoulder and they bounce a bit giving them a nice realistic look.  They lasted three performance seasons, we are going to remake them for next season because the fabric is beginning to show wear and tear.

[LadyElizabeth]

I solved my wing issue by getting my own tattooed on me...  hehe





These will be colored in too in pink, red, and gold colors...  They have an angel wing look, but will be fairy colors plus the feather itself it actually more of a phoneix or peacock feather.  I still will be wearing my cellophane wings though with my garb...  I am super excited to see how it all looks together!!

[RenRobin]

    You ought to post these in the Piercings and Tatoo thread too.  Wow, I am sure that had to hurt, but looks neat!  The colors will look wonderful too.

[Grov]

Nice wings.  Original to say the least.  I love the organic feel to them.  Not fractured or angular at all.  Great choice.

[renfairephotog]

Beautiful tattoo Lady Elizabeth. The wings will be gorgeous once colored.

[LadyElizabeth]

Ya, it hurt tons, but I've had tattoos before... this one simply took longer to do (1:45 min)!  I'll be getting it colored in completely within a month or so, but it will take 2 more times to finish of a good 2 hrs each.  I'm still trying to decide how to have it colored in...  I want it to be perfect since it's taking forever, causing tons of pain, is expensive, and of course is PERMANENT!!!  haha...  I'll post pics once it's all done.  And of course if you come to fair where I'm wearing something that it's visible in, you can see it there too...