Once again I'm turning to you lovely people for creative guidance. You've helped with my dad's 'Grumpy Old Man' idea but now I need your help for myself. I've had the idea for a Fae/mythical creature catcher for a few years but have finally decided it was time to start making it a reality. Trouble is that aside from a very large butterfly net and some handcuffs attached to my belt I'm completely lost. So, I was hoping you might have some ideas. Anything and everything would be greatly appreciated.
This would make a great steampunk costume. I'm picturing you as a sort of crazed, 19th Century naturalist.
First: are you male or female?
If you are going to catch Fae, you should probably have bait. Something shiny like a fake diamond on a stick or attached to string. It could be carried at your said or attached to the big butterfly net. As for clothing. It will depend on how successful you are at catching mythical creatures. I think it would be quite funny it you weren't successful and had pants with holes and grass stains; dirty shirt and tattered hat. Emphasizing how desperate you are to catch a mythical creature. You may also want a rope and a small cage hanging from your belt. Just an idea ;D
As I'm part fae I'm loathe to give ideas ;)
But, in the spirit of Faire...
glass bottles hanging from your belt, sparkly netting on your net. pouches of goodies to attract us, tags for identyfing, magnifing glass, medical kit for when we get you, and honey...we can't resist honey.
@gem - I'm 100% female. Sorry for not saying in the first post.
@auntiegiggles - Love all the ideas! Though being that I'm a girl I think a skirt plus a pair of ratty bloomers would be better. But that's just me. :p
@Tammy - I love your ideas as well. What sort of goodies other than honey do you suggest?
I'm thinking very hunter like colors, browns and greens, earthtones. Then add jewels here and there onto your garb to go with the "shiny" suggestions. Basically like you are trying to blend in with surroundings but have the jewels on you to attract the fea to you.
How about a good-sized pouch with a sign on flap "Fae Hunter for Hire" slung over your shoulder? Out of period perhaps, but Home Depot, etc., carry blank plastic signs and stick-on alph/num letters.
I love the idea of the "unsuccessful" Fae Catcher because we aren't supposed to be able to see them, right?
This is probably waaay wrong but first thing I thought of was the cartoon, Fairly Odd Parents. That principal "knows" there are fairies but he can't catch them... LOL Sorry.
Anyway... back to unsuccessful...
spider webs in the empty cage
a tally card with no marks on it
net with big holes in it from snagging it on tree branches, etc.
twigs stuck in the net
you could carry around a small book cataloging fairies that you previously caught - kinda like that pressed fairy book.
If you wanted to be a slighty more successful fae catcher you could have little cages and bottles with fae statues or something in them representing the creatures you have caught.
How about a fake Fae catcher? Pretends to be a brave catcher of Fae's, but runs when Fae's are in sight. Of course you would have all the things needed to catch them, and a few Fae figures in a cage to prove yourself. Would be even funnier if you could get a Fae or three to hunt the hunter.
Reminds me of the fake kokiri Tingle from Legend of Zelda http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tingle , to his dad ran a successful photo contest in the game but always complained that his son was out playing with fairies at age 35 etc. That might be a fun way to incorporate your dad into your character's life.
I don't know why but I really think it would be funny to have like a camo helmet or hat.
A book of fae catching/history/anatomy
Dangers of Fae pamphlets
I agree with the fairly odd parents reference.. add a lot of humor to it, maybe a fae stuck a sign on your back or something?
Quote from: gypsylakat on April 21, 2010, 02:26:51 AM
I don't know why but I really think it would be funny to have like a camo helmet or hat.
I was thinking the old style safari hats! You could throw a pair of steam punk goggles on it and say that they help you see the fae.
Quote from: Lady Raven on April 21, 2010, 08:51:27 AM
Quote from: gypsylakat on April 21, 2010, 02:26:51 AM
I don't know why but I really think it would be funny to have like a camo helmet or hat.
I was thinking the old style safari hats! You could throw a pair of steam punk goggles on it and say that they help you see the fae.
they need to have like a ridiculous shade lenses or feathers or something on them say they're griffin feathers that help you see the truth :)
Ohhh love the character idea- so creative.
I think you should have errant twigs and leaves in your hair from traipsing around the woods looking for fae.
I like the goggles idea but I would take it one step further and add multiple colors of lenses to it so you could "see different kinds of fairy creatures""
Scarby has it's very own Faerie Hunter, a playtron/part time metalsmith's apprentice. Vlad is typically dressed in a sleeveless shirt, wrap pants, and has various things hanging from his belt including sort of a fisherman's net (cuz, well, we have rather large, human sized faeries that wander the shire, the butterfly net would nae catch them)... he has shifted a bit from his Piratey character. I understand that there is a "Faerie Hunter's Guild" in the works as well.
- You could use a length of rope or have a walking stick that you use to measure the fairies that you catch. If they're not a certain size, then you have to release them.
- a pouch/jar containing fairy dust that you have extracted from the fairies you've caught. Of course the amount of dust can vary depending on how successful you're character will be.
- some sort of strap that you use to bind their wings so they can't escape.
I think it would be comical if you rigged a fairy on a wire to float behind you. Such that if people tried to point it out for you to catch, and you spin around to get it, you wouldn't see it because it would still be behind you.
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs458.ash1/25195_1406383842086_1307125410_31140370_3486983_n.jpg)
I posted this in the Finished Projects already, but something like this could be useful. I'm the "Evil Link" (named Knil, haha) and when I caught the fairy it jabbered so that I sewed its mouth and of course it died soon after. Anyway, it's made with a wire armature and epoxy, but you could take a doll or similar figure and paint it and such.
I think there are some cool ideas here, like the idea of a naturalist or something. Maybe fairy catching gadgets like a "fairy detector" that's a compass and things like that. Fair dust is a must and I think you need a little sketchbook of some kind. I really hope this works out, this seems like such a cool idea!
I see this playing well with children! Since adults can't see fairies you could ask kids to help you find them and see if any actualy do! I also like the idea of 'throwing the little ones back' seeing as alot of little kids dress as fae you could pretend to catch one, measure it, say 'too small' and set them free!
I also think it would be funny to set little 'traps' for the fairies. Like a shinny object under a box held up by a stick with a string? lol
Take a glass jar, add a set of battery operated Christmas lights and put in some of that irridescent plastic film to hide fixtures, but allow the blinking lights to be seen glowing within. Bonus points if you add one of those motion activated noise makers that giggles. No, not like "Tickle Me Elmo". Try dog and cat toys.
Carry one of those antique brass bug sprayers, and a leather-bound sketch journal with drawings of different fae to document your sightings.
Randal
Decoys. Coarse stuffed fairies on strings per mobile suspended from a hat. Cover yourself with moss and camo to look like a clump of ground. Cage made of tied-together twigs on wheels like a barrow or cart- if you can fit a small human sized fae in it, what a great prop. Calls- Pipes, bells. closed-off cages, bottles and jars- can't see into them but rig them to a line so they move and jingle. On a scary note, a big press or extractor to put fae into- if you palmed a bell and caught an invisible fairy, it would jingle all the way to the press. Close the door and extract the ESSENCE!
A cage that could be rigged to fly open and trigger jingling and release of glitter would be a good thing during an interaction. They got away!
Do you have a small child? Could you borrow one? Put it on a leash and dress it as a fairy...
I don't normally advocate leashing children... but it sounds cute...
Was fortunate enough to be in Toronto for the opening of the "Lord of the Rings" stage play. There was a "pre-play" part where a bunch of hobbits sat on stage in a picnic setting (they did this while folks were settling in to their seats). They did standard hobbity picnic activity -- including catching butterflies.
Several of the hobbits would stalk around the stage, then swipe at the air with a butterfly net. When they did so, a glowing light would come on in the net -- the idea being that a glowing butterfly had just been caught (they only glow when you catch them). I'm assuming that some batteries in the net handle, a small bulb, and a switch played a big part!
After catching the butterfly, the hobbit would reach in the net, grab at something and make a fist while turning the light off -- suggesting that the butterfly was now caught in his hand. I don't recall if they then stored the butterfly in a jar (meaning more lights in the jar) -- but seems logical.
The lighting wasn't dark -- the house lights were still up -- but it was kind of shaded on stage to maximize the glowing butterfly effect.
Seems an easy stretch from "glowing magical butterflies" to "glowing magical fae".
Neat idea !
a "wanted poster" like in the "ole wild west" only with like...Amy Brown fairies on it (in black & white on parchment like paper). I like the idea of a hat or a headband that had "deely-bopper" like small fairies dangling backwards over your head.
best of luck. --Shannon
I think it was at TRF one year, this guy had a huge wooden mallet. It basically looked like a tree stump with a branch coming out of it naturally, cut the right way to make a mallet. He called his his fairy thwamper or something. That might be a bit more gruesome than you anticipated though :/
How about this.
http://www.marylandfaeriefestival.org/gallery/Pages/2008_Collection/images/2008-06-08%20001.jpg
This was from 2008 at the Maryland Faerie Festival
There are so many directions you could take this. Our faire has fae hunters, but they are part of the royal court, and have a HA uniform, and carry nets and such. (I have been caught ONCE, and the demand I grant them a wish....lol that back fired on them of course.)
I'd say bottles on your belt to "contain" them, nets to catch them, shiney things to attract them....clothing wise you can really go any direction with it. I know once I saw a person with a net they were after me, and I booked it!
Another good prop to have would be something called D'lite. Its a magicians prop that can easily be found in any magic shop or online. To cut across how the illusion is done and give the effect simply it looks like you are holding a small red glowing light in your hands that you can call at will.
All of these replies were so helpful but unfortunately money was real tight this year so no Fae Catcher this year. But this gives me all the more time to plan and perfect for next season! After wearing my current garb around all day yesterday I can to realize that the bodice and skirt aren't too practical for catching faeries. So I was hoping some of you might offer up your advice once more on what I could wear instead? I was thinking maybe one of those cropped vest that belly dancers wear and give it a whole gypsy/romi vibe. Then maybe turn it into a shady character who deals in the illegal selling of mythical creatures but focusing mainly on fairies. Not to say gypsy/romi are shady people as that's just a character in my head. So what do you think? What's proper clothing for a fae catcher?