ELPHABA

Good old Irene kept us a bit busy but while we awaited her arrival, I had a full day to just work on the rest of this piece. A big "sorry" to the folks who were coming to sculpt all day with me in the studio but better safe than driving home in that mess! Here are some of the hilights;

Started the day by giving her skin a wash of Adobe Red Acrylic mixed with extender to add just a bit of color and depth to her green skin.

Took a stroll up stairs to my fabric storage area and pulled a bunch of textured black fabrics which I may use for the dress. Spread then out over the table so I can pick and choose as I go.

Changed the length of the support rod and added a base before I started layering fabrics.
















SLEEVES

 This entire outfit will be glued to her using parts of old clothing from the local thrift shop. To start, I choose a thin fabric with a black-on-black pattern for the sleeves. These are taken from the sleeve of a blouse so the bottom hem is already sewn for me. They are cut to fit around the widest part of the upper arm and are long enough to give me some puffiness at the shoulder.

The sleeve is glued in place on the underside of the arm.

 It wraps around and is folded under and glued down to make the seam up the underside of the arm.

 Tada!

A black leather upper arm brace  is laid in place and stitched on the arm using  waxed cotton cord and a large leather needle. It is tied off and a drop of super glue is used to secure the bow so it does not come undone.

A ruffle of lace is added under the edge of the leather brace at the elbow. This is ripped off the larger piece and the raw edge is torched to give it a "witchy, worn look".

A bodice is glued onto the torso. The top edge is already seamed and the bottom is left as a raw edge.
The first layer of shirting is a textured black satin which is wrapped around the hips and glued in place with a little leg showing. It is long enough to hide the support rod. The second layer is a front piece of lace which is gathered between the legs to obscure the crotch. it is treated with a flame like the smaller pieces at the elbows of the sleeves.
I have added the first section of the leather vest as well. It is a standing collar of leather which is turned under and secured to her neck.

 This is the material from which the bodice was cut. It will be used for the shirt as well. It is a multi-layered piece from a woman's vest.

Decided I should take a moment to finish some of the broom before I lay the skirts in place. The broom is a layer of raffia which is glued onto the brass support rod and wrapped and tied in place with another piece of raffia. 

The final layer of the skirt is attached and the skirt is glued to itself so it sweeps up and back to give a look of movement.

Sorry for the bad shot! Wanted to show the vest. It is made of three parts. The collar - as noted above.  The body - which covers the back and wraps around over the shoulders to the armpits and wraps around the sides to the front. And lastly, the straps which are attached across the front and secured with decorative tacks.

I included this shot to show the finished dress and the translucent quality of the monkey's wings. The monkey has had his fur attached at this point.
The base and support rod have been painted black and the broomstick has been wood-grained.
Next her hair is applied and a leather hat is crafted for her head.
Her boots are also added.

 I added these photos so you can see the layers of different black fabric The high camera settings burn out the face but show the dress well.

 Here you can see the hat.

 The front layers of fabric.

This is the finished piece in a large format "moody" photo.
Thanks for watching.
Have a great day!
Mark