(no subject)
Apr. 9th, 2012 11:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lupagreenwolf
So I've been painting plastic horses again--well, one, anyway. I was so happy with how Ms. Douglas turned out (my first Breter custom in almost two decades!) that I collected a few more beat-up and run-down Breyer horses to customize.
This one's rather more elaborate--she's a shaman's horse, and has the costumery and tools to show for it.
Materials: Breyer Classic Arabian mare, acrylic paint & sealer, leather, red fox fur, hooks and eyes, deerskin, coyote foot bone, embroidery thread, polished stones, coyote claw, artificial sinew
This is my newest, and best, custom Breyer horse yet! I picked up a rather beat-up old classic scale Arabian mare from a thrift store, stripped away the old, scratched bay coat, and sanded her seams and removed her Breyer logo. I then repainted her as a bright red sorrel chestnut with dapples throughout her coat (they're more subtle than the pictures show), four stockings, and a stripe down her nose with a bit of a star at the top. Her finish is coated with several layers of acrylic sealer, and her eyes, nostrils and hooves have a bit of extra gloss added.
Inspired by my own spirit horse that I ride when journeying, as well as the tradition of such horse spirits, I created a costume for her--not based on any particular culture, but instead on what I've sometimes seen my own horse wearing, as well as others in the spirit realm. She wears a bridle (but no bit) made from hand-braided gold and copper embroidery thread. The saddle is made of suede leather from an old jacket, and is trimmed with red fox fur scrap left over from another project of mine. The girth of the saddle is just a bit loose to make fastening the hook and eye closure easily without scratching the mare's finish.
On the back of the saddle are two hooks with flaps of fur over them. The hooks carry the shaman's tools. I made a small drum, 2 1/2" across, with real horse rawhide scrap left from drum making, a metal hoop salvaged from a vintage purse, and artificial sinew. The beater for the drum is a coyote toe bone wrapped with deerskin and artificial sinew, and the drum has a tight head and is playable (though it has such a little voice!) To balance this out, the other hook carries a deerskin pouch with a coyote claw stitched to it. The pouch carries the beater along with a glass marble and two polished stones, sacred items a shaman may use.
While she makes a perfectly lovely shelf horse (her finish is too rough for live showing), she may also be added to an altar or shrine to represent the spirit of a shamanic practitioner's drum or other ally. Additionally, she may even be a "house" for a horse or other helper spirit in a shaman's practice.
She is 6 7/8" tall, and like all Classic Breyer models she is 1:12th scale. Buyer will receive both her and her costume with all accessories, all of which are removable.
Price: $75.00
On Etsy and Artfire
no subject
on 2012-04-10 12:56 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2012-04-10 02:16 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2012-04-10 09:14 pm (UTC)When you say a shaman's horse, do you mean her back story is that she belongs to a shaman, or is there a special type of horse that is recognized as a shaman's horse?
no subject
on 2012-04-21 12:34 am (UTC)