The making of a Wizard (or is that "wizzard"?)

Wow... This is what I'd call 'great attention to detail'!

Carla Burke wrote:Wow... This is what I'd call 'great attention to detail'!

It's a problem I have! I keep finding ways to make my little figures better, and then I can't help but keep doing it that way, because I just want them to be nice!

My first little figures had just little wooden beads for heads with hair spouting up the top. And their limbs were just pipecleaner with a layer of embroidery floss that didn't really match the wooden bead.



Then I went to wool heads with embroidery floss arms, and then yarn arms (that didn't quite match), to now spinning the yarn out of the same wool as the head so everything matches. And, of course, I have to sew the hair on and make curls if the character has curly hair. I just keep making more work for myself!

Matching wool head and skin color, with sewn on handspun/hand set curls.

Speaking of loving a challenge, I kept thinking about this passage about Rincewind that Pearl found

He is tall and thin and has the scrubby sort of beard worn by people who weren't cut out by nature to be beard wearers. He is dressed in a dark red robe that has seen better days, possibly better decades. But you can tell he is a wizard, because he's got a pointy hat with a floppy brim. It's got the word "wizzard" embroidered on it in big silver letters by someone whose needlework is even worse than their spelling. There is a star on top. It has lost most of it's sequins.

His hat needs a star on top! But how? Thankfully, I have a mock-up hat to test things out on. So I first tried waxing my golden flax embroidery floss and trying to sew /knot/loop some sort of star on top. This was a terrible failure.

Then I tried cutting out a star from the felt and wrapping it with the gold. The felt started fraying. Another failure!

Then I got some sort-of gold wool and needle-felted a star. But the color didn't match, and it wasn't shiny. So I tried wrapping it with the embroidery floss. Success!!!

wrapping star #3 with flax (you can also see attempt #2 next to it)

I decided to then go and sort-of fix the mess on the mock-up hat, just because I wanted to see if I could do it!

two hats are better than one!

back of the hats

Okay, I need some advice! I started sewing the real robe, and tried a different way of sewing so it wouldn't bunch up so much. I also lengthened it. This has made it very full, and I haven't even added in the back panel! :O

The robe is also flaring out really far. I'm not sure if adding the back panel would make it better, or make it worse?

Wow, that's a lot of swoosh!  

The back does look a bit out of proportion.  Would the triangles work smaller?  

I can't believe how good he looks.  I keep thinking, "I wonder if Nicole would make one for me." then I remember and get even more excited.  

windswept is good.  He's usually running away from stuff, so the wind would catch the robe.  

I'm having so much fun making him! My husband took the kids to the park for a few hours today as a Mother's Day present, and I just spent the whole time gleefully sewing and snipping and embroidering! It makes me even happier that I'm making him for you!

I'm thinking I'll send you his mock-up robe and hat, too. You could burn them, smear them with dirt, cut holes in them, etc. They could be his distressed clothes from too much time adventuring! I was tempted to have that be a surprise, but I'm having too much thinking about it that I can't hold it in. Might as well put those polyester mock-ups to use somehow!

I'll try putting in the back panel and see if that fixes things. If needed, I could try and slice down the side panels and sew them together smaller, or something.

I ended up adding the back panel, but making it a little smaller. I also unseamed on edge of the side panels and overlapped the seam a bit more so that the panel was smaller. I also ironed everything and that helped a lot!

Then it was time for embroidery! I blanket-stitched all the boarders and put on some stars. I think it still needs another star or two on the back, but I needed to sleep and now it's time to get ready for church.

from the front

Side view

back

other side

He's so sweet!  

Today it was 88ºF--way too hot! It was a perfect day to do a bit of embroidery and necklace making inside! I finished adding stars to Rincewind's robe, and then got a brass paperclip and needle nose pliers and tried to make an octogon.

Octagons at this scale just look like misshapen circles. Hexagons, however, end up with distint edges. After mangling an octagon, accidently making a funky septagon, I finally decided to go with my half-decent hexagon and call it good. I used some of the flax thread for a necklace "chain" and *wa-la!* we have an amulet! I made the necklace "chain" long enough to pop off of his head so the necklace can be taken off and on.

Then my kids and I went and sat by our stream in the shade and I whittled away at a staff. This bit of holly had a cool little knot at the top, so I figured that looked like a fun little jewel. I carved a spiral down it and then sanded and sanded until it was nice and smooth. Now he has a staff!

carving away

My camera and the lighting outside makes the staff glow. I guess that's a cool effect...

Awesome, thanks for sharing!

Rincewind apparently was lacking his shoes. Maybe he lost them in an adventure, but that's okay, because now he has a new pair!

Yes, he stands on his own!

These boots are made for running!

All that running made him tired

He even stands without his staff!!!

And now that he has his boots, he's ready to embark on his journey to a whole new country. Here's hoping he doesn't fall off of the edge of the world!

What an AWESOME make, Nicole!! He's so fun and so beautifully done!!