Props A Lordly Destrier (Horse for BJD)

I have reached a much-anticipated stage of my project, A Villainous Warlord--his mount. Like many others, I have wanted a horse for my BJDs about as long as I’ve been in the hobby. But a large plush lacked the detail I desire, and any of the other standard offerings were far too small. Please join me for a little trial and error as I throw it all at the wall.


Not my photo, reuploaded as I wasn't sure how else to show it...

Amongst Orimhutoh’s string of warhorses in my story is a big black stallion named Catast, and while I might deviate from a straight black colour scheme depending on how strange the overcoat texture turns out for photos, the overall body type of this lovely Percheron is what I have in mind--a heavy neck and shoulders with a nice arch, a drafty head and hooves, maybe with a slight Roman nose...

Or maybe I shouldn’t get too ambitious here and realize I’ll be doing great if it looks like a horse at all.

The original thought was to sew a skin over a fluffy base reinforced with wire, but I did not like the thought of seams and I wanted to include muscle definition, and... the mere thought of drafting such a pattern was already giving me a headache. So instead, I decided to go for a more sculptural approach. I am going to be attempting to needlefelt over a wire armature for this project. Due to the expense of wool, however, the inner layers will be comprised of polyfil.

Bear with me. It is an experiment, after all.

I also ask that you disregard background craft room chaos throughout this journey...


The goals:
Strong- capable of standing securely with my heavy doll and all his armour (and maybe the occasional damsel)
Realistic/pretty- … this is the part I am most nervous about. I hope my skills are up to it.
Poseable- least important of the three but on this list for a reason. If I wanted a horse in a static pose, I would still be shopping for a concrete lawn statue.


We began with a sketch, whose photo I’ve misplaced but will add when I find it. I chose to create a horse that is 65cm at the withers, as Orimhutoh is 72cm tall.





Beginning the wire armature. This is gauge 12 galvanized steel from the hardware store. I began each leg with five initial strands, all wrapped/fixed to nails in a length of scrap lumber serving as a solid spine. Gladys here volunteered to precariously balance atop to check scale and see if it would hold weight. I found that while fairly strong, the wire had a lot of side-to-side twist and play that made it want to sway around.





A few more strands of wire added and time for test #2. Still a lot of sway and play, but the horse now stood freely with Orimhutoh atop, whose weight I estimate at over 6.5lbs.





I began to needlefelt polyfil over the wire base.





Poke-poke-poke… poke-poke-poke… as much time as I’ve spent at it, I actually find this to be very fun and relaxing. However, if I did it again, I would fill the innermost layer with packed newspaper or cardboard or something else cheap and abundant to save on fluff and poking time.





Looking like a weird poodle creature. It was at this stage I started to wonder if perhaps the neck was too long. Decided to keep poking and see what I thought once it was more bulked out.





Checking again for scale. I keep thinking the horse looks far too big until I actually put the dolls beside it. Gladys is supposed to be around 5’3” and her height looks pretty accurate to how I measure up to my 17hh Standardbred. Orimhutoh, meanwhile, is supposed to be 6’ 6” or better.




I bashed a bunch more nails into the wood base and zigzagged a bunch of wire to create a ribcage strong enough to withstand handling as well as tack adjusted tightly enough to hopefully keep a heavy doll from slipping around.





At the same time, I decided to install a backup piece--this plastic tube near the girth area into which a pole of some sort could be slotted later if I needed to devise a stand.

 

Another test. I was still worried about it being tippy as the weight of all the extra batting and tack was added. So, while I had been trying to imitate realistic equine bone structure with the wires, I decided to sacrifice some mobility for strength and began adding bracing segments to the hindquarters.







Now we’re getting somewhere! The horse, or... skeletal giraffe creature... stands with two dolls, a full 1litre steel water bottle and some tools atop. 15-18 lbs? I can’t imagine needing it to hold any more weight than that. A fairly wide stance was necessary for balance, but it did not seem too troubled.

Lol, they look like they expect it to ‘buck them off’ at any second...

I’ll also add that the neck fluff is all shredded here because I shortened the length by twisting it around and around and around to slightly shorten the wire within.





All right, now we can really get poking!





Got a very eager helper here by my side…





The horse as it has stood since October. Lips, an opening mouth and the beginnings of some muscle shapes as I dig into the legs. I stuffed packing paper in the flank/groin and ribcage area to save on fluff, and then felted a piece of batting over the top to seal up his belly. As I said, if I did this again, I would also use paper or something cheap to save fluff in the core of the neck and hindquarters. By the time of this photo I had used roughly 2lbs of polyfil.

I hesitate to buy more as a 10lb box of the stuff has been waiting for me at my parents’ house in the States since March. I don’t think I need to explain why I haven’t been able to go down and get it. A box of polyfil is the least of the reasons I am upset about that, but, well, we’re making the best of things.

I transitioned my crafting time into customizing a beat up cheap rocking horse for my daughter, which has been fun in its own right, but it means this project will be on pause at least through the holidays. Every time I go into the craft room to wrap a gift or mend something I see it there in the corner and get the urge to work on it…

In the meantime I have purchased some cabochons for making eyes and saved about a million inspiration photos for tack design, but at the moment I’m really open to some critique or comments on the horse’s overall shape! I think I’ve been staring at it too long. I see the knee is high and the hocks are way too high. I believe the neck is still too long. As the chest and shoulders are starting to bulk up, the head is starting to look too short/small to me. The chest and front of the belly need to come down more so it looks less like a jellybean on legs. The whole thing still needs a lot more bulk.

Any other thoughts? Thanks for having a look.

 

@Kingyo-Ningyo
Hey! Thank you for the tip! I will look into that if I consider making another!

@thedarkeststar13
Thanks for checking it out! I hope you'll quip in if you notice anything else I haven't.


@amanoreiha
Thanks so much! Your enthusiasm makes me even more eager to get back to it.

@kaschan502
Awesome! I hope my trial and error is helpful to you if you decide to give it a try yourself.

@Gamine
Thank you! I'd actually never done needlefelting before, but after seeing some amazing work on Pinterest and Youtube I was dying to give it a try. It was hard to find a straight answer as to whether polyfil would work, but I gave it a go and it seems to hold pretty snug if you poke it enough. I certainly couldn't afford to do this if I were using straight wool.

@animemom
Aww, thank you. She's always so eager to imitate what I'm doing, even if it's as nonsensical as jabbing a stuffed animal over and over with a little stick. As far as the holidays go, she's too young to have any idea she's missing out on anything not seeing the extended family. But as soon as circumstances allow, we all plan to take a long trip south. Happy holidays to you.


@lukita
Thanks for the input! Seeing the photos on one page and on a computer screen instead of in front of me is definitely helping me visualize some changes. Hope you'll pop in again if you see any more issues as this develops.

@MariSunshade
It's hard for me to judge the knee height without hooves on yet, but yes I do believe you're right. I'll keep an eye on that neck but won't change anything just yet, maybe... and the head is such a focal point for photos I really want to nail it. Going to start with alterations in the places you've suggested.


@JL_The_Lion
I'm really thankful for your kind comments and your interest. I hope you'll enjoy watching me muddle through the rest.

 

@GammaVector
Thanks for your supportive comments. I too have been watching the other awesome horse projects on this forum and benefitting from seeing their processes. I hope the felting will prove durable enough and that the end texture is nice.

@Ipledreamer
Hmmmmmm, I will roll that picture enlargement idea around in my head and see what I come up with. Not easy to just pop out to a store and get things printed here, though; I live in a rather isolated northern community with just a handful of shops. I did actually start from a true-size concept drawing on a big roll of paper and work with a few model horses beside me to squint at, but you’re right in suggesting an actual blown-up photo might be better...

I’m thinking apoxie sculpt for the hooves to ensure they are durable enough. To save on clay I would like to fill the cores of these hooves with something like tin foil. And then probably a coating of some plasti-dip spray rubber or something similar on the bottoms for traction.

 

@Ipledreamer fortunately this horse doesn’t weigh much more than a doll himself at this point, with all the fluff. But it would be a hilarious sight to see me carrying it around. I would definitely want to get photos somewhere other than my backyard because I have obvious fences all the way around, but I think I’d have to lay him sideways with his neck over the seat to fit in the cargo hold of our Subaru...

And ugh you’re right, half the closet in the craft room is just bins of furniture and props for my guys. It all takes up so much space. I love my big guys but I see why so many people are on the mature minis now.

As for display and storage, I’m thinking a sturdy shelf with a belly strap ‘seatbelt’ to get this horse up on the wall and out of my way. And you have two, between the rocking horse and the 3D printed one, right? I’m trying to resist the thought of making another... but it would be nice...

 

@LonelyArtist
Thanks! It's pretty much impossible to work on it when my daughter is around. Too many things for her to get into in the craft room. Fortunately she is a very good napper.

@Ipledreamer
Only two and no more! I am telling myself the same thing. But if this goes well, there are other animal companions I would like to try to make.

A camping trailer sounds amazing, but even if it folded up that sounds like a big commitment. Have you considered tents? I bought a tent made for dogs and I like it so much I am tempted to buy another. Here is a photo with it. Folds up nice and small. The standing doll is just over 60cm. It easily fits three full size dolly sleeping bags.

I hear you on the tack! There are too many possibilities to limit yourself! I am very excited for that stage of this project. I love interesting tack and particularly medieval and fantasy inspired designs. When I am able to get back with my real life horses on the regular I want to try my hand at leatherworking to make an exotic bridle or two and this will be a great miniature test run!

 

@LonelyArtist Thanks! I took the photo for a contest over the summer and forgot about it until now. I think sometimes those salesman sample display pieces end up on eBay. I know the obsession well, though. If I spot any random object around 1:3 scale, no matter how strange, I want it...

@Ipledreamer
I purchased mine on Amazon but I am sure they turn up in other places too. Just hard to wade through all the tiny brightly-coloured undetailed Barbie sized ones.

I am sure tack made for minis would be off in terms of thickness of leather at least, if not in the width of the straps and the scale of the buckles and fittings. Same with the saddles. The proportions are different to fit (small) human butts. I’m not overly confident in my saddle-making skills, so I’m going to do my best to end up with a reasonable looking pommel and cantle with a square skirt and cover any ugly parts with fur. It’s cold where my guy lives and he’s old (lol). He’d probably appreciate the insulation.

Currently starting to compile a shopping list for all the little rings and buckles and rivets I will need for attempting some tack. And I think I’m going to just break down and buy more polyfil...

 

Small update for today. Over the last week I experimented with making some eyes.

Wasn't sure if I wanted to paint directly on the cabochons, paint a paper backing, or use a printed image, but I decided to try this first. I tried two different kinds of paper--one thick and textured and the other smooth cardstock.

The textured paper looked nicer as I painted because it didn't shine from any angle, but I felt the paint built up better on the cardstock and didn't soak in so I was able to do more detail. (Or maybe as I developed a favourite pair, I grew sloppier on the others.) It made no discernible difference in the finished product, though.





Wasn't sure if I'd be happy with my paint job once it was magnified, but I think this will do. The ones on the left became my 'test eyes' for everything early on because the ones on the right were turning out better...





This part was a little nerve-wracking after spending over an hour painting the eyes. I wasn't sure what I ought to use to fix the paper to the glass for best clarity, but I ultimately decided to try matte Mod Podge on the test eyes and it worked perfectly. Here you can see the difference in clarity between the eyes on the left, which have been affixed, and the one on the right which is just sitting on the paper. I was relieved to see that all the cloudiness went away as they were glued down.





Time to create some eyelids.

I had this slinky black fabric on hand which has a slight skinlike texture to it. I debated for a bit whether to use it or vinyl, because I knew this would show the fabric weave zoomed in, but I knew the vinyl would be thicker and harder to manipulate into fine wrinkles and a good eyelid shape. So I used the slinky fabric. I hotglued folded strips into place, again using the test eyes (top) to try each step before starting on the 'good' eyes.

In the end you can't really see the interesting fabric texture, and you can make out the weave a bit more than I'd like, but I really, really didn't feel like busting out clay for this step.

In the end, I'm quite satisfied with how these turned out.

I ordered more polyfil last week. Canadian Amazon seems a little backed up right now, but it should be delivered on the 19th.

 

@ajmailey Thanks!

My order of polyfil arrrived back in January and I have been poking at this guy now and again.



Still a way to go, but I started correcting some of the conformation issues and have bulked it out significantly. Muscles are taking shape. I am focusing on getting the core of the body correct and smooth and firm, and then I will turn my attention to fine tuning the legs. The neck and head haven't really been touched since my last update, and at this point I think I will do the head last because I really, really want to get that part right.

Need more apoxie sculpt before I do the hooves.

Not sure when my next update will be. I am having a baby in about a month, and aside from having a lot to do to prep for that, hip/pelvis problems are making it difficult to sit on the floor to work on this guy. Regardless, I will continue to poke away whenever I can.

 

Thanks for your comments and congratulations, everybody! A lot has changed for me in the last ~6 months, but one good thing about this project is that its size means it is perpetually in the way and impossible to indefinitely ignore. Here's what it looks like today--64cm at the withers and still slowly bulking out. The eyes are temporarily pinned in place from when I became so sick of working on legs that I had to poke at the head for a bit.

IMG_8351 by Havilah00, on Flickr

IMG_8348 by Havilah00, on Flickr

I'm becoming rather fond of this guy. A visitor opened my craft room door in search of the restroom the other day. The look on her face was priceless. "Are you... making... a sheep?" I don't know if my explanation made it any less strange.