Post by sarahbeth on Jan 19, 2022 14:14:33 GMT
This is another character from "The Hobbit" films and definitely one of the most complicated figures that I've made. He stands 9-1/2" tall and weighs a hefty 4 ounces. He was felted with .40 and .42 gauge needles and features some pretty advanced felting techniques in his costume — along with a lot of leather and embroidery work. I used six different types of wool and fiber to make Bifur.
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In films, Bifur's character is highly influenced by the Wild Boar. With that in mind, we decided to use Pig-Split leather to make the tops of Bifur's boots and arm guards (which Sis branded in a decorative pattern). We used decorative stone beads that look very like the Wild Boar tusks used on the real costume, and the fur trim on the shoulder mantel is real Wild Peccory (pig) hair! Bifur has four metal tube bead decoartions in his hair, and his axe-head is hand-carved wood painted in a dark metallic colour.
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The most challenging part of Bifur's costume were the chevron stripes on the coat. Getting those straight and even was quite a job. The embroidery was quite time-consuming on Elizabeth's part, and, putting all of this together, Bifur certainly turned out to be the doll with the most amount of work hours that I've ever made. As far as "one of a kind" experiences, getting that wooden axe head into Bifur's forehead was . . . interesting! We thought that we were going to need to sew it in, but the bottom is made wider than the top, which enabled me to felt over the opening and keep the axe head in place with the wool.
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And here's the chart of fiber and materials used:
In films, Bifur's character is highly influenced by the Wild Boar. With that in mind, we decided to use Pig-Split leather to make the tops of Bifur's boots and arm guards (which Sis branded in a decorative pattern). We used decorative stone beads that look very like the Wild Boar tusks used on the real costume, and the fur trim on the shoulder mantel is real Wild Peccory (pig) hair! Bifur has four metal tube bead decoartions in his hair, and his axe-head is hand-carved wood painted in a dark metallic colour.
The most challenging part of Bifur's costume were the chevron stripes on the coat. Getting those straight and even was quite a job. The embroidery was quite time-consuming on Elizabeth's part, and, putting all of this together, Bifur certainly turned out to be the doll with the most amount of work hours that I've ever made. As far as "one of a kind" experiences, getting that wooden axe head into Bifur's forehead was . . . interesting! We thought that we were going to need to sew it in, but the bottom is made wider than the top, which enabled me to felt over the opening and keep the axe head in place with the wool.
And here's the chart of fiber and materials used:
