Pheasant: It's what's on your wall and my plate!

Here's a fun trophy mount I just finished for a new father & son hunting duo; the son harvested this gorgeous pheasant and wanted to preserve it.

 It goes without saying that I of course dined on pheasant for the next few days.  Then, fueled properly on bird juice, I set to mounting this creature.  Please forgive these photos; I waited until the client was literally in the parking lot of my shop to get around to shooting and the process was somewhat rushed.  The flash actually kind of makes the first photo look a bit like an action shot, right?
Right?


 I went with an open winged descent pose to display the full color and texture range of his feathers:

 The shot destroyed the tip of his beak and left several of his lil pheasant toes dangling from their foot source, so some restoration was required.

Ta-Da!

 Another oddly lit shot:

 Rearish view:

Not much else to say; client was pleased and so am I. 

I am aiming to really step up my technical game this year, and achieve complete realisation of the designs my head spins of dream taxidermy mounts.  I treasure commissioned jobs like this pheasant, the squirrels I just wrote about and pet preservation because it allows me the work to pursue my more artistic and far-out endeavors.
 I have grand visions for 2014; here's to ambition!

-Insert Giddyup noise here-

Here's a Christmas commission I just finished right under the wire:

 Two squirrels, anthropomorphically posed, giving each other  double finger guns.  Is there a term for it?  If so I don't know it.  Anyway, here are two bad ass squirrels (both dudes) who now live on the mantel on some folks in Media who are quite dear to me.

 The positioning for these two was more difficult than I'd anticipated; the forms I sourced from McKenzie had to be altered significantly.  Here's one in progress:

And in case you were wondering, of course I ate the squirrels.  Here's what a cleaned out squirrel carcass looks like for those who don't already know.  This is eviscerated and ready to cook:

I've been working on achieving the most convincingly life like qualities in my mounts lately, and to position these guys in such an unnatural fashion was extremely difficult for me.  I kept looking at their hands, shaking my head and thinking that it just didn't look right. 

 But seeing as squirrels don't have opposing thumbs, I suppose a slight suspension of disbelief is required when it comes to anthropomorphic taxidermy.

 They were unveiled on Christmas day and the recipient is quite happy from what I hear.

I'm just kicking myself now, looking at these photos, because I ought to have had them winking! Dangit.  Hindsight.  Maybe next time.  Until then, Giddyup!

Tyrone

Meet Tyrone.
He is the very beloved member of a family in Ohio; his human contacted me over a year ago when she thought an other one of her dogs was on the verge of passing, however that pup recovered but then months later she reached out to me with the sad news that Tyrone had passed.

We made arrangements to have him shipped from his home to my studio, packed in a cooler with dry ice.  The little guy arrived safe and sound, and actually took several days to thaw out enough for me to begin any sort of work on him.

Tyrone was famous for his robust rear end.  It had a zip code of its own, I was informed.
And goodness, did it.  It's almost like someone fused two loaves of bread to this guy's backside.  Needless to say she wanted him in a pose that emphasized this physical attribute.
This was by far the most specialised form I've ever had to make; I made a mold of the actual head from his carcass, and made a cast of it, then went about adding copious amounts of bulk and adjustments to a prefab grey fox form I purchased online.

Tyrone had gotten some sort of surgery before he passed; the stitches were still so fresh when I got him that they didn't stay in the skin.  I did my best to recreate them on his chest as they were in life.  I think he may have died due to complications from this operation but I'm not sure.  I tend to let the humans give me this kind of information; most times the cause of death is simple old age.

That rump!

I don't do this for all my clients but I felt like Tyrone's human would appreciate a baculum charm made from his penis bone.  I threw it in as a thank you for her patience. 

 Thankfully she understood and appreciated the gesture.  And also didn't mind all the assorted animal hair in the jewelry box I sent it in!

So that's Tyrone.  He was a significant project for me and had a large presence in my studio.  It will feel a little empty without him for a while.

ORKA

 


This is Orka, the beloved sheep of my dear friends Bailey and Thomas who write on the blog The Farmer's Husband. 
She passed away during a complicated pregnancy; you can read all about it here.
If you are at all familiar with me or my work, you know I source almost all my specimen from this farm.  They take their work very seriously, just as I do, and do their best to be sure all their animals travel through life and death with the dignity and respect they deserve.

This past weekend my two favorite farmers in the whole world got married, and as a gift I mounted Orka for them.  Here's her horns on the sheep form I got from Mckenzie's:

Since she had to be put down via shotgun shot to the head, there were some realignment issues when it came to anchoring the horns to the form.  I did my best.  There were also some alterations I had to make since this is the form of a different breed of sheep.

 

That's what skin looks like when it's initially put over the form, in case you are not a taxidermist and were wondering.


And this is what it looks like after the skin is lined up, stapled, sewn, pinned, poked and coaxed into place.  Taxied, if you will, hence the term "taxidermy".

And now I'm feeling the rush of cold blood coursing through my head and down to my fingertips as I realise I have been spelling this creature's name wrong THE ENTIRE TIME. So that there above is her name, misspelled.    My husband Jim sanded and stained two pieces of reclaimed wood with a walnut ink he made himself from black walnuts.  He also did the hand painted lettering of her name.  I told him to spell it that way.
I am so mortified.

I included a plaid woven scarf since her head was cut off a bit close to the face and I wanted to have a long neck coming out from the plaque.  Also, it just looks really nice.

My apologies for the not so well lit and scant photos; we took them at an ungodly hour in the morning before hitting the road to get up to the farm for wedding prep.  This is why I should never rush.  It just doesn't suit me, my work or the choices I make.

But Orka's a good looking girl.  I'm happy with her, as were the grooms.  I'll get more photos the next time I visit, and maybe Jim can turn that C into a K.

Chair As Folk

SO I made my first taxidermy chair.  Behold:

 I, along with several other local designers, was asked to create a custom chair for an auction to kick off this year's Philadelphia Design Festival.  The Popup Place should be a fantastic soiree as its being held at Bahdeebahdu (a heavenly spot where excellent times are consistently had by all) and stocked with tasty treats and bevvies.  I think it will e just the evening to debut a certain feline stole I've been working on...

 If you're in or near Philly and would like to attend, get more info here.  I hope to see you there!



Oh right.  The chair.  Basically we all were provided with a plain old IKEA seat, and told to go wild.  I mounted some calf legs to the steel chair legs, and upholstered the seat with the calf's hide.  

 This was an 80 pound dairy calf that I skinned and tanned myself.  Now that I mention it, I got it from one of the lovely gents of Little Baby's Ice Cream- he fetched it from their local dairy farmer- who will be serving up treats at this Design event.  Connection, connections.

 I was feeling folk inspired to I incorporated some brightly colored woven tapestry with tassels onto the legs and back and voila.  Diamond Tooth's first foray into chair making.

Hoof It

Calf Hoof Arched Candle Holder:

A taxidermy calf hoof bows as deeply as possibly to present light to whomever wishes to receive it. A simple an elegant gesture, this piece will add allure to any table scape or bathtub meditation.
Solid and sturdy build that will last through many candles and memorable evenings.

Calf Hoof Candle Holders, Pair:

SOLD

Calf Hoof Crystal Ball

Contemplate the future while gazing into this glass orb poised atop a preserved calf hoof. Keep this piece in a sunlit room to see the light refract in the loveliest ways.
Stands on its own, this is a solid piece that will stand the test of suns, moons, spells and dreams.

 

Lamb Fetus Hoof Charms:

Two elegant and eternally youthful legs dangle from a gold chain, eternally entwined in playful pose with one another.
Can be worm as a necklace or hung up as decor, dangled from a rearview mirror and anywhere you want to look at something sweet and tender and beautiful.

Calf Hoof Magnifying Glass:

Sort out the fine print with this elegant magnifying glass and be sure to take in every detail of the contract before you. Or look for stray hairs and other clues to whatever modern day mystery confounds you.
A solid and sturdy piece that will stand the test of many a query, while enhancing your mystique cred at the same time.

Sheep Hoof Candle Hodlers, (Rear Pair)

Orca was a much beloved sheep living on the Bearded Lady Farm in upstate New York. Sadly, she perished while giving birth due to complications. One her miracle offspring lives on however, and Orca's spirit also lives on in the light cast from the glow of candle burning in this pair of holders fashioned from her back hooves.
These are delicate and while they stand on their own, it is recommended to secure them with a dab of museum wax on the bottom as they are sensitive to hips bumping into the table and strong vibrations from feet stomping on the floor.
Viva Orca!

Orca's Front Hooves:

Mouse & Rat Fetus Ornament:

I made a limited run of a dozen or so of these Christmas ornament snowglobes with tiny fetuses inside.  They're selling too fast to bother listing on Etsy so I'll just share them here.  If you'd like to place an order, there are a couple left so please email diamondtoothtaxidermist@gmail.com to claim one.

It's heart breaking to open up a specimen and find that she was carrying a little family inside of her, and I don't take those moments lightly.  I've held onto my petite "nursery" for a few years now, and I want the little guys to go out and experience the world.

I hope they can bring some cheer to a few warm and fuzzy hearts.