Monday, December 17, 2012

This Little Light of Mine-

 



 



both front



Well, this little light of Harriett's, actually.  She's the 80 pound goat I took from my lovies up at The Farmer's Husband after she expired during childbirth.  I fashioned her hide & head into a rug which has turned into a rather complex project involving fiber optic lights and whatnot, and her feet have been spun into candle holders:



 



 



gem detail



 



Please pardon the waxy bits I forgot to dust off before photographing, I was too excited by how festive the red candles look with these hooves.



left then rear



These are just two of Harriett's four peds, I am in the midst of fashioning the other two into candle holders as well. I'm quite smitten with the idea of honoring this beloved goat with light.



 



 



sans sticks

Friday, December 14, 2012

CHARMED, I'M SURE.

 



Charmed, you'll be.



Allow me to present you with the latest batch of taxidermy talon charms- just in time to decorate your tree, wreath, rearview mirror, mistletoe, what have you.  As you'll soon see I have no idea how to shoot a reflective surface without getting myself in it so enjoy the self portraits of your truly as well.



I'm listing these on this site with prices for anyone who would like to buy immediately and directly from me. This weekend I'll post what remains unclaimed on my etsy page.  All of these duck and chicken feet came from the boys up at the Farmer's Husband and are the byproducts of delicious, humanely sourced meat. While size varies slightly, each piece falls into the 5" to 7" range. Due to the bulk of specimen this large, prices are slightly increased as the process of preservation is more involved, timely, and labor intensive.  Also, bear in mind that most of the charms clutched in these little claws are one of a kind or antiques that cannot be reproduced.  You and your loved ones will be the only ones on the entire planet to possess the ornament of your choosing.



 



Do please peruse at your leisure, should any of these strike your fancy, send an email to diamondtoothtaxidermist@gmail.com.  All pieces can be shipped or picked up from my studio in Kensington.



 



Duck Foot with antique silver glass ball, trimmed with white fox fur: $38



Front view-



duck with silver ball 1 front



This glass ball is uncapped- perfect for slipping a rolled up love note into for your favorite elf.



Side view-



 



duck with silver ball 1 right



 



 



Duck foot with antique silver glass ball, trimmed in raccoon fur: $38



 



duck with silver ball 2  right



 



Duck foot with antique silver glass ball, trimmed in white fox fur: $38



View 1-



 



 



duck with silver ball 3 back



 



View 2-



duck with silver ball 3 front



 



 



Chicken clutching electroformed & oxidized cone charm with feathers, trimmed with fur: $46



Rear View-



 



 



electroformed tube back



This was the first piece I produced in my electroforming class back in jewelry school.  The fur is reclaimed from an old fur coat I rescued from a landfill destiny.



Front view-



 



 



electroformed tube front



 



Chicken clutching Givenchy perfume bottle, trimmed in white fox fur: $38



View 1-



givenchy perfume bottle back



Suggestion: Fill the bottle with colored water for enhanced decor effect!



View 2-



 



 



 



givenchy perfume bottle front



 



Chicken clutching antique gold glass ball. trimmed with white fox fur: $38



View 1-



 



 



gold ball 1 left



View 2-



 



gold ball 1 right



 



 



Chicken clutching vintage gold-plated leaf brooch, trimmed in white fox fur: $42



leaf brooch full



leaf brooch detail



 



 



Double Chicken Talon Charm, trimmed in white fox fur: $48





View 1-



 



lovers clasp empty 1 back



The pictures of this ornament didn't come out well at all; my apologies.  It's essentially the same as the other doubles charms you'll see posted below, the hands holding each-other with an empty space within.  Leave as is or stick a chocolate heart in there!



lovers clasp empty 1 front



 



 



Double Chicken Talon Charm, trimmed in white fox fur: $48



lovers clasp empty 2 front



 



 



Double Chicken Talons cradling antique miniature pink glass ball, trimmed in fur: $56



View 1-



lovers clasp mini pink ball 1 front



View 2- This specimen had the not-as-common trait of feathers reaching down to his toes.  It creates a sweet cocoon effect from the rear view.



lovers clasp mini pink ball 1  back



 



 



 



 



 



Double Chicken Talons cradling slice of genuine quartz, trimmed in raccoon fur: $56



View 1-



lovers quartz back



 



 



 



View 2-



lovers quartz front



 



Just for fun, a quartz-enhancing backlit shot-



lovers quartz backlit



 



Chicken foot with antique miniature light pink glass ball, trimmed in white fox fur: $38



View 1-



mini pink glass 1 right



 



View 2-



mini pink glass 2 left



 



Chicken foot with antique miniature pink glass ball, trimmed in white fox fur: $38



View 1-



mini pink glass ball 2 left



View 2-



 



mini pink glassball 2 right



 



Chicken foot with antique miniature light pink glass ball, trimmed in white fox fur: $38



View 1-



mini pink glass ball 3 back



View 2-



mini pink glass ball 3 front



 



Mutant Cock Talon with antique miniature pink glass ball, trimmed in rabbit fur: $48



View1-



mutant mini pink ball 2 right



This is not a pretty piece, but a rare one nonetheless. This foot belonged to a large rooster who lived a full life, as evidenced from his gnarled skin and toes.  The fur capping off the ornament is from a rabbit I dispatched myself and brain-tanned.  Can you say provenance?



View 2-



 



 



 



 



mutant mini pink balll 2 left



And because most gnarly rough neck chickens have TWO feet,



 



Mutant Cock Talon with antique miniature pink glass ball, trimmed in raccoon fur: $48



View 1-



mutant mini pink glass 1 left



View 2-



mutant mini pink glass 1 right



 



 



Chicken with 3 plastic rings, trimmed in fox fur: $42



View 1-



plastic rings left



 



Psst- the blue ring glows in the dark



View 2-



 



 



plastic rings right



 



Chicken with vintage road runner bolo charm, trimmed in raccoon fur: $42



View 1-



roadrunner charm full



 



Detail-



roadrunner charm detail



Chicken with Texas Ranger charm, trimmed in fox fur: $38



View 1-



texas ranger badge full



 



Detail-



texas ranger badge detail



 



Duck with antique glass "globe" ball,trimmed in white fox fur: $46



duck ball



 



Chicken with genuine "MOM'S" token, trimmed in white fox fur: $46



Philly Dwellers take note: I earned this token through many nights ,(ok let's be honest...afternoons) spent in the dark hazy cave known as Sugar Mom's while living with the Reverend Michael Alan in a magnificent loft on 3rd street circa. 2000.  For some reason I never cashed it in. Hello, PROVENANCE.



 



Tmoms



 



 



Chicken talon with large spur holding mystery wooden ear plug, trimmed in raccoon fur: $46



I found this ear plug on the ground during an outside concert at XSXW in 2010.  It was the Gwar show and Andrew WK had just taken the stage to bring the heat with his amazing party-mate Cherie Lilly.



 



wooden plug



 



Happy Holidays!



xoxo, BB

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Immortalized

 



I've tweeted it, I've facebooked about it but just to be sure I'm spreading the word I'm blogging about it:



If you read this blog, I'm guessing you're into taxidermy.  Therefore, it would behoove you to check out this television show on AMC slated to premier on February 14.  I am on it.  It was a unique and fabulous experience which I am very excited to see in its final form.  The show is called Immortalized and you can learn more on the AMC website  since I can't figure out how to put the video up on my own blog. But here's a picture:



Immortalized Cast Photos



 



So I hope you can watch it!  I know the other Immortalizers and they're a talented, riotous group.  I'm stoked to see all eight episodes!  So let's all make a date to watch the premier on Valentine's day.  It will bring new meaning to that chocolate heart.



xoxo,



BB



 

Rabbit for Reggae

Remember my Twenty4Twenty project? I know it seems like I may have forgotten it but fret not, I'm just stretching it out.  Some of the people on my list are quite hard to reach; others I've just decided I'm not so wild about anymore.



The piece I'm writing about today falls in the fan art category but isn't quite a Twenty4Twenty gift as I orchestrated a trade for this mount.



If you know me personally, you know that I'm a rabid consumer of podcasts.  Especially the ones falling into the comic variety.  While I get a tremendous amount of laughs from these podcasts, they are also quite thought-provoking and mentally stimulating.  Comedians are, in my opinion, the most observant, intelligent and unique people on earth.  Recently I added another podcast to the weekly roster and it quickly become my favorite. It's called Twisting the Wind- check it out.  The host, Johnny Pemberton, incorporates music samples into the already captivating material and that's what gave me the idea to reach out to him and propose a swap:



face right detail



Every song I've heard on this podcast was new to me.  And wonderful.  It took me back to my grade school days of mixtapes, where I discovered most of the music I still love today.  Perhaps I'm aurally lazy but I just prefer my favorite songs be spoon fed to me.  Record shops are among my least favorite places on earth to be, right up there with live music venues.  If someone else has really great taste, it only makes sense to me that I glom what I can off them.



SO.  I wrote Mr. Pemberton on a whim and proposed I send him a custom piece of taxidermy in exchange for a custom mix tape.  And he responded yes.



This was going great.  I was working on the rabbit I'd dispatched with Farmer Thomas, and trying out a new mounting technique (new to me, at least) in which I taxied the skin over the rabbit's actual skull and not a form.  I also tried out a new type of ear-liner which produced mixed results.



straight on full



The mount itself is riddled with technical issues but it's still pretty rad- he holds a little mirror in his rabbit hands to serve as a "last check" point: something to look at before seeing another person or people, and make sure there is no food in your teeth or gunk in your eyes.



mirror detail



He also has a small tiara type embellishment because he's dripping with meaning, history and charm.



left  full



I'm quite pleased with his exposed teeth- the neat and perfect little rabbit chompers are what inspired me to incorporate the skull in the fist place.  It was a great experience to try something new and still be able to share it with someone while getting something in return, to boot!



right face detail