War Bonnet-Part 6 Tassels & Feathers

Okay...before you fellas out there get excited thinking that Tassels & Feathers might mean a gallery of photos of Dita Von Teese, get your mind out of the gutter.......we're still working on this Indian bust!
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Getting back to serious things, this post will outline how I add the tassels to the headress and also how to make the feathers. The tassels on a headress can be just about anything....animal tails, ribbons, feathers. In this case we're going to simulate Ermine skins. They will be painted white with black tips. It might take you a while to get everything to line up correctly, it took me a whole day to do this part. But I enjoy setting there whittling a bit, testing the fit, whittling some more, testing some more, whittling a bit more, and so on and on. Eventually, things will fit together but it will take a while. The important thing on this part is that the pieces will be firmly anchored and look natural hanging from the headband and resting against the body.
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The feathers are much easier to make and after you make a couple you will probably be adding them to everything as they really make a piece "snap"! The little wire loop at the end of the quill and the associated loop on the piece will let them dangle and move which really creates interest to the viewer. Besides the two feathers on the shield and the two on the lance there are three more that will go on the back of the skullcap once the piece is painted. Don't glue the attaching loops to the lance or shield, we'll do that once the piece is painted.
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So, now that the carving part is finished it's time to set down at the computer and do some googling for reference beadwork patterns, shield designs, Dita von Teese...............Opps! Here comes the wife!!!!!

Lots of photos in the gallery.