Tag: Update

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

This week is gonna be a wet one. I’ve got polishing, polishing, and more polishing on the schedule. This lovely classic Jahoel needs to make the trip from 120 grit to 2000. Zaapiel, the ring sword, and Tzoriel, the leaf-blade dagger both have their jewel sockets cut and are also ready to get shiiiiiiny.

Tzoriel’s pommel jewel also gets cast this week. This time, I will be using a quick-setting resin so it will not take 24 hours to be finished curing. Wish me luck!

That’s it from the Studio for now. Stay safe out there Shadowhunters. 😉

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

Yeah, I know I missed an update. Been busy!

I’ve been having adventures in resin casting; something I’ve never done before. The first batch of semi-spheres turned out well … except that the shop keeper sold me the wrong mould release for the type of mould I had and the finished piece wouldn’t come out without destroying the mould. Boo!

Not to be discouraged, I did some more research, watched some more videos, and went back to the shop. This time I bought silicone putty to make my own flexible moulds. These turned out much better.

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The ring sword on the left there is all set to receive a jewelled pommel. Woo! This has been a really tough build so far and has tested my skills to the max. Watching it evolve has been totally worth it, though.

What else am I up to?

I’ve got a brand new Ouriel and Gabriel cut. (Gabriel’s not cut in this picture but it is all ready for shaping on my table right now.)

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And a freshly shaped Jahoel! As some of you may already know, this one is my all-time favourite sword. Happy to be working on one again.

In other news, I may be getting a part time apprentice in the near future to help me out in the shop. That should lessen my work load a bit and let me get the pretties from me to you sooner.

That’s all from me for now. Stay safe out there Shadowhunters. 😉

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

I’ve taken to calling this lovely short sword the “rose sword” as it really reminds me of the thorny stem of a rose. I don’t know yet what name it will be given by the Shadowhunter who designed it. We’ll see!

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A sneak-peek at the lighting.

All that needs doing is the handle wrap and it’s ready to go!

Next on the table is an Ouriel and … some resin casting? Ooooh a challenge….

That’s all from the Studio for now. Stay safe Hunters.

Introducing: Sariel & A New Witchlight!

Brand new pretties for you to see! At long last, the elegant beauty of Sariel joins the roster of Seraph Blade models.

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Hello there gorgeous! This design is based on the longsword that Isabelle Lightwood uses in The Mortal Instruments movie.

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As I’ve babbled on before, you all know that you can’t hide a light inside a fully transparent blade. So we did the next best thing and gave the handle a minimalist leather grip in an unobtrusive shade of white.

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The result is rather striking particularly the band of light between the grips.

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Hurrah!

Now, what’s this about a new witchlight? It is true! I have improved upon the humble paper mache model I first created.

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Looks good, easy to make … but a little on the flimsy side and the opening is really obvious.

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Well, we can fix that. And we did! Feast your eyes on this solid plastic “stone”. It’s made of layers (and layers, and layers and oh my god my hand hurts now …) of hot glue a bit of glitter, and some UV-resistant top coat to keep the whole thing from yellowing over time in the sun. Pretty neat all on its own, but in the dark, you can give it a gentle squeeze and …

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Tada! The plastic is flexible enough that turning on the press light is pretty easy. (So don’t let it get squished in your suitcase or it will run down the battery.) LEDs last a pretty long time but to change the battery, you only need to slice along the seam with a sharp knife, pop the light out, switch the battery, stuff it back in and re-seal it with a plain old hot glue gun.

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The design’s still not perfect and I want to get a working model that you don’t have to cut to open, but it’s surely a step up from the paper and balloon one. 🙂

If you’re interested in a tutorial on how to make this type of witchlight, please feel free to let me know in the comments! If there’s enough interest, I’ll put together something for ya.

That’s all from the Studio for now. Stay safe out there Shadowhunters!

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

What? What is all this?

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Ethan is casting a rock. Why is Ethan casting a rock? Any guesses? 😉

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In other news, a new sword passes the reading test! As if we had any doubts that it would. Heehee!

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

A new design? Yes it is! Does it look familiar? Hopefully it does! It’s based on Isabelle’s two-hander from The Mortal Instruments movie. It’s currently sitting at a 180 grit polish and should be finished either by the end of this week, or early next week. Woohoo!

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for more goodies from the Studio. Got lots of back-to-back orders in the queue for you to see as I bring them from the drawing board to glowing, angelic life.

The Wolf Sword

Sorry I’ve been quiet lately! I’ve been a bit busy. I’d like to take a moment to share with you the sword I shipped out this week. It was an absolute joy to work on and let me put my skills to the test.

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The pommel and crossguard are made from a polymer clay called Premo Sculpy.

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This clay is sculpted, baked in the oven, and affixed to the sword with a combination of contact cement and matte Modge Podge. Then, it gets sanded, carved with the Dremel tool, sanded again, and finally, painted.

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The Shadowhunter who requested this blade asked that it be made to look old, as though it had been handed down in a family line. To achieve this effect, I gave the paint on the wolf portions a tarnished look with dry-brushing.

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The leather began as a simple dark brown: a perfect base colour to build upon. I painted it with scarlet leather paint and then added some darker colours where the grip meets the pommel and crossguard. This gives the impression that dirt and grime over the years has become packed in that seam where it is difficult to clean properly.

I then took a lighter rusty colour and added some “stains” where the acidic adrenaline-saturated sweat from previous Shadowhunters’ hands would affect the dye of the leather, bleaching it little by little over the years.

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The Shadowhunter requested a frosted blade both for the shorter crafting time and the brightness of the finished product. I think her choice was spot-on for this blade.

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I loved working on this and I very much hope that the Shadowhunter who ordered it enjoys it for many years.

Two of the things I learned from the creation of this sword: using a smaller LED allows me to make a more slender handle and is just as bright as the large LEDs.

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The other thing was that the snaps I had were nice and robust with no danger of coming off the leather the way the Velcro tends to do … but they’re a little bulky. So I bought smaller snaps that will hopefully lie flatter against the grip.

Thank you very much to this Shadowhunter for the commission, for her patience, and her excellent feedback.

What’s On Ethan’s Table This Week?

Yes, I know it’s Wednesday. I’ve been busy sculpting this beauty. I’ve always loved wolves and I’m absolutely stoked by this project!  This week is devoted to the final stages of polishing and painting the polymer clay and leather. What colour will it be? You’ll have to wait and find out!

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

Once again, I tease you with the mystery project! Hmm, what do we know so far? It has nothing to do with Shadowhunters and it’s a science fiction weapon. It’s bright and shiny, crystal clear, and has designs on the blade.

What else am I doing this week? I can’t be engraving ALL week.

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A sneak preview of things to come. WHAT? Ethan can sculpt? Yes. Yes I can. Give you any ideas? Hmmmm? Hehe. Well that’s all from me for now. Time to get back in the Studio.

What’s on Ethan’s Table This Week?

From left to right, we have an up-sized Jahoel, a mystery blade, a Tzoriel dagger, and a Zaapiel ring-sword. All polished up to 180 grit.

From here, I continue polishing Jahoel while the other three get treated to some engraving on the blade. I like to have those engravings done before the final polishing because it’s less of a headache to fix if the Dremel slips and scratches something. That’s okay! I was going to polish that anyway!

The mystery blade will also get its polymer clay hilt fitted in place. The design is sci-fi in nature so I don’t have to hide the screws. *gasp!* I think I gave another hint! Hmmm what could it be?

Stay tuned folks, there’s a lot of brand new stuff coming from the Studio shortly.

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