A return client contacted me before the holidays asking if I could make a custom hair piece for his wife. This was not just any hair piece but one that was very special and meaningful. Her Dad had passed away and was a squadron leader for the Royal Air Force. The goal was to make the barrette in his honor. A memorial piece she could wear and cherish for years to come to help keep her Dad close to her.
First we needed fighter planes and that is when the wonderful world of 3D printers came into play. The client was able to help me find the exact planes he wanted. Since they were 3D printed they were “clear” in color so I painted them with model paint to get them the right shade of grey.
Next he wanted me to stick with the colors of their emblem. He sent me this photo to use for inspiration He didn’t care how I did it but the colors were important. Which when I saw it immediately thought of one of my favorite movies.. Tank Girl but I had to stay on course ha ha.
I decided to use the emblem as my basis for the barrette itself. I wanted to stick with the same layout as I felt that would make it much more meaningful and literally symbolic. I kept the same layout with the feathers. Alternating the colors exactly the way the emblem was.
Here was the end result….
The client was very happy with what I came up with and said his wife absolutely loves it. I could not be more honored to be asked to make such a memorable piece of wearable art. One that brought light and happiness into someone’s holiday and when they look at it they can think of someone that meant so much to them.
Making this barrette reminded me of one of the reasons I love making hair pieces and how different they are from what you can buy in the store. What I create is not only unique or customizable, but when it is not being worn it can be clipped on to something as a decor or put on display. Sylvia Soska recently told me her and Jen have their American Mary barrettes I made them on their alter. They are very versatile pieces which is why I refer to them as wearable art… because really that’s what they are.
Check out the Dead Girl Decay page of my portfolio site to see more of the hair pieces I have made. I also have some pre-made ones in my Amazon Shop and I absolutely LOVE doing custom orders! So feel free to contact me if you have something in mind. Let me bring your vision to life! Buy handmade!
Stay Spooky!
LDG Nicole
Last night we attended a wedding for our friends Matt and Mari. When I had picked out the dress and necklace I wanted to wear for the big event (thank god for new with tag deals on Poshmark), I knew I wanted to make a special barrette to wear with it. My dress had lady skeleton cameo faces and an ornate gothic black design in velvet all along the edges. So I got an actual lady skeleton cameo piece to be the focal point of the barrette. My necklace was a black lace choker that was very vampy with beautiful red stones set in ornate gold metal (reminded me of the Dracula medallion necklaces you buy for Halloween costumes). So I re-painted the silver metal frame around the cameo to match the necklace. I was very happy how it all came together.
