Moriko

Horns & Skull swap for Griffin

Moriko - whose name means child of the forest, is a healer and protector of the forest.
Her magic is as old and timeless as the forest itself, and the glen where she was born is the source of that magic. It glows green, just like the light which filters through the leaves and floods the glen.
To remind her of the cycle of life and death, she wears the skull of a bird whose time had come. She had mourned the great bird, and come to the realisation that all life remains connected, even in death, and then her magic called forth the gigantic horns which protrude fromthe skull. She has strung them with crystals to help her  heal the forest’s inhabitants, and the ribbons which were gifts from her friends in the forest.


Griffin mentioned on her swap form that she liked the idea of a forest protector or a shaman, so I pretty much ran with that, and her colour choices of earthy colours like brown and green.
Bait is a rarity who came to me with her horn missing. Airbrushed in a gorgeous custom shade of brown, then given darker gradients along her muzzle, legs and down her back (kinda like a deer, which was something which featured in a few of Griffin's inspiration pics). These were then given some highlights using pastels to really add some depth.
Her magic runes were first painted white, then I used pastels to create a green glowing effect, before they were painted with Pearlex pigments to really create a shiny glow. My pics don't do them justice I'm afraid - they look gorgeous ^.^

Her skull and horns were challenging! Griffin had mentioned she liked antlers with things tangled in them and I must confess - I do too, so it was an easy choice! She also mentioned liking bird skulls, so I ran with that. Originally, my bird skull was going to be hollow and delicate and more skull like, but unfortunately those giant antlers needed way more support than my delicate little skull could offer and it ended up crushed under their weight!
Her antlers were wired up and attached to the mesh form I created for the skull then sculpted with Magic Sculpt. I tried to keep them quite natural and organic looking but with a definite tree like element to them. They were painted with acrylics, and detailed using pastels. Her runes run across the skull too, and both she and her skull have eyes glowing with the magic running through her.
To complete the headpiece, I found out Griffin's favourite flowers and used them. That was also painted with Pearlex pigments so its shimmery and pretty. First attempt at sculpting lilies, and I'm pretty pleased with them!

To finish Moriko's look, I made all the things to tangle in her antlers! I made them removeable so Griffin has the option to use as many or as few as she'd like, in whatever configuration she wants! Her crystals are actual gemstones on gold chains. She also has some beads, a butterfly, ribbons and some suede ^.^

She was sealed with MSC and gloss on her shining bits. Hair is Chocolate Fudge, Butterscotch, Pumpkin Spice, Nutmeg and Caffeine (all from Dollyhair).