WIP - Navigator
I was asked over the weekend whether or not I ever work in bones other than mink. The answer is yes, but not often. The only bones I can tend to find in bulk of the right size outside of mink tend to be bird bones. If you’ve ever gotten to take a good look at a bird bone, you know that they’re very light and brittle. They’re designed to fly and thus their bones are hollow and light. Good for flying, not so good for adornment or re-imagining through hand drilling and reworking.
Occassionally I find a good turkey bone that will work, though they are few and far between as most turkeys have been cooked and/or boiled before I get at them and their bones degraded in the process.
But it is possible! Just a considerable amount more tricky to find.
The Navigator here is an example of a turkey bone being used in an OotB piece:
Another shot:
The Navigator will always be a bit more fragile than his mink-based brethren, and will stain a bit more easily (I’ve had a hard enough time trying to keep the varnish where I want it) so I’m hesistant to sell this one off when it’s done without knowing the owner will take good care of it and understand the limitations. I am rather protective, though I know I need to get a bit better about letting them go on to their new owners.
Another option is putting this one in a display case of some sort. I like to angle for wearable pieces, but I can entertain the idea of something neat to hang on the wall as well.