Arwen Butterfly Ficcares: Riding Brooch and Coronation Crown

I've been so eager to show you our latest Lord of the Rings inspired Ficcares! Previously we had our Lothlorien Leaf, Sang of Leaves, and Evenstar Ficcares:



















Joining them are two new clips, each inspired by Arwen Undómiel. Arwen Undómiel is a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his best-known novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.

Arwen's Riding Brooch Large Ficcare Hair Clip $105

Etsy Listing

In Lord of the Rings, the Fellowship of the Ring, when Arwen defeats the Ringwraiths after crossing the river, the words she speaks in that scene translate into English thus: “Waters of the Misty Mountains, hear the word of power, rush, waters of Bruinen (Loudwater), against the Ringwraiths!” (Nîn o Chithaeglir lasto beth daer; rimmo nín Bruinen dan in Ulaer!)

This butterfly brooch clasped her riding cloak shut, and now adorns a hair clip fitting for an elven princess.

The Ficcare is a brand new size Large (5 inches from tip to tip). A silver Elvish knotwork butterfly is riveted and wired with sterling silver wire to the clip. Silver leaf accents grace the attachment points, and are cased in Ice Resin making them smooth and seamless so as not to snag hair.

Arwen's Coronation Butterfly Crown Ficcare Hair Clip Large $155

Etsy Listing 1

Etsy Listing 2

Arwen Undómiel shall not diminish her life's grace for less cause. She shall not be the bride of any Man less than the King of both Gondor and Arnor. - Elrond to Aragorn - J.R.R. Tolkien 

Arwen, known also to her people as Evenstar because of her unparalleled beauty, is destined to leave Middle-earth and sail to the Undying Lands of the West. While this fate looms before her, she falls in love with Aragorn, a mortal man, and is then faced with the heart-wrenching choice to leave Middle-earth with her people or forgo her immortality for the man she loves. She chooses love, and wears a stunning butterfly crown when she takes Aragorn's side in the Return of the King.

This customized Ficcare is wrought blends her Riding Brooch with the green and silver drapes of her Butterfly Coronation Crown.

The Ficcare is a brand new size Large (5 inches from tip to tip). A silver Elvish knotwork butterfly is riveted and wired with sterling silver wire to the clip. The green of the butterfly is hand-painted enamel, sealed with shimmering Ice Resin. Silver leaf accents grace the attachment points, and are cased in Ice Resin making them smooth and seamless so as not to snag hair.

A removable drape hooks onto the edges of the butterfly, with three lengths of silver chain draping to an elvish silver metal filigree in the center. Two sea green glass droplets and one olivine green glass droplet add flashing bits of color to the drape.

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I hope you love our new designs as much as I do!  There's only a few in the shop, but a custom order, on any size Ficcare, is always an option.

Evenstar & Lothlorien Ficcares for Custom Order!

I'll admit that I've been a little overwhelmed by the positive response to my latest Ficcare projects :)  I quoted a few prices yesterday, and I think I've contacted everyone with a correction, but if not, I hope you see this!

I was able to track down better pricing on some of the Lord of the Rings components while still maintaining the quality I wanted.  Some of the replicas of the Lothrlorien Leaves and the Evenstars are very poor, and I wanted something that would look beautiful and last a long time; something that would be classy and not look like bad costume jewelry :)

So for everyone that has asked, here are the prices: 

 

Lothlorien Leaf on Silver Ficcare:

• Large $147
• Medium $145

Evenstar on Silver Ficcare:

• Large $160
• Medium $158

These prices don't include shipping, of course :)  My wait time is a few weeks out, but I'm happy to order clips now for those that are interested!

Lothlorien Leaf Ficcare

Sometimes, somehow, everything comes together, and when I'm done working I look down in total disbelief, wondering how that beautiful thing in front of me wound up there.  It doesn't feel like I made it, it feels like the universe handed me a gift.

I think this is the most beautiful thing I've ever made.

When a Ficcare is more than just a clip

I've tinkered in the past with customizing Ficcares.  My first foray was was antiquing my own Silver Primavara so that the recesses were black.  I've since done this for several people, layering primer, black enamel, and finally a clear coat in the recesses of the clip:

The scariest thing about doing work like this is how expensive the base clip is.  Messing it up is a constant fear and took me a long time to get over.

From there, I started applying designs and sealing them with clear enamel:

The Innocence of Death Black Lily Ficcare:

Elanor Lothlorien Flower Large Ficcare Hair Clip:

Foxglove Ficcare:

Butterfly Lover Ficcare:

Garden Sanctuary Ficcare:

These are a lot of fun, but obviously the application of the design is tricky and then there's the many enamel coats.  It's very important to do several thin coats to get an even finish.  The primary issue with any Ficcare modification is that the clip itself flexes.  This is why the teeth soldered to the underside tend to crack at the solder joint so often.  That bend of the clip is what flexes the most, and the teeth just don't flex with it.  An enamel coating, or any other modification, that can't flex, is going to crack and peel.  This is why some of the border collections have colors that will peel right off, the enamel isn't flexing as much as the clip is.

In the past I'd also done a few clips with epoxied gears, and while it held, I still wanted a better method of attaching three dimensional components:

Timelesness Silver Steampunk Ficcare:

Another Timelessness:

But now I think I've found the best way to add three-dimensional components to a Ficcare, rivets.  They're smooth on the back, subtle on the front, and let me do things like this:

The Evenstar Ficcare isn't perfect, at least not sale-quality.  It was a learning experience, but I'm excited and think I'll have a lot to be creative with in the future.