Saddle, Legs & Patterning

The two images below show the crotch cut out of the suede flares, and then the trousers on the fake legs sat on the bird. Trying to get them to sit correctly is one of the most challenging parts of this project so far! When I took the pattern for the legs, I sat on a flat chair - so the legs don't naturally fit perfectly with the precise curve of the Dodo's body. However, it is possible to get the whole costume on with the legs at this point, and it is still comfortable.

In the video from my previous post, the neck looks to long and spindly, and I think this is partly because it was the same length the whole way along. To help this, I drafted a simple curved pattern to make a gradient tube for the neck which would blend it more pleasingly into the body. However, the neck still looks a little long so I plan to take a couple of inches off the neck tube so the head sits slightly lower.

I made the pattern for the saddle by measuring the width and height of the saddle back frame, and then drawing out a smooth, curved shape that would cover it. I cut the pattern twice and glued the top seams together, which creates the roll-top look you can see below instead of looking like two bits of 1/2" foam that have been sandwiched together. I also added a 'roll' to the back of the saddle that mimics the padding that would be in a horse saddle. However, a horse's saddle in the 'English' riding style usually has a split down the middle to accommodate for the spine. I tried this with my saddle but it didn't look right; the bird's body is too round to look like the spine needs accommodating for.

As you can see, the Western saddle at the bottom sits much more flush with the horses' back than the English saddle above it. I think this look is more fitting for my project so will take more elements of the design of Western saddles over English ones, especially for parts like the stirrups. Whilst I won't be roping any calves(!) so have no need for the rope holding part of the Western saddle, it has a more textured, relaxed look that suits the happy theme of my bird.

I decided to keep the front of the saddle simple without any hard structure to keep the costume easy to put on; the body hole is quite a tight fit so having a rigid saddle front would result in a lot of difficult shuffling and fidgeting to get it on, and with the legs and harness being a fidget in themselves anything extra would mean the costume would take longer to put on. Upon testing the look of the saddle with the legs, they definitely look better when sat inside the structure, and it helps to hide any odd looks that the legs have at the front and back from where they are parted so wide to sit on the round body of the Dodo, and how they have to also sit around the user's own posterior and legs.

I also began patterning the body. Like earlier processes making patterns for the back of the head, it is a simple two-stage process of laying cling film over the bird to stop the tape from sticking to it, and then taping a layer or two of packing tape, duct tape or sellotape over the top. I am looking forwards to planning out the markings of the bird on the tape, and seeing where the saddle cloth and saddle bags will sit. At this point I may end up making the stirrups a piece of fabric that attaches to the fake legs and not to the saddle itself, so they will still be removable. The fake feet of the legs need to be attached to the stirrups in some way, so they do not fall out and swing around too much.