Santa and Her Reindeer.

A few years ago I created a white reindeer from an old Poloron deer mold, hung it on the North Pole and got some nice compliments and offers if I were to create more.

I greatly enjoyed working with the deer, but politely declined the offers because of how difficult Poloron deer are to find (they are very seasonal, only from November through January)

and how unreasonably expensive they are, as well as the addition of being shipped out of state.
Most are pick up only.

All that in mind, and tossed out the window, Craigslist provided an unusual find in August.

My usual haunts are traditionally Ebay and Etsy.
What you are looking at, is ten feet of Santa Plus Deers in full Poloron glory.
Some damage to the antlers, but nothing that couldn't be remodeled.
All attached to a Plexiglas sled, in the glorious state of Michigan.


Picture above provided by the far too kind gentlemen who ended up who driving them over to us in his pickup truck.  Apparently, they were a former icon that the neighborhood looked forward to each holiday season.  Unfortunately, they needed a new residence to live on in memory.

And all that holiday cheer wasn't going to fit in my car, but it did look stupidly grand going up three flights of stairs.  Thanks, Dave.  Goofy photos ensued; our neighbor appeared and questioned us who was the true owner of Santa.

I called up the future owner who was inspired by my white reindeer, and we set to work planning.
I saw metallic copper and gold deer, she had plans to hang them from her ceiling.  Santa had a bit of a creepy overtone and would need a creative makeover.

 SLEIGHING SANTA: A REPAINT

The gems really helped the makeover, only the rails are spray painted, the rest is painted by hand.

A Brief Lesson From Mom: EVERYTHING NEEDS A BATH.

YOU KNOW DASHER AND DANCER AND BRONNER AND SHOPPER:
I used copper and gold sprays, white snowflake stickers and some additional gems to complete the reindeer.

RECASTING THE ANTLERS: Both antlers had large amounts of dried glues and were partially melted and missing pieces, showing the many years and efforts made to preserve the holiday icon.
We used a silicone rubber to make a mold, and resin plastic for the final piece.  Materials from Smooth-On, this was a mold in the making:

The maintenance folks at my apartment were really sweet about letting me carve down the antlers outside, and special thanks to Dad for all the help on the second set.

Fun Fact:  My sparkle paint in white will turn light blue when it touches white paint.

So that's what's been going on here for the last few months, prior to the DK Kickstarter. Today, I got to see the final result of Santa and his reindeer in its seasonal resting spot of Christmas glory.

Until next year!,-Liz