Project Lamia (NSFW: some nudity inside)

I was a bit in doubt about where to post my project, but I think this is the most suitable section. I apologize in advance, but there will be a lot to read, so make yourself comfortable ^^. (and sorry for the English ...)

I decided to present it to you because finally the project physically started, albeit slowly, and I am beyond the planning stage. In theory I have all or at least enough material to work with and everything that was sent to me has arrived.

Although I have it very clear in mind, there could be many differences between what one imagines and what one actually manages to achieve,

so I hope that my inexperience on various materials and on crafting in general, even though I am a creative person, do not negatively affect the final result, for this I will also need your opinion and your experience, so feel free to comment and advise me or express your doubts about it.

You may not know it, but I have a real weakness for monster musume and hybrids in general, demonesses and the like, but so far I have limited this passion of mine by adding horns and occasionally wings to my girls.

Now is the time to roll up my sleeves and go further, trying my hand at creating something more daring from scratch.

For this project of mine I decided to make a Lamia, or rather the half snake to be hooked instead of the legs to one of my Angel Philia. I state that I do not like permanent changes, so I will try, in making all this, to make it as less invasive and more accessory as possible.

I tried to search online for any other similar projects, but I was not satisfied with what I found, especially in terms of length. Obviously, it is impossible to find something compatible with the Angel Philia / Pink Drops / VMF50.

I based myself as a model on Miia, from the Monster Musume series:

I don't want to necessarily recreate her as a character, but that's the kind of lamia  I aim for as a result.

Let's start with the measures ...

Based on Miia's dakimakura ...

whose declared length is 7 meters and by reporting the dimensions in Obitsu48 scale (for me 1: 3.5), 2 meters of overall length are obtained.

By subtracting about 25 cm of body length from the pubis up, 175 cm of the serpentine part remains to be made.

The project will therefore be divided into 3 parts: Skeleton, body and skin.

 

 

Phase 1 - SKELETON:

This part is finally over (I hope).

I obviously needed something long, modular and flexible.

I thought for a long time how to make the skeleton, initially I thought that I would have to buy an unspecified number of Obitsu components by combining a whole series of backs I don't know how ...

Then I moved on to consider specific Lego pieces:

specifically those for the limbs of the Hero Factory model lines, but beyond the fact that they do not allow a complete rotation in every direction, it must also be said that it is not exactly an economic solution.

Then one day I was browsing on the Parabox website, just looking at the components for the skeleton and my eye fell on this section ( https://paraboxshop.jp/index_en_jpy_214.html 😞

I was initially oriented to buy the L spool (although in hindsight I can say that size M is better), but it was sold out, very expensive and 7 meters was a bit too much.

 

 

But this was the way!

So I searched for something similar for a long time and finally, on Amazon, I found what I was looking for in the section that I least expected: plumbing.

And here we are, after an initial erroneous purchase of a HUGE size, with 6 sections of 30 cm of modular, articulated hydraulic pipes, which none, NONE of the buyers use as hydraulic pipes XD (for photography, to make lamps, etc.).

The interesting discovery is that the hole in the part with the screw was the precise size (8 mm) of the Obitsu skeleton, unfortunately I was unable to use this to my advantage.

 

Here is another photo always with one foot to show the size of the single tube:

Removed all the intermediate parts and joined (with relative simplicity, I was afraid they were harder) the various sections, here you get a single tube of about 175 cm. Perfect.

Now it is only necessary to understand how to join the tube to the parts of the pelvis / thighs ...

I initially thought about using other pipe parts, such as Y-fittings, etc., but in the end I decided to make the connection piece myself.

Searching around I gathered some potentially useful material:

Eventually in size and shape, the candidates boiled down to these pieces here:

I started to take some measures and to make a project draft a little more serious, taking into consideration some variations:

And then drill, saw and file:

Since the materials did not allow welding, I fixed everything with plenty of two-component epoxy glue:

This solution, however, proved to be not very strong, because the components of the skeleton did not remain properly stuck (and metal on plastic tends to wear out the interior), I also find the use of glue inelegant ... so I thought of a version 2:

First of all I included in the project the use of magnets on the inside of the thigh in order to magnetically fix the joint, then a double nut for fixing the bolts.

So again drill, saw and file, this time it turned out better, sharper and cleaner:

and after thinking about the least invasive of the solutions, I ended up gluing a neodymium magnet inside each thigh:

For the record, I also made another version using two-component glue, because in case the weight is excessive or the component is too high due to the extra nuts I will have an alternative, even if I like it less.

 

 

 

Final results:

 

Also mounting the abdomen:

Indeed, the weight in certain poses collapses the structure and obviously we must also be careful of the center of gravity, but in the end I think I reinforce everything by inserting a long piece of wire inside the tube.

 

 

 

Phase 2 - BODY:

For the body, I immediately thought of a material that was solid enough to maintain its shape, but at the same time soft so as to exert pressure on the tube that passes through it, thus remaining in position.

For all these characteristics I found the use of expanded polyethylene packaging perfect.

I took some measurements based on a type H abdomen (H2 in this case) defining a width of 8 cm and a depth of 4 cm and cutting out some test pieces (2 cm deep):

Considering that a snake, or in this case a lamia, does not have a round section, but flattened on the belly and curved on the back, I created this shape:

But I'm not sure it's the final form. The belly of an AP is much more prominent than her genitals and I don't want to cover them, likewise a bit of a butt must be seen (I'll go through it a bit), but I'm afraid it's still shallow as a section, maybe I should increase to 5.5 cm and possibly sculpt a part similar to two joined thighs, less deep, for the section directly under the abdomen, as seen in Miia's drawing ... Advice on this?

Obviously as you get closer to the end of the tail the section will shrink in at least 2 steps and I plan to finish with a long, conical-like final piece for the tip of the tail.

The result for now is this:

 

 

 

 

 

PHASE 3 - SKIN:

For leather I searched on Aliexpress and found these PVC faux snakeskin rolls, 0.8mm thick.
Having various colors available I came up with the idea of making the belly of a different color as in the illustration so I bought 140 cm x 100 cm of red leather and 140 x 50 of pink leather.

The intention is to cover each section of the body by wrapping the faux leather around it, first the belly from A to B, then the rest from C to D, like this:

Obviously the part will be longer than the body section, and with ad hoc cuts so that each section of skin fits into the previous one and bends following the body.

I still don't know if I will glue it all (I have already tried with mastic and it holds perfectly) or if I will put some clips so that I can take them off and on, but it seems very cumbersome as a solution.

Everything is still being evaluated, even here your advice is welcome.

The main problem is that the pattern of this skin (which I liked because it included the belly part) is likely to be too short to go around the full body section, unless there are special cuts to think about.

For now, therefore, I will continue to take care, slowly, of the body. I will update you along the way hoping that the whole project does not end in failure :\

Until next time!

 

 

I don't know what image host you're using, but all images are broken for me. (See screenshot)

21 minutes ago, ChrisFhey said:

I don't know what image host you're using, but all images are broken for me. (See screenshot)

 

I'm sorry. I use Google Photo and making a new album I forgot to make it public...

Thank you for the feedback, do you see them now?

This is an awesome project also check out monster girl encyclopedia and search lamia it can help you find the type of lamia Mia is.

Edited June 11, 2021 by Mars

53 minutes ago, Mars said:

This is an awesome project also check out monster girl encyclopedia and search lamia it can help you find the type of lamia Mia is 

She's a basic Lamia. Other subspecies like Echidna, Medusa, etc are very phisically distinctive (plumage, fur, hairsnakes, etc).

https://monstergirlencyclopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Lamia

https://dailylifewithamonstergirl.fandom.com/wiki/Miia

https://dailylifewithamonstergirl.fandom.com/wiki/Lamia

 

Thanks for the interest!

Edited June 5, 2021 by Testament

5 hours ago, Testament said:

I'm sorry. I use Google Photo and making a new album I forgot to make it public...

Thank you for the feedback, do you see them now?

Yep, they show up fine now! 👌

6 hours ago, Testament said:

I based myself as a model on Miia, from the Monster Musume series

Also, splendid choice. Miia is best lamia. 😄

Small change to project priorities.
I think that first of all I will dedicate myself to the piece of junction between the abdomen and the "tail", so to start I carved (cut is more correct) a piece of 8.5 x 5 cm and I cut pieces gradually to ensure that the joints of the thighs could enter it and there was space for the buttocks and pubis. I also cut another piece to shape something that would resemble the groove of 2 closed thighs.

 

Now I just have to find time to cut and apply the faux leather to see how it looks.

Hopefully from there I'll start assembling the rest of the body, one section at a time.

The work proceeds, step by step due to the various problems and reality check I encounter and that I cannot foresee until I have the piece in hand.

I made the leather cover of the part where the body is inserted.

 

Obviously the length of the red snakeskin pattern were too short, so I had to improvise by joining 3 strips instead of a single one, but from the next pieces it should be a single strip, pink belly aside.

 

I don't know yet if I will make vertical cuts to facilitate the fold, I will evaluate later.

 

 

I also made the belly of the first 2 subsequent pieces, when I have completely made those too I will have a more general view of the trend.

 

 

Obviously until I get the H-type abdomen FaithZ shipped to me, I'm still doing the tests with the H2 which has those 2 huge openings that are not entirely covered by the skin.
I still don't know how to fix the snakeskin to the body, maybe it can already be fine like this, especially if I cover the part with a dress, but I could also try with patafix ... also for that we will evaluate later.

Unfortunately, after now more than 2 years in the hobby, I managed to stain the H2 abdomen. I foolishly drew guides with the pen on the inside of the faux leather and let the body come into contact with the ink ...
Now it looks like she's got bruises ...

 

So for the first time, if and when I have time, I will try the famous stain remover treatment. You learn from your mistakes, but I'm sad nonetheless ...

Now I have covered all the drawn lines with patches. XD

 

Anyway, by eye, the faux leather I have should be enough for everything I have in mind.

 

See you next time!

That is looking amazing!  I love how the skin parts look pretty much identical to the Monster Musume girl.    Excellent work!

 

 

Billy

This is looking fantastic! I love your solution for the "legs to tail spine" transition in the skeleton.

The faux leather print looks great but it also looks pretty thick like it won't bend very well or sew very easily.

I made a tentacle monster a while back using the Jeton joint parts from Parabox. They are a great solution for the tail spine.

https://www.dolliehsanctuary.com/sanctuary/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=11981#p134340

I sewed fabric tubes to slip over the Jeton spine and that worked very well. Your ethafoam disks looks like a good solution for enlarging the body around the spine.

Something to think about would be covering over your spine/disks with a tapered tube of polyester batting like what is used in quilting. Then cover over the batting with a sewn tube of a soft fabric instead of the leather. The batting layer would help smooth out the gaps between the foam disks. A fabric would take to bending easier and wrinkle less and more predictably. You could probably get a fabric printed with the same pattern as your snake skin leather. This would be a fabric similar to what is used in all those Spiderman and super hero skin tight unitards you see cosplayers wearing. I've seen Aquaman versions of these costumes, maybe you could find a similar one in red/pink.

If the ethafoam disks read through the batting and fabric too much you could consider using urethane foam (foam rubber as used in foam mattresses). This foam comes in a wide variety of densities with variable amounts of "crush". With a couple of small samples and maybe a tube sock you could make a partial mock up to see what weight of foam works best.

You might even be able to find a density that would be right to cut the entire tail out of one piece of foam, cut a slit in the back and embed the spine. Then cover the thing up with the batting and fabric layers.

https://www.google.com/search?q=Air+Lite+Extra+High+Density+Urethane+Foam&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAONgVuLVT9c3NEwzLTMzqqpIesRowS3w8sc9YSn9SWtOXmPU5OIKzsgvd80rySypFJLmYoOyBKX4uVB18vxiFAjILyjNSSxSKCjKTylNLinuYGVaxKrpmFmk4JNZkqrgWlFSlKjgkZmeoeCSmlcMNEchtCi1JCMxL1XBLT8x9wDrwnuLN89cOWXRX8YDrA-azk57_fPN8W9A9v593w9fvXZ26RMg-9PReU9-Hpy1zewA68SVnWu2vTjw7T1QuGP_sc0f57_bcwXIXrrwT__1bR_b7gHZVzvuL99z93y_9QHWbTMf7t3yY8HXbUDhPS8X3L219cPDzAOsqw-sbuk8t6DZ4wDrle62M40Hpz1_CVRxcuWj2ed-_FrdA2R_b313a9n0Mx_CD7B-XrJi29quu0v2A4WnnP2zaNnMKduKDrDOv_rg7PEJxzcuBgr_ffLvwoxVCxbLAj30_m3H_8a_C9wPsK5a0dTf_OLVIm6gF1Yfe3vi-_ofIgdY1z_6cfj8p4vnTwH1zW7as_vFow3bpgLZbx42r3v5Z_nn_Yy32CQZtKZWcaVmf_u8T-p2o6_Xj7wDq21Fd8c65AAAybp1u8ABAAA&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwie5NWVtLnxAhXNG80KHUUYDKUQlr4CegQIBxAR&biw=2560&bih=1287

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/393342381337?hash=item5b95086d19:g:RboAAOSwpQxgquYw

https://www.hotmiamistyles.com/Neon-Pink-Snake-Print-Long-Sleeves-Bodysuit-p/k561sneonpink.htm

https://www.hotmiamistyles.com/Neon-Coral-Snake-Print-Long-Sleeves-Bodysuit-p/k561sneoncoral.htm

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/33007263568.html?spm=a2g0o.search0302.0.0.37852123O0VHgS&algo_pvid=8c57c35f-5832-49a3-a4eb-d5efe5f8b93d&algo_expid=8c57c35f-5832-49a3-a4eb-d5efe5f8b93d-38&btsid=0bb0624116249034238526492e839a&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_

Edited June 28, 2021 by K-2

18 hours ago, K-2 said:

This is looking fantastic! I love your solution for the "legs to tail spine" transition in the skeleton.

The faux leather print looks great but it also looks pretty thick like it won't bend very well or sew very easily.

*snip

Thanks for the comment!

The faux leather I bought is 0.8mm thick and I was even looking for a 1mm one, but it wasn't in the right colors.

I don't have to sew it (I did some tests anyway and it can be done) and I was looking for a certain hardness to keep it straight and not dangle due to gravity.

I remember your tentacle monster, very well done.

You have proposed interesting things, but by now I have bought the materials and the project has started in a very specific direction. I want something in sections, with the scales in relief, like the few resin examples I have found.

Like this, for example.

 

If I made a single spandex tube I think I would get it a surface effect that I don't like besides various wrinkles. I also don't think I can find a skin pattern design that includes a snake belly and back, they are all too generic.

Thanks anyway for taking the trouble to find all these links for me, who knows that in the future maybe a ver 2.0 will not come out.

However, let's see where this project will take me, there is also the possibility that it will all end in failure. For now I have completed 2 sections, out of about 48 planned ...

I'm curious to know about any updates! 😄

I cut out enough polyethylene parts for another 10 sections.

I am currently taking measurements to decide how to develop the work, so I have completed the first 2 sections and tried to assemble them to see how they behave when folding the tail.
The initial idea of putting a section every 2 joints did not prove to be good.
As long as the tail is straight, everything is fine, but when it curves, the skin deforms too much.
I started making vertical cuts in the upper part that fits into the previous section and this helps, but too tight curves open up chasms between the sections.

So now I will first try to put a section every 3 joints (bringing from the total number of sections from 48 to 30) and then I will increase the part of the skin that exceeds upwards from 1 cm to 3.5, always with vertical cuts.

If this test goes well I will proceed with the first 12 sections, then I see a progressive decrease in the size of the section.

For now we are at 8x4 cm, then I will move on to 7x4, to 6x4 and the final part should measure 5x4 cm.

Unfortunately I had other things to do in this period and I was able to proceed very slowly.

Ah, the H-type abdomen also came from FaithZ.

1 hour ago, Testament said:

As long as the tail is straight, everything is fine, but when it curves, the skin deforms too much.

Hmm...I wonder if a stretchy fabric would help with this? I know you had said before you couldn't find any with snake belly, but there are a fair number of designers you could utilize- or design it yourself- and there are custom fabric printers in the USA that I could refer you to if you want :3

21 hours ago, Testament said:

As long as the tail is straight, everything is fine, but when it curves, the skin deforms too much.

Actually I had a secondary thought, something that could also work is that silicone that people use to make alternative busts and/or what most Stop-motion dolls/figures are made out of! That could be flexible enough to work! Idk what you'd put over it though...

Hmmh I don't think silicone is a good material for what I want, also I wanted to avoid the sock effect with stretch fabrics, also because I don't know how to connect them to the abdomen.
Last but not least, I don't want to invest more than I have already spent on this project, I want to keep my expenses as low as possible.

As I told K-2 by now I have all the material and with that I will go all the way to a result or a failure, in which case I will evaluate alternative ways.

Tonight I worked a little ... as you will see I also added some details to the part that hooks to the abdomen.

I built 2 pieces with more excess material towards the top, with vertical cuts in order to follow the curvature more in case of inclination.

 

 

Lateral curvature:

 

Forward bend:

 

Bakcward bend:

 

Various:

 

The result is not bad, it convinces me enough. However, it has unnatural creases and certainly there are some finishing on the edges to do.

While I was doing it I came up with a third possible solution, the problem is that the more material I waste, the shorter the queue will be, so I can't do too many tests, maybe this time I'll use cardboard.

It involves completely changing the design and making sections with long overlapping triangular bands supported by a small wire so that they can remain adherent to the body and be posable.
I have to think about it and put some measures on paper ...

I am so impressed by this!! So creative. I hope there are more updates soon!!

Thanks!

I am currently trying another approach, my aim is always to make the snake body curves as smooth as possible. But the new method is very slow and I also have to sew copper threads into the "scales" to make them foldable. I took some time off from this project, but it's by no means abandoned.
If I had a 3D printer and 3D sculpting skills I would try that route too.

Woa, this is incredible! If I can get my 3D printer working I can help if needed ^-^ Love Mia so much! 

Wow this is amazing. The amount of skill and confidence to be able to make something this creative is incredible. I'd be scared out of my mind trying to do something like this out of fear of permanently messing something up.

I am super interested in this project. I'd love to see more updates, if you're still working on it 😄

Worry not!

I'll restart soon to work on this. I want my lamia XD.

Really impressive and interesting project. Can’t wait to see the final result. Miia is a very cool character. 

This project is very impressive! That armature looks very strong so it'll be nice to see the poses she achieves once she's done. Looking forward to seeing progress in this!

Nice can't wait to see more