cover of Zine

PRESENTING FOR THE FIRST TIME AFTER BITCH OF TIME TRYING TO KEEP INDESIGN TO WORK AND STAY UP (BECAUSE GOD FORBID IT NOT CLOSE DOWN) - I GIVE YOU THE FRONT COVER OF THE WOLIFCA CATOLOG FOR THE WEDDING ANIMALIA WEDDING DRESSES.
to explain the front cover pulls in the enviromental and natural look that i wanted to take the topic in, while it show's no wedding gowns on the cover, the fabric that has the title printed on it show's the marriage of the two elements together. In our true nature we find our inner self and thus inner animal, so skip through the daisies and discover your inner animal hidden in the foilage.

More Research

This artwork was found on the blog "Power Animal Guides and Shapeshifting" on the Destee discussion forums.
This Picture goes back to what i was presenting last week with the history behind animal spirits. Here we see the connection between a bison and a man, looking at each other as if they were of the same soul though not the same body.

this art is by ImmortalSilver posted on the blog "About Cats and Cat breeds"
This image is a great example of Animalia because it is giving the famous its animal personality. The artist of this parody obviously saw something in the girl that felt very feline, maybe the mysterious mood of the painting or actual features in the girls face.



Now as for research:
I was reading an article about the use of Anthropomorphic characters for entertainment and explaination of indivuals personalities. This article talks more about the personality traits that go into picking an animal to represent someone - but not so much the spiritual side of it. Though she does go into the history a bit only to explain that it has been human nature to try and connect one self with nature for a better self awarness because of common traits found in nature. She refers to Disney's Robin Hood where the two main characters are a fox and a bear- sly and loyal. i also enjoyed this qoute from the article "Nineteenth-century Americans were used to thinking and speaking in metaphors from the natural world as well as the Bible." showing how common this practice has been in recent years as well.
this article was posted on Walking the Berkshires a personal blog, though the author was never given.

Next up i wanted to present not so much an article but an online animal spirit guide that informs you on a few of the traits and personalities that are associated with the specific animal. they don't give every animal only the most common ones- though there are a few to be added soon.
The great thing about this website is it allows people to learn the meaning and history behind certain anmials through out time. While some of the animal's traits or meanings have changed depending on the culture, there are still specific attributes that people can read into to find something that describes them.
this helps me as well because i have a place to guide me in my design as far as the fabrics (how strong or soft should they go) , the design (bold or delicate) and the color (flashy or humble) in order to fit the best possible dress to the person's personality.
This online guide is brought to us by the Manataka American Indian Council and is put to gether/ by TAKATOKA ,
the website also provides some history and belief for where these idea's came from.

the collage. *brain exploded*

I took the collage idea as a way to make something of an advertisement for what would be my dress shop. while this isn't exactly magazine quality (i had problems with illustrator >.<), it begins to show the natural and animal modeled dresses that i would be showing in my shop. I have a dress designed after a rabbit and a snake as well as one that forms more to the organic shape of a flower- for those who don't wish to take on an animal on their wedding day. I feel this collage show's the clothing well and stylized in a cool way (though it could be better if i could function in the program) as well as shows the logo with the brand name as well as a catch phrase. And its green. green's a nice color.

research continued

here is a sketch that came about because of the animalia idea. I'm not completely happy with the way it transfers traits from the animal to the dress. but its a start. What i want to do is represent the strength and the key attributes of animals' power and grace into different dresses so someone who is a lion can find the dress fit for a lion, and a bear to a bear and a rabbit to a rabbit- in hopes that it will make the experience of shopping for the dress more enjoyable, more enchanting and more fitting.

THE RESEARCH

I finally have come to the final and refined idea of Animalia Couture for the wedding dress ideas. In this sense its a dress that represents your inner animal or your spirit/soul's animal- almost like the symbol for your personality or style. I got this idea after thinking about what the title Wolfica, what i named my brand or store, could mean and came to this conclusion. from that i research and found the following information:

http://www.utopics.ca/program
an online website for the a program for your "inner life" was founded and is directed by Scott Martin .
I will admit at first sight this website, while i know it isn't an article, it appears to be a very odd, maybe even crazy idea but they back up this idea of the animalia. what i gained from this is that there is a belief that every person has this inner life that hold their personal animal and when you become connected and in tuned with this animal you can have an enlightened sense of wholeness. It will also connect you with your passion and desire.
Personally i think that means that if you find your animal then you thus find your self and can better understand your taste (thus finding the perfect wedding dress)

On a more historical side we have the Totem Animals which were representative of animal spirits : http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8793/totems/totems.html
part of the information was taken from: "Indian Power Animals and Totems" by Marguerite Elsbeth, To Ride a Silver Broomstick and To Stir a Magick Cauldron by Silver RavenWolf
In this i took for my project that animals were used as a representation of how the human should act, taken from tribal ideals and beliefs. Familiars are used to assist and be attuned with their human to help them connect to the animal kingdom for its power- this is most often seen with witches :ex. the black cat. On the other hand the Totems are representative of the chosen animal that is affiliated with the individual in order to gain power and a higher sense of self. As well they can be used for advice or assistance as well because you are connected to the whole of the animal kingdom with these animals. As well your animalia may change over time or you could have more than once considering most personalities are complex and we are continuously growing and changing.
With this is mind it helps to understand how important the animal is to our spirit and really grasping what really is our personality. By doing so you can better understand your self and thus better understand what you would want in life, like say, when your picking a wedding dress.