Tag: vulture culture

Vulture Culture Masterpost

pastoriagym:

I accidentally deleted the original so here we are again!

Laws

Bone cleaning

After cleaning

Insects

Skinning

Pelts

Wet specimens

Misc

scuba-sam:

I wanted to share a few snapshots of the process of my recent opossum skeletal articulations, and although I didn’t take a photo after every single step, I think these show just how much work went into them.
Photo 1: the bones as they arrived and all of them being sorted.
Photo 2: the skulls being put together
Photo 3: all of the bones after being whitened
Photo 4: the skeletons sorted and the (almost) finished pieces.
Photo 5: the finished skeletons!!

If you have an already cleaned skeleton, or are looking for a custom skeletal articulation, I offer all types of commission work. Just contact me to discuss your ideas!

(*Please do not remove my text, thank you!)

astralcaw:

How to collect the dead

Okay, if you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m into vulture culture. Usually this means I pick up dead animals (usually from the side of the road) and bring them home, clean them up all nice and pretty, and as a nice twist, will often use them in my craft.

However, if you’re connected to the other side like I am, there are proper ways to go about this.

(Note: Don’t leave baloons. It’s pollution.)

When we collect the bodies of the dead we are taking something from the Earth.

I didn’t realize I was doing wrong at first. When I started collecting deads, I’d bag em up and bring them home.

For nights my husband noted I was sleeping very restlessly. I would talk more in my sleep than before, toss around, and wake up tired.

I have a friend who was raised on the reservation I live on. She came with me to collect some deer parts and said “I knew I brought tobacco for a reason.” I asked her about it and she told me we are taking from the earth so we must give something back to her; an offering if you will.

After I left an offering as a thank you to the Earth, my sleep improved drastically.

Now I don’t always have tobacco on me. I smoke socially and rarely. So I have an alternative for what I leave behind.

HAWK’S HERBAL OFFERING FOR THE DEAD

Lavender: A calming herb used for a peaceful rest.

Cloves: To offer protection in the afterlife.

Thyme: A soothing herb to ease the pain of tragic death.

I take this little herbal blend and give it to the Earth as I take away the body. I thank the Earth for its blessing and wish the spirit a peaceful rest.

Tutorial: Making Insulation Tanks for Maceration/Degreasing Setups

coyotestar:

I’ve made multiples of these boxes. I decided to make a miniature maceration setup for when I don’t need my bigger, beefier tub so now seemed like a good time to record my process and make a rough tutorial. It’s surprising to me that so many people don’t seem to bother insulating their tubs like..at…all. Insulating helps tremendously in making all the processes go faster.

What is an insulation box?
It is a foam tank you house your degreasing/maceration tub(s) in so that heat doesn’t escape.

Why have an insulation box?
Because it makes both degreasing and maceration significantly more efficient and saves on energy, especially if the surrounding temperature the tub is being stored in is cold. You can easily keep a maceration tank out in 10 degree weather but have the inside of the tub be a stable 90 F if you use a heater and an insulation tub. These boxes prevent all that heat from leaking out so your tub stays at the temperature it should be at consistently while greatly lowering stress on your heater.

Keep reading

two de.er femurs, to show the contrast between natural cleaned and overbleached! I cleaned the white one way back when, before I knew anything about bone cleaning, and it’s so overbleached it’s almost sticky! it sucks in the moisture on my fingertips it’s so porous. the brown one I left as is, and it’s got that lovely stain and is much sturdier.