NAME: Lee "Zhon" Duckworth

ARTIST NAME : Chan "ZombieHun" Meadows
http://zombiehun.deviantart.com
https://www.weasyl.com/~nimblebun

COST OF DOLL: $300

WHEN WAS THIS DOLL MADE? July 2014

WAS THIS DOLL A PROTOTYPE? No

COMMUNICATION:
The artist was very kind and professional when discussing the description of the Hoatzin art doll. Very prompt with replies, generally taking 1-2 days between emails) and was even creative enough to suggest other means of going about the eye and feather details.Upon shipping, a tracking number was provided.

DID THEY MEET YOUR DEADLINE? Yes

HOW WAS THE ART DOLL PACKAGED?
The doll was packaged really well in a layer of paper to protect the feathers, packing peanuts to ensure nothing had gotten messed up, and air pockets to provide a steady cushion. Due to the harsh handling of the Postal Service, the box had been beaten up, but the doll inside was just fine! A couple ruffled tail feathers, but nothing that couldn't be slicked back into place.

DID YOUR DOLL ARRIVE IN ONE PIECE?
The Hoatzin doll arrived in one piece with no blemishes to the clay parts. Again, only minor frays to the tail feathers which were easily fixed with a little steam.

WAS YOUR DOLL SEWN?
The doll appears to be sewn, but it is sewn rather well to where I cannot visibly see any thread in the seams. The gluing of the head feathers is very neat without blobbing or messy glue-clay junctions. Very neat fur-to-clay attachment as well! If I had one complaint, and this is very minor, is that when I crank the head back to make the bird appear to be preening, I can see a spot on the throat where one layer of fur overlaps another layer with no sewing or glue. (I assume the artist knew that spot may have been a section that I would put stress on, so it appears to be strategically overlapped so I do not rip the throat fur from the clay head when I pose the doll with it's head stretched backward. If that was not the intention, then it was a lucky,yet functional, oversight!) Overall very professionally done!

IS YOUR DOLL FLOPPY STYLE OR ARTICULATED?
My Hoatzin is fully articulated. Neck, wings, feet, and even the tail have a wonderful way of posing and holding their pose with little effort. I cannot find any wire armature breaching anywhere! Everything poses wonderfully, and even the feathers fold correctly like how a real bird would collapse it's wing feathers.

STABILITY, IS YOUR DOLL STABLE?
The bird is extremely stable with a tripod effect (two feet and resting on the tail), but I have even gotten it to balance on it's feet alone. I love how the claws were sculpted to be stable on their own.

DOLL DETAIL
The detail on this doll's feathers is simply amazing! I love how each feather is tipped with black or gold to give that extra flare to it's exotic nature. The facial markings are also beautifully painted with consistent lines and dotting around the eyes. The feet appear to have a two-tone shading effect to them which really makes the scales pop! The claws also have a nice sheen to them which makes them appear to be of a harder substance than the leg scales (as claws should be!)

FABRIC DETAILING
The junctions between different fabrics are really nice! The blending between the longer furs is seamless. It is very surprising how the junctions from the fur to the feathers overlap without showing the ends of the feathers. It's as if the feathers simply grew out of the fur. I cannot find a blob of glue or stitching anywhere.

MATERIALS
The fabric used is of a really nice quality. It does not shed, and if I comb into the fabric, I cannot see the weave like I could with cheaper fabrics. Each of the furs used has a lovely blend of short underfur and longer guard hairs which give a lovely varied look to a feathered creature. The feathers appear to be professionally dyed and the colour does not bleed when you run your hand over them.

WOULD YOU BUY FROM AGAIN OR RECOMMEND?
I would highly recommend all who love bird dolls to ZombieHun! The feather placement is simply gorgeous, and the articulation is very believable. I have tried almost every bird pose with my Hoatzin; flying, wings tucked, vulture stance, preening, strutting display... this bird has a full range of believable posing! ZombieHun has really out-done herself with this particular doll. Hiding the seams really well, strategically placing the head and wing feathers. I hate to admit this, but I even dropped the bird on a linoleum floor. NOTHING BROKE! It landed on it's skinny clay/resin toes and bounced a little bit with no chips, breaks or cracks, and nothing dislocated.

FINAL SCORE OUT OF 5
Definitely a 5 out of 5! And I would definitely give her bonus points for working on an animal she never even knew existed before I pointed out this present-day dinosaur!