Thanks folks, got a wee bit done this weekend, (shortened the legs),the hair turned out fairly well...i'll try and get a photo later.
Now starting to think about controllers and finding it all a bit bewildering.
I know the general types but have no idea which would be the most suitable.
Any recommendations from the master manipulators out there?
Ian

Ian,
I prefer the horizontal airplane controller but there are many out there that like the vertical fish controller.  It really is about personal preference and what you get used to.  Most vertical fish controllers have a rocker bar for walking and this allows you to hold a puppet in each hand and walk or manipulate them.  Horizontal airplane controllers have a detachable leg bar normally thus need both hands to operate so you can only move one at  time.

Wow, I'm jealous! I wish I could make my own marrionettes! but I'm afraid I don't have the tools of the skills necessary to do so!

Shawn -- thanks for that..i'll go with your advice. Being a total newb i dont have a point of reference so help and advice from someone like yourself is just brilliant.
Loki it's really not as hard as it looks and you dont need a plethora of tools either, i pretty much did this with a half inch gouge and a scalpel.
Struggling for pics though...my camera has been lost in the deepest depths of a teenagers room probably have to send in a search party!
Ian

Did you settle on a controller yet?

Curious to hear how you are getting on with it!

Scojack, tell me more! what sort of wood did you use? where did you get it? how much did it cost? what did you use for reference? this might be my summer project! I spend a lot of time looking at teh CGI and technical tricks to make my show better, I would really like to use something physical too!

Well here he is completed....
 Real life ....
Sure to scare small children and domestic pets!
I'm pretty pleased with the end result, yes there are some bits that could be improved but as a first time effort im very happy with it. Thoroughly enjoyed the whittlin' and learned a lot in the process.
Went with a fairly simple airplane controller in the end, i didn't want anything too fancy on this one.
Scarier ...



Lok - There is usually plenty of Lime Wood on ebay and small blocks are fairly cheap (thats where i got mine). As for reference i pretty much used Puppets In Praque website..theres loads of info on marionette building on there and then i just got stuck in !

Think i may have caught the bug though, finding myself playing ...erm i mean practising (lol) with this one so ...might be time to do a marionette for myself!
I really fancy doing a wilson/keppel(not Betty).. has this been done before? would be great to do a version of the sand dance.. requires a more complex marionette and controller but im definately up for it.

For those who may not be old enough to remember ..



Going to draw it out completely first this time though ..i have learned!
Ian

Nice job! Treatment of the eyes are spot on.

The sand dance... my you are ambitious! Keep in mind that the movements in the dance are pretty precis. When building and designing you have to always keep that in mind. How to restrict this to move that etc. I have a feeling though that you will be able to handle it.

Looks great, really impressive.... Looking forward to your next attempt. The only thing I would say about any sort of 'trick' marionette is that typically what you gain in one area you lose somewhere else. Unless you go down the cashore marionette route and have about 30 strings! But since you are doing it with a specific routine in mind that shouldnt be a problem.

This is a decent book that you might want to pick up at some point that might give you some inspiration for stringing/ controlling techniques. I know there's a short section on dual control stringing too.

Link no longer available.

Thanks for the encouragement and wise words , had my eye on that book for a while -- going to get it now.
cheers!
Ian