I like katanas, not as weapons (I much prefer sabres), but as works of art, and I occasionally come across one that I simply cannot stop examining. I took inspiration from several unusual ones that I've found, including one that had blade inlays, one that had an unusual guard, and one whose Ito was wrapped in an unconventional manner, and I produced this:
Breath of the Firebird is a prop within my fantasy world, a weapon wielded by the chuyinka Adya Redmane. He is one of the POV characters in The Nine Empires, and betrothed to Kaia Blackwing, who wields Revenge of the Waterflower. Chuyinka are known for giving their weapons long and frequently enigmatic names.
Here is a close-up, showing the habaki marked with Adya's name glyph:
I think that glyph may be on backwards... oh well. At least it can't be upside down, since it's a rotational ambigram.
Here is a close-up of the tip, showing what is meant to be a copper inlay:
The outside of the scabbard (it isn't an actual saya, as there are functional differences, just as that guard is not a tsuba) is supposed to be clad in copper, brass, and even gold. I will probably change the colours and maybe re-draw this entire decoration to get it to look better:
I also drew up Adya himself. Yes, he looks much more feminine than even my own character. Chuyinka are birds, technically, so the males tend to be the pretty ones (think of peafowl or rose-breasted grosbeaks):
By the way, I've FINALLY met someone on BitChute who recognises this art style, and he didn't exactly give me positive feedback. However, since I'm probably going to start making 3D versions of all my characters in Blender long before I ever get around to developing my own 2D art style, I guess I'll just have to put up with it:
Shameless self-promotion:
Shapeways:
https://www.shapeways.com/designer/steampunkkaja
WordPress:
https://kjworldsong.wordpress.com/
BitChute:
https://www.bitchute.com/channel/hyLVDAKeGZC9/
SubscribeStar:
https://www.subscribestar.com/kaja-blackwing