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Mahtan
Father of Nerdanel, Father-in-law and teacher of Fëanor

We know next to nothing about Mahtan, other than his relationship with Fëanor and the fact that he himself studied with Aulë and was the greatest Elven smith prior to Fëanor. I worked on him before I began work on Celebrimbor, and because of the oddness of his dark-complexioned grandson Caranthir, I decided the trait had to come from somewhere, and like the red hair of other Fëanorians, probably through Nerdanel's side of the family. That a smith would have a darker complexion is not at all an unsual thing, given his work and his exposure to high heat. Perhaps in Tolkien's mythology, this introduced something into the Elven gene pool that was passed on to their descendants.

In designing his hair and clothing, I went for things that seemed logical and/or practical. The lack of sleeves and other flowing fabric would be sensible safety precautions around the forge (Elves may not die easily, but we do know they feel pain, and having one's clothes set on fire would be something they prefer to avoid -- rather the occasional sting of a flying spark!). A certain amount of exposed skin also allows for more efficient bodily cooling in what is very hot work. The leather belt, pants, and boots would also be practical, providing additional protection in more... er... sensitive areas. Tolkien's Elves seemed to prefer longer hair (if the various descriptions of flowing hair are any indication), but a smith would naturally want it pulled back and out of the way of his work. I decided to make Mahtan's hair a slightly reddish brown to distinguish his branch of the family from the raven hair of many of Finwë's descendants.