Studio Notes 20/12/19 - This week I've made my first rough version of a ball-jointed clay figure, so what do I have to do next to make the real thing?

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Every time I feel as though I’ve made a great leap forward with modelmaking, I realise I’ve got another mile or so to go. Still, I’ve made my very first rough version of a ball-jointed clay figure, so that’s some major progress to be pleased with.

I made this first version with Monster Clay*, which was an absolute necessity: it meant that I could melt the clay down to pour into the tiny moulds I made from my kitbashed figure.

Then I could carve into the clay and add more on where needed, which is something I couldn’t do easily with the wax I have.

The figure really wasn’t ready to be put together, but I just had to see it… or maybe I had to make it look like I’d actually achieved something this week!

How do I turn this into a real figurine?

From here I have to to take it apart again, refine each part (especially the hip/thigh joints, as they don’t really fit at all) and make moulds of them.

I would prefer to use a poured silicone but I don’t have any left – it’s going to have to be a press mould made from silicone caulk or maybe plaster of paris, because it’s pretty much what I’ve got, and I need to save some cash for a big purchase in January.

Maybe I could use my Composimold, but I’m a bit wary there because it melts down so easily, and if I want to try pouring more Monster Clay into it, it’ll surely turn into a mess just like the time I tried pouring wax into it.

Monster Clay rough ball jointed torso

Once I’ve got another, more final (because they’re never final with me) mould then I’ll cast it in resin.

Again, I don’t have any resin yet… so my options are limited as to what I can make my end prototype in right now. I guess that means that this little diversion will have to wait for a bit, which bumps my delayed project count for 2019 up to levels I don’t even want to say out loud.

Bookbinding is this week’s distraction

Moo make the most beautiful notebooks*, and I promised myself that I’d buy one and actually write in it for a change. However, when I got to the checkout, I realised that I had to pull back because the 3D printer had to take priority in my budget.

So why not make a notebook, right?

I have a few signatures made up and ready to go, and it’s funny to come back to this after doing a little bit of bookbinding back at the beginning of the year. This time I’ve been watching more tutorials so maybe next week I’ll have at least one book made as a nice present for myself.

Last week

Studio Notes 20/12/19