Thank you @kareninflorida.
Hi Izzy, Great job I especially like the creases on the top of the foot. When they wiggle their toes you get those creases on top very real.
Izzy, they are absolutely perfect! Great job! Were they hard? I have never sculpted limbs, but hope to get that far some day.
Haha thanks @MichelleP20. @honojane they were actually easier than I thought. When you get there PM me and Iāll help you through it if you want.
You got a deal, kiddo! How do you smooth your clay?
Oh, well thatās a secret. Kidding, itās actually quite simple lol. Vaseline! Just dip your finger in it and rub into the clay. It works like a charm. Iāve also heard of brushing a layer of rubbing alcohol over your sculpt after you have everything the way you want it, that also helps. You got to be careful though, because the alcohol actually melts the clay.
Thatās good. I have been using mineral oil, but it gets the pro-sculpt soggy. Vaseline is sort of like jellied mineral oil. Thanks. I never heard of the alcohol before. Iāll try it and see what happens.
Let me make this clear. I have HEARD of alcohol, LOL. Just not in this context!!!
Itās not soggy, per say, but definitely slick and greasy. Just be careful how much you use. I can never seem to get my sculpts perfectly smooth though, always end up sanding them after I bake.
I think everyone does that. Hey, Iāve been trying to get an answer to this with no luck. Maybe you know. How do the sculpts have to be prepared for production. Do that need to have perfect flanges and all that? Or is some of that done later using mechanical means? Also, do you know the name of a mold company. Everyone just tells me China makes them all. I have never had so much trouble getting the info. I donāt have anything to make yet, Iām just researching and thought my favorite prodigy might be able to help!
I think sculpting is a much cheaper hobby than reborning. All you need is some good clay, and aluminum foil. You donāt need expensive supplies. Bonnie Brown only uses a single pin for all her sculptures. My favorite tools are a small plastic roller, an exacto knife, an awl, and a little silicone rubber brush with a point. And thatās about all I use lol. Also, my vaseline. And a ceramic tile as a work surface.
I figure I could make about three to five full body mini babies with a single pound of clay, and a full sized cloth body baby with 2-3 pounds of clay. The clay I use, Living Doll, is about $12 a pound.
I have no clue. I think I would contact the companies that produce their own kits, like Truborns or Doll Kits International. I think what they do is buy the sculpt and rights off the sculptor and then do all the producing and selling work themselves, which is the route Iām trying to go. I heard Marita Winters is a sweet, helpful lady, maybe try emailing her.
I thought I might contact Marita too. Iām kind of thinking I might finance my own kit. I know itās expensive though so I wanted to research all of that stuff and find out if itās even feasible to āself-financeā. And like I said, Iām just dreaming big. I had a sculpt of a little Mongolian boy I was going to put in traditional dress and do as a one of a kind, but I got disgusted with the sculpt and smooshed it. Besides, I really want to do a baby and this was a toddler. The clay kept getting away from me and it got thicker and thicker until I knew it wouldnāt bakeā¦
You shouldāve posted some pics, Helen! Also, did you hear about the ROSE sculpting competition? From what I read there it costs around $3500 to make the mold, and then around $15-20 per kit produced depending on edition size.
http://www.roseinternationaldollshow.com/Sculpting-Competition-.html
WOW!!! I agree with Bebeās comment; those are much better than many that Iāve seen.
Thanks so much Amy!
Yeah, I did hear about out, but am way too intimidated to try! LOL As for pictures, he was way to rough for anyone to enjoy and my clay got sorta dirtyā¦
Oh man, the dirty clay lol. I just ignored it on my asian sculpt because I had plans to reproduce and on my minis, well thankfully I donāt handle them quite as much lol. Still, I canāt seem to avoid those little bits of dust here and there.
Do you cover your work if you are taking a break? Perhaps with a bowl overturned on your work surface over the sculpt? If not, it might help as the little lint you see in the clay are those minuscule particles you see floating in the air. They eventually land somewhere and the last time I left my GHSP plate open all the ones in our home seemed to fall in there at once. Yup. Laws of physics donāt matter in my house.
Is the clay used for reborns different from other clays? I made a statue once of a human being oozing out of the muck, so to speak. It was a difficult time I my life and I was trying to capture a person reinventing themselves, being born, so to speakā¦ It was a fluid, smooth shape and I used water to smooth the clay and it worked fine, with no sanding needed. I have no idea what the name of the clay was (I didnāt buy it) but it had to be baked. I painted it and I think it was put in the oven again. Wondering what the difference is?
Also, there are grey/white kids clays out there that can air dry. I assume they are not as durable? Perhaps they canāt be used for molds?
I am curious. I really enjoyed making that statue and a lady who was more experienced at it thought Iād had experience before but I hadnāt. Iād always wanted to try again but that was years ago.