Friday, August 26, 2011

Fantasy Pod Tree WIP Update ~ Mason~


                                                                        ~~ Mason ~~


I am really pleased with his outcome, and will show you his WIP below.


Mason WIP still needs his right foot, and much smoothing...

 First photo, no deatials had been sculpted into his chest at this point

Mason is fully sculpted, and sanded..first layer of Genesis Heat Set oils have been applied, and baked in..next more paint, and hair..

The Pod has also has a bit of a face lift..I muted the colors on the fauna floor, although it looks very yellow here, it is in fact more raw sienna, and greens/bronzes/pewters

 
In this photo, you can see the true colors in Mason pod, as well as the sculpted detailing on it.



Thanks friends for following along as I created Mason, He will be listed on Ebay starting tonight.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Fantasy Pod WIP








HI everyone, hope you are all having a great week. Just thought perhaps some of you would like to see some WIP photos. I have been working on this fantasy pod, and am near completion with it..it is turning out much to my liking, and near exactly as I had envisioned it..not a regular thing for sure..but always welcome! I first took an old piece of barn wood measuring 5x5 square, and drilled two holes into it. Then I inserted two brass rods, and epoxied them into a strong sturdy position...after they dreind completely, I began to add my "tree" pieces..Three distinct branches, created from a floral arrangement, I had dismantled long ago...so we now have a funny looking, "tree on a piece of wood..I then created my pod from foil, and tape, shaping into the hammock it will become, as well as thickening the tree base with foil root system.I then covered it, as well as part of the tree base with regular white sculpey, and sculpted some design details into the pod..ie swirls, bark impressions ect..ok bake at 275* for about twenty minutes..it is turning a bit dark...no worries, it will be painted anyway. Next step, layers, and layers of copper, silver, raw sienna,, burnt umber, sage green, and taupe/gray.  Highlight with pewter, and bronze metallic acrylic paint, seal with clear lacquer, let dry overnight... Next step was to embellish the entire Pod Tree..I added colored sand, faux sea weed, string, moss, and fuzzy yarn, then gave it a  little bling with bright green glitter in a few spots! What do you think?..look like a comfy spot for a fairy nap?...I hope so!!  This piece is 5 and 1/2 inches at it's widest point, and stands 14 inches tall to the tip of the tallest branch. I have begun sculpting the fairy..more updates to come! Thank you for following, I hope I can keep it interesting for my readers! Have a great day, xoxo Christel




Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Tools of the Trade



 Hello everyone. I don't have a new sculpt to show, I just thought maybe some of you would be interested in seeing some of the basic things I use when creating dolls, as well as future posts on the actual sculpting process! I have had several people ( beginners) ask me where do you get the tools from? What type of clay do I need to get started ect.... I have three photos here, and will explain my method of madness as best I can. Keep in mind, nearly every polymer clay artist has his or her own techniques, favorite tools ect..these are mine, and by no means are the "proper" or only way " of creating a sculpted art doll.  On any given sculpture, I will use a variety of tools. The first photo shows the tools most often used.  Wire cutters, for armature building, and wing assembly, Scissors for various uses, but mostly hair cutting and clothing styling, Hemostats..I use them for different things, holding wings when drying, holding wire when hot shotting a hand or foot...I will explain that term..it is my term..but simply means, I use an embossing tool to super heat certain areas, it could be the top of the head, the back side of the neck, or  a hand or foot, to quick set that piece without an entire body bake.  The exacto knife..I use this tool mainly to ensure precise cuts between fingers and toes..I rarely use it for anything else  until after the piece is completely fired. The exacto is used after firing, for scrap-ing dark spots, or uneven highs and lows in the clay.I have several different sizes of stylus ,(metal tool with wooden handle ball on each end) but this small sized one pictured is the tool I use the most for nostrils, corners of eyes..little hidden areas hard to get at with other tools. Paint brush handle..actually, wooden tools are my preferred tools..I use this paint brush handle to flatten and round out the face a lot..it works very well for me..I simply roll away the bumps! Of course, the other end, I use as a smoothing tool when applying oil, after sculpting, but before baking. The tool with the darker color wood I use for finger, and toe nails. It has a slight concave shape on one side, and is filed to a rounded point for detailing the nails. The bamboo stick is my most used tool, and my favorite! I use this tool more than any other, and created 85% of my sculptures with it!  The wooden knife is a great tool for help with nails and fingers too! The mermaid scale tool is not used as much, but I made this from a thin piece of copper sheeting and an old paint brush handle. The last tool pictured is a smaller size of the nail tool, used for dollhouse scale miniatures.  Well, there you have my tool line up..all the wooden tools you see, I made myself... no need for expensive tools, and for me, metal often times leaves dark spots in the clay, so I prefer wood. A nice smooth sanded, and oiled tool is perfect! The last photo is the four tools I use on every piece, and they are really essential..the other tools are simply enhancements, and I can create without them if I had to. One thing I will never ever sculpt without is a CLEAN glass surface..for me, it is mandatory!   Hope this little Tut was helpful to someone in need of the information..xoxox Christel

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

~ Samm~ A Woodland Male Faerie


~~ Samm ~~




 Hello, hope everyone is having a great week so far. This is Samm, a young woodland male fairy I just completed. He will be listed on eBay tonight. Hope you will visit his auction. Have a great week. xoxo Christel

Thursday, August 11, 2011

~ Phaedra~ An Etheral Moth Faerie







Hi Everyone, been a few days since I posted..this is what I have been up to!  I created this unique Etheral Moth Faerie, and named her Phaedra... She has real mink hair, and paper wings coated with liquid clay..I tried to mimick her eye spots of her wings onto her body..what do you think?.. branching out, yes I know, and quite different, but I think she has a magical, etheral quality, and I enjoyed bringing her to life! She stands on a small slab of 120 year old salvaged barn wood.  She is listed on ebay now   (see ebay button to the right)xoxo Christel

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

~ Tribec~ Feral Male Fairy





More branching out here...a new, and unique piece. This is also a large sculpt. He would measure ten inches tall if standing, and is 6 inches in his kneeling position. I have named him Tribec, he's wild, and animalistic, in that he has a tail! A lion like mane frames his masculine face. Hope you all like him, his eBay listing will begin tonight. xoxox Christel