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NightmareSkellington In reply to FoxCakes123 [2012-04-01 07:50:24 +0000 UTC]

Best. Comment. Yet.

And I agree.

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CadmiumCrab In reply to Vinyl-Derp [2011-12-09 02:37:09 +0000 UTC]

They're $35 and since I make them to order, you can have any pony you like in this pose. Send me a message if you're interested.

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CadmiumCrab In reply to McMesser [2011-11-29 02:59:36 +0000 UTC]

I don't really use anything special, my best tool is my right thumb for smoothing clay. What I do is I build the armature and wrap it in an initial layer of clay, then, before I star any real smoothing, look to see where more clay is needed and build up the layers. Don't try to get the sculpture right from the get go, build it up slowly. You'll eventually be able to lay out the initial clay more accurately and do less work building layers.

Try starting with laying or sitting ponies, they don't require leg armatures like the standing ones do. The only tools I really use when sculpting are an x-acto knife with a good blade (be sure to have refills handy) and a clay needle tool for blending the seams. I also found coating the clay with a thin layer of sculpey clay softener gets rid of a lot of surface fingerprints for a cleaner looking piece. just paint it on with a brush lightly right before baking.

I hope this helps!

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Ripfrost In reply to CadmiumCrab [2012-01-29 18:00:49 +0000 UTC]

Wow I had to search what armature meant when I was reading thing, I am such a sculpting noob

Anyway this is pretty simple but extremely helpful advice, my only question is, I can see how the clay needle tool is helpful,
(the first time I tried making a sculpture I ended up creating an improvised needle by splintering a pencil )
but what do you use the X-acto knife for?

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CadmiumCrab In reply to Ripfrost [2012-01-29 18:51:59 +0000 UTC]

Also, armatures are super easy to make with a little practice. Just use a cheap foil (cheaper = thinner and therefore easier to shape) and crush it gently into the shape you need. Go slowly or you'll end up with a dense ball of foil that's not good for anything.

Another key armature construction material is floral wire or, for a larger sculpture, aluminum wire. Its cheap and can be easily found at any craft store. Its good for making arms/legs/horns/tall hair/tails/wings/etc.

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Ripfrost In reply to CadmiumCrab [2012-01-29 20:35:08 +0000 UTC]

I imagine the Floral/Aluminum wire working well but does the cheap foil really do the job?
I'd imagine it whould crumple out of shape very easily against the weight of almost any kind of sculpting material.

Yah, an X-acto knife can be helpful with almost any project,when you meantioned it all I could think of it helping with was partitioning the original big chunk of clay, but I suppose it works for all kinds of little odds and ends.

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CadmiumCrab In reply to Ripfrost [2012-01-29 21:04:44 +0000 UTC]

If you use fancy foil, its doesn't crumple easily and can really beat up your hands (speaking from experience, ouchies). You get it pretty dense before building the clay onto it, but the heavy duty stuff won't form shapes as easily or smoothly.

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CadmiumCrab In reply to Ripfrost [2012-01-29 18:47:06 +0000 UTC]

Cutting and partitioning clay, creating spikes in hair, blending seams, other stuff I can't remember right now...

It's a super useful tool for any crafting projects you undertake.

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McMesser In reply to CadmiumCrab [2011-11-29 09:16:10 +0000 UTC]

Thanks for the advice, given me something to think about!

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CadmiumCrab In reply to Tradgoedia [2011-11-24 06:02:20 +0000 UTC]

Appreciation is alway welcomed. Keep an eye on the group site, we're going to do a contest soon that involves a free pony as a prize...

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