Mold Making First Attempt - part I

So I've started my first foray into molding and casting. It's been interesting so far. No major disasters but a couple minor ones.

Here's the victim.



First here's a cardboard prop to keep the bust I'm molding in the right position. This led to minor disaster number one, I managed to both cut myself with my knife and burn my fingers with the hot glue gun. The prop worked well though.



The next couple steps I forgot to take pictures of, I built a layer of Klean Klay (sulfur free modeling clay) over one half of the bust and then layered plaster of paris on top. Once dry I flipped it over and did the same on the other side, this gave me a nice plaster mother mold that will be filled with the mold rubber. Here's where minor disaster number two and three come along. On one side of my mother mold layer of plaster for some reason didn't quite adhere to the first layer and flaked off so I wasted quite a bit of plaster and time. Then I managed to spill plaster all over my floor which I'm still working on cleanign up. A minor annoyance was finding out after I used vaseline as a release agent for the plaster that I could have used liquid soap instrad which would have been far far easier to clean off.

After all the plaster was dried I had to open up the mother mold, that went well even with the vaseline making a mess all over my hands. I removed the klean klay from one half of the mother mold, and on the other side you can see the clay bed that will be a barrier to the rubber when I pour it. I had to position the clay bed so that when I open the rubber mold that it won't catch uder her ears which was the only majot undercut on this bust.



Next step will be to pour the first half of the rubber mold, that I will probably do tonight so it can cure overnight.

Impatience

I've come to the conclusion that being able to track a package being sent to you online makes waiting for it even worse.

I ordered some sculpting and casting supplies and they should be arriving soon. I'm planning to document my first casting attempt here, I'm hoping it goes well rather than embarassing.

I've continued brainstorming sculpture ideas, a little more seriously than last time.
- The Dord Fian, mythical celtic horn that calls the fianna (army of heros led by Finn Mac Cumhail)
- Boudicca - I love history and Boudicca was a very heroic and tragic woman who defied the roman empire. She supposedly had hair down past her knees, sculpting hair liek that would be a wonderful challenge.

What a sculptor does when she's bored.

So I was on IRC(#pixelation on irc.sorcery.net) last night a bit bored so I did some brainstorming for sculpture ideas. The guys on the channel found them funny so I thought I'd share here.

1) Squirrel holding a ring "my precious".
2) Kitten in the holy grail.
3) Bonsai kitten assembled kind of like those ships in bottles.
4) Hatching baby gryphon based on baby cockatiels (they are ugly beyond words).
5) Christmas Platypus. Okay, this was an idea I had a while back but I still like it.

I have no idea if I'll ever sculpt any of these but it was fun coming up with them.