Adding Some Colour

2/4/2016

Last week I added a bit more Apoxie to the head I'm modifying into an old man.
I started with a Doll Family A Practice Head, given to me by Charie Wilson....

I've never liked sculpting doll's heads since I always had a tendency to "over-sculpt" and mess up earlier parts that were fine. But that was when I used Sculpey, which had to be baked at the end when the head was done. Paperclay and Apoxie are better mediums for me, since I can add small amounts, let them dry or cure, and then add more. It drastically reduces me messing up previously sculpted areas. So I've been slowly building up his face with bits of Aves Apoxie.....

Last week I got the head as close to 'finished' as I figure I'll come, having added a bit more to the lower eye lids, the chin, cheeks, lower lip, and tops of the ears. Then yesterday was such a warm day (at over 15 degrees Celsius, we broke the record for the warmest day in February EVER) so I took the opportunity to spray the head with Testors Dull Coat outside. I've never used the stuff before, and made sure to stand upwind so the fumes wouldn't blow into my face. Then I put the head parts in my main floor powder room which has a fan to outside, to let the head dry completely.

This morning I thought I'd try give the head some colour. After all how hard could it be? I'm an "artist" and can paint all kinds of things, so why not a doll's head? But it was nowhere near as easy as I thought. Of course it didn't help that I can barely see what I'm doing. I have uncorrectable astigmatism, macular degeneration, and the start of cataracts in both eyes. Thankfully my camera has auto-focus, so I can still take photos with confidence, but doing handwork is becoming increasingly difficult. Anyway, I got a bit of uneven colour on him.....

I think once he's properly painted by a professional, and gets his hair and beard, he'll make a great Wizard and Santa.

But he also needs a body, and even though the head fits nicely on my Maya's body, I don't like the idea of them sharing a body. Plus this Wizard-Santa guy is going to need his hands modded into 'old man hands'. He can't have Maya's smooth 'young' hands. Which means getting him a body of his own. Fortunately Doll Leaves (where Maya comes from) is one of the few doll companies that will sell just a body. I'd order one, but our dollar is so low right now. But I really, really, really want to see this guy come together, and who knows if, or when, our dollar will ever recover, so maybe I just have to go for it. And order him some 'holdy' hands while I'm at it.

14 Comments

Melissa

2/4/2016 11:41:09 am

He's looking really great! You've done such an amazing job modifying and painting him. :)

As a side note, you can 'prebake' Sculpey for 5-10 minutes to harden your earlier work so you won't mess it up and then bake it properly at the end without any ill effects, if you'd like to try it again someday.

Martha

2/4/2016 01:44:14 pm

Yes, thanks, I knew you can partially bake Sculpey and Fimo, but I really didn't want to sculpt an entire head from scratch, as it seemed way too much work to make a hollow head that would fit on a resin BJD neck, and take glass or acrylic eyes. I thought modifying an existing head with Aves Apoxy would be a lot easier.

Melissa

2/5/2016 09:33:11 am

I didn't mean for this project, more since you mentioned not liking it because it squishes.

But glad you already know all that stuff. You do wonderful work with Apoxy. :)

Brigitte

2/4/2016 01:37:33 pm

He looks great and i like the painting. :-)

Martha

2/4/2016 01:45:47 pm

Thanks! It's just a bit of pastel dust, but it makes the head 'come alive'

Lorraine

2/4/2016 04:01:10 pm

He's coming along great. Pastel powder is what I use, too, with watercolor pencil (applied dry) where I need a fine line. I also have trouble seeing so I rely on an OttLite lamp with a built-in magnifier and daylight bulb. It's a little awkward to use at first, but once you get used to seeing a huge pencil in the magnifier it does a good job.

Jane

2/4/2016 04:37:18 pm

Well I don't see why you need to send him away to be painted......he looks brilliant how you have painted him. You have already given him life!

And I find it impossible to have dolls body share too.......I have tried it but I just don't like it.
I hope you are able to get him his own body sooner rather than later

Martha

2/4/2016 04:47:29 pm

I guess the camera makes him look better than he does in real life. True, he's going to be an old man with blotchy skin, but I've never liked painting doll faces, and doing face ups really isn't for me. And I'm not just saying that to illicit 'praise'. Yes, the pastels have given him a touch of life, but I want something even better.

I'm thinking I should just go ahead and order him a body. Doll Leaves has some of the least expensive dolls out there, so even with the 50% mark-up due to our low dollar, it won't exactly break the bank.

Martha

2/4/2016 05:06:09 pm

Okay, enough talking about it - I sent an email to Doll Leaves and ordered a body.

Donna

2/4/2016 05:19:50 pm

He's going to be great! He has a wise, kindly look about him.

I'm sooo glad to hear that he won't be a bodiless head for very much longer :o)

Martha

2/4/2016 05:28:37 pm

That's perfect then! Since he's going to be a Wizard, St. Nicholas, and a Santa or two.

The head is a touch bigger than Maya's, and his is already large in scale for his body. But the resin matches perfectly, and it's not an expensive body. It will be fine for a Santa, and the Wizard just won't be a tall gangly type. Which is fine too, since he'll mostly just be with my smaller Iplehouse gang.

Inma

2/5/2016 12:12:40 am

Oh ! He is going to be gorgeous ! Can't wait to see him finished !

Jane

2/5/2016 12:35:44 am

Well done on ordering the body *yippee*

Babel link

2/5/2016 10:13:46 am

Very beautiful work :o))

Adding Some Colour

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