Friday, November 5, 2010
Potted Plant Creature
Another creature I came up with while sitting around. I thought I would turn it into a figurine but I feel like doing something different. With this creature I think I'm going to try and create a puppet. I'll post more later.
Frog Creature
Here's a little creature I did up on my own. I tend to sketch up these weird little creatures whenever I'm just sitting around and more often than not they start out like so. Usually they begin as a little doodle of a worm and then I work my way up to full blown creatures such as this one. After I sketch up a little bio of the creature I had to turn it into a figurine.
After the sketch, I made a quick schematic of the front and side view of the creature. Whenever I make something I usually do this to get a map of what I'm going to carve out in foam. I made the same forms on a block of foam.
I carved out the foam and made a very flat figure to begin with. The edges were carved down and the figure was made much smoother.
I never got around to photographing the process so I made these drawing instead to give an idea of what I did. Once I had my center piece I took thin pieces of dowel and broke them into segments for the legs and arms. The leg joints were hot glued when i had the right pose and then I pinned them into the body of foam.
From this point on I put several layers of paper mache clay on the figure to smooth it out, give it a durable body, and also form out all the details. When I finished with the paper mache and let it dry, I came back and cut a mouth out it with a razor. I also added some eyes by pressing the end of a tube against the head until in made an indent. The creature still has to be colored.
After the sketch, I made a quick schematic of the front and side view of the creature. Whenever I make something I usually do this to get a map of what I'm going to carve out in foam. I made the same forms on a block of foam.
I carved out the foam and made a very flat figure to begin with. The edges were carved down and the figure was made much smoother.
I never got around to photographing the process so I made these drawing instead to give an idea of what I did. Once I had my center piece I took thin pieces of dowel and broke them into segments for the legs and arms. The leg joints were hot glued when i had the right pose and then I pinned them into the body of foam.
From this point on I put several layers of paper mache clay on the figure to smooth it out, give it a durable body, and also form out all the details. When I finished with the paper mache and let it dry, I came back and cut a mouth out it with a razor. I also added some eyes by pressing the end of a tube against the head until in made an indent. The creature still has to be colored.
Little Sister Syringe
Process for making a Little Sister syringe. When the needle was being made I never took the time to photograph the process because I wasn't thinking about it. So I attempted to make some drawings to fill in what I missed in the process. I'll describe the process of the images as best as I can so anyone who wants to use it as a reference can make their own needles.
This is an example of what happens when you try to speed up the glue drying. This was my first jar that got warped after I tried to speed things along. If you're going to try and use heat to dry the glue faster, please be very careful.
The second bottle. Better than the first and also better sealed with the marine Goop. I'm actually glad I messed up on the first one.
Update 2: Alrighty then. The syringe is fixed! Hurrah, Hurray, and other expressions of joy! An easy mend job and it turned out to be good as new. Now that the needle is fixed I started on adding the (crude) light to the inside of the needle.
I took a picture of the items I used to make the light and also the items I needed to finish what was left of the needle. I'll take another picture and replace the one I have here since it's not the best quality picture. At the top is a Epoxy Glue (waterproof) to mend the top of the bottle I cut open. To the left is a Solder gun and electric tape. At the very center is solder (or lead. Careful, fumes are potent. Try not to breathe in.) Below the solder is a 1 dollar book light. I cut the wire between the light and the on-and-off switch, exposed the wires, then took a positive and negative wire to extend it's reach to run up through the gun.Finally, to the right is Flux! Not required...but it's helpful when soldering the wires together. You can find this stuff at any hardware store. Luckily for me my father was an electrician at one point and now he makes stained glass lamps in his spare time so all of this stuff was available to me. Most of these items are relatively cheap except for the solder gun. Ask family members or friends if the have these items just to save some cash.
Here is a very bad example of how the wires are soldered together. I'll draw an image up to replace this since I already soldered my light together. I soldered the extension wires to the on-and-off switch first and ran the wires through to the top/ Then I soldered the wires to the light. I screwed the top back in and stuffed the light down into place and it worked just dandy.
Finishing the disaster I had earlier with the bottle.I waited a VERY long time to wait for the Goop Glue to dry completely. On the previous bottle I didn't allow the glue to dry for a few day so when I added the water it eventually gooped up and made water milky and it also leaked. I tested it a few times during the day just to make sure the glue held well enough. It did. Then I filled it up and added color dye. Several drops of red dye, 3 drops of yellow, and I dabbed the end of a tooth pick in blue dye and touched the water with it a couple times to darken the red slightly. The first image below is very diluted because I only added 2 drops of red food dye. The image after is what the water should look like. If it's too dark some of the water can be poured out and a little more can be added to dilute it slightly. After I had a color that looked close enough to bloody goodness I epoxied the top of the back on. This is Very Important! I mixed up a small batch of epoxy and waited for it to harden slightly. Test it by taking a tooth pick and pulling some onto the end. Watch it. If the glue runs then don't put it on yet. If it doesn't run or it runs slightly then it's ok to put on. I got the 30 minute epoxy and waited about 15 minutes before putting it on the bottle. I taped the cap of the bottle to my finger and held it in place for 20 minutes to make sure it glue properly. (watching glue dry will be the most exciting experience of your life!) Once it finished gluing, I took a little more glue and epoxied what I missed under my finger and added a little more all around just to make sure the cap was completely sealed. The bottle will sit for a couple days to let the epoxy completely dry and then I'll finish it by epoxying the nipple to the top of the bottle and then gluing the bottle to the gun.
Reference for the syringe. Now mine isn't 100% exact but as it's stated in the game, the needles are all put together with spare parts. So some may vary from others.
Here's how we start our journey! The first thing you want to start off with is a gas pump. Can't really do anything unless you want to guess the sizes of the PVC pipe you're going to use on it and guess the other parts. You'll want a gas pump from the 1930's and you can find them on Ebay. It make take some time to find a cheap one. The cheapest I found was about $23. So just be patient and keep looking until you find a nice cheap pump. That aside, once you have your pump you can begin working. I'll use the needle I made as an example. Most of the measurements as far as circumference goes for most things, should work.
The PVC pipe is colored blue. The wooden dowel is red and the Bondo, or some other putty that hardens like cement, is green. You'll want to get a PVC pipe with a 1 1/2 inch diameter and make it just a little over 6 inches long. The wooden dowel should be 1/4 inch in diameter and be 19 inches long. The PVC needs to be filled with the bondo automobile body filler (or other putty) 3 inches thick. You can either stick the dowel in now and center it or you can wait until it dries and drill a hole then insert it. When the dowel is inserted it must go down 3 inches into the bondo. If you chose to drill a hole and insert it, make sure to use epoxy and pour some into the hole before inserting the dowel to secure it. Sand the dowel at a gradual decline to make the needle and you should have the bottom image or similar. You will also need to sand the end of the PVC end about 1/2 inch in to insert it into the gas pump. Secure it with epoxy as well.
The next part is the jar, or the "Adam" vile, that goes on top of the gas pump. For this you're going to need two mason jar lids. Start with the bottom one that attaches to the gas pump. For this one you will need Bondo again (or some other filler putty, something durable!). Take this piece and fill it in where the green area is on the image below. After it dries make sure to sand it down smooth and flat. You will also need a 1/4 inch diameter and 1 1/2 inch long metal tube. Drill a centered hole in the top of the gas pump and the bondo and insert the metal tube fixing it in place with epoxy. Also make sure at least 4/6 ths of the tube is showing.
Then comes the jar. Several images below show how it should look. Take an empty clean peanut butter jar (you'll need to test a few) and fit it into the other rim. If it locks on you're golden. Then find a clear bottom end of a small cup or a plastic bottle (I used a small bottle for mine). This would be the red part. If you want your gun to glow then you should definitely add this part. Check and see if the bottle end fits up into the rim. If it fits in with the jar then it's perfect. Now take them all out with the rim alone. You're going to need a waterproof glue for this since it's going to contain liquid or red color dyed water. I recommend using Amazing GOOP Marine. It's meant specifically for anything underwater as the title states. Place goop on the outside of the bottle end and also all around the inside of the rim. Insert the bottle end and then screw on the peanut butter jar. DO NOT turn upside down or the glue will get all over the inside. Cut a small hole in the top with a razor to allow the glue to air-out and dry faster.
This is an example of what happens when you try to speed up the glue drying. This was my first jar that got warped after I tried to speed things along. If you're going to try and use heat to dry the glue faster, please be very careful.
The second bottle. Better than the first and also better sealed with the marine Goop. I'm actually glad I messed up on the first one.
Later on you'll be able to cap it with a baby bottle nipple. Now allow the glue to dry for a couple days. Do not glue the jar to the other rim yet if you want to add a light to it. I will add a section later on for the light for whoever wants to know how to do it. Next is the baby bottle nipple. This will be glued to the top of the jar once it's filled and re-capped. To make this all you need is a baby bottle nipple and a small door nob cover. You may have to drill a hole to widen the hole and insert the nipple. Once it's inserted, epoxy it in place.
At this point it should look something like this.
From here on I'll be adding extra details because as you can see mine is still not finished. Some repairs need to be made and the light still needs to be installed. If you want to get a jump start on coloring use a Hammered texture bronze and silver spray paint. They work the best for a more worn and weathered look. If you want to really weather it get creative. Use dirt, sand, scratch it, use a light touch of black acrylic paint, whatever you can think of to make it look like it's been used and eroded.
Update 1: Disaster! During my travel when I was transporting the needle the syringe snapped. All I could think was " Bummer... " but it's really no big deal. If you find yourself in this situation don't panic. Just use wood glue to mend it and if it's missing some chips, fill it in with bondo and sand it down to it's original shape.
I took a picture of the items I used to make the light and also the items I needed to finish what was left of the needle. I'll take another picture and replace the one I have here since it's not the best quality picture. At the top is a Epoxy Glue (waterproof) to mend the top of the bottle I cut open. To the left is a Solder gun and electric tape. At the very center is solder (or lead. Careful, fumes are potent. Try not to breathe in.) Below the solder is a 1 dollar book light. I cut the wire between the light and the on-and-off switch, exposed the wires, then took a positive and negative wire to extend it's reach to run up through the gun.Finally, to the right is Flux! Not required...but it's helpful when soldering the wires together. You can find this stuff at any hardware store. Luckily for me my father was an electrician at one point and now he makes stained glass lamps in his spare time so all of this stuff was available to me. Most of these items are relatively cheap except for the solder gun. Ask family members or friends if the have these items just to save some cash.
Here is a very bad example of how the wires are soldered together. I'll draw an image up to replace this since I already soldered my light together. I soldered the extension wires to the on-and-off switch first and ran the wires through to the top/ Then I soldered the wires to the light. I screwed the top back in and stuffed the light down into place and it worked just dandy.
Finishing the disaster I had earlier with the bottle.I waited a VERY long time to wait for the Goop Glue to dry completely. On the previous bottle I didn't allow the glue to dry for a few day so when I added the water it eventually gooped up and made water milky and it also leaked. I tested it a few times during the day just to make sure the glue held well enough. It did. Then I filled it up and added color dye. Several drops of red dye, 3 drops of yellow, and I dabbed the end of a tooth pick in blue dye and touched the water with it a couple times to darken the red slightly. The first image below is very diluted because I only added 2 drops of red food dye. The image after is what the water should look like. If it's too dark some of the water can be poured out and a little more can be added to dilute it slightly. After I had a color that looked close enough to bloody goodness I epoxied the top of the back on. This is Very Important! I mixed up a small batch of epoxy and waited for it to harden slightly. Test it by taking a tooth pick and pulling some onto the end. Watch it. If the glue runs then don't put it on yet. If it doesn't run or it runs slightly then it's ok to put on. I got the 30 minute epoxy and waited about 15 minutes before putting it on the bottle. I taped the cap of the bottle to my finger and held it in place for 20 minutes to make sure it glue properly. (watching glue dry will be the most exciting experience of your life!) Once it finished gluing, I took a little more glue and epoxied what I missed under my finger and added a little more all around just to make sure the cap was completely sealed. The bottle will sit for a couple days to let the epoxy completely dry and then I'll finish it by epoxying the nipple to the top of the bottle and then gluing the bottle to the gun.
Friday, October 29, 2010
El Top Hat
Here is the process for a top hat I made recently. it's cheap, it's easy (relatively), and it looks good. You'll need a few things first.
Ingredients:
1. Cardboard from anywhere. Any cardboard will do as long as it's the same thickness.
2. Black Felt or Fleece.
3. Bristol Paper
4. Hot Glue Gun
5. Razor/ Scissors
6. Ruler/ Tape Measure
7. Pen and Pencil
The first step is to get the correct measurement of your head or at least close to the correct circumference. For this top hat the circumference was somewhere around 23 inches. It will differ from person to person. Once you have your measurement make a couple cardboard test pieces. Cut an oval shape out and fit it over you head to make sure it fits. Too small and it will balance on your head like a pile of books, too big and it will cover your eyes. Make sure to also add (at most) another inch to the circumference. The stacking of material plus your own hair, can make it too tight if you don't give yourself some room to work with. Instead of dragging the razor across the cardboard, poke it down to perforate it. This is much easier and faster. Also make sure to keep the cut out solid oval because you'll need it later.
Test it over your head and look like a fool. I know i do! Also, make a strip of card board to put in between your head and the test oval. This will determine how much space you need to work with.
Once you have the correct size oval you can start on the "Stove Pipe" of the hat. Take a piece of cardboard and make a line all the way across with a height of 6 inches. Then divide the piece with your ruler into 1 inch wide strips. The circumference you use will match the number of strip you need. Since my hat was 23 inches I only needed 23 strips. Make sure to hold the ruler down on your edge when cutting to get all your strips straight. Crooked is bad. Unless you want your hat to be crooked.
Next, take the test board that worked well enough and make a border around the cut out about 2 1/4 inch wide. This is the rim of the hat. Perforate the rim.
This is optional. If you want a hat that tapers make sure to bend all the strips like so (also do the same with the rim by bending it in a U - shape). If you want a straight top (and rim) then don't do anything at all to them! It will save you a step. Take the solid oval piece from before and glue the strips around the very edge of it with hot glue. You should end up with something like this when you're done.
Make sure to take the bristol or any other paper that's a little hard and glue it around the top rim. This will hold the hat together better and create a smooth edge when the fabric is glued on. DO NOT glue the fabric at the step. These two pictures are an example of a mess up. If you glue the fabric on at this stage, it becomes very wrinkled and rigid looking. It's also a huge pain to take it off and it will most certainly ruin a section of the hat. Unless you want that kind of look, then by all mean proceed. Also, when this step is finished, perforate around the inside as close as you can get to the strips to make an opening.
After making a border on the rim you'll want to cut several strips of Bristol (or another hard paper) and glue them down part way inside the hat and on the outside of the hat. Make sure to press well so that the paper is snug.
Now we can start to put the fabric on! This is the easy part. Take a large piece of fabric and make sure it's a little over half the length of one side and also make sure the piece is WIDE. You'll need the extra material. Start with the end and glue part of the rim down on the top. Then lay some glue down on the outside of the hat and take the fabric and pull it over, making it as flat as possible. Pull it over the other edge and glue the insides down. The inside doesn't matter too much since no one is going to see it if you're wearing the hat. Repeat this process by gluing down small sections of the fabric as you pull it across the face of the hat.
Now take your cut-out rim and lay it on the fabric. Outline the inside and outside. Make sure add a little extra to the inside outline. Make two identical pieces then take one piece and lay glue on the edge of the fabric. Then take the other piece of fabric and lay it on top of that one. This makes a cheapo-quicky seam. Turn the fabric inside out and you'll have a fairly smooth edge that looks as if it was sewn together. Take the rim and slip it in like a book cover. Pull the inside fabric to the edge of the rim to cover the cardboard and glue it down. Use the hot glue and glue around the bottom of the "Stove Pipe" then insert the Pipe into the rim. Try to push the rim against the pipe to close any holes in the rim as the glue dries.
When that's all done you can move on to the cover over the top hat. Make an oval shape that only leaves about a 1/2 inch of rim. Do the same process with the fabric by pulling it and gluing. Set the "cap" inside of the hat and gauge how far it goes down. Take the hot glue and make a ring on the inside of the hat where the cap will lay snug. Lay the cap in and it should glue without any glue being visible. You can also press it in a little to make sure there are no gaps as the glue dries.
And there you have it! Your very own cheapo Top hat that's a little more than mediocre. To clean it up a little, take some masking tape and dab it against the fabric because there will definitely be strands of glue and debris all over it. Get creative and do whatever you want with it now. Add bows and feathers! Or just wear it plain as you go on a bike ride downtown. You're sure to turn some heads and get some compliments (and maybe more than a few stares and odd looks).
Ingredients:
1. Cardboard from anywhere. Any cardboard will do as long as it's the same thickness.
2. Black Felt or Fleece.
3. Bristol Paper
4. Hot Glue Gun
5. Razor/ Scissors
6. Ruler/ Tape Measure
7. Pen and Pencil
The first step is to get the correct measurement of your head or at least close to the correct circumference. For this top hat the circumference was somewhere around 23 inches. It will differ from person to person. Once you have your measurement make a couple cardboard test pieces. Cut an oval shape out and fit it over you head to make sure it fits. Too small and it will balance on your head like a pile of books, too big and it will cover your eyes. Make sure to also add (at most) another inch to the circumference. The stacking of material plus your own hair, can make it too tight if you don't give yourself some room to work with. Instead of dragging the razor across the cardboard, poke it down to perforate it. This is much easier and faster. Also make sure to keep the cut out solid oval because you'll need it later.
Test it over your head and look like a fool. I know i do! Also, make a strip of card board to put in between your head and the test oval. This will determine how much space you need to work with.
Once you have the correct size oval you can start on the "Stove Pipe" of the hat. Take a piece of cardboard and make a line all the way across with a height of 6 inches. Then divide the piece with your ruler into 1 inch wide strips. The circumference you use will match the number of strip you need. Since my hat was 23 inches I only needed 23 strips. Make sure to hold the ruler down on your edge when cutting to get all your strips straight. Crooked is bad. Unless you want your hat to be crooked.
Next, take the test board that worked well enough and make a border around the cut out about 2 1/4 inch wide. This is the rim of the hat. Perforate the rim.
This is optional. If you want a hat that tapers make sure to bend all the strips like so (also do the same with the rim by bending it in a U - shape). If you want a straight top (and rim) then don't do anything at all to them! It will save you a step. Take the solid oval piece from before and glue the strips around the very edge of it with hot glue. You should end up with something like this when you're done.
Make sure to take the bristol or any other paper that's a little hard and glue it around the top rim. This will hold the hat together better and create a smooth edge when the fabric is glued on. DO NOT glue the fabric at the step. These two pictures are an example of a mess up. If you glue the fabric on at this stage, it becomes very wrinkled and rigid looking. It's also a huge pain to take it off and it will most certainly ruin a section of the hat. Unless you want that kind of look, then by all mean proceed. Also, when this step is finished, perforate around the inside as close as you can get to the strips to make an opening.
After making a border on the rim you'll want to cut several strips of Bristol (or another hard paper) and glue them down part way inside the hat and on the outside of the hat. Make sure to press well so that the paper is snug.
Now we can start to put the fabric on! This is the easy part. Take a large piece of fabric and make sure it's a little over half the length of one side and also make sure the piece is WIDE. You'll need the extra material. Start with the end and glue part of the rim down on the top. Then lay some glue down on the outside of the hat and take the fabric and pull it over, making it as flat as possible. Pull it over the other edge and glue the insides down. The inside doesn't matter too much since no one is going to see it if you're wearing the hat. Repeat this process by gluing down small sections of the fabric as you pull it across the face of the hat.
Now take your cut-out rim and lay it on the fabric. Outline the inside and outside. Make sure add a little extra to the inside outline. Make two identical pieces then take one piece and lay glue on the edge of the fabric. Then take the other piece of fabric and lay it on top of that one. This makes a cheapo-quicky seam. Turn the fabric inside out and you'll have a fairly smooth edge that looks as if it was sewn together. Take the rim and slip it in like a book cover. Pull the inside fabric to the edge of the rim to cover the cardboard and glue it down. Use the hot glue and glue around the bottom of the "Stove Pipe" then insert the Pipe into the rim. Try to push the rim against the pipe to close any holes in the rim as the glue dries.
When that's all done you can move on to the cover over the top hat. Make an oval shape that only leaves about a 1/2 inch of rim. Do the same process with the fabric by pulling it and gluing. Set the "cap" inside of the hat and gauge how far it goes down. Take the hot glue and make a ring on the inside of the hat where the cap will lay snug. Lay the cap in and it should glue without any glue being visible. You can also press it in a little to make sure there are no gaps as the glue dries.
And there you have it! Your very own cheapo Top hat that's a little more than mediocre. To clean it up a little, take some masking tape and dab it against the fabric because there will definitely be strands of glue and debris all over it. Get creative and do whatever you want with it now. Add bows and feathers! Or just wear it plain as you go on a bike ride downtown. You're sure to turn some heads and get some compliments (and maybe more than a few stares and odd looks).
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