I’m new to video editing, but starting to have fun with it. The learning never stops!
Close up ?
I recently got my first macro lens, and it’s very cool to see things so much larger than life. IRL this head is about 1 inch wide.
All the little monsters with their new teeth, ready to get arms
Mixing paint for more monster teeth
This is the gum color ☂️ I keep my paints in little bottles with a glass bead inside for easy mixing when the paint separates. ?
? Painting tiny teeth ?
This is my favorite part! The details are always the most satisfying. Each tooth is about an eighth of an inch wide.
Painting eyeballs in the dark
Painting blacklight puppets at the Center for Puppetry Arts. Their new production, Harold and the Purple Crayon, is based on a book by Crockett Johnson, adaptation by John Ludwig. Puppets designed by Jason Hines.
Camera set up to film painting the tiniest teeth. ??
Little monsters ready for some sparkle potion magic ?
Painting
Brushing a darker tone into the details and rubbing away the excess ?
I save my old T-shirt’s to cut up and reuse as paint rags. Paper towels rip and leave annoying fibers behind, but old T-shirt’s don’t.
Opening a mold ?️?
Just finished casting all the core forms for this double cast toy. Colorways will be pink and purple, with lots of sparkles. Stay tuned!
?? Hands for days ??
Sneak peek of what I’m working on at the Center for Puppetry Arts. Sculpted in monster clay, molded in plaster, cast in neoprene.
Pouring Silicone
Pouring the second half of a mold. I mix the silicone twice, transferring it into a clean cup to get a thorough mix. Not pictured, I use a vacuum chamber to pull air out of the silicone before pouring. I’ll be pressure casting later, so this step is important. Casting under pressure crushes trapped air, forcing resin into tiny details, allowing clear resin to cure bubble free. If any bubbles are left in the mold, pressure casting will cause it to deform wherever there are voids. Science magic!
Painting Stardust
Adding subtle paint details: thin washes of gold, silver, red, purple, and blue. The new ghost chameleon pigment I’m using looks different depending on how the light hits it. It’s transparent, showing the most dramatic color shifts when layered over black. With just the chameleon paint, the details were hard to see, so I’m also adding lighter areas with tinted metallics to create greater depth.
Before and after paint.
Gold, green, blue, purple. ? I sculpted epoxy clay over a wood sphere using the tools in the last photo.
How to make a planet with a ring system
The planet itself is a premade wood sphere. I made a pattern for the ring system out of chip board, checking the size and fit against the sphere. After sculpting the rings out of clay, I made a mold and pressure cast translucent purple tinted resin with laser glitter. The cast is stretchy for the first few hours after casting, allowing me to fit it precisely on the planet. The planet was painted with a supershift chameleon pigment that looks different depending on how the light hits it.
Tiny rocket ship ready for paint
Process behind the Dark Crystal
I started with a 2D design by Jeremy Villines. I converted it into a 3d pattern in cardboard. We used the template to make a plexiglass mold and slush cast the tinted resin in layers. The plexiglass molds for the full crystals were built from 82 pieces! The exhibit is up all year at the Center for Puppetry Arts.
Stardust Dreamer
Painting silver/gold accents on this Stardust Dreamer. All those dreamy lumps and bumps. This step takes hours.
Detail View
Process for the Dreamer sculpt
