Alaina’s blog Thoughts, Assignments, and Other things

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Final Project: Shield

April 24, 2023 8:31 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Day One

I began researching shields and their correct size based on the images provided. I went with a Celtic-looking shield with some very beautiful knotwork. When looking up the sizes, typically most rounded shields, flat or otherwise are around 30″ to 36″ in diameter. So I began by measuring out a suitable diameter for my size, which was around 30″. I then took a string and created a perfect circle template for my shield. When I went home that evening I began cutting out two pieces of cardboard that would act as the foundation of the shield.

Day Two

I then glued two pieces of cardboard together, at first it was a bit tricky because I had included just a small enough curve to give it an illusion, but the hot glue would not stick, so I opted to use crazy glue. It worked. I took my Ipad and started tracing the Celtic knots. I discovered that I could trace them onto some foam and I put that down.

In class, I used the variform to mold a half circle for the center of my shield. It is lightweight and easy to use. When I got home I marked one-inch sections along the bottom for when I glue it to the main part of the shield. Then I began using sculpticoat and silver tissue paper to create a smooth surface. once that was dry I cut the one-inch tabs. Once that was done I painted both sides of the cardboard black, wanting a solid base to start planning out things. I then glued flat cardboard onto the edge of my shield for a nice clean finish.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1VEWo2uEWmN0MM1hJOKvxwB34b6-tdPnL?usp=sharing

Day Three

I glued on a handle for the arm and the hand to hold on to. It was based on where I would place the four main knots. It was easy to guess where would be the most comfortable, and where I would get the most movement for it if I was on stage. I then glued the centerpiece on. Later I take it off because it is slightly off-center. On the centerpiece, I glue an inch of foam to make a spot for the chords to sit properly.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/10VEFiyEYq0G21tsF1PFw3K8SJUpNgkPU?usp=sharing

Day Four

I began cutting out more foam pieces for the knots as well as pieces for the middle marker. Once those were done I glued them down, being careful to refer to the original image. I then sculpticoated everything. Once that was dry I began painting, using colors as a way to make the foam look like metal. I layered the paint. Once that was dry I started adding more golden paint, making it shine brightly. Once that was dry I glued on the rope, painting it gold to match the rest. While that dried I began painting on the runes, careful to copy them exactly. When that dried, I flipped over the shield. I had been having issues with the handles staying on, so I used a combination of superglue, hot glue, and duck tape to secure the straps. then I sculpticated it so that once it dried there was no way that it would ever come off. I also paper-matched the handles to look like leather, using techniques that we had used in previous projects. When that dried I sealed it with the last bit of sculpticoat I had.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/18jn5xl5VKdu7MxQArSaJB89jo2vvo4f_?usp=sharing

I enjoyed this semester and learning about new ways to complete things. I also enjoyed working with various forms of thermoplastics. My favorite thermoplastic would have to be viraform. I feel like I have a lot more to learn about it. I also love scultpicoat. It is so cool that it turns into plastic when dry.

Posted in: Uncategorized

Varaform Headpiece

April 7, 2023 8:22 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Day One

We began with receiving an animal mask, foam headpiece, and instruction to build up the back of the mask by using newspaper and tape or anything that would be able to form a proper back of the headpiece. The mask that I received was the Lion mask. When I got home that evening I began crumpling newspaper into different-sized balls in order to build up the back of the head. I made sure to add enough padding that it did not abruptly stop or not be flush with the mask.

Day Two

When going into class for the second day, I realized that what I had built was not big enough to flow nicely from the mask to the back of the head. So I continued to stuff and ducktape the headform until I became satisfied with the size and shape. Once satisfied, I began wrapping the head form in plastic wrap, preventing the Varaform from sticking. The sad thing is that between the duct tape and the plastic wrap, the more minor details of the mask were lost, such as the grain of the hair and the details of the mouth and eyes. it all felt very smooth. Then I began adding varaform, starting the beginnings of the headpiece. Once the back had cooled and became solid, I cut it down the middle so I could remove the basic head shape. I did not do the ears the same day because if I had it would have become stuff and even more difficult to remove. I found that when removing the varaform that even though I had used plastic wrap it had still been a bit difficult to remove, the head had shrunk in some areas. But I was able to remove it easily once I cut from the center back to where the ears would sit, forming a massive Y cut.

Day Three

I got a pot of boiling water and began working on forming the ears. It was a bit difficult because I had a specific idea of how to form the shape, but the plastic wrap that I had used had the ears flair out a bit. I had to press hard against the ear to get the proper shape. Once that was done, I carefully removed the ears and dipped the edges into the hot water, and quickly placed them on the main head form. Then I took the varaform and smoothed out the edges around the neck and center back so that the actor will not get scratched on the sharp plastic. Then I began sculpticoating the form, doing a paper mache technique to get a smooth surface to paint on later.

Day Four

When I got to the classroom I continued to paper mache the surface, making sure to leave space to see out of the mask. I continued to cover the mask throughout the class, leaving it to dry for the rest of the day. Once I got home I began painting. I grabbed a large variety of paints, reds, yellows, golds, oranges, silver, white, and my clear acrylic paint. I started off with a silvery-white base to cover the darker parts of the newspaper. To dry things a bit quicker I grabbed a hair dryer and made sure each paint layer was dry before continuing on. I noticed that if I held the dryer in one spot for too long the Varaform would begin to soften really quickly, so I had to keep the hot air moving as to not ruin the integrity of the piece. I added details of the mouth, using dark red and then using black to make it look similar to the image of a real Lion. I tried to mimic the yellow-gold eyes that they seemed to have, but it was quite difficult. Then I worked on trying to make the mane look nice. I layered browns, reds, golds, tans, and yellows to bring a layered look. Once that was dry I added black lines to simulate the hair direction but to also give it more textured-looking detail. finished with the painting, I added a bit of felt around the neck to make sure the actor would be comfortable. Then I absolutely covered the piece in clear acrylic to give it a nice shine. I let that sit overnight and then in the morning, I took the finished product photo.

Posted in: Blog, Varaform Headpiece

Fosshape Gorget

March 27, 2023 12:44 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Day one

We began by stretching two pieces of muslin across the dress form while pinning it into place. Using two pieces allowed us to find where the shoulder seam would sit. We cut the fabric along the next in order to get a flat curve around the shoulder and neck. Keeping the material as flat as possible allowed me to use my pencil to trace out the type of collar I wanted. I tried to go with more of a sharp tip while rounding out around the shoulders into the back. Once it was traced out, I carefully cut the muslin making a fabric pattern. I made sure to label the center front and center back on each piece.

Day Two

I took the fabric pattern pieces I made and then carefully traced out the two pieces onto the same piece of paper, making one complete pattern. I ensured that on the center front piece, I indicated that it must be cut on a fold, making a completed collar piece. I then repeated the muslin step again, but this time forming the neckpiece of the collar. Instead of cutting off the tabs made by curving the fabric, I left them so when I cut the pattern out of fosshape I would be able to fuse the two pieces together. Once I had my paper pattern I cut the pieces carefully out of fosshape. Wanting to keep it close to the shape of the fosshape I pinned it carefully, ensuring to make it as symmetrical as I could. Once I was satisfied I used the steamer, I carefully hardened the fosshape into a solid copy of the dress form in the shape of the gorget.

Day Three

Day Three was a very, very long day. I got to class super early and began working on sculpticoating the fosshape gorget. This allowed me to stiffen up the fabric a bit more than with the steam. I allowed that to dry, taking this time to trim the collar down a bit. Later I was able to begin a crumpling brown paper, getting it slightly damp and using the sculpticoat to paper mache. This was to give the collar a leathery look. I spent the rest of the time during class and then for a while later on the same day working on that. Once I got home I began painting the gorget with a mixture of browns with red undertones. this allowed me to get a nice tan. Once that dried I made fosshape loops and paper mached them to hold onto little glass bottles. while those dried I shaped out little bolts and screws for texture. I ended up baking the clay to quicken the process, once they were dry I got to painting immediately. I added a little more texture around the neck by using a leather cord I found. I took the little glass bottles I found and put different colored paints, pink, orange, blue, and purple. I added silver paint to the mixtures as well to give the liquid some shimmer once I added water. I burnt paper and made labels for my potion bottles.

Day Four

I started the day by taking an old spiral-bound notebook and took the metal spiral. I straightened it out and then carefully wrapped it around a pencil until it was tightly coiled. After that, I began gluing on findings, steampunk-inspired buttons my classmate had kindly given me. I also glued on a clasp that felt very fitting. I then slowly began putting grommets into the back of the gorget, making it easily laced and tied. The grommets will prevent damage from the leather strap used to tie it closed. Once the buttons were dry, I glued on the metal coil. It added a wonderful look to the piece. I went against painting it with a glossy top coat because I wanted the leather to look rough and worn out.

Overall I enjoyed this project very much. I put a lot of thought into what I wanted from this project. I do like working with the fosshape. It is very cool to watch it shrink when using the steamer. One mistake that I did was trying to use an iron on the fosshape. I thought if I held the iron over it with the steam on high it would work. I got bumped and my iron touched the fosshape scrap I used. It stuck to it a bit and left a tiny bit of burnt plastic on my iron. Luckily it scrubbed off easily.

Update after the original post

My younger sister wished to model for this as well.

Posted in: Blog, Fossshape Gorget

Worbla Gauntlets

March 15, 2023 2:27 AM ⋅ 63 Comments ⋅

Day One

On day one we started working on the Worbla Gauntlets. First, we took plastic wrap and taped our arms so we can get a correct measurement. After I cut it off, I roughly sketched out the correct shape based on the sketch the Designer provided. I had marked where the band would end on my arm, and used that as the center of the gauntlet. I then marked where my wrist bones began so it would rest snuggly against my arm. Then I cut out the pattern and traced out the gauntlet shape in black foam.

Day Two

On day two I traced out the gauntlet shape on Worbla, it was a bit hard to cut, but once I did I began using a heat gun to mold the thermoplastic to the foam. The goal was to make them as identical as I could, it was difficult to get them to match. One gauntlet’s worbla began to bubble a bit because I kept trying to get the perfect rounded shape, but I ended up stopping to prevent the worbla from burning. I then used a metal skewer to poke six holes, three on each side of the gauntlets. This was to allow me to lace them tightly to my forearms. I left them to cool, and later on, in the day I can back and painted two layers of black acrylic paint as a base coat.

Day Three

On day three I came in and applied a thick layer of sculpticoat on the inside of the gauntlet so it would be a bit stiffer. As I let that dry I started attempting to sculpt a lion’s head out of Crayola air-dry clay. It was really interesting and quite fun. It was really light and flexible, allowing me to gently place it on the gauntlets as I went to ensure that they were proportional. I even discovered I could cut the clay so I could have sharp pieces of main for the lion to add some contrast to the ground shape of the gauntlet. I then rolled out six half circles to keep close to the design provided. once that was done, I took the piece of worbla we had been given the first day of class and painted it black, then I tested the different silver paints I had so I could figure out which one best suited the project.

Day Four

I took silver trim and went along the top and bottom of the gauntlet. At first, I only used one piece, but it felt a bit too small for the proportions, so I decided to try doubling it up. I really was worried about it looking odd, but I ended up loving it. Then I cut out the flower from some lace I had found, I wanted to add a bit of texture under the lion, the image we had been given looked very busy and like there was more detail underneath the lion’s head. I figured it would be a nice texture contrast. I made sure to use just enough sculpticoat to keep the fabric texture. While that died I began painting the lion heads and half circles a really shiny silver. Once those were set to the side to dry, I began painting over the silver trim to match, I really liked how it changed the texture, but still had a nice shine. I then paused for a bit to allow everything to dry fully.

I then began painting the lace the same silver as everything else. Once that was dry I then began hot-gluing the lion head and circles to the gauntlet. Once everything cooled again, I took the same pattern I used for the foam and cut out some pieces of felt for the inside so it would be soft and comfortable. I then put a thin layer of glossy top coat onto the black portion of the gauntlet, leaving the other paint open to give a different textured effect. I used some bead chords to lace them and once they were a bit tighter they didn’t move at all. They felt very comfortable, and not too heavy or bulky. I think I met the assignment by using worbla successfully, and I learned that I enjoyed using this over the wonderflex. I think it was easier to handle and I liked the texture of this more when cooled. It held onto the acrylic paint better. I did notice that the hot-glue softened it a bit so I had to be more careful when pressing to make the trim more flush. I do think that the lion heads look a bit cartooney, but for working with this type of clay for the first time, I am proud of myself. I also like working with silver paint a bit more than gold, the shine is quite satisfying.

Posted in: Uncategorized

Wonderflex Crown

February 24, 2023 2:26 AM ⋅ 3 Comments ⋅

On the first day, We got instructions on how to build this project. Foam, wonderflex, and whatever means allowed us to get as close as possible to the finished project. The first step was to get the circumference of our heads, then on brown paper block out a rectangle that was three inches tall and for me personally was around twenty-five and seven eights long. then once that was traced out, I cut it out and placed slits every inch and a half. this allowed me to find the correct curve that matched the designer’s desired design. I then measured out a quarter of an inch and tried to see if that set the crown at the correct angle from the head, it was a bit too far. So I took the advice from a classmate, Lucifer, and took the space down to an eighth of an inch. It then allowed for the correct angle away from the head, making it closer to the intended design.

I then went home and took sheets of black foam and used the template I had made in class to cut out pieces that allowed for the proper shape. I ended up using pins to help me hold the paper to the foam. It amused me a bit because it felt a bit like cheating. Once I had the pieces cut out, I used hot glue to stick them all together. I had been worried while gluing because it didn’t seem to hold at first, but luckily for me, it did. I wanted to keep the crown smooth looking, so I layered hot glue to smooth out the edges. I waited until it cooled enough to smooth out the glue, creating a nice flush look. while the glue cooled, I took a screenshot of the design and zoomed in on the spires. I then traced the outline of the spire, giving me a template to trace onto the paper and then cut out of foam. I was able to make four copies of the spire, insuring a uniform look. Once the glue was cooled on the crown I had my younger sister put it on so I could check to see if the angle and size seemed fitting, it did.

She contents to having her images being used for this project. She thinks that theatre is amazing and takes a lot of work.

The next step was to put wonderflex onto the foam. I had missed class due to an illness so I had to find an alternative way of putting the wonderflex onto the foam so I wasn’t behind in class. So I double-checked with instructions on how to apply it and found that if I got water hot enough I could do the same thing as if I had done with a heat gun. In all honesty, I burned my fingers a bit and it is far less effective than using a heat gun. It took way more time than it probably should have. I also put the crown into the freezer between adding sections of wonderflex in order to speed up the process as it was quite late at night when I did this. Unfortunately for me I only had grabbed enough wonderflex to do the base of the crown, so the next day in class I used a heat gun to apply wonderflex to my spires. Then I went home with some felt, hot glued that to the back of the spires, and then I marked out where each spire should sit, and then hot glued the spires to the base of the crown. Once that was done I began adding texture to the crown. when that was done I took sculpticoat and ensured to put a decent layer of that on everything, but making sure to not put too much to lose the textures given by the trim.

The next day I painted the base coat with matt black paint. once that was dry I began layering on different gold paints, antique gold, 24-carat gold paint, and brilliant gold paint. the three golds created an interesting look. making it feel aged but also still very pretty and regal. Once that was dried I put on a thick glossy top coat of paint to give the crown a bit of extra shine. In the end, I feel like I did as best I could. If I could do anything differently I would have gotten thinner sheets of foam, with how thick the foam is as well as the weight of the wonderflex it is a bit heavy with everything added together. But in the end, I am proud of the work I did because I gave it my all and learned how to work with wonderflex in different ways.

Posted in: Wonderflex Crown

Day Five of Crown Project

February 13, 2023 4:23 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

I was able to take the time to carefully plan where the majority of the embellishments went on. I carefully hot-glued them down in their selected spots. At first, I thought that the colors were a bit much for the gold that I had chosen, but as time went on I grew to really love how it turned out. Between the real crystal beads to the little plastic sticky pearls I placed, each added an element to the crown. Once the gems were glued down and safely secured, I began to attach the cap to the crown. At first, it seemed fine to use the hot glue, but it had issues holding onto the plastic and paint. So I turned to using Krazy glue. I ensured that there weren’t any spots soaked through the fabric and that it did not have an obnoxious odor. I then skulpticoated the plastic pearls and beads that I worried about falling off, I needed that extra bit of protection if it was to be worn by an Actor, hypothetically. By the time the crown was done my youngest sister had come in to check in on my progress. She was very willing to model the finished project.

Posted in: Crown Project

Day Four of Crown Project

February 13, 2023 4:03 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

This day I spent time looking through things around the house and collected some crystal beads and findings that my mother and I have collected for a while. They added lots of texture and shine to the crown as well as a weight that makes the crown feel very solid. Once that was gathered, I began working on a pellon and fake crushed velvet dome for the inside of the crown. First I measured out the inside of the crown, then added 5/8″ of a seam allowance, giving me plenty of room to manipulate the hat into a circular shape. I repeated the process twice with the crushed velvet, creating a soft look.

Posted in: Crown Project, Uncategorized

Day Three of Crown Project

February 13, 2023 3:53 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

I went out and found a nice medium gloss clear acrylic paint at the store. I was a bit worried at first about what if it did not fully dry clearly or if it would interact weirdly with the other paint, but my worries did not live long. After testing it out on the inside of my crown, I found that it actually had a nice shine to it when dry and added a clearness to the metallic paint. In my opinion, it truly looked like a metal crown. I painted the entire crown and went to bed, and when I woke up I found that it had dried evenly and clearly.

Posted in: Crown Project

Day Two of Crown Project

February 13, 2023 3:39 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

The next step I took was layering different shades of metallic gold acrylic paints. It added a really interesting aged look between the different shades and the black base coat. As I layered the paint using a sponge brush I noticed that after a while there was already a metallic sheen to the crown, it was very exciting as I was seeing the tutorial paying off. I took a break and allowed those layers of paint to dry. While I waited for that to dry, I decided to test out different glossy finishing acrylic paints on my little plastic bottle.

Posted in: Crown Project

Day One

February 13, 2023 3:30 AM ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

On the first day of working on the crown, I took the base plastic crown and began sketching ideas. I knew that the color purple had initially been reserved for those of royal status and wanted to incorporate that because aside from having an exciting history, it is also my favorite color. The Designer had provided many different images for me to draw inspiration from, and I had chosen three that I felt were both exciting but had a depth to them that was enchanting.

I first took the crown and popped out the plastic gems that surrounded the crown. then I took some Skulpticoat and strips of muslin and secured the back where the crown joined together. I immensely enjoyed using the skulpicoat because it adds great strength to the plastic, making it feel not so frail. Then, I added plastic beads that were shaped like flat circles, adding a bit more texture. I then followed a tutorial on how to make something look like a realistic gold crown. I tested this step by step on a plastic bottle where I keep plastic bands. The first step was to paint the crown black. Once that was completed I stopped there for the day.

Posted in: Crown Project
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