Crafty Girl

The original. Coat hanger wire inset into the form.

First try – There would be no way to screw this into the form

Second Try – You could glue this in. If you look at the bottom they are wide bottomed allowing swivel

The bottom of this joint is closed, making it so that it can only turn round

Nail in the top which I was supposed to notch out. The nail fell out though. This didn’t work as well as I might have hoped.

This is the piece encompassing the other joint. Have to rethink this experiment

Ball joint is not actually the right word.  I am experiementing with some form of solid joints that move fluidly but aren’t as difficult as the traditional ball joint with elastics.

My first try was to inset a hook, but I couldn’t come up with a viable connector to it.

Second was a screw, where polymer clay is molded around the head and then wiggle it around until it has the right amount of flexibility.  I realized though that while I thought it was a great idea at first (because it has its own securing method), that once the ball head is on the screw I would have trouble actually getting it to be secure inside of whatever form it would be inserted into

Third is a play on the second.  Instead of using a screw, I used a nail.  I will use some form of super glue to secure it inside the form.

Once cured, I realize that this is a partial solution.  The reason i say partial is because it has a full range of motion, meaning that whatever is attached can turn three hundred sixty degrees, up down and around.

Fourth is like the third.  The first joint will only turn radially.  The second joint enveloping the first, will turn in a limited manner hopefully, turning on a little knob on the first.  The notch is another small nail.  When it comes out I can cut the movements into it with a dremel tool.  Also to bake polymer clay onto polymer clay without it sticking I dipped it first into potato starch then formed the second piece over the first baked piece.  I am not sure how well this is going to work unless I can trim it down by a lot.  My first try is quite bulky.  Result:  Closer but not workable.

The main reason I was looking for a way around the traditional bjd is because the limbs and attachment points do not seem solid enough.  I will do a few experiements with it, but using 1/4 inch copper piping as the inner support for limbs and the like.

In a post from Mar 2, I started working with paper mache to bulk out sculpts.

Here are the results in short

Preparation

• Presoak your paper
• Don’t use anything glossy, or the outside advertising on cardboard boxes
• White paper still comes out a little gray
• Egg crates (not the styrofoam kind) just need to be wetted
• It doesn’t take a lot of paper/cardboard/etc to make a bag of paper mache

Grinding

• The more you pulp up the paper the better the final product
• Your pulp should be the consistancy of a thick mcdonalds milkshake
• If your blender is having trouble grinding, add more water
• Don’t overfill your blender/processor with water/paper
• You dont really need a separate machine besides your food blender/processor, but keep in mind, it will eventually dull your blade

Straining

• Use some sort of mesh over a pasta strainer to catch the pulp
• Lift the mesh/cheesecloth/screen and gently squeeze the water out
• Leave it pretty mushy, but so that it can hold its own shape

Bag Work

• Adding white glue will add strength to your final form.
• Put the pulp into a ziplock, and when it is almost full, add a couple of tablespoons of white glue. (for a medium sized bag)
• Leave it for a couple of days in the bag before making your forms so the glue can get everywhere.  Knead the glue into the paper as well (inside the bag)
• Make sure the bag has no air in it

Forming

• If you squeeze a lot of water out you will leave finger prints, and holds in the form
• Squeezing out less water takes longer to dry, but makes a smoother outer shape
• You can bake the forms to speed up the drying process (I wouldn’t go higher than 250-300)

Storage

• You have about 1 week to keep this in a bag before it smells weird.
• The dried forms can be kept forever, sanded and sculpted after dried

Experiements for the future

• Vegetable starch?
• White paper vs brown

In the last few days I picked up some really good, useful books.  The first one was the english translation of Yoshida Style – Sculpting Ball Jointed Dolls.  This is said to be one of the best books on the market on the subject.  It IS really good.  (I probably shouldn’t tell you that I found it at a used book store for 8 dollars .. )

This books is super detailed and I like it a lot.  I do hold an objection with it though.  I can’t confirm it until I actually make one myself modelled after this style though.  The premise of this book is that you carve the base of your doll out of styrene, then cover it in La Doll air dry clay.  In the beginning of the book however it says that this clay is a little bit brittle.  During the course of the book you eventually pull the styrene out of the doll, and leave yourself with a hollow doll.  Where does the strength come from when you eventually string your doll with elastic?  I would imagine that the joints would fracture if you did much with this doll.  This, (to me) is troubling.  I have been working out in my head where the strength comes from.

When he finishes his doll he uses an unusual ingredient, and I wonder if this is where some of the re-inforcement comes from.  They use crushed shells (into powder) mixed with gesso, paint and something else (i forget).  While the shell would be strong, I cant see it forming a cement bond because none of these ingredients form a glue (as far as I can tell).  They do use about 4-5 layers on the doll, before painting it, so perhaps?

My own idea might be that you may want to mix up casting resin rather thin, and pour it into the inside of the dolls body, and rotate, tilt etc, to coat the inside cavity.. doing this a few times for some added tensile strength.

Also this book is good for more than just the sculpting.. It has everything from eye making, hands/feet, wigging, painting, and some clothing.  It really did earn its name as one of the top books out there.

The second book I picked up was Creative Cloth Doll Collection.  (I got this for $16 from Jo-anne Fabric with a 40 percent coupon, available on their website in the mapping section, good for one item, instore or online)  While I am not necessarily into making cloth dolls, it is the body I am interested in, and as always, the process.  This book is also well worth the money you pay.  It has all sorts of patterns in it, lessons for drawing, stuffing, painting, beading, sewing, wigging, clothes making, color choices, and on and on.  This book is full color and has gorgeous photos in all states of dolls made and unmade.

Upcoming book:

A book I am really looking forward to that should be out by the end of 2013 is another ball jointed doll maker, Kori Leppart Butts.  Her Etsy shop is Here, and her Blog is Here.  She has two tutorial DVD’s out which (in my opinion) are on the expensive side.  I am sure that they would be worth getting, but I am not sure I could put out 65 dollars a piece in good conscience for them.  BUT, If I can wait.. she has a book which will be coming out at the end of the year that should cover everything.  This would be the first, english, American book on ball jointed dolls.  Believe me, material in book form is pretty rare on this subject.

If anyone has any comments or reviews on the DVD’s I would really appreciate hearing them.

Paper mache shapes and the rough file

Softer, worked over shape.

I mentioned in a previous post, something about shapes.  What I didn’t say (really understand) at the time, is the more time you spend sculpting your undershape the better off you are in the future.  I make my shapes from mulched paper and cardboard (paper mache essentially) which needs some work after it dries.

The nice thing about this stuff is you can use a rasp on it and shape it, taking out most of the lumps and bumps.  It is pretty strong as far as that goes.

This rasp was about five dollars, and it has five really rough settings on it.  If you use anything other than typical shapes (like styrofoam circles and eggs) and instead opt to make your own, this tool is well worth the money.