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Most Recent Posts Genesis ColorsPosted Mar-28-09 18:44:03 PDT Updated Apr-20-09 11:39:17 PDT Genesis Artist Colors / Color Chart
Genesis Heat-Set Paints Info and InstructionsPosted Mar-28-09 17:00:38 PDT Updated Mar-28-09 17:04:31 PDT Genesis® Artist Colors Not Oil or Acrylic Genesis® Artist Colors are a new paint chemistry, called "Heat Set Artist Oils." Genesis is an artist quality fine-art paint that is ready to apply without repeated pre-mixing and will not dry until you are ready; then it dries very quickly. Genesis® Artist Colors offer fine control in mixing, blending and application, and can be worked in many states without the addition of mediums. They are very similar to oil paints in feel, opacity and translucence. We encourage you to experiment with your style to achieve the desired effect. Genesis® Artist Colors stay wet until heated, making them more convenient than oils or acrylics. The paint will not dry when left in the open on a non-porous surface. It is important to use a glass or other non-porous surface such as china, polished marble or porcelain for your palette. Other paints have very different chemistries from Genesis® Artist Colors. Do not mix Genesis® Artist Colors with other oils or acrylics because the results are unpredictable. Since Genesis® Artist Colors do not air dry, you do not have to clean your brushes even if you will not get back to painting for days, weeks or even months. When cleaning brushes for quick color changes, simply wipe off excess paint, swirl in rubbing alcohol, wipe and repeat. The alcohol quickly cleans and evaporates out of the cleaned brush. You may also clean brushes by using warm water and soap, such as Dawn® dishwashing detergent. Dry your brushes thoroughly after cleaning. While Genesis® Artist Colors can be thinned or cleaned with solvents commonly used with oil paints such as paint thinner, turpenoid and mineral spirits, these solvents are not necessary. Most artists prefer rubbing alcohol or non-toxic Genesis Thinning Medium. Genesis® Art Colors are not water soluble. Certified Non-Toxic Genesis® Artist Colors are certified nontoxic and conform to ASTM D-4236. They are certified in a program of toxicological evaluation by a medical expert to contain no material in sufficient quantities to be toxic or injurious to humans or to cause acute or chronic health problems. Background Oil colors have been available to artists for five centuries. Recent decades brought the advent of acrylics and alkyds. Watercolors evolved from temporary weak paints to having longevity never before dreamed possible. The latest advancement is Genesis® Artist Colors Heat Set Artist Oils. Developed and patented by professional artists, Genesis® Artist Colors offer the look and feel of traditional oils without the drying time restrictions, toxicity and odor. Genesis® Artist Colors contain a heat activated curing agent that allows for on-demand drying. However, since they are a completely new medium, in spite of the similarities to regular oils, they also have special characteristics of which the artist can take advantage. One of the characteristics of Genesis® Artist Colors is that they are thixotropic, therefore although they may be thick and like stiff paste in the jar, it only takes a little stirring or mixing with the spatula, for them to become soft and malleable. Application by spatula or brush is done very easily at this point, even when using the impasto, thick application technique. This painting technique can be used without having to add any thinning or other mediums. Thin coats of Genesis® Artist Colors are also possible by using the paint straight from the jar. The advantage that Genesis® Artist Colors have when working in thin overlapping layers is that you can dry the painting between layers, thus application can go on smoothly without pulling off the pre-painted surface or intermixing with it. In case of regular oil, you would have to wait until the first layer is dry before continuing the painting, which would take time. Because Genesis® Artist paint does not dry on its own, it tends to force you into cleaner work habits. One good method is to use paper towels to wipe the brush while working, then dispose of the dirty towel often. A rag is not practical to use with Genesis® Artist Colors because it will transfer the wet paints to your hands, clothes and eventually to things around you. Transparent washes can be achieved by tinting the Thick Medium. Thick Medium gives you a good layer of paint and the transparency that you need. If you like to paint with a thinner consistency, you can add a small amount of Thinning or Glazing Mediums. These mediums are very efficient so additions must be very small. Genesis Mediums Artists have always added various mediums to enhance control of drying as well as the handling characteristics of their paint. With Genesis® Artist Colors, you will find less need to adjust. They have excellent body, offer fine control in mixing, blending and application, can be worked in many states without the addition of medium and have a thick, rich consistency. Try working Genesis® Artist Colors with your brush or palette knife. Notice how the paint becomes more buttery and smooth? Left alone for a time on a non-porous surface (such as glass), the paint will return to its original, thixotropic state–without having dried. Thinning Genesis Thinning Medium or Genesis Glazing Medium are recommended. When adding Genesis Mediums to thin, use just a very little at a time on the palette–it’s very efficient! Adding a Genesis thinning or glazing medium permanently thins the paint. Using Oil Solvents Thinning with a small amount of an oil solvent will not permanently thin the paint, as the paint will return to its original state as the solvent evaporates off. This process should be tried by professionals only. Varnishes You don’t need to varnish a Genesis painting for protection. Do not use any oil varnish. If you must use a varnish, use an acrylic varnish that is compatible with Genesis® Artist Colors. Test the varnish that you choose before using it on a finished painting. Genesis® Colors and Pigments At the dark end of the spectrum, Genesis® Artist Colors are made with pure pigments. Generally, lighter values are more opaque to ensure their covering power. To obtain the light values, a specially blended white is added to a pure color. Choosing a Substrate Always ensure that the surface on which you are painting can withstand the drying temperature you will be using. Some painting techniques will require several layers be dried, and the substrate must withstand the number of heatings you will use. Test heat stability over multiple drying sessions. Certain substrates that might release moisture when heated should be pre-dried as the moisture may result in bubbling and poor adhesion. Choosing a Drying System Genesis® Artist Colors are the only fine art paint that offer a true solution to the problem of drying your paint. Unlike other paints, you do not have to decide in advance when you will want the paint to dry. You can dry it whenever you are ready. You will want to decide how you are going to dry your painting before you begin. In deciding how to dry your painting, consider 1) the sizes of your work; 2) the thickness of paint you are using; and 3) the substrate surfaces upon which you are painting. Whatever heat source you choose, you must be able to heat the paint and substrate to at least 250ºF/121ºC and not exceed 280ºF/138ºC. Heat guns such as the Genesis Drying Gun are ideal for drying small areas or only part of a painting. If your painting is a size that will fit into your oven, this may be your best choice. If an oven is not convenient or you would rather dry your paintings where you are working, drying boxes or radiant heat sources are recommended. After you have chosen a drying method, two considerations affect the complete curing of your painting: time and temperature. Experiment before starting a painting. You will quickly find the drying method best suited to the style and size of the painting you want to complete. Always ensure you are using a heating method that will get the painting to a temperature of at least 250ºF/121ºC but not exceed 280ºF/138ºC. Depending on the thickness of your paint and the nature of your substrate, you will want to dry your paint for 15 minutes for the first thickness up to 1/4 inch, and dry another 15 minutes for each additional 1/4 inch. The required temperature can be achieved by any method that heats the paint to 250ºF/121ºC-280ºF/138ºC and maintains the heat long enough for the thickness of the paint to be penetrated. Drying Characteristics of Genesis® Artist Colors With practice, you will very quickly get to know the characteristics of Genesis® Artist Colors and heat setting will become second nature. Genesis® Artist Colors utilize a non-drying synthetic oily liquid, imbedded with a heat sensitive curing agent. Genesis® Artist Colors stay wet until heated enough to activate the curing agent. After the drying temperature is reached, Genesis® Artist Colors dry immediately. For thin layers this means very fast times–as little as two minutes. For thicker impastos, longer times are needed for the heat to thoroughly penetrate the paint. Genesis® Artist Colors require adequate drying time and temperature to deliver the flexibility and resiliency necessary for the longevity of your work. Remember to dry the paint long enough for the heat to fully penetrate the depth you have applied. While it is possible to damage Genesis® Artist Colors by overheating, it is easy to prevent by keeping the heat source at least one inch away from the paint. The drying process is not reversible. After Genesis is dry, it should not be dissolved. Drying Characteristics To dry fully, Genesis® Artist Colors the temperature must reach 250°F/121°C to 280°F/138°C for several minutes. Bringing the paint to this temperature without overheating is important. The Genesis Drying Gun has adjustable temperature settings appropriate for working with the paint. Keep the gun an inch or more away from the canvas to prevent scorching the paint or canvas. Genesis® Artist Colors dry better at the recommended temperature range applied for a longer time rather than through extreme heat brought to bear quickly. If you see smoke or fumes coming off the canvas or notice small bubbles forming in the paint, you are overheating. If you do happen to overheat the paint, ventilate your work area and use less heat either by lowering the gun temperature or by holding the drying gun further away from yo ur work. With a little practice, you will also learn to dry an isolated area so that you can try a change in color or add a detail. With the underlying area now dry, new work can be wiped off and tried again until you are satisfied. If you paint in thick layers or impastos, experiment drying different amounts of Genesis® Artist Colors and breaking them open once they have fully cooled. If they break open easily and have a dry, cracked texture, the paint did not dry long enough for the heat to penetrate or dried at too low a temperature. This is easily resolved by expanding the heating time, and in some cases, by increasing the temperature applied. After you have heated Genesis® Artist Colors, allow a few minutes for cooling before applying the next layer. After a few minutes of cooling, the paint becomes firm yet still quite flexible. About the Genesis Drying Gun The Genesis Drying Gun was designed to be lightweight and comfortable to use, while delivering an appropriate heat range for drying Genesis® Artist Colors. It is not a hair dryer! If you choose to use other "heat guns," be careful not to overheat the paint. Most high-powered heat guns will destroy any paint if brought too close. Hair dryers, on the other hand, have too little heat to bring Genesis® Artist Colors to full drying temperature. Read the Genesis Drying Gun instructions completely before using. Following the instructions and experimenting on trial samples acquaints you with how Genesis® Artist Colors dry. This helps you avoid damaging your work later. Larger Paintings For larger paintings, use the convenient "full-canvas’’ (24" x 24") Genesis Drying Box or dry smaller sections of work with the Drying Gun as you go. Many artists find success drying their works for several minutes in a kitchen oven set between 250°F/121°C and 280°F/138°C. Set the painting on a cookie sheet to avoid getting paint on the inside of the oven. For larger surfaces, explore drying with a radiant heater. Oven Method Preheated Oven If you are working on surfaces that fit into a kitchen oven (approximately 16" x 18"), you should buy an oven thermometer to check the accuracy of your oven. Test the oven by turning it on and finding how long it takes to get to the desired temperature. Notice whether the thermometer temperature matches the setting on the oven dial and adjust as necessary. Because oven temperatures vary, do not leave your painting unattended. Preheat the oven to 265°F/129°C. Place your painting on a cookie sheet slightly larger than your frame. You may choose to place some small spacers between the cookie sheet and the painting to allow heat to circulate. Leave the painting in the oven for at least 10 to 15 minutes, and allow longer time for thicker works. Remove your painting from the oven and allow it to cool fully before handling or overpainting. Never use the broiler to dry, as it is very likely to burn the paint and/or substrate. Cold Oven The cold-start method brings the temperature up slowly. Place the painting on a cookie sheet for easier handling. You might want to place spacers under it to allow heat to flow more freely to the back. Put the cookie sheet with the painting on it on the oven rack at about mid-height in the oven. Close the door and set the temperature to approximately 265°F/129°C. Allow time for the oven to reach 265°F/129°C and leave the painting in for an additional period of at least 10 to 15 minutes (longer for thicker applications). Do not exceed 280°F/138°C. Radiant Heat Paint and dry at least three small paintings before attempting a large canvas using radiant heat. This familiarizes you with the visuals of drying and helps you gain an understanding of drying speed. Radiant heaters are readily available in hardware stores and in many general and department stores. They are also available through the Internet and mail-order catalogs. Some radiant heaters have fans to help move the air. Fans might blow dust on to your painting and must be cleaned frequently. Generally, the heaters have at least two settings. The lower one is generally about half the heat of the higher one. Experiment with the heater you choose. We have found several that work very well when placed between one and two feet away from the painted surface. Because radiant heat can overheat a painting, it is very important to attend to the heating process. • Time has no bearing on your application. When you have completely blocked in your painting or large section, you can chose to dry this layer. • With the radiant heater, make large slow passes over the area to be dried in either a vertical or horizontal motion. You’ll see the paint dry as you go. • After the painting dries completely, you can continue to paint. • Finish painting by using the heat gun to spot dry. • For added confidence in the finished work, some artists use radiant heat as a final dry. Drying with a Toaster Oven For small paintings, a toaster oven is very efficient to use. Place the painting in the oven and set the oven at 225ºF/107ºC. Heat for five to 15 minutes, canvas board and gesso board will dry evenly over the whole surface. If you are drying a stretched canvas, make sure the edges are dry. Because of the wooden frame, the edges may take longer to heat. Always place the paintings on the wire rack to help heat circulation. Drying Box Drying boxes are excellent because air circulates inside the box and produces an ambient heat. Current models of drying boxes hold paintings as large as 24"x 24". Place the painting on stilts or put four pieces of wood on the corners. This helps circulate the heat underneath the painting. Set the heat and fan on high. Heat for 15 to 20 minutes. When drying a large painting, make sure the substrate will withstand the heat. Use good quality canvas board with a strong backing. Some canvas board withstands the heat, but tends to buckle or twist when a large piece is heated. Gesso hard board, made of a hard masonite support and stretched canvas, works very well. Because of the hot air circulation, stretched canvas will dry evenly even where the canvas covers the wooden frame. Adhesive thermometers can be used to measure the temperature of your painting when you are drying with any source of heat. By sticking these on to the back of your canvas, you can be sure the proper temperature is achieved. More dense surfaces might require experimentation to find the best position of temperature indicators. One source of non-reversible temperature indicators is: Paper Thermometer Company, P.O. Box 129, Greenfield, NH 03047. These non-reusable strips change color to indicate the temperature reached. They can be used several times by taking the temperature to 250ºF/121ºC during the first heating, to260ºF/127ºC during the second heating, and so on. Some artists also cut the strips in half to use them twice. A useful range is the TL-8-250 that measures temperatures between 250ºF/121ºC and 320ºF/160ºC, or Set No. 4 that measures between 240ºF/116ºC and 280ºF/138ºC. Storage Store Genesis® Artist Colors away from heat sources. Do not store in the trunk of a car or in places where temperatures could reach 100°F/38°C or greater for a sustained period of time. Palettes and Work Surfaces Genesis® Artist Colors won’t dry when left in the open on a non-porous surface. Use a glass or other non-porous surface such as china, polished marble or porcelain for your palette. The recommended mixing surface is 1/4-inch glass. Some of the ingredients in Genesis® Artist Colors have an affinity for wax and plastic and will migrate into these or other porous surfaces such as wood, leaving the pigment dry and difficult to work. If this happens, remedy by adding Genesis Thinning Medium or Genesis Glazing Medium. After mixing a color you like, you don’t need to keep air away to prevent drying, although you should protect it from dust as you would any wet paint. Use clean glass jars for this. Do not cover Genesis® Artist Colors with plastic wraps because some of the ingredients may migrate from the paint to the plastic if they touch. Using Other Mediums with Genesis Mixing Genesis® Artist Colors with solvents commonly used for oil paints is not recommended. However, if you use solvents, remember to protect yourself and follow the directions including the use of protective clothing such as gloves. Genesis® Artist Colors are not water soluble for mixing and thinning. This is important, so we repeat: Genesis® Artist Colors are not intended to be mixed with other paints such as oils or acrylics or with water. Other mediums have a very different chemistry than Genesis® Artist Colors and results can be unpredictable. Preparing a Surface Other Than Canvas Try Genesis® Artist Colors on various surfaces! For best results, prepare the surface with acrylic gesso and roughen the primed surface with 200- to 300-grit sandpaper. Use any surface that you would use for oil paint. However, make certain to prime with an acrylic gesso. A rabbit-skin glue sizing is not satisfactory. Do not use any unprimed or porous surface. Safe Handling Practices • Avoid contact with eyes. • Wash hands after use. For further information or a Material Safety Data Sheet, please write to Genesis® Artist Colors International, 4717 W. 16th St., Indianapolis, IN 46222 or call 800-374-1600.
Morezmore WIP#22: Rusalka (Part 4)Posted Mar-08-09 06:19:16 PDT Updated Mar-11-09 06:10:48 PDT Morezmore WIP #22: ******************************************************************************* Good morning! What I have right now is the concept and the base. What I need to make - Rusalka herself. The old sculpt did not make it, I decided to redo her from scratch. So, to recap - here is the concept: Rusalka (plural rusalki) - are Russian water fairies. Sometimes "rusalka" is translated as "mermaid" but it is not quite the same thing. Russian rusalki don't have a fish tail like mermaid, but two lovely legs and feet, just like humans. They appear as young girls and young women - lovely, pale, lithe, with gorgeous bodies and flashing eyes. They have long green hair, worn loose. The hair is always moist. They have pleasing voices and musical laughs. They wear water lilies in the hair. They mostly appear in the nude or decorated with wet water weeds or wearing a long white cotton shirt - wet and clinging to the body. No man is able to resist the smiles of rusalki. But if he dares to come close to a rusalki gathering near the water and attempts to peep at those gorgeous bodies through the grass, he is in mortal danger as he risks to be discovered, pulled into the circle, undressed and tickled to death or drawned.
The base - you can see how it was made in the previous parts of this work in progress: The armature is one of my 8" Morezmore Modular Brickhouse Armatures, so that part is done. For the detailed information what it is - please see here: To be continued - thank you for watching! :) ******************************************************************************* Good morning! Here is the armature covered with magic sculpt going into the oven for 10 minutes to expedite the curing of magic sculpt. It will cure at room temp within 12 hours, but by heating it to about 200 degrees F will cure it within minutes. In order to make the clay of the head sit securily on the head module - to prevent it from sliding to and fro - here is something that I like to do - wire, then magic sculpt "knob".
And here is the beginning of the face. It usually takes me several attempts to make a face I can live with, this is the first attempt, maybe I can do it without folding it down again and again. I am out of time, will continue tomorrow - thank you for watching!
******************************************************************************* Still making the head - making and folding down, making and folding down - but that is normal for me. Meanwhile, nothing to show, other than that I am still sculpting :) Need to start my working day - better luck tomorrow. ******************************************************************************* Morezmore Ebay Seller won over Morezmore Artist this morning. Yesterday was pretty much all packing and shipping as everybody decided to check out at once and I want to stand by my secret commitment to ship within 24 hours, so 40 packages need to be put together. Also the glass eyes arrived from Germany, need to be sorted/matched and listed, silk gauze arrived from China, need to be packaged and listed, 4 more colors of Tibetan Lamb is on its way. Too anxious to sit down and relax in sculpting. Too much nervous energy - I need to switch my daily Glenn Harrold's hypnotherapy sessions from Think Positive one to Inner Peace and Calm. I love those sessions - first of all, it is an excuse to just lay down for 30 minutes and rest! But more than anything, they do such a beautiful job on my head. Like a nice warm bubble bath for my poor harried mind. thank you for watching, talk to you tomorrow! Quick Links to All Work in Progress BlogsPosted Nov-14-08 06:58:11 PST Updated Nov-16-08 04:07:59 PST
![]() Create your own visitor map! International Art Doll RegistryPosted Nov-03-08 03:26:44 PST Updated Feb-04-09 07:41:20 PST International Art Doll Registry is now open. http://www.international-art-doll-registry.com Become a member of IADR to:
***************************************************** New Featured Tutorial! Eneida Rosa of Fairies and Dreams created a mermaid tail tutorial just for us! You're going to love this tut! Eneida is a talented OOAK artist from Spain. ***************************************************** Enter the Bambino Romanzo Show thru Jan 31!
Rules Current prize box value is $175.40 and counting! It's January 20th and there are no contestants for the Bambino Romanzo Show! You still have plenty of time to get your project entered. Deadline is midnight Jan 31 (EST). We have a fantastic prize pack. We still have some things coming in the mail and the final value will be over $200! The winner will also be featured in the IADR 2010 Calendar and the Bambino show page will be featured on the site indefinitely. It's a great way to promote your art! Your entry must new and unsold but you may list it concurrently on ebay. Bambino Romanzo includes all fairytales, nursery rhymes, storybook characters, etc. Don't miss out on an opportunity to win this prize pack! Next month's show is Critters. 2009 Schedule
***************************************************** February's Show "Critters" is now in Progress! Come see the Show!
Sleeping with GlennPosted Oct-28-08 14:51:03 PDT Updated Nov-04-08 08:15:34 PST Sleeping with Glenn ******************************************************************* Step by step 1. Build the person in the business - fill up my personal power cup Now, how does one do that? - Well, one has to stop thinking bad thoughts obviously. That is all very well, but what if I cannot stop? Little Confused Terrified Distrustful Caged Animal There are different ways to re-program one's own mind it and I just tried one of the ways. It happened to have such a perfect fit for me that I am going to stick with this one for a while. The effect was surprising after the first time and it keeps getting more and more astounding with each day. The way I am talking about I found is Glenn Harrold's hypnosis recordings. I came across him rather by accident: put the word "meditation" in the search box of my Audible.com audiobook club. Searched by best ratings, then by best-sellers, same name came on top. As I had a couple of credits on my club subscription, I got a couple of his books. "Raise Your Energy and Increase Your Motivation" and "Learn How to Think Positively" were the books. I listened and was completely blown away. The effect on me was and still is amazing, as I listen 2-3 times a day now and intend to continue this way. I also got Deep Sleep Every Night and was in love with that recording as well - on the first listening. I am going to order others - Smoking and Weight Loss and Exercise and other ones, with the exception of golf and pregnancy related, as I don't plan on those activities.
Those who know me a bit, might be able to guess - from the title of this post alone - that I am in a better mood and much closer to my own old self. Yes, big thanks to Glenn.
So, about those recordings. I started listening to them on October 19, two weeks ago. Again, I cannot put into words how helpful they are to me. I will describe my own experiences and what I learned to the best of my abilities here. This time the Internal Observer was not being helpful - trying to analyze my own feelings and sensations, as well as making distracting observations and delivering skeptical comments about hypnosis generally - little that I know of it, the speaker's voice and manner of speaking (DEEPER AND DEEPAH...), the wording of the messages and the whole idea in general. After a while, though, surprisingly fast, the Observer did shut up and let me get on with the program.
The results If it sounds like a lot, it is. I figured that, due to an incredibly stubborn, non-spiritual, materialistic-atheistic, vigilant-analyzing, skeptical, observing, questioning and doubting nature of my mind, I need bigger dozes than most people. Also, I remembered my experience learning the English language. I studied it hard for 5 years in the university in Russia. I got awesome grades and could read and write better than some native English speakers. Yet, I couldn't speak or understand the spoken word. And only when I came to USA and submerged into the language environment, my English came to life, rapidly coming to the surface and unfolding. When I arrived, I had to write what I want to say on a piece of paper and ask people to write me back. Within 3 months I was fluent. I guess it took 3 months for my unconscious mind to decide that there is no way out of this and it might as well unearth the rich deep-buried deposits of the English vocabulary and grammar collected over the period of 5 years and put it to work.
I was interrupted yesterday, so continuing... So I descend, slowly drifting down the funnel-tunnel, suspended horizontally on my back. The movement slows down and pauses at times as I listen to suggestions and then continues as Glenn counts down to the next level. I can feel myself as I experience this - from inside of my body, see the walls going up and the opening above me. I am also able to see myself from outside, just like an outside observer seeing my own body. The view alternates, and if you ever played videogames, like Tomb Raider, you know the shifting angles I am talking about. Anyway, I did find a couple of obscure scientific articles about my particular condition and the only thing I could gain from that was to feel more certain than before that the recordings will do me plenty of good. Since then I have been impelled to the conclusion that this little unexpected side effect of mine is nothing more than Mother Nature at her work. It is really very simple, if you think of it. As the stress is being lifted from my long-suffering unconscious mind, as the anxiety releases its grip, as the doom and gloom dissipates into the clear blue, here comes the bright sunshine of normal healthy human female response to a bit of sweet talk delivered in a deep voice with a sexy British accent. Particularly keeping in mind that for the last year or so I lived a simple and blameless life consisting mainly of packing and shipping. Anyway, I decided to relax [Rrrreellllaaaxxxx-x-x... :) :) ] and enjoy it. I must add one more thing - I was rather impressed - it is quite an accomplishment on the speaker's part, isn't it. Back to the tunnel
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This is the door to my own personal CONTROL ROOM. This is the place where my unconscious mind functions. Where all really important things ensuring my survival take place. Heart beat regulation, breathing, blood flow, chemical reactions, cell formation, hormone production - all of these functions are behind this door, in a secure place. All automatic, self-regulating, balanced, perfect. No need to go there and mess with them. I push the door and find myself suspended inside a VAST ENORMOUS Place - the Cosmos of my own. those are And as I get over my first overwhelming feelings, I can see more clearly that some neuron clusters are calmly glowing in blues and greens and other clusters are firing excitedly in reds and purples. You can see my (and your own) brain on the video here:
to be continued... ![]() Create your free world visitor maps Morezmore® #22: Rusalka (Part 3)Posted Aug-26-08 06:22:35 PDT Updated Sep-07-08 06:37:09 PDT Morezmore WIP #22: Day 44 (August 26, 2008) Moving along - baked and sanded. One of the arms needs to be redone as clay was not packed well enough - there were voids in the clay which became apparent after baking - so I carved that part out and will redo. The seams are result of two things - either color shift or not blending raw clay into the baked clay well enough.
Having said all that, I am still learning and this is a WIP and not a gospel. The purpose is to share what I have learned, not to tell you what to do. Your results might vary! :) Meanwhile, here is what I have:
A question came today
Answer: well, all of it - my childhood books, paintings, pictures. I thought about it after you asked - I think it helps if the artist is given one strict parameter and the rest of the parameters are open free. That chanells the creativity, instead of it being all over the place. You make Victorian dolls. How about I give you one strict parameter - see what you can come up with. The parameter is "Venetian carnaval mask". Now go to internet, type those words, click on Images (instead of Web) and let your creativity rip. :)
YEY! :) my pleasure indeed! ****************************************************************************** Well, folks, believe it or not, she is sculpted! And sanded! And coated with TLS and baked! And ready for painting/wigging/dressing! That's about time - 46th day! At the rate it is going, it might be done by Christmas! Just kidding... I would say another few days, provided everything goes smoothly. About that TLS coat (Translucent Liquid Sculpey) - I don't know if you see it - TLS coat gave the sculpt a nice soft sheen all over. TLS recommended temperature is 275 which is too high for Fimo. But in actuality, TLS hardens nicely at 240-250 for about 10-15 minutes. Translucency of TLS increases at higher temperatures - according to the instructions on the bottle, but I don't need the translucency right now - quite the opposite! - the slightly opaque matte coat that TLS has after baking at a lower temperature is much better for my purposes - it hides some imperfections. It is almost like a semi-transparent veil and creates really a nice effect over the fimo puppen. It also fills and levels out the ridges created by sanding and occasional tiny pits and other minor imperfections. 1. Locate and prepare my sculpt, genesis paints, prosculpt smoothing oil, a clean plate, brushes.
Make some darker and some lighter - it is not an exact science. Some places to consider - ears, cheeks, chin and forehead, neck, chest, tummy, buttocks, elbows, knees, hands and feet, palms of the hands and soles of the feet - they might be shaded, some darker than others and some pinkier than others. Keep another mop brush with clean oil - for blending if it helps, or just wipe the same brush on a napkin and blend. Don't forget about being subtle. Blend well - it will be easy as the whole sculpt is oily to start with. Sometimes the paint and oil mixture just sinks into crevices and does the shading/blushing job for you. I just brushed over the face and I saw that the paint went into the corners of the eyes, ears, nostrils and mouth. I happily let it stay there.
5. Carefully pick the plate and stick it into the oven. 10-15 minutes at 250 degrees will set the Genesis paint. Here is what I have now, I have to stop - makeup is tomorrow. Makeup, including eyelashes, is done and I think I overdid it again. I always tend to put on heavy makeup on my sculpts. I bet, that's the 80s in me. I am considering removing it all and starting fresh. The thing is eyelashes are done and if I remove makeup, I will need to remove them as well - all of it. Another consideration - it is all heat set and I am a bit afraid that the face is get damaged in the process. - remove all and start from scratch (results unpredictable, as paints and crystal lacquer are heat set by now) what to do, what to do - she is rather lovely right now... If I redo it - it is possible that I succumb to my perfectionism, as I was diagnosed recently with a rather severe case of perfectionism by Winslow Research Personality Assessment. HELP ME! CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO VOTE: http://www.morezmore.com/WIP.html Another thing - I already did a step-by-step on how to make eyelashes on an OOAK, so I am not going to repeat myself, but that step-by-step can be found here (scroll down to eyelashes part):
http://www.ooakdollart.com/forums/
*************************** Same day, 9 pm. This makeup dilemma was killing me, so I put the hair on her to see what happens. I don't know about you guys, but I like her! Actually, A LOT!! A rather respectable #22, in my opinion :) :) I woke up this morning, went to look at Rusalka - I still like her! So I am going to stop torturing myself and poor Rusalka and move on. That's all for today! I need to start my working day, talk to you soon! :) Morezmore® #22: Rusalka (Part 2)Posted Jul-23-08 09:35:30 PDT Updated Aug-26-08 06:27:16 PDT Morezmore WIP #22: Day 11 (July 24, 2008) Good morning! So, about that "fat suit technique" that I wanted to try (pack the clay around the armature, cut off the excess - basically carve the body out of the lump of clay). Well, I did not find it practical. My problem was that I kept losing the armature in all that clay and cut too much/too little. Perhaps, with more experience it would be something I would want to try, but for this one I returned to my old ways - "pancake technique". It is simple and very controlable, the only thing one needs to pay attention to is avoiding trapping air under the layers of clay. So I go slower and really work every pancake into the sculpt. Here is the pancake technique: - put onto the sculpt
Because it is such a large sculpt, I am going to stop bake all this clay - normally I don't, I just sculpt the whole thing. The reason for baking now is those large lumps of clay move under the pressure of my hands and I ruin the parts that are good by refining the parts that need work. The problem with this mid-way baking of course is some parts are not correct all all (too much clay). But I figured, I will be able to just shave the baked clay off with a knife, if I need to.
******************************************************************************* ******************************************************************************* 120 lbs of microbeads have arrived and another 70 lbs coming shortly - need to organize them - no time for sculpting today! ******************************************************************************* All right, need to get back to do some sculpting in the mornings. Thank you for holding on, everybody! :) the base - finally it stopped leaking and I was able to get the level where I wanted it. Here it is - pretty much done, with the exception of a clear seal all over - to keep that foam from fraying.
rusalka - I put some clay on the back and made it a bit more rounded. The head position shifted forward and I left it this way - now she is gazing down into the water, deep in her thoughts. I baked the back early this morning and started to put some clay on the front - chest area. The process is painfully slow because I am redoing each part 5-6 times. That is ok, once I get it right in my head, it will be faster with repetition - meaning future sculpts. Right now it is a fight. Anyway, here is she is as of now - not much to show, but I got to go packing, it is almost 11 am.
******************************************************************************* Both Teresa and Lou said that she appears to be rather heavy-set. I see it too, but I am not sure what I am going to do about it. Perhaps nothing, will wait until all the parts are completed. thank you very much
ps. I read your messages, dear friends, will respond tomorrow morning - I am beat tonight. love n
******************************************************************************* Well, everybody said she is too fat... Ok, I did the emergency liposuction with a scalpel all over her body. Sanding - that is a grueling process. Makes me wonder should I just start from scratch. Well, I can always do that, right? Will continue to sand and will see how it goes. Here is what I have:
******************************************************************************* All that chipping off uncovered quite a bit of void and cavities under the clay. Her back especially looked like swiss cheese. I am still working on her, more and more tempted just to trash it and start from scratch. But decided, as a matter of a scientific research, to continue a bit longer. So I excavated all the visible cavities as much as I could, washed all cuttings and sanding dust really well with soap, dried her thoroughly in the convection oven - no heat, just air blast, then brushed prosculpt oil into all the cavities, pressed little bits of clay into those holes - with all my might and rebaked. Not a bad result, I must say. The color is the same on the patchwork - thank heavens it is Fimo, I would have much harder time getting away with it if it were Prosculpt. Right now she looks like she has a huge warts all over her body, but I can see that I can sand them away and those spots blend right in. Will take pics and continue sanding and take more pics. Here is what I have before the patching: ******************************************************************************* It looks like I muddled through that impasse point - I am back on track! The patchwork job worked out great - I am quite pleased with the results. The sanding session was brutal but I am happy with what I got. I started on the feet and will (you guessed it) make another pair as I don't like this pair. But here is what I have got. Notice that the head is now in a different position - that is how it goes - I looked at it and saw that it makes a more balanced pose if I bend the neck the other way - I did not see it before but now it popped on me. Thank goodness for the modules - I really like that I can do adjustments on the fly with the positions of the head, hands and feet.
******************************************************************************* Spent the morning working on the feet. I am happy with the way it is going - I think I figured out something very helpful but I want to finish at least one foot, before I take pics :)
******************************************************************************* The week was a flurry of store-related activities, incredibly busy. But more so, it was very emotional and very exciting! The main news - we are not divorcing after all. Better than that - we are together in this relationship, in this marriage, in this business, full time (yes, both full time), completely on the same page. I cannot believe this sudden turn-around - did I rub a magic lamp somehow? But anyway, I was working a bit every morning, sometimes as little as sand for a few minutes, standing up at the my desk. Working this way, I was able to make a really nice pair of feet - the best I have ever made. I still can see that I can work yet a bit more on the shape - but definitely a great pair of feet. Thank goodness for modules - I just bake the modules, without dragging the whole sculpt into the oven each time and - thank goodness for fimo - new clay blends right into old clay - I cannot see the difference at all. Then attach and deadset the head, then sculpt neck, then final bake of the whole thing, and off to decorating!
******************************************************************************* And a little more!
******************************************************************************* The second leg is sculpted, baked and sanded. It looks all right now, but it was not easy, it took two firings to get it right - I sculpted, baked, shaved the clay off, sanded, added clay, rebaked, shave the clay off again, sanded again. Finally it looks almost right and I am going to let it go and consider it acceptable. ******************************************************************************* The hands. This morning I made the hands twice - folded down both times - just not looking right. Will continue tomorrow, ran out of my sculpting time for today. It is close to 9 am and Teresa my helper is coming shortly. I am using a mix of Puppen Fimo and Fimo Quick Mix - to give the hands a bit more flexibility and resilience to bending. The ratio is about 1.5 part of fimo puppen to 1 part of fimo quick mix. Will also make the third test hand and post the break test results. ******************************************************************************* Despite the appearance, I am working on Rusalka every day - sometimes very little - 20-30 minutes and there is not much to show, but it is moving. Anyway, here are the latest pics:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Ha! I was just looking at the pictures and suddenly I saw that the elbow is too low! Wow, did not see it all this time! ******************************************************************************* Well, I am moving along, believe it or not. Second hand was sculpted and baked, the second hand module and head module were secured with Magic Smooth. The neck and second arm were rough-sculpted. I really like that method - rough-sculpting (well, really trying to do a good job shaping, not just slapping a piece of clay and sending it to bake, but still not killing myself over details either), then baking, then refining with a scalpel and sandpaper. What I like about it - my accomplishments stay while I work on my imperfections. Anyway, here are the pictures:
Maximum length limit of the post is exceeded - moving to Part 3: http://blogs.ebay.com/morezmore/entry/Morezmore-22-Rusalka-Part-3/_W0QQidZ585978011
That's all for today! I need to start my working day, talk to you soon! :) ![]() Morezmore® #22: Rusalka (Part 1)Posted Jul-14-08 05:26:51 PDT Updated Jul-24-08 05:06:02 PDT Morezmore WIP #22: Day 1 (July 14, 2008) Good morning! It is time to pick up the clay again! While I am waiting for the Fool Muse, I decided to create Rusalka. They appear as young girls and young women - lovely, pale, lithe, with gorgeous bodies and flashing eyes. They have long green hair, worn loose. The hair is always moist. They have pleasing voices and musical laughs. They wear water lilies in the hair. They mostly appear in the nude or decorated with wet water weeds or wearing a long white cotton shirt - wet and clinging to the body. No man is able to resist the smiles of rusalki. But if he dares to come close to a rusalki gathering near the water and attempts to peep at those gorgeous bodies through the grass, he is in mortal danger as he risks to be discovered, pulled into the circle, undressed and tickled to death or drawned. I happen to have around an already made Morezmore Modular Brickhouse Armature, so that part is done. For the detailed information what it is - please see here:
******************************************************************************* Good morning. It is 8 am and I am sculpting since 6. I am making the head and it usually takes forever. So far I made and folded down 5 heads. The main problem is the inset eyes - this is my second time - first was Fortuna, and yes, it was a nightmare with her as well. So I will keep going and put the pictures when I have something worth taking pictures of. The aids that I am using in making head are pictures from the book by Andrew Loomis Andrew Loomis - Drawing The Head & Hands. It is out of print, several sites, including mine, host online copies of these incredibly useful practical books by this wonderful artist. If the above link does not work for you, you can find and download a copy here: http://www.morezmore.com/links.html These are the pictures which are in front of me right now:
Anyway, recently I watched Jack Johnson's DVD (the creator of prosculpt) on dollmaking. What he does with the head - he presets the eyes into the skull, makes sure they are aligned correctly, bakes to set them and then builds a face around it. So I decided to give it another try. I tried this method before, it was not successful - the position of the eyes was wrong to start with and my face did not work. However, I think it is possible, with practice, to set the eyes just right, and in that case, it is so so much easier to deal with the face. ******************************************************************************* I sure hope that I can improve on this particular head without starting it all over. I don't know how many heads I folded down - it is always such a struggle for me.
*******************************************************************************
Now, with the torso - I packed the clay around the skeleton - sort of making a tight fat suit. It will sit like that until tomorrow and that is a good thing - the clay inside will have time to cool off and solidify in the middle so that it has less chance to shift/move under my hands tomorrow and it is a bit easier to sculpt.
******************************************************************************* I have something to show - the base.
******************************************************************************* Thank you for watching and sorry for the hold up :) ******************************************************************************* Next step - water. The pit on my base is lined up with moss and I figured I just pour the faux water into that hole and that should look just right. I grabbed one of those 2 oz samples of Liquid Illusion Faux Water, emptied both bottles into a paper cup, stirred it well and poured it into the hole - filling it completely up. Immediately I noticed that the level is going down - I have a leak! I had thought that I sealed it rather well. Apparently, it is going down into that space between the burls and the cardboard bottom. The bottom is dry as of now, but the level of the liquid definitely went down quite a bit. Oh well, I figured, let it be. I sat it on waxed paper and left it alone. If waxed paper gets stuck to the bottom, no big deal. I am going to let it harden over the period of 24 hours and pour another 2 oz portion on top of the surface tomorrow. I think that should be just fine. Meanwhile, the moss through the water does look really nice - you can't see on these pictures, I will take a better shot next time! Here are the pictures: COMMENTS SECTION IS CLOSED AS WELL - IT IS FULL That's all for today! I need to start my working day, talk to you soon! :) Morezmore® #21: Behemoth (Part 2)Posted May-16-08 11:39:15 PDT Updated May-17-08 08:07:18 PDT Morezmore® WIP #NEXT:
******************************************************************************* During these several days I spent all my morning "sculpting" time on the Morezmore packing room - inventory, organizing and cleaning. It is almost done and I am very pleased with it. That was much needed. Here is what it looks like now:
Then just kept attaching everything with Magic Sculpt epoxy. In addition to what I already described, a couple of new little details - I love details (at the risk of overdoing it, but more is more at Morezmore). Made two candlesticks with real candles out of metal beads, metal buttons and birthday cake candles - you can see one of them on the back of the tray, and another one on the floor by the champaigne bucket.
Remembered that I used to have a bunch of tiny wooden carved chess pieces somewhere - searched for them and found the knight! Perfect! Just like in the book.
I decorated the Morezmore key with faceted iridescent glass beads and made a really cute Morezmore logo keychain:
Overall, here is what I have now - all pieces are epoxied together, the only thing that is removable is the tray, but all the pieces on the tray are attached to the tray.
Thank you for watching, ALMOST DONE! ******************************************************************************* ... 'Never, messire! ' howled the cat, crawling out with the knight in its paw. "The Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov
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