Thread: First Time sculpting

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I am about to embark on my first serious attempt (I say serious cause I have had some success before, but not using the right materials) to sculpt a face/head for what is going to be my grave-keeper. I am going to use sculpting clay on top of a wig head that I am going to shape a little for age. (want a little more gaunt appearance) Any tips on the sculpting, especially the eyes? (not sure I want to use ping pong ball method, but will trust those with experience in the area) Thanks ahead of time for the tips.

Yea, I want to try sculpting someday.
You might check out some of Lauriebeast's threads on her sculpts. She does fantastic work!

The worst part I've found about sculpting is how addictive it is and how upset I get when I run out of material to sculpt with. I'm finding eyes to be a real challenge I'm working on a miniature of my daughter and she doesn't look too healthy lol.

If you just need a one-off, static head, forgo the clay and follow Lauriebeast's tutorial.

Ping pong balls work fine, if you want to scale the size down, use bounce balls. Typically the reason ping pong balls are use is the fact the the sculpts are usually sculpted oversize. After the molding process the final product shrinks a percentage. I'm taking about sculpting for mask making and using latex as the product. But if you are wanting to create this final piece just once, then I agree with Mr. Chicken. If you have any questions I'll help you out, as will many other members of the forum, but we can't help if you don't ask!

The worst part I've found about sculpting is how addictive it is and how upset I get when I run out of material to sculpt with. I'm finding eyes to be a real challenge I'm working on a miniature of my daughter and she doesn't look too healthy lol.

Try these. They're affordable and look realistic:



You can readily find them on ebay. Just search "eyeballs". If you want to got for absolute realism, you can get lifelike glass eyes from taxidermy suppliers.

oh I absolutely love those eyeballs!

Thanks for all the great tips. I am using the clay because I want to really work with it and see what I can do. I did look at Lauriebeast's tutorial and got a lot of info from that. it is going to be a one of a kind, but it I really want to work the clay. Those eyeballs rock!

What kind of clay are you using?
There's lots of helpful information here: http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=9757

Are you prepared to mold and cast the finished sculpture? I really think you'll have a much more enjoyable first experience if you use an air dry clay (as in the Lauriebeast tutorial), so you don't have to worry about molding and casting and sculpting all at once. Save it for the second or third head sculpt. And, really, there's no need unless you want multiple casts of your sculpt.

When you sculpt on top of a wighead, ignore all of the wighead's anatomy. It's just going to throw you off. I much prefer to sculpt on top of a skull. Also, reference, reference, reference. The most important thing you can do is to study real faces.

Originally Posted by Mr_Chicken

What kind of clay are you using?
There's lots of helpful information here: http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=9757

Are you prepared to mold and cast the finished sculpture? I really think you'll have a much more enjoyable first experience if you use an air dry clay (as in the Lauriebeast tutorial), so you don't have to worry about molding and casting and sculpting all at once. Save it for the second or third head sculpt. And, really, there's no need unless you want multiple casts of your sculpt.

When you sculpt on top of a wighead, ignore all of the wighead's anatomy. It's just going to throw you off. I much prefer to sculpt on top of a skull. Also, reference, reference, reference. The most important thing you can do is to study real faces.

I am following Lauriebeast's steps with the wig-head. I am putting celuclay down to get a base and shape on the wig head, then a layer of air dry clay for the sculpting. I do not plan on making a casting of it, at least not for now. I am using her idea for eyes, working on them right now!