Sometimes my job allows me to meet the most interesting people. On this occasion I got to meet Clint Ludgewick.
Clint had a fairly simple request. He wanted to remake a Jawbone base for his 30inch tall Collectible He-Man Figure.
As this was a quick possibly one-off private workshop, I decided to teach Clint the joys of Super Sculpey. Clint didn’t really want to do class after class. He just wanted to learn the basics, so that he could go off and learn on his own, at his own pace.
No problem.
So, the base he wanted to create was roughly 250mm x 250mm and the tallest tooth was about 50mm.
Working at his dining table we put down some plastic and then started kneading the Super Sculpey. This product works so much better when it is a little softer, but since heat will make it cure you cannot warm it in the oven or with a heat gun like plasticine, you have to use your hands. Believe me, sometimes when there are workshops with 30 students, my hands wish there was another way..:-)
Once we got the Sculpey soft we made a perimeter of the jaw. It was at this point that we realized that we were going to have barely enough Sculpey to cover the base. This is where I was kicking myself for not bringing extra, but I couldn’t have known what he wanted, size-wise.
Regardless, I pride myself at being able to think on my feet. So, I asked Clint if he had any polystyrene (Styrofoam) and aluminium (tin) foil handy. We cut and used the foam to fill up the mass at the base and then coated it with the foil. You see, Super Sculpey only needs to cover something by about 4-6mm and if you fully cover the object you can then put it in the oven. That way you can bake it without burning what is in the middle. #winning
From that point on I taught Clint the basics of Super Sculpey and some anatomy. Also, where to find good reference and how to work with the tools.
At my last contact, Clint was still working on the He-Man base. Said that he didn’t want to rush and was just enjoying the process.
I used to think like that when I was his age. But over the past few years, I have started to feel my mortality and now…I want to do as much as I can…for as long as I can!
What about you? Do you work in Super Sculpey? What do you create?
