Poly clay is susceptible to breakage when flying around on dragons, motorcycles, pogo sticks and brooms...
I have learned over the years to keep a few spare parts on hand.
This morning I made a few new ones.
In the first photo, you can see that I start out with a long piece of clay stretched out flat. I shape the basic hand and cut in fingers.
Then I close the arm around a handmade stand of pipe cleaner and floral tape.
After it is firmly around the base, I start shaping the hand. Roll the fingers, one at a time. That's the tricky part.
Then the attached thumb gets shaped. The hand gets posed... Sometimes it's open to hold a tool. Sometimes it's closed in a fist or maybe thumbs up.
It just depends on what kind of mood Tessie is in. I make a lot of fists...Just kidding.
The fingernails are put on last. I use a small tapestry needle. It is just the right size and shape to make the indentation.
The last step is to bake them. For Super Sculpey, it is 275 degrees. I put them in a glass dish and into the cold oven. Set the timer for 20 minutes. That is usually long enough for hands of any sort.After they come out of the oven I let them cool down in the pan.
After that they can be slipped off of the stand and are ready for use, when needed.
Usually, Tessie wants to try them on right away.
It must be handy to have spare parts available at a whim. I store them in this little red box... There is a slot for right, left and weird...Rubber gloves, for instance. The top, larger section is for broken parts to be repaired. Oops! I should have done that one while I was baking. Oh well... Next time.
We are on our way out to go to the Tucson Museum of art, downtown. There is a special exhibit of a private collection. I hear that it has a lot of famous paintings. Need to go see!
Then we are going to Café a la C'Arte for lunch. It is right next to the museum. One of the Wednesday Witches owns it. Great food! I sound like an advertisement... This is not a paid plug. I just like the restaurant. It is in an old adobe house from the 1800s.
Gotta run!
See you tomorrow.
5 comments:
Casey, is that Daisy? We need an introduction.
Phyllisa
Cool! What does Tessie's end look like so you can slip the new hand on it?
It's no secret. I have redone both Tessie's and Zar's bones on the blog at various times in the past. Her bones are also chenille stems with floral tape to cover. The ends closely resemble the pieces that you see in the photos.
Ohhh ok! I never knew that! I guess I just thought she could really use her hands being a which and all. LOL
She CAN use her hands. That's why they have to be replaced every once in a while! She is not careful, since she knows that there is always a spare waiting.
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