Friday, September 24, 2010

Fiberglass Wookiee

Since this will be my first ever attempt to make a fiberglass mold, I was expecting some "hiccups". I got them.

But now I know how this stuff works (other than reading about it - big difference for a visual thinker like me) and I can tackle further parts with more confidence and excitement.


Bondo/Resin Gel Coat


I wanted to do at least 3 layers of fiberglass but ran out of resin and had to settle with two. The photo above is the mask flipped over and I am ready to put up the clay wall for the second half of the helmet. As you can see, there is a lot of clay stuck to my fiberglass mold. It didn't demold at all. I had to clean off every inch with a solvent. It was horrible. I didn't use PVA because I thought I could get by without it, and I probably still can, but this event had made me see its value, and I think I will order some ASAP. It's a sealant that helps the mold come off easily.

I forgot to take a photo of the cured fiberglass, but I am not happy with it. It's crude. I'll post photos of the finished mold when I have them.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Wearing a burlap sack

I haven't had much to post lately, I took another week vacation and spent some time in San Antonio. However with the help of my wife (she did all the sewing for me <3 ), I now have a mesh shirt.

It's a really low shirt, it comes to the bottom of the crotch. It ends up looking like a dress with all the hair on the bottom. I think it needs to be shorter but I am not going to mess with it until I have everything latch hooked.

Click for larger image.

It's interesting to see how the colors look almost completely different in the sunlight, compared to indoors. The darker areas are a lot harder to spot in low indoor light. It's a little hard to tell, but the grey hairs come to just above my hips. It may be a little high, but I can always go back and address it later. It's bascially to meld into the dark color of the pants, to give a bit of a seamless look. Again, it may be too high, but I can adjust if necessary.
The hair is really thick! It looks like a cross between chewbacca and a stuffed burlap sack.


It's kinda sad and bloated, but I know it will thin out with a lot of grooming. I had thought about latch hooking in shorter lengths, and started to do that under the armpits, but overall I think I will stick with the longer hairs (roughly 10 inches) and groom it with my thinning shears. 

I love those things. I picked them up at Petsmart. Who knew.

Anyway, I have a lot more latch hooking and then grooming left to do.

I kept putting my mask off because I didn't want to waste materials or screw it up because I haven't tried anything like it before, but I will get on it next week! I have a little extra free time now that the kids are in school again. 
hehe

See ya, and check this out.







Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Pinky Ball


This ball is used for the ends of the Bowcaster prod. Originally I ordered them online because I couldn't find them locally.
Yesterday I found them at the same place I buy my plaster (United Art and Education). Odd.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Hair Everywhere

I'm starting to straighten and hackle all my hair.
There is hair everywhere! I have a rolling office chair that no longer rolls because of all the hair stuck in the wheels. I even found wookiee hair at my kids tae kwon do class.
I realized I didn't have enough dark hair, so I had to order another 10 packs!
With the kids starting school, my time spent working on the costume has been less than I want, but once we all get used to the new schedule, I should be able to dedicate time to work on this project. My self imposed deadline of October 10 may not happen. Time will tell.