SKULPTOOLS NEW WEBSITE NOW UP!

PRESENTING SKULPTOOLS.COM ~ 

BRAND NEW WEBSITE! 

It's online, and will soon contain even more info on the innovative sculpting tool designs only made by SkulpTools. I'm looking forward to the opening of my new online store soon where you can order tools direct from my web site.
Check it out HERE, then tell me what you think.

The Skulptools Tool-Tinker Reveals All(most)

What Goes Into Making a SkulpTools Sculpting Tool?

 A little bit 'o this and a little 'o that...

For me, the fun is in the challenge of the project to design and make the line of new tools that I sell. I began to make my own sculpting tools in 2004 when I got frustrated with the existing tools available. My odyssey began, to find ways to make useful tools that were quite different from those already available.

What’s wrong with the tools already being made?

Most of the other tools I had found were in sets of a maybe a dozen or so. That meant that I’d have to buy all of them to get the two or three that I might use. Not very cost effective.

 Then there were those awful handles. They were either slippery round wood or noodle thin metal, which are best suited to probe cavities with, rather than sculpting. They always have some sort of sharp-tip on the other end of the useable ones, which always  got in the way.

 

The tips on these other tools may have been great for some applications, but were too large, angled wrong, too sharp or just shaped too poorly and would not effectively create the detail in my sculptures. Then there were plastic and silicone tools, with their annoying pronounced seams (from the molding process) and/or sharp edges that produced more tool marks to deal with. 

I KNEW I could do better. I knew how a tool must be shaped to create the features I wanted and once I made the first one, other ideas just started flowing, over time. I currently make 20+ unique tool designs, with more ideas coming. I also make many classic style tools such as spatulas and gouges in small sizes.

There are many steps involved in the making of these little tools.

The handles I’ve chosen to use are a totally new concept for sculpting tools and are the key ingredient that makes these tools truly unique. They combine a cushioned rubber grip and an ergonomic shape to minimize fatigue and provide a very comfortable, controllable tool. Each handle can easily accommodate two tool tips, for better economy and convenience for the artist. 

I prep shortened handles for some of my smaller tools, which alone takes about 20 minutes per handle. This shortening step produces a more agile and comfortable grip for smaller tools. 

Then there’s cutting to length and rough grinding of the tips, which often involves using a torch to heat the metal so it can be shaped without breaking. 

Then comes the four to five stages of shaping, grinding and polishing of the metal tips. This is my favorite part of the process, because it actually involves sculpting; only the medium is a metal rod, rather than clay.

And all that has to happen before the tool meets up with the handle. I prep the handle to receive the tool tip, fasten in the tip in and apply the final epoxy coat to seal out clay and other debris and to double seal the tip to the handle. Often, at this point, I do a final polishing to get the nice glossy finish that sheds clay residue, and then I clean it all up for tagging.

I've been asked many times "How long does it take for you to make one of your tools?" Well, that's a difficult thing to quantify, since I create them in stage-batches, assembly line fashion. 

For all these steps, my nearest estimate per tool is between 2 and 6 hours each, depending on the tool. Gouges and large tools take the most time to grind to shape and polish, simpler or smaller tools take much less. They probably average at least four hours for each tool.

Perhaps one day, necessity will demand that I not make tools anymore. But as long as I am able to I’ll continue to keep making my high value tools, with top quality materials built in, and with the same care and attention to detail that I use when I create my sculptures.

Featured Tools From SkulpTools...

Wire Loop Sculpting Tool Series

The Creation of the Wire Loop Cutter

            Just one of the wire loop tools in a series by SkulpTools, the Wire Loop Cutter Tool came about because I found common ribbon cutter tools were too thick, too big and clumsy and shaped all wrong to do what I wanted them to do. They seemed to make more of a mess to clean up, as far as tool marks. Other existing loop tools did not have the ability to cleanly cut away clay. They are much more suitable for larger scale work or earthen clays. Not to mention their handles aren’t all that comfortable.  So I set out to design a time-saving tool with a thin, yet smooth edge that was narrow enough to fit into really tight places. After some experimentation with other designs, I came up with this smooth wire loop tool design.

 This tool has a sharpened inside edge, and yet the polished outer edge is rounded and very smooth and strong. It will remove clay from tight spots easily, either by cutting deeply or lightly scraping the surface. Smaller and much smoother than standard ribbon cutters, this tool will make clean 1/8” wide grooves like gliding through butter. What I really love about it is that the smooth outer edge leaves almost no tool marks to clean up afterwards. 

In fact, if you turn this tool on its side, you can use the smooth wire edge to make thin grooves and fine lines and swirls in your clay. You just can’t do that with most all ribbon cutters. This Wire Loop Cutter Tool comes in the standard single tip or a dual-tip version with a rounded foot smoothing tool on the other end.

 
Then there is the Flat Loop Deep Cutter Tool. [no photo yet] One loop with two flat, thin, and very sharp outer edges, for very quick removal of a lot of clay. The beauty of this tool is that it’s very narrow, about 3/16” wide and about 1/16” thick, compared to other similar tools that are much thicker and wider. And with its ergo-comfy handle, it’s very easy to control in tight places with near-surgical precision to remove just the right amounts of clay in close. I can also make this in a smaller, thinner size of apx 1/8” wide x apx. 1/32” thick, for even tighter control.

~ Sculptures from SkulpTools Studio ~

My Own Little Piece of Mark Twain History

 A little background on Why I Sculpted Mark Twain…

Many years back, I was drawn to the writing of Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, who grew up near the Mississippi River in Hannibal, Missouri. In those days, about the most exciting thing to happen for a young boy on a given day was the arrival of the river’s big steam boats to the town docks. Every boy in town dreamt of becoming a river boat pilot, one of the highest earning and most prestigious careers of that time. While other boys dreamed, Sam Clemens acted! 

Young Sam hitched a ride on a steamboat and was later befriended by a highly regarded river boat pilot, who taught him to read the ever-changing ebbs and flows of the mighty Mississippi. Soon Sam mastered the impossible task of knowing the river like the back of his hand – literally! This greatly enriched his life experience and eventually contributed much to Mark Twain’s volume “Life on the Mississippi”.

   I would have to say, at least at this point in my life, it’s one of my favorite books, and perhaps a very close second to Twain’s entertaining, “Roughing It”. I’m attracted to how these semi-autobiographical stories capture very closely, in his own unique rich and humorous style, what every day life was like in those days in and around the Big River and out in the Wild West, where Twain later traveled with his brother. What I read gave me a better idea of what it must have been like to be living in a typical small town back then. His writing style makes you feel like you’ve stepped back in time, as if you’re right there, clearly seeing each colorful detail just as Twain is living it. He gives an idea how now-familiar small towns grew into major metropolitan cities.

 

 I found I was quickly captivated by his writing style, with its historical accounts mixed with amusing anecdotes and downright laughable situations. I LOVE his sense of humor and the way he conveys a situation, often mixed with a large dose of truth-stretching, but in a very charming and captivating way. He’s got an interesting way of down-playing his own view of himself, while writing with an author’s hubris. I was intrigued and wanted to get a better idea of his character and personality by reading more of his work and about his life story. 

WHY TWAIN?

Having only sculpted colorful critter-cartoon-character like pieces up to that point, I thought a colorful, mustachioed character like him would be fun to sculpt - or maybe at least to practice on - as my very first attempt at sculpting a real human figure in polymer clay. And so I began to “doodle” in clay, to make a six-inch tall bust of Twain, just for fun. I figured I would put it away in the back of a shelf, to look back on and laugh at later on.

I downloaded lots of photos of Twain and was even lucky enough to find some profile shots – which makes sculpting facial proportions much easier. Over the three or four months I toiled over this piece, I just felt I had to keep at it because I knew I could get a closer likeness. ARGHH! I worked a re-worked every one of his features so many times that I think I’m now more familiar with Mark Twain’s nose than even his own mother! [With apologies to Mrs. Clemens!] 

It seems like in every one of the photos of him he looks like a serious and “author-like” character. But rather than those textbook expressions, I wanted to try to capture how Twain might look if he was slightly amused; as if he was thinking of a funny story he was about to tell. I really wanted to capture a hint of “Grandpa Twain”, with a twinkle in his eye. Even with the aid of the photos, I had to use my imagination to create his smile lines and eye creases.

  

And as I progressed, somewhere in the process, I concluded that maybe it wasn’t just a practice piece after all. Yup, this one’s a keeper!

<<<<<<< >>>>>>>

For those interested in the more technical side of this piece… I made it entirely in natural colors of polymer clay, even his clothing, rather than all one color clay. I wanted the realism, and also to take on the challenge of series-baking the different layers and colors of clay. This included fashioning separate realistic looking eyes with materials at hand, which I made out of pearl-style beads. His suit is of Granitex clay and his face is of Super Sculpey, which darkened a lot while curing, and made him come out of the oven looking a little too “tanned”, even for a rugged outdoors-man like Twain! The inner core is armature wire, foil and Sculpey Ultralight clay, set onto a sturdy nail. Not real impressed with this use of the fragile Ultralight, but it was a good test, I guess.

SKULPTOOLS FEATURED TOOL:

 The V-Back Quarter Moon Sculpting Tool

This entry begins a series of featured SkulpTools

The Creation of  V-Back Quarter Moon Tool

I try to make my tool names describe - in few words, what they look like or what they do. This one has a funny name, but it seemed more descriptive than calling it “The Nifty Neato Tool”.

I first made this tool to help me very quickly create grooves and creases - without leaving tool marks - when I sculpt faces. The areas around mouth, nose and ears are particularly tricky to find a tool well suited for. I would get frustrated when my too sharp/rounded or too wide/skinny tools just didn’t give the right effect and left lots of tool marks I had to smooth over. This tool saved me a lot of time and trouble, there.

The tool is made with a low sloped back to it, as well as a gentle curve from ‘heel to toe’. The curve reaches around curves and contours of your work and quickly smooths away tool marks as it goes. The tapered, smooth tip gets into narrow spots other tools cannot. I make it in three sizes from apx. 1/16” up to 1/8”wide.

Variations on this Tool

Normally a single tip tool, the V-Back Quarter Moon Tool can also be special ordered with a round-footed smoothing burnisher on the other end.

[The dual tip version in the narrow size and the single tip medium size are currently available in my Etsy shop – see link below.]

I also have a Deep Spoon version of this tool, which is a little wider, much deeper or thicker and a bit more blunted or rounded.

What Goes into A SkulpTool 

 

With all of the tools I make, I use only quality materials and the same care and craftsmanship as when I’m sculpting. Tool tips are made of fine materials like stainless steel and polished to a high gloss finish so that your modeling medium of choice will not stick to it. 

The cushioned handle is ergo-comfy to hold and much easier to grip and control than a stick handle or a skinny metal dentist’s tool that’s better suited to probe cavities than to sculpt with!

Other Uses for this Tool

Not into sculpting faces? 

Then how 'bout:

~ Nice swirls and grooves in projects like jewelry and beads, ceramics and dozens of other types of work

~ Create motifs and patterns in your work. Just insert just the tip into their clay to create interesting triangular patterns or lines. 

It’s a really fun tool to experiment with.

Please feel free to give suggestions for new tools or adjustments to my existing ones.  I always welcome input for tools suitable for sculpting artists of all types.

This and many other SkulpTools are available from my Etsy Shop HERE

FIRST POSTING!! SKULPTOOLS TODAY UP AND RUNNING

Today I are a blogger! Wow! Who da thunk it?

As my profile states, I've been a polymer clay sculptor since 2002 and I love creating a variety of things in this material, from practical objects to whimsical characters. Many have found, as I have, that tt's extremely versatile and very user friendly for all ages. You can fashion it into anything from a tool handle to an earring, a statuette, a decorative box, a wall hanging, to well,... you get the idea.

It comes in a huge array of colors and is great for creating endless patterns, textures and motifs. And in the world of art media, polymer clay is relatively young and truly an exciting and emerging material to work in.

The more I sculpted, the more frustrated I became with sculpting tools that were available. Being the child of creative and resourceful parents, I began making things from found objects at an early age. So when necessity demanded, I put on my thinking cap to find ways to make new sculpting tools or adapt existing ones to create the effects and textures I needed in my clay piece. The biggest need I had at that time was for a tiny tool that would be very precise for creating fine details.

And so, I began to begin to commence to start putzing!.....

I glued and hammered and shaped some tips just the way I needed and VOILA! My very first sculpting tool was born! I call it my "fave tool" because it really is. And I still use it a lot, just as it is! Even after seven years of constant use it still works great! I liked it so well I made several more in other sizes.

And now, many, many tools and re-makes later, I have developed a line of around 24 different hard and soft tip style sculpting tools, which I've named SkulpTools. Among all that I make, my fave' tool still stands out as a popular classic. And it still comes in five sizes.

~~~

I've looked all over the internet and local stores at sculpting tools available far and wide and have found they fall into one of several groups:

Too skinny and slick

Too big and bulky

Too sharp or dull

Shaped all wrong for what's needed

CAN ANYBODY ELSE OUT THERE RELATE TO THAT?

I soon found that I'm not the only one who felt like this about manufactured sculpting tools. But few folks had the time, tools or desire to work out their ideas.
I was encouraged to make more of my sculpting tools and sell them online and locally. So just in July of this year I brought a few of my tools to the local polymer clay guild meeting to see how they liked them. Their enthusiasm blew me away! This is a great group of gals and a couple of guys, who LOVE working in polymer clay as much as I do. These gracious folks gladly offered to be my tool-testers and give me their invaluable direct feedback on my designs, as well as contribute to new tool designs. I set up shop online with Etsy.com, a venue for handmade and vintage goods. Check out SkulpTools on Etsy.

Since that first tool I made, a whole series of new designs have emerged. They are all designed to be strong, durable, very comfortable to hold and control, and clay won't stick to the highly polished tips. And they're actually quite attractive too, if I may say so. SkulpTools have really comfortable ergo-shaped handles that are easy to grip and control. The tip's edges are honed to be thin enough to get into [or create] small crevices, yet they're still blunt, so they won't cut too deeply or make ragged tool marks. Tip shapes vary from smooth-angular to rounded, depending on the tool.

Do you ever wish you had a tool that would perform a certain way for you, 
but you can't find one like what you need?

Well now you have an option! YOU TOO CAN BE A TOOL DESIGNER! 

Contact me with a sketch, photo or written description of your ideal tool and If I decide your idea is workable and that others may like it too, I'll not only send you one of them free, I'll name the tool after you! It's kinda like having your own tool maker!

I also do made-to-order special request tools for just a bit more than my regular rates. You can custom order via SkulpTools shop on Etsy or drop me a line via email.

Now, if what you describe resembles something that's already being made, I will do my best to point you to where you can buy it. No sense reinventing the ol' wheel or taking away from another tool maker's good work, now is there?

So, there's my very first blog entry, ever. Eh, maybe not real impressive, but now you know a little more about SkulpTools than you did before!

More tools news coming soon!