Tuesday, September 20, 2011

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

2 comments:

  1. Great post! I enjoy learning about the tools and the stories behind them. I love mine!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Awesome! Thanks for explaining how to use the tools since I am a beginner at sculpting.

    ReplyDelete

I would enjoy reading your comments on my blog entries or on sculpting, sculpting tools and related subjects.