Green stuff and learning books

[Roffemuffe]

I wanted to get into scultping my own figures.

 

I have had a glance at green stuff, but haven't tried it yet. It looks a bit expensive for learning.

How good good is the green stuff, does it last forever? (you know what I mean )

 

I haven't tried sculpting anything before

 

Is there a book about learning to scultpure roleplaying figures? I have no idea of where to begin the process?

 

 

PS. I wanted to scultpure my own figures because our group is playing in present time and there are just not many good figures to play with! Normal looking people without obvious weapons in hand.

[joshuaslater]

http://z14.invisionfree.com/prophet/index.php?act=idx

 

This is Matt Gubser's forum. He sells an intoductory sculpting kit with everything you need. Try that first, then look here for more links as there's hunnerds' of'em.

 

Straight ahead money, peace out.

[kristof65]

When purchasing green stuff, you actually have a lot of options. Even the Citadel package of it, which is way overpriced, is only about the cost of 1-2 figures, and will give you enough for a single figure or lots of conversions. There are also alternatives, like Pro Create, which is easier to handle for a novice, IMO.

 

If you've never dealt with green stuff before, you may want to start converting other figures using it, to get familiar with how it handles, and getting desired results, rather than starting an entire sculpt from scratch.

 

As for learning how to do it - there are lots of online tutorials around - the one joshua pointed out is good (but beyond me) and there are others as well. Definitely use the sculpting forum here to seek advice and get fedback, too. However, nothing can beat a class with a well known sculptor if you can swing it. Take a look at your local cons and see if a sculptor will be teaching a class. Consider attending ReaperCon where you can not only take classes from, but you can hobnob with the likes of Bob Ridolfi, Julie Guthrie, Werner Klocke, Sandra Garrity and many other world class sculptors. Taking a conversions class from Bob Ridolfi at RCon 07 gave me tons of confidence in using green stuff and Pro Create (which I favor).

[dks]

I was afraid of the Green Stuff for many years, too, but I finally sculpted my first figure about 5 years ago by following a step-by-step magazine article, using some Green Stuff and two dental tools that I got from my dentist. Since then, I've been lucky enough to get advice from (and merely look over the shoulder of) the sculptors Kristof65 mentioned, when I've been at ReaperCon. And I've gotten a few better tools to use, but not many.

 

If you send me a private message with your email address, I can email you the articles that gave me my first lessons in sculpting.

 

Derek

[zazeem]

Send me an email and ill help you out. A lot of it is just letting your imagination spark and go. Don't get too technical at the start, have fun and learn how to manipulate the putty on your own. Then slowly add handy references and you'll see major improvement. It is an art form so it is purely based on ones unique style.

[Simon Vaillancourt]

Green mixed with brown is a lot easier to manage than green only.

[Bodhi]

Just DO IT! NOW!

While you're waiting for greenstuff start practicing with whatever you have at hand. Plasticene, even candle wax in a pinch. Practice practice practice is the main teacher and you have NOTHING to lose.

Good luck

 

And don't be scared to post your results here. Everybody is very friendly and helpful around this forum and will likely give you pointers as you work on your sculpting.

[Simon Vaillancourt]

Buy anatomy book dude ! A LOT of them. Get one about facial expression and start sculpting faces in larger scale (84 to 120 mm) Then get smaller.

 

Sculpting a good face on a miniature is primordial ;)

[Mindless Focus]

great tip is to store, any of the sculpting mediums (Aves, Procreate, Green Stuff, Whatever) in a freezer. this triples if not more, the life of the material. After a while, Green stuff wil develope a hard skin on it and eventually become a solid. trust me. i have had some for 7 years and its hard as a brick. Ask a lot of the sculptors, most freeze thir medium.

[Bishop Odo]

Don’t underestimate the practice you get just modifying figures, adding detail or changing poses. At lest that’s what I tell myself, when I file off detail or saw off a leg, it’s all practice. After all I’m big on enthusiasm, but lack actual sculpting skill.

[Bodhi]

After all I’m big on enthusiasm, but lack actual sculpting skill.

 

Sculpting SKILL is 2% sculpting WORK is 98%. Experience and improvement in sculpting comes from sculpting. Honestly what is everyone so afraid of? It's a lump of clay. Easy to throw away if you're unhappy. Just have at it!

[snuurg]

... Just have at it!

 

- like Bodhi says - the only way to get better at it is to do it, and at such a small scale it's no great cost to 'waste' a few sculpt-attempts in terms of materials or whatever - though it's penny-saving obviously if you can have a twiddle with something re-usable like plasticene, you've ultimately gotta play with the green, grey or brown (etc.)stuff, and with mixtures of 'em too - but mainly, practicepracticepractice - probably 60-odd percent of my workspace is taken up with stuff I've started but not completed, as I've had a 'great idea' but not quite managed to execute it how I thought I could, but such so-called failures will eventually lead to figuring out how to do it properly, so none of its actually wasted - and in any case you may well end up coming back to such things at a later date, carving them back a bit, and finishing 'em off with the the knacks picked up in the meanwhile...

[Bodhi]

probably 60-odd percent of my workspace is taken up with stuff I've started but not completed, as I've had a 'great idea' but not quite managed to execute it how I thought I could,

 

Make that 95% in my case But that just means I have a 5% success rate. Not to shabby When it comes to drawing I have 1% and when it comes to building and constructing stuff I have a smashing 100% failure rate (thumb in the middle of my hand is an expression we use here in Sweden...)

[zazeem]

If your looking to sculpt don't waste your time on books. Except for an anatomy book. Look at already cast figs sold in stores each of those must be of value and be good otherwise it wouldn't be in a store. Buy a couple and buy putty, clay shapers and a cheap sculpting set at the nearest art store. Make sure you have two lamps with 100 watt daylight bulbs and start pushing putty. It takes a few months before you see any vast improvement. Don't try to be like any one sculptor out there we are all unique. This method will save you a lot of time and frustration. Doesn't get any simpler than this :)

[Mad Jack]

One thing I've found to be of use...

 

Anytime you have leftover material, from filling in a gap on a mini or something...

 

Make something out of it. Just for the practice.

 

Doesn't matter what. I started out just putting an extra small rock or fallen branch on the base of whatever I was working on, then moved up to snakes and skulls, etc. Even if you don't have enough to make a whole object like a sword or something, make a sword handle. Copy a design pattern from the trim of a cloak, or recreate a jewelled pin or buckle from a mini. Stick the extra glob of greenstuff on the end of a toothpick and sculpt a fist. Because I had some leftover green from fixing the cloak of the Elf King I'm painting, my Isabeau LaRoche now has rivets decorating her previously blank shield and I have a decent-looking green of a turtle familiar.

 

I'm still no good at big stuff like people and large animals, but I'll put my scenery bits, equipment, and small animals up against the work of the pros anytime...