COMING SOON: Radio Gnome

When the fight on the ground gets too thick and the infantry is at the risk of being overrun, garden defenders know they can always count on the radioman for help.  The enemy might think he looks harmless armed with nothing more than his A/N PRC-25 portable radio, but they'll change their tune when he calls in an airstrike and levels the playing field.

Here's a shot of the sculpt in progress:


I tried to capture the expression of a gnome in the middle of calling for an F-bomb.

I still have to sculpt his radio pack.  For right now, he just has a blank space:


As soon as I've finished the molds, it'll be time to crank out copies and list them in my Etsy shop: http://etsy.com/shop/thorssoli

In the meantime, I need some more ideas for a backstory to go with this guy.  Any suggestions?

Prop Building 101: Making a Two-Sided Silicone Mold

In this article I'm going to detail the process of making a 2-piece silicone mold.  The same methods can be used mold and cast all manner of things with details on both sides.  If you're looking to make a mold of something flat that has no details on one side, check out my last "Prop Building 101" article, "Making a One-Sided Silicone Mold."

For the purpose of this demonstration I will be making molds to copy a few hammers.

Hammers are hard and heavy.  One of the basic tenets of society is that throwing hammers at your friends will rapidly result in not having friends.

But what if you want to keep your friends and you can't resist the urge to throw hammers at them?  Well my friend, you've come to the right place.  Here's how to simulate a variety of typical, run-of-the-mill hammers with soft, pliable, non-concussion-inducing flexible foam.

Here's a picture of a fully-finished foam rubber hammer:


If you'd like to know how to make one, read on...

Building Signage for the Fundemonium Toy and Hobby Store

A while back I was contacted by one of the owners of the local hobby store about helping out with their project to re-brand the store.  For my part, what they needed was a series of glowing signs to point out the different departments inside the store.  The design called for a very thin sign stylized to look like an old-school monochromatic display being held between a couple of cartoon robot hands.

Here's a pic of the end result:


And a close-up:



For details on how they were made, read on...