Update 23/2/2014
ATTENTION: this thread will no longer be updated as this tail never came to be. there were too many problems and i never had all the knowledge I needed in order to create and finish this tail. feel free to look through the thread to see how i went about things.. if you have any Q's feel free to PM me. I haven't given up completely on the extended tail, once i obtain and figure out how to go about it.. I will attempt again.
Ok 3rd times the charm. ive tired twice now to upload this and it doesn't do it. SO i thought it was about time i got in on the action and started to show off the project im working on. I started designing my tail of oct 2012 and offically started my manequin of my legs late November, I knew what i wanted and i had a rough idea on how to get there but i serioulsy didnt think there were going to be this many obstacles along the way. These obstacles have made me MAD, have made me rip my hair out and made me cry, however if I hadn't had these things to go though i probably wouldn't appreciate what ive learnt now not to mention what i have produced. I have been lurking on the forum for some time now but i really didn't follow anyones tutorials as i thought i had it all worked out, and usally once ive got an idea in my head or once ive made up my mind there is no changing it. you could say i can be stubbon at times but i personally have to go with the flow. Im not going to sit here and say that i havent made mistates as i have i wasted 600AUD on trying to get things right. do I regret it. Yes. but i suppose that's the way i learn, yes i make myself learn the hard way and there are so many members here that do it the EASY way. what am I? a sucker for punishment thats what. Now i decided to go with H20/mako Mermaids tail inspired desing but with a splash of personality the only thing im really copying is the layout of the tail and the asethetics. my fins are my desing the flpper has a touch of my personality. But lets not get too overly excited. Im not using Dragons skin as it will not be directly on the skin and its far too expensive here is AUS. So i do ask each and every one of you please do not stated i should be using dragons skin. I am aware of the risks if any. the silicone im using is the mold max 27T and has extreamly similiar characteristics to dragons skin, have alook at the msds sheet. now all this aside lets begin.
things i wanted when creating
easy to get in and out off
slimline, tight on the body
covers my boney knees and hides my ankles
looks realistic as possible with a splash of fantasy
My beautiful bodyObviously this is what I will be using to create the suit and build it on.
prototype of flipper mold
experimenting with macopearl tint
now the creation of the flipper, I used poster cardboard to create my template, cut it out covered it in clear contact so the clay doesnt stick then started crafting. the pic below shows 10 hrs of work.
the flipper took me 1 month to do as i do work full time and all of the detail was only done during daylight hours due to inpropper lighting. the flipper took about 30hrs to complete there is deff alot of work involved.
Complete flipper ready for casting. I done the barrier the HARD way. the clay sits underneath the flipper, Instead of my me just laying it flat on the table.
covered in plaster, works great by the way brings out all the detail and is affordable.
what it looks like turned over after the plaster set. having the cardboard backing really helps with the extraction from the mold.
ta-da the mold has got silcone in it as I was testing to see how deep it was, turns out it wasn't deep enough and i had to make alternations.
moving on to the fins. one for left and right, casted the same way as above.
fins casted,
close up
more images to come later. im actaully alot more along than in the pics im actually up to putting it all together.
here is my neoprene suit i was playing around with my fins
in this pic you pretty much see the final product of the flipper, it has been siliconed together then once it cured the sides were seamed. I used silicone out of the tub first to cover the seam then used a thicker silicone by mixing it up leaving out for 2hrs then leaving in freezer over night. NB doing this will allow the silicone to get very thick as when it cools to room temp it will start to cure.
in currently working on my scales.
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Can't wait to see it painted!
I can't wait to see more!
Originally Posted by PearlieMae
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