New QH sneak peeks

 

Working on my sculptures outside in the garden is such a treat! A little too hot today, but this tough guy doesn’t mind. 

 

 

Don't startle the wood pigeon

Head first

He doesn’t have a name yet

Hey, who’s this? A new face! :)

On larger sculptures, like this new 1:9 scale warmblood, I like to set up the head separately. The rest of the horse is very heavy (1-2 kg), which isn’t easy to hold in your hands for a long time.

The head is made of Apoxie Sculpt, and a little wooden skewer. 

 

Adib's mold is almost ready!

Photo by Jolt Studios

Good news, the mold for big Adib will be ready soon. Making copies of a sculpture is an art in itself, and I'm very glad I can outsource it. I wouldn't know where to start! 

 

 

While Jolt Studios are preparing the mold for Adib, I'm making a companion for him. A brand new traditional scale Arabian mare. Here you can see the sculpture being sanded. 

 

If you missed out on the first batch of Adib, don't worry, there will be more opportunities to buy him. The exact dates depend on how the casting schedule develops. Stay tuned! 

The best way to stay updated on sculptures available for sale is to sign up for the email newsletter. 

Big Adib sneak peek

 Coming end of January!

Little Adib and his big brother's head in progress

I find it easier to sculpt the head separately. Plus, it's always quite satisfying when I attach it to the rest of the horse. :D

Big Adib

 

My mini sized Adib just asked to be made big, and so did the people on Facebook. So here he is, still very much in progress, traditional scale Adib!

Lola's baby

  

You might have seen her already on the Facebook page. Lola’s foal! Still in progress, and so much fun to sculpt. She started out like this:

 

 

And after many hours of sculpting we are ready for the next and final step, detailing. Foal fuzz. So cute...

Saved from the bin

 

When you use epoxy to create your sculptures (like I do) and things don't go as planned, you sometimes end up sawing off a part of your project. Starting over can be easier than manipulating the stone hard epoxy into a different shape. 

Over the years I gathered quite a collection of hacked off bits and pieces. I just can't throw them away, you never know when they might come in handy. 

 

 

 

Like this head. It didn’t suit the horse it was on, but it’s cute and I kept it. 

I also keep a ‘spare epoxy horse’ on my table, because I always mix too much of the stuff. Right now it’s a damaged Encanto resin, I’m using leftover bits of epoxy to customize him into a heavier muscled schoolmaster type of PRE.  

And what do you know, it’s a match with the head! 

 

 

 

His name is Devante. He still needs a lot of work, but I like him already.

Mail from Sweden, and another sneak peek!

'Thank you' package from Sweden

 

Every year I donate a little something to the Swedish Vattenshowen model horse show. The Swedish hobby community is small but dedicated. They had to overcome some obstacles this year, but the show did go on and it seems like they had a lot of fun!

 

Delilah did well!

A familiar face did very well. Delilah! My small classic scale Arabian mare. I can’t believe it’s already fourteen years ago, but I sculpted Delilah in 2007. She still is one of my favorites.

 

 

A better look at Delilah

 

Speaking of Arabians, I might as well show you a new sculpture in progress! So far he only exists in the digital universe, but he will be printed soon and then detailed further by hand. Hope you like him!

 

 

Sneak peek: new mini!

If all goes well this cute little guy will become available in resin in October

 

He hasn't got a name yet :)

Spaniards

Spanish guys sculpted & painted by me. Photo: Rebecca Jollymore

 

It's no secret, I'm crazy about Iberian horses. And I just love sculpting them. :)

Rebecca Jollymore sent me this beautiful picture of her LB scale Vingerling collection. I just had to share it with you, and speaking of Spaniards, I have something else to show you:

 

 

 New mini PRE in progress, yay!

 

In progress, sneak peek

 

Yes, you know who this is!

Upscaling

The traditional way, for traditional Lola

Everything is still sketchy

And in a more modern fashion, I'm printing parts of Eclair's big brother

A delicious Eclair and more

Photos and finishwork by Sarah Bieber

 I just had to show you this yummy chestnut Eclair painted by the talented Sarah Bieber (Germany). 

 

 

 

This one is sold, but if you want to treat yourself to a new mini resin, I have unpainted Eclairs in stock now here in the Netherlands. MVS ships them out pretty fast as well. You can order your copy here.

 

 

Picture isn't the greatest but the casting is amazing

 

The castings are wonderful, very easy to prep. Because Eclair could pass as a number of warmblood breeds, you have lots of color options.

And hey, what's this? A sneak peek!

 

Now who could this be?

Tassel teaser :D

Sneak peek: Tassel!

Meet Tassel, my new classic scale Friesian mare sculpture. She's the 'old fashioned', heavier type. Bouncing around, strutting her stuff. I can't wait to sculpt her wavy mane and tail. More pictures coming soon. ;)

Lola & Mojo

Lola's brother has a name: Mojo! He will be ready to go and visit the caster soon.

Are you looking for an unpainted Lola? I have a couple of Long Mane Lolas available. They ship from the Netherlands. Beautiful castings, last chance to get your hands on one. :)
The Lolas are €119 each, shipping to anywhere in the world is included. Interested? Just send me an email.

Edit: the Lolas have been sold, thank you! I do have an unpainted Gabriel looking for a new home.

Aww, Lola has a brother!

A brother in progress, I mean. :)

Encanto: sneak peek!

Standing PRE stallion, traditional scale. Like my curio scale Iberians, but big! :)
And of course he has his own personality. Pre-orders available soon.

How it's made: sculpting in epoxy

The original Miss Lizzie sculpture is made of two-part epoxy clay*, sculpted layer by layer over a lightweight armature. Epoxy turns rock hard only a few hours after mixing, which is a curse as well as a blessing. It takes a different approach than working in soft clay or wax. Here are some things that I have learned over the years: 

- Always wear gloves when working with epoxy, frequent exposure can cause a nasty allergic reaction to it (like your skin falling off, trust me, I've seen it). Try powder free nitrile gloves, they last long and don’t smell bad like the latex ones.
- Build the sculpture up in layers (like an onion) instead of working on one body part at a time. I find it easier to get the proportions right this way. 

- Don’t sculpt any details until you’ve got the overall shape and depth in all dimensions. If you need to correct an area (you probably will), it will hurt less if you don’t have to destroy many hours worth of detailing.

- A sculpting stand is not your friend when working in epoxy. Putting the sculpture on its feet regularly helps keeping the symmetry and balance on the right track. 

 

 

 

* I use Milliput Superfine White. Favorite sculpting tools? See here.