Props Jany's Music Workshop

Hey guys, it's me again.

After starting some instruments for my band project, I realized instruments might need their own thread after all. The drum set and electric guitar(s) may be for the band guys, but there's definitely more to come - Mara needs a flute, and I have started an acoustic guitar that definitely won't be for the band. Most likely this will be an open-end project: long-term, updating in fits and bursts like all my project journals, and with no set "goal", trying to document whatever I make whenever I make it.

As for why this is even happening - sure, some stuff can be bought. But (being a musician myself) I'm super duper picky when it comes to instruments, flutes in particular. Case in point: I'm basing my guitars off a Froggy tutorial, but the acoustic guitar will get a couple modifications to look more realistic (did I mention I'm picky?). Plus, I'm super spoiled by the mini strings my sis and mum found somewhere and snatched for my resinoids:


The violas need some TLC, which will also be documented here whenever it happens. But as the most important one - Katie's violin - came straight from Crobidoll and is in mint condition, that may need to wait.

Anyway! On to the current WIPs.

 

The first thing I started was the drum set for the band. I'm trying to keep this low to no budget because recycling rocks The drums are made from packaging:



The sketches for the guitars can be seen in the background. Here's some progress on the electric one:





Some of these pics have shown up in other threads. One more reason why I started this journal is trying to keep stuff together for future reference as I really am a scatterbrain and need documentation in case I ever need to figure out how I made something.

Here's a first glimpse of the WIP acoustic guitar:



Basically what I'm changing is the style (classical instead of western), meaning a differently shaped head and different tuning pegs, adding a bit of dimension in a couple of places, and making the body actually hollow. Painting the hole black still looks too toy-ish to me ... so I'm trying for a hollow body, probably painted darker brown around the edges and with a wood-like texture on the inside of the bottom layers of cardboard. We'll see how that goes, I'll need loads more cardboard for the size I want ... these things do eat cereal boxes like nobody's business.

 

The stacked parts of the classical guitar look promising, I really like the hollow effect - but the body still needs roughly a gazillion more hollow parts:

 

Four hollow parts and a couple details later ... I have a scientific observation to share:
Cutting out those slit thingamajigs is not fun.
Next time I feel compelled to make an acoustic guitar, remind me to stick to western.



Looking pretty cool though. Worth a bit of finger pain, I guess.

 

Thank you!

I realized too late I'd made a mistake - shouldn't have made the smaller parts, the neck and top thing are all in one piece. Added some parts to compensate, it's looking better but I'm still one full-length hollowed part short (one that doesn't have an obvious fold line in a visible place, that is) and I am - yet again - out of cardboard. This thing has eaten three boxes so far, and it could still do with a bit more dimension ... good thing I've got time. Making this on a deadline would definitely not be as much fun.

 

Thank you! I will definitely add more, this is only the beginning. I just don't have as much time as I'd like, so it's slow ... sadly.

Two mini-updates - one, I tried adding some styrofoam to the guitar's "body" to add more thickness, but I don't think I like it much. Like corrugated paper / cardboard, it'll need the sides covered ... which I'm planning anyway, but I still don't think I fancy styrofoam much, mostly because it's so tricky to cut neatly. Corrugated cardboard trial will commence soonish.

Then I went hunting for beads for Mara's flute's keys. I'll be adapting the Froggy tutorial a bit; I like the technique, but I do want a three-part flute with connections. (Being a flutist, I'm a bit picky ... but I have my own flutes to check against.) I did like the idea of using beads, but I might try more paper tricks. Technically, I need to do paperwork tomorrow ... more likely, I'll be doing papercrafts.

Who the heck let me adult anyway?

 

Another mini update - I measured my own flute, keys and all, and found both a piece of dowel that's the right diameter and some wooden beads in different sizes that work for keys. I also measured the length of the respective parts of the flute and drew the cuts on the dowel - tried to take a pic, but nothing would show.
Froggy Mama uses hot glue to attach the beads and add details, but my own hot glue gun is low-temp and a bit finicky ... guess I'll need to upgrade before I tackle the actual glueing part. But I got most things together - some small levers are still giving me a bit of trouble, not sure how to get those to look right, but I'll figure something out.

Mara also reminded me that she'll need her glasses if she's supposed to be able to read music (or anything at all), so those might make an appearance here too, once I settle on a technique.

Edit - pic of just the parts, I couldn't resist sawing the dowel parts (and promptly made a mistake, but it's a small one and can be rectified). The connections are pieces of drinking straw - sadly I had to cut them lengthwise, as the straw lacks exactly 1mm in diameter to accomodate the dowel. I might find something that fits, or I might cheat. ^^° I'd rather have a cheaty straw that won't squish than perfectly fitting paper that might warp and ruin the whole thing.

 

Started work on the mechanics - measured the axes and decided to use toothpicks. Length is a bit of a problem, but I hope I can get away with a bit of cheating, chances are nobody will notice except for me. Don't think I'll be able to get away with the straws though, no glue I own will keep them in place. (Hot glue would, but that's impossible in that scale.) Guess I'll need to go with paper, and hope it won't squish and ruin the whole thing.
The whole construct will probably remain quite fragile anyway, but as it's a prop, not a toy, I hope it'll be okay.

 

Yep. I think I like this.



It still looks horribly "massive" in pics - but with all the parts together, and painted, it'll be fine. Proportions say no looking out of scale when it's in scale.

Nothing is glued onto the dowel yet, only the toothpick parts have been glued together. I'm contemplating making a gold body and silver keys ... that would require painting the body before anything else. Or maybe go for all gold. Mara is very much the type for a gold flute, both by look and sound.
Any opinions on colours?

 

Thank you!

I'd love to buy more instruments for my dolls, but what I want isn't available ... I'd love the American Girl cello to complete my set of strings, but I have yet to find a seller that ships to Europe.

 

Scrapped the straws - wasn't working. Paper connections work better so far, I only hope they'll be sturdy enough ... I used wood glue, so they should. I won't be putting it together and taking it apart again a bunch of times a day, after all. ^^

Some more details - been working on the mechanics, mostly. Toothpicks can be bent slightly if you wet them, so that's what I've been spending my afternoon on:


Then I'll need to decide on colours. If I go for gold body silver mechanics, I'll need to paint the body first ... or I could put the whole thing together, paint it gold, then try and add some silver details. If it goes wrong, I can still re-paint it gold.

 

Getting there ...


Tried to fix my own cheat and ended up messing up the axes a bit ... I think it's going to be okay once the keys are on. I'd rather not take the whole thing apart again ... besides I doubt I could do any better even if I tried again.
I'm still unsure about painting. Part of me wants to paint the body first, paint the mechanics separately, and glue it together later (especially since I'm going to add some extra details that'll be hard to get on with the keys and stuff glued to the body). The rest of me thinks it'll be more stable if I glue it together first, then paint it. I might glue it all on tonight so I can start painting tomorrow, there won't be much time but as layers of paint take time to dry it's just the thing to do on a day with loads of appointments and shortish breaks in-between.

edit, and the "bare bones" glued on ...


edit II, I feel like one of Santa's elves, sitting here at quarter to midnight making toys. ^^°

 

keyZ!

 

Gold! I painted over the first coats again, as the paint I chose was too coppery - this is better, but I think I'll go over it once more.



(yes, the head piece looks too short - that's because of how I had to adapt the connecting piece. It looks better when put together.)

 

... and put together:


Next step: Silver keys.

 

@saraquill thank you!

Silver keys look much better to me ...


Unfortunately the toothpicks look pretty rough ... if I ever make another one, I'll give them a layer of varnish before painting.

 

aaand it's done!


Mara (photobombed by Carlos) with her nifty new flute. She refused to pose like she was playing - I suspect it's due to the lack of glasses. Guess I'll have to come up with a quick fix for those.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how the flute turned out. Should have left the thumb key off, as it makes the whole construct too thick for the default hands; and I learned that, when working with metallic paint, when you think you're done you need to add two more layers. Will remember for the next project(s).

 

Side note, I found the American Girl cello on ebay - no bow or book, but that doesn't matter. The bow looks off anyway (shaped like a baroque one, but too clunky) and I have a spare (if currently hairless) bow with the second viola. Sadly it probably won't arrive in time for xmas ... but there'll be more concerts coming.

 

And back to the guitar ... the acoustic one, that is. Corrugated cardboard works much better than styrofoam! The current plan is to get the inside painted dark(er) so the edges won't show, maybe figure out a way to add the neck support thingy I obviously couldn't make from the cardboard - air-dry clay maybe? - and get the thing put together. Then I'll need some thicker paper or thin cardstock to cover the sides, and then the real question: Colours again! Here's what I have:

 

Hi there!
The colours on the flute were the same for me. My own has silver keys so I wanted to give it a try.
As for the papers ... people recommended using scrapbook paper rather than the sticky paper I have, so I guess I'll need to go shopping first. I covered the sides with paper last night, I can snap a pic of that but that's as far as I'm going to get before I make it to the shops (hopefully tomorrow, but more likely on Wednesday).


edit, here it is. I'm still gathering more packaging to recycle into drums, too.

 

And another semi-update, the cello has shipped! It might come home before xmas ... which would mean, xmas concert photoshoots. Which means, fix the second bow ... first step: Find out what the hair is made of. Might be some kind of flax ... I'll give that a try, I think I still have some.

 

Well ... looks like they used the real thing for the mini bow. On the one hand that's a pretty cool thing, on the other it is out of scale (but so is the hair on the other bows, which are made in the same way). I might be able to get my hands on some original hair from a messed-up bow or three we still have kicking around at work ... will check tomorrow.

 

Back to the guitar. I didn't find scrapbook paper with woodgrain print, but they had what appears to be called "decoupage paper", which works like when you cut patterns out of the printed layer of a paper napkin and glue it onto something else with mod podge. And the best thing is, this stuff is translucent, so depending on the colour of cardboard underneath it can look lighter or darker! I'll leave the sides lighter, even though it's unusual - this is just a prototype, after all. Update coming soon!

edit, materials:

 

Ladies and Gents, this stuff rocks.


Covered the sides, the back, the head, painted the neck, tried and failed to paint inside the slit thingamajigs,covered the front. I'll need to go over the edges again (which will be painted black or very very dark brown), then it's time to think about what I want to use for strings, tuning pegs etc.

 

Spot the difference(s) The gold stripes are still too long, it was more of a colour check / test how they look with the whole thing. I think I like it.
Flute included just for fun. I'm starting to think the gold would have looked better on a black base ... next time, I guess. If there is a next time.

 

Absolutely! I still have the electric guitar and the drum set in progress, and considering how much fun this is I'd be very surprised if more wasn't to come.

 

Thank you both!
@Wolfie Pie trombones rock I don't think I'll ever make brass instruments though, the shape alone requires different materials (I think). Then again, never say never, eh?

The cello has arrived in Germany, depending on whether or not it gets stuck in customs it might arrive some time next week. Given that it entered the EU via Amsterdam I'm almost thinking it'll get here directly. Central customs would have snagged it upon entering the EU, and Amsterdam did nothing of the sort ... but we'll see.
I found a solution for the mini bow, too - a friend of mine will get his violin bow re-done, and he'll ask them to let him keep the old hair so I can use some of that. Not before xmas, but I guess I'll still be able to take some xmas concert pics. As long as the cello is there, I'll find a workaround for the bow.

edit - it's in customs. Because of course it's in customs. This is why I buy 99% second hand, and if posisble from inside the EU. This country may be doing quite a lot of things right, but honestly guys, chill with the paperwork.

 

Added two layers of mod podge to the neck to protect the golden stripes. They're self-sticking, from the wedding aisle at the craft store (I used leftovers from another project), but - just like on the flute where I used the silver counterparts - they don't want to stick by themselves, they're quite obviously made to be used with paper. But this is going to work.
I'm not sure what to use for the actual strings, but I have a quarter of a half-plan how to get them on the body: Like the real thing, fix the bottom parts first - probably wrap/glue them around a piece of cardboard - then glue that to the body, thread each string through a needle and wrap them around (and glue them to) the respective "tuning peg" thingy. Like that I can get just enough tension on them to keep them from wobbling all over the place. Or I might go for something stretchy ... like sewing elastic painted silver for the wrapped strings? And transparent elastic string from crafting for the un-wrapped ones? Hmm. That should be easier to get to look right. Guess I'll see what I can find and what looks the most realistic.

edit, the shirring elastic seems to work - the paint makes a nice effect. But I can't find the jewelry elastic ... so I guess this thing is on hold for the weekend. The better, I desperately need to get a handle on paperwork ... bleeeeh. Don't want to adult. Guess I'll have to find a doll I can reward myself with.

 

That's a cool idea! In classical guitars the pegs are sideways, though ... but you're giving me ideas, I was going to use toothpick/bead combos again but I have plastic pins somewhere that would probably work better. Pic once I find them!

 

Good thinking! Luckily it's not that much tension, as the dowel pieces are already glued in place. *makes mental notes for the next guitar that may or may not happen*

Went looking for the pins, found the jewelry elastic instead. It's just enough for three strings and a bit ... so I might actually get the strings part done this weekend!

(also, waaaaayyy OT but OMGs tardigrade! I had no idea tardigrade pet dolls were even a thing )

 

The bottom part has been glued down, strings and all, and given that a) that needs time to set, preferrably overnight, and b) it's midnight where I am, I'm going to call it a day. Pics coming tomorrow, stay tuned!

 

What I still haven't found are the pins. I remembered last night where they're supposed to be, but they weren't there (which is a bit of a mystery because I really don't know what else I could have used them for).
Took a bit to get the elastic to stick ... the strings are on, now I'm correcting angles a bit, then I only need to find the pins (or a substitute) for the turning parts of the tuning pegs.

(Wolfie, have you by any chance seen Star Trek Discovery?)

 

Just the pegs missing now! And maybe that screw thing for a strap ... I think we'll need that.

 

And with the pegs and screw! Now I need to get someone to play it ...

 

Soooo there's good news and bad news.

The good news is: The cello sailed right through customs and was waiting for me today! Also, it did include a bow after all.
The bad news is: It's much too small for my dolls. I know I'm bad with numbers, but apparently I'm horrible when it comes to the weirdo units the US use.

Then again, doesn't matter. Who claimed only my grown-ups could play instruments? Looks like either Annabeth or Gawain will get to play the cello

 

Thank you! And I'd love to see your lute, if you make one!

Yeah, I don't even know about the cello. It's Barbie sized. I don't know what the seller was thinking, claiming it would fit American Girl ... even with my immature MSDs it looks like it shrunk in the wash. Maybe if I ever get a YoSD as a Hobbit kid or something ... we'll see.

I wouldn't attempt making something like the violin / violas I have, those are just too perfect. More woodwinds might happen, the band still needs all their stuff and some of my elves would like things, too ... there'll be more. I don't know when, but there will definitely be more.

 

On the subject of more ... I saw a puppet play the other day and for one scene, they had a pretty decent-looking harp prop. I did get to see it up close for a moment, but not well enough to reproduce it ... shape-wise it was closest to this, but simplified. I might try that soonish, I do have a bunch of elves here after all and elves like harps, or so I've been told.

 

Double post since it won't let me edit - so far it looks like I'm making an oliphaunt

 

sooo I'm super not happy with anything. Well, no, I am sort of happy with the body because I managed to make that both rounded and sort of tapered to the top, but I can't glue it together yet because the strings might need to be attached before I close it. I also messed up the oliphaunt up there, somewhere between the sketch and the template the angle of the knee got messed up so now it won't fit.
As for the column, I ended up changing my mind about how to make it. I was going to use a kitchen towel roll as a base (cut and curled tighter) because it's super stable, but it's also super crunched now it's been rolled up so tight, so I might want to use paper after all - but I need a base to wrap it around, or that too will bunch up, and it'll eat a ton of glue. Might need to count how many glue sticks there are in the house before I attempt that.

 

... next try. Oliphaunt 2.0 has been double-and triple-checked, still managed to come out a bit skewed but it's fixable with a bit of sanding. And it's a bit slimmer, only two layers of corrugated cardboard instead of three as before.
Anyways, here's what I have so far:



Fittingly, the column consists of the rolled-up score of "In Dreams", as arranged ages ago for my kiddie orchestra.

 

Sooo after too much work and too many events in too few days I can't really think straight any more ... back to the Sanity Projects it is!
Harp "progress" - sanded down parts of the oliphaunt (I'm never going to be calling it anything else now!) and tried some "papercraft joinery" which came out pretty cool. Doesn't show in pics worth a darn, but I'll add one anyway.
I think I should finish the column's decorations first ... then put in the oliphaunt. I might join that to the body first, and finish those parts two-in-one with extra paper and things.



I have no idea what I'm doing, but I'm having fun.
Oliphaunt's corrugated edges have been covered in strips of paper, and I'm contemplating adding white paper all around, given that I have no idea how I'll finish this - paint? this funny see-through glue-on paper stuff I used for the guitar? scrapbook paper? - and I might want a (what the heck is the word) consistent surface. Same goes for the body, which is still its default cardboard.

 

Well, that didn't work. Oliphaunt and back came apart pretty much instantly, so now I'm trying a two-in-one - attaching it with wood glue and paper strips that will hopefully help keep the oliphaunt in place while the glue sets (and make the assembled thing look like one thing while doing so). Maybe that works.

 

It did kind of hold up, it's a bit wobbly but it can't go anywhere as it's covered in paper. I'm not sure how to even start the base, so that one is on hold until inspiration strikes.

Then, instead of finishing any of the things already in the works, I started Guitar 2.0 ... found a lighter shade of woodgrain paper stuff, so of course I want to use it. Go me.

For this one, I'll change a couple things:
- make the cardboard pieces slightly larger than the corrugated ones;
- have one piece of corrugared cardboard run the length of the neck, to be covered in paper;
- try the pin method of fixing the strings;
- have the head tilt backwards slightly (classical guitar heads do that).

We shall see how that goes ... next week.

 

Guitar 2.0 is progressing:



The main cardboard parts have been cut out, minus the slit things (because why listen to myself and stick with Western, right?) and I'm putting it together in a slightly different way this time. I found that other shade of woodgrain paper that I want to put inside the body this time, so the bottom / back parts have been glued together, and so have the sides pieces. Those will get a bit of sanding inside this time around, and I might either paint that edge black or cover it in the same paper.
I also added some of the corrugated cardboard to the neck, interspersed with "normal" cardboard. I'll try and shape it via sanding, then cover it in paper before adding the woodgrain paper. The corrugated cardboard will allow me to install the pegs in a different way - we'll see if that works out.

 

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