Moldmaking Press mold for sculpting blank

For my latest head I decided to try to start from a basic paperclay "skull", mainly so that I could make a bunch of friends for him and they'd all have the same neck and head size (for sharing a body). I sculpted and primed a blank face, then used some mold putty I already had to make a rough two-part mold (front and back). This stuff required no mold release (it's really oily), which is great, and it's super easy to use, but doesn't pick up fine detail. If I was to do it again I'd pour a silicone mold, but this worked okay.








Continued in next post

 

When the mold cured (it feels like a hard rubber, just a little squishable) I pressed a layer of paperclay into each half separately and let it dry in place. After they dried, the front and back popped right out. With more wet clay I stuck the two halves together and let that dry. Lastly I sanded down the seam until the join was smooth. This kind of sculpting base is nice and hollow to start with.







In one of the pix there's a little mold for a concave neck socket that I made to fit a specific body, but I could have incorporated it into the front and back molds if I'd remembered.

 

Continued...

So onto this paperclay skull I sculpted DaeMin's face with more paperclay (the ability to add wet onto dry is my favorite part of paperclay). Even though I still had to cut the top of his head off to add eyes and make a headcap, at least this time i didn't have to pick out the tinfoil or sand out the interior while worrying about cracking the face. DaeMin looks fine on his FantasyDoll body, so I'm going to go ahead and make a bunch more blanks so I can work on his friends' heads simultaneously.







Thanks for looking. I hope this super-easy trick helps someone!

 

Yay! I'm so glad you guys like this method! Yes, keeping the new heads the same size was my original inspiration for trying to make a universal sculpting base.

 

With this brand of mold goo, you can make as many heads as you want. It's high quality and sturdy! I'm glad this was inspiring for you guys!

 

Yes, I do think it would be possible. Actually, I ended up making a separate mold for the neck socket. I press-molded the front of the face, the back of the head and the neck socket individually, then I let the paperclay pieces dry completely. Then I stuck all three pieces together (like 3-D puzzle pieces) using paperclay slip. When that is all dry, sand the seams smooth. I made a bunch of them at once. Very satisfying! It looks kind of like a hot mess until the seams are sanded, however!