You say, "Today's class will be on building models to help you in your artwork."
You say, "Most store models tend to be expensive (at least the ones meant for art). And also, just about everything has an inherent flaw - they are made as *human* models, and therefore aren't quite as versatile as an anthro artist might need. Especially if you like drawing your pictures in ways that defy human build."
Piccillo takes a moment to kiss his daughter back on the cheekruff, then continues. "So this class we will be going over a way to make your own models - not very durable ones, but ones that will allow you to make what *you* need, based on what you like to draw."
You say, "I put some of my Warhammer models and a stuffed bunny in back to give you an idea of scale. These pipecleaner models are about a foot tall - if you make them large, they will be easier to construct as well as examine."
You say, "Now the first thing you'll need is a list of construction equipment and tools."
You say, "Please be *careful* with them, however. While scissors and pipe cleaners may not seem like something you can get hurt on, it's when you stop respecting something that accidents happen. "
You say, "What I used to construct these models - pipe cleaners, flexible straws (straws that have a little 'accordian' elbow in them), some tape (masking tape, in this case) and a bit of foam for the heads."
You say, "Now while they are not durable, these models have a huge advantage in that they are easy to make. Pretty much everything was assembled just by twisting them together. Look at the top of the page, example #1, while I go over it."
You say, "This shows how to make the 'mount' for the hips and shoulders - which is the most difficult part of the model, which isn't saying much. Just master this part, and the rest is easy."
Piccillo asides, "I used different colored pipe cleaners to help them stand out, and show off the construction methods - you don't have to use them that way if you like your models less glaring. ;)"
You say, "Now first, you measure out the basic lengths you'd like your arms legs and back to be - these are the important bits you'll be building your model about."
You say, "For a human, arms and legs are normally roughly the same length, with the back being just a *tad* shorter - so make them all the same length, just to be sure. You can always bend a bit of the back into itself twoards the end if it looks too long later on. "
You say, "Now for the back, you want a thick support as it will see a lot of bending as you pose it. You may want to make the back *twice* as long as the arms and legs, and fold it in half and twist it again (which is what I did in the example, but it's up to you)."
You say, "Now the next step is to get the shoulder mount ready. I started twisting the back, but notice I left an open loop up top. This is where I'll put some more pipe cleaners to hold the arms in place. You can see I've started threading a twisted pair through the loop."
You say, "Now in the third step, I've twisted the 'back' the rest of the way down along the 'shoulder'...this will help hold it in place firmly and keep it from sliding about. Notice at this point I'm adding an arm in - it's not the right length but was put there to show you how I chose to do it. I made a twisted pair of 'cleaners, then made a small bend on the end to serve as a 'hook' to latch onto the shoulder."
You say, "Now the fourth part of making the shoulder (or hip) is shown at the right edge of example #1. I've wrapped the 'hook' of the arm up in the 'shoulder' by twisting it (once you get that twisting move down, you're all set for building this type of model). The last thing I started doing was to take one more pipe cleaner and wrap it around the place where the 'back' meets the 'shoulder' to give it extra strength."
You say, "Now there isn't any perfect method of building these things - you can make them and change the techniques to suit your building likes and dislikes. But that is the easiest (and least messy, for those of you with signifigant others to think about - no sense annoying your mate with glue stuck to the carpet) way I've found of doing it."
You say, "Now, the next thing to do is to make the arms and legs properly. Now you *could* just make them out of pipe-cleaners, but by taking an extra step we can make arms and legs that will only bend at the joints - that's where the straws come in."
You say, "If you look at #3, you can get a good clear look at what I mean. Take two straws, and cut them on equal lengths on either side of the bend. Remember that the length from shoulder to elbow is the same from elbow to wrist, and a similar rules apply to the legs? Well by cutting them the same on either side, we easily keep to that rule in our model."
You say, "Leave enough of the pipe cleaner ends sticking out either side of the straws to make 'hooks' to attach to shoulder mounts or the hip mounts. If you leave enough length on both ends, you can curl the un-mounted end into a circle to represent the hands or feet."
You say, "Now notice the one with the three pipe cleaners representing a big poofy tail? This is where making your own simple models really shines - if you look at his back legs (sadly, the side shots are a bit blurry, please forgive me) you can notice he has animal hind legs...digigrade I think they are called? I made them by taking another chunk of straw+elbow section. Making it like another 'arm', I slid that end of the pipe cleaner into the other's straw, then pinched the end of one of the straws so it would slide into the other one. You can put a bit of tape around the two joins to make it more sturdy if you wish."
You say, "Now if you want to 'flesh' them out more you can, by taping foam along the chest and arms and legs you can make a more rounded model. If you want them to stand on their own hind legs unaided (these two can't. Surprisingly, they are *too* light - they tend to fall over at the slightest vibration) you can tape or glue something to their back feet or paws - nickels or quarters should do fine."
You say, "And that, basicly, is it. Your first few may not look all that good, but with a bit of practice you'll find they are easy to make. And they will prove to be *huge* amounts of help when it comes to plotting out your pictures."
*end of lesson*
