Mixed Media Goblin Wizard

To make this little four-inch goblin wizard, I used a variety of different materials to make him look convincing. With Yoda and Dobby floating around in my mind, I worked on this guy over several days, adding to him each time.

I haven’t experimented too much with wire frames yet, but this attempt went well. I shaped a rough outline to support his limbs. Obviously, I spent the most time on creating the wizened head, then the hands and feet. I attached those body parts to the frame, using white clay to roughly cover the rest of the skeleton and connect it all together. I baked it with foil guards all around it to keep it stable as it hardened.

Then came the fun of adding various details to him:

• a green fabric robe (sewn around his body), which I clumsily embroidered with some golden thread
• a braided yarn belt
• a brown fabric satchel (which actually has a few gold clay coins inside)
• an amulet made of clay and thread
• a walking stick with a few notches hacked into it for decoration
• and lastly, white yarn untwisted and soaked in grayish water to make it less pristinely white, then rebraided and superglued to his head

Now he just needs a name!

Dreaming Dragon

I had been wanting to make a little dragon curled up and fast asleep. She turned out quite like I had hoped! I started with a body of white, to which I added the ridged underbelly. I spent about two hours adding details – scales and textures, eyelashes and nostrils, horns and wings. The textures helped cover up any fingerprint smudges.

Sweet dreams, little dragon.

 

Bookworms

I have another website, www.ESLbookworm.com, which is dedicated to teaching English to non-native speakers through fun stories and vocabulary. For the logos and art, I decided to create 3D bookworms out of clay. I like the effect. Plus, the little guys decorate my bookshelves.

One of my previously-made goblins, studying up on spells, fits the bookworm theme pretty well too! He made an appearance on ESLbookworm’s Facebook, along with the others.

Hobgoblins and a Waterhorse

Folkloric hobgoblins have been described in many ways. The term hobgoblin could refer to mischievous little Dobby-like creatures who perform helpful tasks in the home  – or make shoes out of scraps of leather. Quite to the contrary, a hobgoblin could be understood as a large and aggressive beast in D&D, with the smarts to add to the threat. Then again, some say that the classic hobgoblin is actually Shakespeare’s clever Puck, the playful but wise jester in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

I find myself drawn toward the first description. As ‘hob’ means ‘hearth’ in Welsch, it’s plausible that hobgoblins were associated with keeping homes neat and tidy. I created a few of my own little hobgoblins – with funny noses, big ears and tails with a puff of fur at the end.

On a different note of lore, I created a mythical water serpent of some kind, rather like a  Waterhorse or Loch Ness monster (though certainly not a fearsome one). The three-piece body makes it fun to play around with.

Family Portraits … in 3D

Family sculpture sets — or as I like to call them, “portraits in 3D” — make unique, surprising and funny gifts. They’re small and portable, plus it’s fun to rearrange them within their own groups. These little keepsakes can adorn the top of a dresser or a shelf, or just sit nestled on a busy desktop.

All I need is a few photographs to get started. Then I try to find some distinguishing features to identify the people, taking creative liberties with their clothes. Since I find it challenging to make people, I keep them more cartoony than real.

This first set consists of the welcoming grandfather, grandmother with grandchild, mother and father. And, of course, the two pets!

 

Another set I made featured a grandmother and her three grandchildren:

 

 

Soft-bodied Troll Dolls

As presents for my niece, nephew, and my own children, I decided to experiment with making troll dolls with clay faces, hands, and feet, but soft bodies. I made five in all, trying different features and body designs. I was very happy with how sturdy they turned out – they can be dropped and actually played with without breaking.

Dragon and Hatchlings

I experimented with many little details on this dragon – multiple horns and spikes, teeth, claws, and wings.

The babies are fun to make, and they turned out quite cute!

Christmas Keepsakes 2014

I focused on making homemade gifts for friends and family this year, with clay in particular. I made a variety of clay people and items, many of which I turned into ornaments or magnets. Here is my collection from this season:

An angel, to which I added a wire so it could hang on a tree:

Converse shoes ornament:

Mini gingerbread houses ornaments:

Mystery Coffee Shop magnets:

Dr. Who’s time-traveling TARDIS:

New baby in a stocking ornament:

Pregnancy Keepsake figurines, personalized:

Personalized husband and wife ornaments:

Magnets: mini turtle and Wild Thing

My children also joined in the clay fun, making beads, a Santa, gingerbread ornaments, and ladybug magnets:

Creatures of Another World

Goblin Meadow

I have recently started to make little creatures of the sort that hide in forests, practicing magic. I call them goblins; you may call them something else. Whatever they are, they are quite fun to make. I made the first one holding a lantern, venturing forward. The second was a wizard wielding a bent stick, and the third was a little guy roasting a drumstick over a fire. From there, I made a bookworm buried in a book of spells, wizards with crystal balls, etc. I am experimenting with different skin tones, poses, and props. The possibilities are many. I would like to start focusing more on details, especially in their facial expressions and clothing.

The lantern bearer

The green-skinned goblins, lantern bearer and coin hoarder

Hungry camper and cloaked wizard

The coin hoarder

Archer and stew-maker

Hobbler and ball-gazer

Wizard ball-gazer

Apprentices dedicated to their studies

 

Three goblins

Goblins with dagger and sword

Goblins with slingshot and bow

Creatures of another world