Posted: Fri Aug 29, 2008 1:28 pm Post subject: Hats off to you if you can assist!
Topic is a little vague, but I'm trying to work out the best way to sculpt a hat. I'm looking to do something along the lines of a wide brimmed cowboy or farmers hat for my Head Coach for a team I've just started.
The model I'm using is the Chaos Head Coach/Apothecary, who will also be gaining a pair of gumboots/wellies at the same time.
Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions, on wether to sculpt it seperate, or on the model, as well as any suggested methods or techniques.
back in the day I did an entire gang of Necromunda delaque by buying a bunch of the bounty hunter and cutting off his stetson.. you can probably pick him up very cheaply on Ebay if you are lucky.. MUCH easier than sculpting something as thin as a hat brim...
if I had to do it myself, I would use a circle of plasticard for the brim, then green stuff for the hat itself.. I did once convert an orc into a football ref with a baseball cap on.. the brim was made from the clear plastic of a mini blister... _________________ in this company my painting skills are limited at best..
I like the idea of using platicard as the brim, but my only problem is I'd probly end up making him look Amish. Which wouldn't really fit the team, but would look damn cool imo
I think plasticard might end up looking too rigid for the hat brim.
I'd mix up a blob of green stuff, place it between two small bits of lightly greased baking sheet (just use a tiny bit of cooking oil) and roll flat using a pen. Once flat leave to cure for a while (20 mins or so) then cut a circle of the desired size from the green stuff using a scalpel, cutting around a small coin or something. Once you've got a small circle, cut a cross in the middle of it with the scalpel and then drape over the models head - the head should push through the cross a bit. Next push the brim around a bit to get the desired angle and leave to cure. Once the brim is fully hardened add some more greenstuff to finish the top bit of the hat.
The key is to wait for the flattened greenstuff to cure quite a lot before doing anything with it, otherwise it will all go wrong.
Mix your green stuff (or better yet, ProCreate you bought from Impact! ) and let it sit 20-30 minutes so that it gets a little stiffer and loses some of its stickiness. Put a little water on a smooth, flat surface like a CD jewel case or piece of plasticard, and press out a bit of putty onto it until you've got a broad, flat piece that's bigger than you want the brim to be. Now take your razor and cut out the outer edge of the brim, then cut out an inner circle sized to fit the coach's head as closely as possible. Peel up the doughnut you just cut out and place it over the head; it should still stick well enough at this point to at least stay in place, and you'll be able to give it some angles and direction as opposed to the flat, Amish brim you'd get by making it out of card. Finally, you take the leftover putty from which you cut away the brim and use that to build up the dome of the hat, and while doing so connect it to the brim to strengthen the brim's connection a bit.
*edit* Grr, Richy's post wasn't there yet when I started typing, he just typed faster than I did! Oh well, great minds think alike...
The other thing that might help you to get a sharper edge. Use Brown Stuff for the hat ... or use a mix of Procreate that yields the hard cure. Might work better for you than green stuff.
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) and let it sit 20-30 minutes so that it gets a little stiffer and loses some of its stickiness. Put a little water on a smooth, flat surface like a CD jewel case or piece of plasticard, and press out a bit of putty onto it until you've got a broad, flat piece that's bigger than you want the brim to be. Now take your razor and cut out the outer edge of the brim, then cut out an inner circle sized to fit the coach's head as closely as possible. Peel up the doughnut you just cut out and place it over the head; it should still stick well enough at this point to at least stay in place, and you'll be able to give it some angles and direction as opposed to the flat, Amish brim you'd get by making it out of card. Finally, you take the leftover putty from which you cut away the brim and use that to build up the dome of the hat, and while doing so connect it to the brim to strengthen the brim's connection a bit.
