~Rozo the Alborozo~ sent back*

Willlll....things were going along well until the first light coat of primer was applied, and you guessed it! anomalies!! so back to the "Nit Picking" department Rozo goes.
Photo. The foil is to protect his new mane thingy ma jigs from primer.

~Rozo the Alborozo~ continues*

A little more progress was made yesterday as you will note the tiny details on face such as;
*in between the flaring nostril
*detailing around the ear area - creases, rebuilt ear fold
*forelock carefully placed - used real horse reference - and suitable tack friendly
*tiny feather like lashes
*proper side lips

Continued detailing his Vaquera tail;
*with the tiniest running french braid within the tail knot
*sculpted wrap ribbons were added - along with over lapping fold creasing
*12 tassels added

Started the mane;
*3 layered running braids with bands
*24 tassels added

Today Rozo's customing will involve underside work & tiny finishing detail cording to his mane*
complete close up photo's will be soon.

~Rozo the Alborozo~ continued

Progress on Rozo's tail. He was givin a Raza Vaquera tail. reference can be easily found on youtube on how to knot tail.  more to come....

~Rozo the Alborozo~

   Wow, realized going back through the archives that I have been slowly picking away at Rozo the Alborozo.  My mind is set to have him complete and ready for the new owner before years end. 
   This is just a teaser progress photo of Rozo, I plan on posting his complete customing journal just as soon as he is done.  In this photo Rozo displays the ability to stand perfectly balanced with no acrylic rods, base, or tail. Also notice the new fully sculpted neck, forehead, ears, jaw line & the start of a new raza tail.

~Allekayt to Complete~

This is a close up of detail on face. Almost the whole head was revamped or changed, you would not know unless you had an old model to compare. Allekayt will require a finishing coat of primer followed by buff.  He will have to cure a few days before shipping.

~Details to Allekayt~

Added tiny mane bands & fore lock bands to Allekayt, within the bands are detailed band creasing - picture when you twist a real rubber band, then how it overlays its self. 
Tiny eye lashes were added and more ear definition. :)
tools used in the customising process were sewing straight pin & older small paint brush.

now for the fun stuff :)  More SANDING....then prim

~Closing In On Allekayt~

Worked on some fine facial features that included; muzzle creases, side nose muscling, more pronounced facial bridge, thickened ears, & ear creasing. will continue with light sanding with a 320+ grade sanding sponge. Some shoulder work was involved I will post more photos at a later date.

~Allekayt Update~

Sculpted facial features & mane with the new 'Amazing Sculpt Clay' I really like it :) it seems to have its own memory & dries smooth. 
facial features included;
*new fore head
*ear bases, veins, & some wrinkles
*new nostrils to simulate a work out
*lip creasing, with new lip corners
*new nose bridge
*head poll added

Then next came the base of the mane, later to be banded. Start indent marks along the length of the mane for 40+ bands, I use a tooth pick.  With a soft paint brush smooth the edges to a softer more realistic look. use up to date real show horse reference guides. mane lengths have varied over the years.

~Allekayt A Purpose*

Made it back in the studio :) happy, joy!

Was so enthused with the progress on Allekayte that I missed some in between photos that was meant to be shared.  So I will include a written account of the missed visual.

 After cuts are made I use sculpty clay to help visualize the correct proportions, this is just temporary. The tail is coated wire with many twisted together.

Core of neck is shaped with recycled water bottle, have heard other artists use foil.  Work the basic neck no thicker than 1/8 inch at a time. Later layers of neck muscling will slowly be added.  I mainly use Aves Clay apoxy,  but I am anxious to use Amazing Sculpt that I recently ordered.

Here are some basic tools used, nothing high dollar needed.  Pizza box works as my easel with taped reference photo of real in position horse.  Sandwich bags to protect surfaces. Pop tab for Aves working solution.  Make up applicator tips.  tooth picks. Michael's inexpensive synthetic brushes for smoothing.  Home made ears started for Allekayt.

The part missed; layering of tail in 1/8 in increments.  The ears were folded into a tulip shape before the apoxy had a chance to completely harden.  Gelding genitalia was added. & a WHOLE lot of sanding...

Next; More sanding, scoring surface for show mane, facial detail.

Coming Real Soon

~BudJet*
Have been quietly working on BudJet for the past little while.  She is near complete, just picking at a few tiny things then she will be available sometime the beginning of next week. I will also include her progress stages as she was transformed to a ready to paint custom.

Allekayt Earmarked

Progress made on Allekayt that include; refinement on neck & shoulders, will need to add muscling next. Ears I wanted more to resemble the real horse in my reference photo.  As a rough draft her ears were cut off then holes drilled in both ears & model horse forehead. A temporary toothpick is to hold it in general area to give a more positive idea before either gluing the existing ears or sculpted from scratch.

Allekayt The Real Deal

~Allekayt is the newest remodel.  Customising started from the Roxy mold and will be transformed into a Western Pleasure slower lope as seen in the back ground photo. Allekayt is at a rough draft stage.  I plan on  giving him new set ears, more leg movement, neck refinement before I post again.

On The Trail Again*

~Ron is near complete 99.7% then he heads down the trail to his finishing artist for paint work. Excited
Ron has had a lot of work done, but in the end it is subtle & true. goal complete.

Rubbing Ron the Wrong Way?

~Ron came to me as a trade, and was primed prior.  WOW, talk about rubbing the wrong way and it was not Ron, it is me :(  Ron was over taxed with layers upon layers of un-needed primer, if I were to guess 7 or 8 layers of primer, eeek.
Many of you have ask what I prefer for stripping? in most cases just old fashioned sanding & buffing off the old excess primer.  Some model prepers do use chemical stripping but I have found that it may leave the plastic molding gummy or rough.
The goal is to make the canvas (model sculpture) professionally suitable for the painting artist to articulate a sensational piece of art work with longevity.
So sand like heck.... :) but leave the detail.
From the photos provided below you can clearly see the layers of primers;  a white, 2/3 of grey, 3 or 4 metallic rust.  If this was to go to a painting artist it could cause several things; gummy finish work, reaction to paint mediums used by artist, easy deep gouge Marks, etc...
Priming does not mean cover up  mistakes with multiple layers of primer, do the leg work and prep properly first, you will get great results.
good luck & have fun
:)

Back in the Saddle

WOW, does time fly?, it sure does when you have a great summer... :) now it is time to get Back in the Saddle or Studio so to speak.
~Ron is moving nicely.
He is near complete, 95%.  Ron went from a fast ordinary trot to a show extended walk/ gait change, he originally started as the PS palouse.

Congress*

Will be showing off a few Upcoming CM's for QH Congress in traditional size :) stay tuned

The New Guy getting Bullied*

~ROZO

Rozo has had his mane, forelock, & tail removed.  Rozo at this point sports a counter balance BLOB on his front leg for the approximate weight needed to keep him steady with out his previous long tail.  The Blob is temporary.

~Soft & Sensual~

The story of  Liz~

Liz has been challenging & fervent from the start as a Breyer PAM to a NEW & GLAMOROUS show girl.
As posted at each step in her customing journey you were given shared tips.
Which brings us to photography, I do not want to began to claim I am an expert but what I like to try and convey is the feeling of what I see of my CM'd subject. I take in the upwards of  50+ photos with different lighting & backgrounds.

CM AR Barny

**Barny is for sale

Leaky Look @ the newbie

~Wadis

Seeing Stars*

~Liz with her first coat of primer, she is looking all show bizzz.
In a prior blog I mentioned this is were you will find tiny anomilies that may need attention before proceeding to your next coat of primer.  Will that is were we are at with Liz :) nit picking tiny detail.
~Liz is so close to finished.

~Liz Stars*

~Liz* has been even more refined since our last post and many tiny details added.
Work included;
more skin creases on neck, some crest. pooky side lips with creasing. bottom eye lids. ears creasing at base. refinement thru her eye lashes. veining. refining & ear shaping. forelock added. more sanding with 400+ sponge sandpaper.

The next time you see this Lady Liz she will be primed & on her way to her new home.

~Brody & ~Swayze Glamoured*

Will they finally are finished & will on their way to their new home :)

The Beautiful photographing was done by Joanne's Photography = Many Thanks to Joanne*

**Lavished & Layed back ~Brody**

What a life this old Quarterpony has had, & now lavished with roses, braids, & ribbons while he relaxes.
have been working on his tiny expressions. Brody is near completion.

~Sway in the Mane~

~Swayze is just about finished, just nit picking the tiny detail.

Will also be picking on ~Brody some more :) hehe = photo's will follow...

*The Mane Style

~Swayze needed a mane style that would accentuate his movement & stay correct to his body angles.  In order to get a left in his mane it was done in two steps.
1. scuff the surface so there is tooth for the small amount of apoxy to cling to. This will act as a base for your next step. let dry over night.
2. create a flowing mane. I use tooth picks & smooth with water.  Keep consistent with the body movement and lines of equal to mane & tail. watch your thickness, keep it thin. if you want it thick you will need to do it in steps with plenty of drying time in-between.
Special note; if  you plan on a big mane left, I recommend wire reinforcement.
real horse photos work great for reference

~Brody's Prequel

WOW, I realized that part of a good story is a good beginning.  And Brody started his story on paper like most of my ideas, it is a way to visualize the workability.

This is a few days ago (first photo), Brody is approximately 85% complete at this point.
To make the braids I some times use a sewing pin needle to whittle in the detail. If you forget what a braid looks like try braiding three different colored strings.

Now for the other side. If there is a slight hang over or extention I will use plastic for the backing so after the hanging braid dries you can just pull away the plastic & the apoxy does not stick to the model.

~The Best of Hollywood ~Swayze

A lot of movement in this gentleman Swayze.
today he received neck creases & muscling, revamped gentleman genitalia, ear creasing, jugular & chest work. a little work has been done to his base as will.
special note; head is KLF & tail is S. Rose

~All the Glitz Liz*

WOWza Liz is showing all the glitz. progress, progress, progress. The photos will show you her new tummy, girl parts, more leg refining, leg wrinkles, new chest. shaped her neck a little more & tail extention. You will also notice the different color apoxies, I do this sometimes to keep track of my transitions(steps).

New Gal Liz*

~Liz is will started* & available

She is from the PAM Breyer mold & soon to be a glamorous show girl.

Liz has had a tummy tuck, legs moved & revamped along with hooves. tail dock, more elegant neck.

Liz will be GORGEOUS*

here is a teaser photo