aka Britgeekgrrl (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fangrrl_squees) wrote2006-12-01 10:36 pm
fangrrl_squees) wrote2006-12-01 10:36 pm
Entry tags:
Sanity? Who Needs It?
Dear Diary,
Today, Fangrrl remembered why costumers and prop-builders often hate designers - because they sometimes forget that what looks good isn't always ideally functional. The concept drawing looks fabulous. However, unless one has a forearm of constant diameter from wrist to elbow (I certainly don't!) then a plain rectangle doesn't look so hot, particularly when the piece is so wide.
Granted, the above is a minor quibble but it led directly to fangrrl also remembering that she should have paid more attention in geometry class.
And finally, she realized that she was a fool to have not used Super Sculpey before now.
***
So, yeah, I'm ditching - for now - the recreation of the concept drawing, and focusing on the prop itself, because the concept drawing just wouldn't suit my arm shape and, besides, I really shouldn't go overboard, right? Right. (and quit it with the catcalls of "Too late!")
I'd have more pictures, but my camera is acting up. I've drawn that to-scale paper mockup, which will be used to create the pattern pieces to cut from the leather. I painstakingly sized two straps for the closure but, in taking a closer look at the item (yay for frame-by-frame advancing) I see that it's an almost solid cuff with a single chunky buckle holding it closed over a placket of sorts. So, the line drawing needs some tweaks but, thanks to the wonders of tracing paper, that's not going to take much work.
I've roughed out a couple of test bits for the 'computer' in Sculpey which, I must admit, was a hell of a lot easier to work than I expected. I won't be baking them until morning, though, as I want to be able to open every window in the house once that stuff goes in the over. Polymer clays reek when they're being dried. All those plasticizers have to go somewhere. Ugh.
I picked up some Sculpey "mold maker" too, which is clearly meant to be used with Sculpey (duh) as the mold material but I'm wondering what would happen if I poured resin into it? Just curious and all...
Figuring out how to seat the computer in the wristband will be challenging, as my leather has no give to it whatsoever, so shaping it for that lovely beveled/embedded look is right out. I'm thinking I might have to get clever with some Barge's cement.
Pix of the sculpey bits will go online if they're worth sharing. My major worry about using it is that the piece is quite thin, about 3/8" and I'm not sure how sturdy that's going to be - hence my curiosity about trying to make it in resin, using an initial Sculpey mockup to create a mold from.
Tomorrow, I have to do all the chores I put off tonight and thence I'm off to a party for a friend's going away, so I doubt I'll get anything else done - except maybe distressing the leather - before, erm, Tuesday or so.
***
In other news entirely, a completely pointless meeting ate 90 minutes of my life which I really needed for doing month-end on the books (did I mention that I'm not an accountant?) but, lo, the meeting produced one tangible result. I managed to smack the last bit of the Jack/Ianto d/s intro story into shape - managed to articulate what needs articulating and explained to Jack that, sorry, it's not going to be quite what he's hoping for. Furthermore, I think I've figured out the actual, y'know, smutty bits (so Jack won't be entirely disappointed, but I think he's going to be surprised). The current expectation is a three part story, with the second part written as an IM log, as is increasingly popular amongst TW fic circles these days.
Watch this space, etc, etc.
Today, Fangrrl remembered why costumers and prop-builders often hate designers - because they sometimes forget that what looks good isn't always ideally functional. The concept drawing looks fabulous. However, unless one has a forearm of constant diameter from wrist to elbow (I certainly don't!) then a plain rectangle doesn't look so hot, particularly when the piece is so wide.
Granted, the above is a minor quibble but it led directly to fangrrl also remembering that she should have paid more attention in geometry class.
And finally, she realized that she was a fool to have not used Super Sculpey before now.
***
So, yeah, I'm ditching - for now - the recreation of the concept drawing, and focusing on the prop itself, because the concept drawing just wouldn't suit my arm shape and, besides, I really shouldn't go overboard, right? Right. (and quit it with the catcalls of "Too late!")
I'd have more pictures, but my camera is acting up. I've drawn that to-scale paper mockup, which will be used to create the pattern pieces to cut from the leather. I painstakingly sized two straps for the closure but, in taking a closer look at the item (yay for frame-by-frame advancing) I see that it's an almost solid cuff with a single chunky buckle holding it closed over a placket of sorts. So, the line drawing needs some tweaks but, thanks to the wonders of tracing paper, that's not going to take much work.
I've roughed out a couple of test bits for the 'computer' in Sculpey which, I must admit, was a hell of a lot easier to work than I expected. I won't be baking them until morning, though, as I want to be able to open every window in the house once that stuff goes in the over. Polymer clays reek when they're being dried. All those plasticizers have to go somewhere. Ugh.
I picked up some Sculpey "mold maker" too, which is clearly meant to be used with Sculpey (duh) as the mold material but I'm wondering what would happen if I poured resin into it? Just curious and all...
Figuring out how to seat the computer in the wristband will be challenging, as my leather has no give to it whatsoever, so shaping it for that lovely beveled/embedded look is right out. I'm thinking I might have to get clever with some Barge's cement.
Pix of the sculpey bits will go online if they're worth sharing. My major worry about using it is that the piece is quite thin, about 3/8" and I'm not sure how sturdy that's going to be - hence my curiosity about trying to make it in resin, using an initial Sculpey mockup to create a mold from.
Tomorrow, I have to do all the chores I put off tonight and thence I'm off to a party for a friend's going away, so I doubt I'll get anything else done - except maybe distressing the leather - before, erm, Tuesday or so.
***
In other news entirely, a completely pointless meeting ate 90 minutes of my life which I really needed for doing month-end on the books (did I mention that I'm not an accountant?) but, lo, the meeting produced one tangible result. I managed to smack the last bit of the Jack/Ianto d/s intro story into shape - managed to articulate what needs articulating and explained to Jack that, sorry, it's not going to be quite what he's hoping for. Furthermore, I think I've figured out the actual, y'know, smutty bits (so Jack won't be entirely disappointed, but I think he's going to be surprised). The current expectation is a three part story, with the second part written as an IM log, as is increasingly popular amongst TW fic circles these days.
Watch this space, etc, etc.