Post #642279 by danlovestikis on Sat, Jun 30, 2012 8:28 AM

Hi Psycho Tiki D we will be at that sale for sure. Dan's excited that you have that mug. When I open up the next Wish List I'll post a photo of an example and a price with it. Right now I'm concentrating on making green-ware and molds that will give more options for fulfilling wishes.

Yesterday we made two new molds and duplicated two other molds. It was taking a week to pour the four parts to make one of these War God or small tiki Frankoma bowls. So we duplicated the two molds. Using these two tikis again was nerve wracking.

But first we made a mold of an old glass vase. I wanted to have a blank so that I could add on anything. If you have a home bar that is named I can now make a mug for your bar with the name and whatever else you want.

Next we made a mold of the plastic cast I did for Roge's chunk lamps. There are endless possibilities for mugs and bowls with this cast.

Here's our day.

Our day started slowly. It took 1/2 an hour just to get these lines in the right spot. The vase must be divided exactly in half or one side will be stuck in the mold. I used a stiff and a flexible ruler.

Once I had them just right I also drew the lines inside the vase in case they wiped off when I was adding clay.

I used clay to support the vase on the wood bottom we selected for the mold. I added clay to the line drawn.

Once I had all the clay added I smoothed it with a wet paper towel and added dents for locks.

Half done.

I flipped it and removed the clay.

We flipped it over and got it ready for the next half. This was the first of four major leaks of our day. We scooped it into a bowl and poured it back in the mold. You can do this if it is still completely liquid and your table was clean.

The mold is finished. Now I have a blank to work with.

A plastic cast of the sculpture I did for Roge's lamps.

I wanted to make the tiki thicker for more options. It is easier to remove clay from a cast than to add it.

I put it on a board and finished the new clay to insure there were no undercuts. I added clay to the top and bottom so that I could pull the moai out of the mold.

It worked and now I'll be able to make bowls etc. from this mold.

Next up making another War God mold from the original. I filled the mug with clay and also added clay to the bottom so that it would be a two piece mold.

Ready to pour.

This worked fine and once again I did not ruin our original War God.

The next mold was of the small Frankoma tiki. duplications are half the work of starting fresh.

Prepping the mold to cast. MOLD SOAP never forget or the halves fuse.

Will this day ever end. 6AM to 6:30PM

All finished the last mold is done.

In case you missed seeing Dan's secret talents here they are again. Sweeping

and mopping.

Drying in the sun the new molds will take a week to be ready and then I'll start casting them.

Tomorrow I'll put up photos of the second War God bowl that I'll offer on the Wish List. Now the time has come for me to start painting.

May your Saturday be full of delights, Wendy

[ Edited by: danlovestikis 2012-06-30 15:46 ]