Skeleton Doll Tutorial

Halloween comes in just a few weeks and I have found myself very much in the zone for creating all things ghoul and ghostly. I have decided to give a tutorial on how to make a skeleton doll by utilizing a simple technique for making a skeleton head combined with my technique for making a doll body out of Creative Paperclay. Hope this gets you in the mood for trick or treating as much as it has for me!!!


What You'll Need
Creative Paperclay
Styrofoam ball - 2" or 3" cut in half
Cup of warm water for sculpting
Sharp pottery tool or toothpicks
6" of 12 gauge garden or jewelry wire
12" of 24 gauge jewelry wire
Acrylic paint
Fabric, lace, ribbon, buttons, etc.
Thread and needle or strong craft glue




What To Do
1.  Take your styrofoam ball cut in half, mold it a bit into an egg shape, and cover with paperclay. Use water to dampen, smooth, and blend the clay into the ball.

2.  Take two fingers or your thumbs and press eye sockets into the clay. Press up a bit to create little eyebrow ridges.

3.  Take your sharp tool or toothpicks and create little nostril holes in the shape of triangles or teardrops.

4.  Take a small bit of paperclay shaped in a symmetrical leaf shape, dampen with a tiny bit of water, and place where the mouth will be. 

5. Take your sharp tool and carve a mouth. I prefer lips and a line that divides the jaw and top of the head. Feel free to carve in teeth, a smile, a frown, a scared expression....whatever you prefer! I also like to add little details here, like little carvings above the eyebrow ridges, stitch lines over jaw line, heart shapes on the cheeks. You have creative control!!!

 6.  Take your 12 gauge wire and cut a 5" length. Insert this wire into your skeleton's head, a little off-center toward the back of the head. This will be your doll's neck and armature for its torso and waist pieces.

7.  Roll out a small snake of paperclay and insert it over the wire. Skeletons have bony necks, so make this part really skinny. Use a toothpick or your sharp tool to make the individual neck bones. 

8. Sculpt a two triangles out of the paperclay for the neck, top half of torso, and bottom half of torso. 

9.  Add two triangles with the tips touching each other to the wire.

10.  Dampen fingers and break off small pieces of paperclay to fill in gaps between the cylinder and two triangles. Smooth the clay as you go using slip which simply means that you take a small amount of paperclay, dampen it in your cup of water, and smoothing it between the two body pieces.  

11.  The pictures that were meant for the rest of this skeleton doll tutorial were lost due to a technical glitch. Sooo....To build the rest of this doll, visit one of my previous doll tutorials following steps #9-20. http://creativepaperclay.blogspot.com/2011/08/paperclay-kitty-doll-tutorial.html  You can also see how this doll body comes together by reviewing this tutorial!!! Please note that the neck style on the skeleton doll is completely different from the Kitty Doll. The skeleton doll neck does not need to be blended into the torso!!!

12.  Now that doll is assembled, go ahead and paint it. Allow paint to dry, seal with varnish and allow to dry again. 

13. And once the doll's paint is dried and sealed...EMBELLISH LIKE CRAZY!!! Visit another previous tutorial of mine to learn an easy technique for dressing your doll!!! http://creativepaperclay.blogspot.com/2011/08/glue-and-wrap-dressing-technique-for.html

My doll is far from finished, but this is what she looks like so far! 

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial! I'll be posting better pictures of my completed doll...hopefully this weekend. Please visit http://marissartdolls.blogspot.com/ when you have a chance! Until next time, happy creating!!!

Light Switch Cover Girl

There is no need for your light switch covers to be boring anymore! Here's what you'll need for this project:

Light Switch Cover

Creative Paperclay

Gesso

Rolling pin

Non-stick craft pad or wax paper to roll out paperclay

Craft knife or butter knife

Pencil

Acrylic Paint, Paint Pens

Decoupage Glue or Glue that Dries Clear Diluted With Water

Interior Varnish

Plastic bag to keep screws in.

What to Do:

1.  Paint light cover with 2-3 very thin layers of gesso. Allow to dry. Be careful to maintain open holes for screws in the light cover.

2.  Roll out a lump of paperclay to a very thin layer - about 1/16th of an inch. Make sure that enough paperclay is rolled out to cover light switch cover.

3.  Cover light switch cover with paperclay, cut around the edges, poke out the screw holes, and the actual switch area. Smooth paperclay around edges of light switch cover but do not allow paperclay to go over the edge of the cover. This will prevent the cover from fitting flush on the wall.

4.  Let your paperclay base dry.

5. Once dry, pull gently on the paperclay or bend the light cover slightly. If the paperclay base comes up from the light cover, remove it and apply decoupage or white glue full strength. If the base does not come up, proceed with project.

6.  Roll a small ball and a long, thin snake out of paperclay. The ball will become the Light Switch Cover Girl's head, the snakes will become her arms and legs.

7. With your pencil, lightly draw your girl onto the light switch cover. No need for details of the face, just a round shape where her head will go, a neck (around the top screw hole), her dress (or if you want to make a boy, his suit). Leave room for the face, arms, and head to be built onto the clay base and protrude.

8.  Take the small ball, flatten it a bit and work in into the paperclay base with a bit of water. Add facial features like a small nose, some lips, and hair if you wish.

9. Cut two small arms and work them into the clay base with some water. I like to put my girl's hands on her hips, but feel free to build your arms however you wish.

10. Cut two small legs...add these to your clay base. Always be sure to stay on the flat part of the light switch cover. Otherwise, your cover may not fit flush on the wall.

11. Allow your newly built girl (or boy) to dry. Once dry, paint to your girl to your liking. Finish with varnish, make sure the edges get a bit of this coating. Add a second coat once dry.

12. And now you have your own Light Switch Cover Girl! Imagine the possibilities! How many light switches do you have? Great for gifts as well!

Thanks for reading!