Since I last wrote about my progress on Epona, I have completed her modifications. I couldn’t sand the Aves Apoxie Sculpt over her leg joins so that it was flush with the rest of her thighs. Therefore I redid the Apoxie Sculpt by putting down a thin layer from mid-thighs all the way to the ends of her upper leg pieces [i.e., the tops of the knee joints]. I didn’t go all the way up to the top of her upper leg pieces [i.e., up by the hip sockets] because those areas would be covered by her shorts and I am lazy.

Anyway, I smoothed the Apoxie Sculpt when pliable with saliva and my fingers. When it dried, I sanded a little bit, but really didn’t care to make it perfectly smooth. Then I painted her new thighs to match her existing yellowish tan skin tone and matte varnished the heck out of them, also doing the same for her breast and the backs of her hands. Also touched up any chipping paint on her calves and hooves, covering with plenty of matte varnish. Finally I touched up and sealed the paint on the tips of her ears, made holes in her shirt and shorts for her tail, kept them from running with a few stitches, dressed her, hot glued in her tail, and she was done.

I think she’s adorable. 😀
Continue reading Epona’s done!

Yesterday I solidified Epona’s leg joins by covering them with Aves Apoxie Sculpt. Today I painted those areas of her that will be visible under her clothes — mostly breast and thighs — to match the existing yellowish-tan coverage on her head and calves.

I also made her a tail with my ponytail pattern. This iteration makes some improvements on my first ponytail [for Anna]. I stitched this one almost all the way around, instead of using hot glue on the bottom edge. I also eschewed a straight pin as an armature, instead opting for plastic-coated wire. Finally, to ensure that the wire could not be seen in Epona’s tail, I wrapped it in black embroidery floss to blend in with her fiber tail. Originally I thought that I would just jam it directly into her tail hole, but I created a little mount around her tail hole to extend the tail out a bit from her butt. This will make it fit more easily through her clothes. ^_^

I still need to coat her painted bust a few more times with matte varnish in hope of keeping it from chipping, especially around the neck. Then I need to blend the Aves Apoxie Sculpt on her legs in with the rest of her legs — not on the upper thighs, since those will be covered by her shorts, but on her lower thighs, just above the knees, which will be visible. Once I sand that transition between added Aves Apoxie Sculpt and existing, I will paint and seal.

Continue reading More work on Epona

I cut off the legs of her new body [top piece] 1.5 cm up on the thigh above the highest point of the knee joint. I chose this body because, as is obvious, it’s discoloring into inconsistent hues and therefore ready for a repaint with her equine coloring.

Continue reading Today’s work on Epona

Epona is a customized 1:6 scale action figure that I purchased in 2008 from Therese Olsen. She represents a period in Therese’s dollmaking when she was moving away from mere customizing and into wholesale doll construction, a move that ultimately led her to sculpting her own resin BJDs. Therefore Epona interests me as an aesthetic object and also as a historical example of my friend’s doll development.Continue reading What shall I do with you, Epona?