Below are tutorials from sculpts I have previously completed. I hope these pictures helps someone with their sculpting.

Tutorial #1 Full Sized limbs including armatures. Makes a 21" doll these limbs (Below)

Tutorial #2 Full Body 14" Sculpt Picture Trail (Click Here)

Step one, using wire that is strong but easily bendable, i double 2 good lengths of it twisted around each other, more than I need and I add a loop at the top for later on. Then I cover in lots of foil (ask friends and relatives to collect their old aluminum foil that's clean for you).
Oh sorry about my dirty rug, its in my work room so cops some abuse, lol.

Now I use old clay and or cheap super sculpty in thick twists around the wires. You can straighten out the wires at this point if you want and bend later or leave as is and work that way. These are full sized limbs so its thick amounts of clay but for my minis I use very little clay to make these armatures.

Now I just start smoothing it all off and working out exactly the position I want each limb to be in. In this case I have legs that are going to be kind chunky especially up top with knees bent and feet slightly inward, with one pointing down more than the other. The arms for this one are bend with palms upward and I will be doing open hands. Be sure to not have palms, feet, ankles, wrists or knee areas too thick as you will want them thin when you start adding your prosculpt or whatever nice clay you finish with later.

Another thing: On the legs I add the flange part/groove for cable ties, but in this case I am unsure about arm length so have left them a bit shorter so that I can work that out as I go and ther-for havnt added the groove to those.


Hope that helps someone, I don't think its exactly revolutionary as a method of making arm and leg armature but I know myself I always pick something up when others show how they do their thing.
Tam

NEXT!
I used a drill to make 2 holes in the leg armatures so that it all fits on my stand and allows me to work on the feet later on, the arms I just drive that stake I have on my stand up into the top of. See pics below. I also have all my prosculpt clay rolled out, my tools, my study photos of hands and feet etc. And most important but not shown is my container of baby wipes to keep my hands clean and also my white only clothing rule I have when sculpting.

 

Next I add a layer of clay to each hand as shown, folding the excess underneath to helps start forming the hand fat pads.

Now I add thumbs with a bulb on the end to create the fat pad on the base of a thumb

Some detailing and smoothing.

I roll out all the fingers, all are a little longer than is natural looking so that later I can push them down and also this gives me enough clay to attach each one with.

I attach each one seperately, starting with the pointer and working my way out to the pinky. They all at this stage seem too far apart and also way too long but I will push them down soon and position them.

As promised pushed down and positioned. Have started adding details to them and have also added some fat to the outer part of the hand where the pinky is so that it comes more straight up the side of the hand. (making sense?) I also added a thin sausage of fat padding to the the palm under the fingers all the way along.

Starting to add some clay on the rest of the arm, I usually would bake the hand first but decided to change that this time. I dont know why????? Dont ask me,lol

More clay added, lots of detailing and wrinkles added, also the flange part for the cable tie.

Now I bake, 150C for 20mins on each side. Not a hard and fast time frame I keep an eye on it throughout the baking process. I bake on a glass dish with fibre fill in it.

Now I am about to have everyone cringe because I break a hard and fast rule, but...................This is done after much trial and error and believe me it works. Once finished baking I have a sink full of cold tap water waiting. I take straight from the oven to that water and allow it to cool there. From red hot to cold water. It makes the clay harder, I dont care what the packet says on prosculpt, this works, any cracks that are going to show up (if any, mostly about 98% of the time I get none) will show immediately, not a day later or a week or even a month, but right then and there. Also I truly believe this make the sculpt stronger. Think about how a sword is made, how they make metal stronger. Same theory.

LEGS:

Firstly let me say sorry for skipping a few stages here, I got a bit carried away and forgot to take pics,

adding some clay to the form

First lot of fat pads to the base of the foot, will add more later on as it gets smooshed in during sculpting and moved around a lot

Smoothed out and some initial details added

Adding the big toes and below are them smoothed out and some details added


Adding all the other toes, I wont even pretend that this is something I am very good at, its something I am very much still learning so lots gets moved and taken away plus lots more clay gets added when I do legs.

Some smoothing, details ect.


This is where I skipped quite a bit. I ended up having to add more fat to the top of the foot + the base of the foot up near the toes. I have started to add clay to the legs here, will add about 2 rolled sheets to the bottom of the leg and about 3 for the top. I also ended up having to bring the flange on this one up as I had made the top of the leg too long. Will cut off the excess later on once cooled down. In the oven now, will show you once baked before I paint then afterwards.




 

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