Odd Question: Making a Hood Ornament from Scratch?

[chefjuke]

Hi all,

Okay, so my new Shortbus Skoolie came with a fun Kayaker hood ornament (which, perhaps appropriately, lost his paddle somewhere) which fit the previous owners who used the bus for Kayak/Rafting trips.

I am thinking I may want to create a more personalized hood ornament and was wondering if anybody had any ideas on methodology?

My idea was to have my daughter (the artist in the family) make a sculpture and then figure out how to make a cast and then make a RESIN copy of the sculpture. Unless there is a fairly straightforward way to make a metal one (which doesn't involve to great an investment in specialized equipment)

Any ideas, suggestions, guides, etc. greatly appreciated.

[Sojakai]

I was going to suggest that you talk to the local High School Shop Teachers. They normally have alot of knowlage in the area. Plus, If its a metal shop, they have just about everything you will need. You might have to supply the aluminum, but thats not hard to do.

The Teacher may also help with making the item or farm it out to a gifted student, just like Smitty said.

[Papabear]

I just mounted a 1' garden nome with jb weld on the hood. wife made it in a craft rehab. class. I hope the plaster will hold up

[TygerCub]

You may be able to use Sculptie too. Just seal it when done. Stuff lasts forever.

[Sojakai]

Use the little gnome to make more little gnomes. It would be easy, just get the stuff that they make dental molds from, some tape, and a plastic water bottle that you dont mind cutting in half.

Cut the top 4th off the bottle, mix the alginate and pore it into the bottle, making sure to leave a little bit of space at the top. Take your gnome and place tape up his sides to make separation points for the mold. Put the gnome into the alginate, making sure that the soles of his feet are just uncovered.

After a couple hours, it should be set. Unmold the gnome. You will have a temporary mold that should allow you to replicate your gnome a few times so you can make a better, stronger mold, to use better materials for gnomes.

Dont forget to check youtube for mold making vids. I spent two days watching them a couple months ago...

[Papabear]

Originally Posted by Smitty

I have the answer......CHIA-PET!!

Smitty

Smitty......... You crack me up

[chefjuke]

LOL! Thanks for all the suggestions.

Of course I realized in the midst of reading the suggestions that I have some friends in Cali that do metal sculpture work....going to ping them and see if I can just send them down some sculptures and have them reproduce in metal...

Will let you know how things turn out...

[Sojakai]

Thanks alot Smitty, I keep thinking about one of the teachers at the High School I went too. The guy was bald on top. One of his students gave him a chia-pet for his birthday, the "Uncle's Hair". This teacher thought it was funny and took it home, followed the directions and about two weeks later, brought it back into class to show it off.

The chia-head was bald on top. Apparently, the kid took the head and filed off the top of it so it wouldnt hold the seeds. I keep picturing the bald chia-head...

Who knows how long it will take for me to bury that again...

[nearhomeless]

I would probably carve it out of some kind of softwood, then coat it with a metal-finish paint like the chrome-look meant for wheels and such. Dont know how durable it would be but it would be the easiest, simplest and cheapest way I can think of. You could probably make it for under $15.

[bikeforthelight]

im going to a trophy shop. they can get a ton of different things from sports to animals. you can get cheap plastic ones or nice metal ones for more money. but you can order almost anything, and it will have a great finish. not too expensive either. Here is a site that offers a ton of them. They have pewter and bronze versions.

http://www.trophydepot.com

here is the one i think i may use. just gonna pull the statue off the wood base and put it on the hood.

[C00LR]

What kind of object is the hood ornament are you making? Or having made?...

[Cyrus]

I have seen better tree people sculptures coming from prekindergarten children.
Oh well.

[TygerCub]

Originally Posted by Dogstar

Resin casting is really easy though - you can get the moldmakng materials and everything you need at Hobby Lobby or another hobby store.

Can you be a little more specific with brand name and/or a website? This sounds very interesting and I'd be interested in exploring it more.