# Making A Crystal Ball for Sybil



## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

Some of you may remember my Sybil the Clairvoyant effect from last year. 
http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=35973

At the time, I displayed her in a gutted Gemmy Spirit Ball (if you want to see a young Mr. Chicken disassembling it, check out this: http://www.freewebs.com/skeletonhand07/hackingthespiritball.htm)

I figured it's time to personalize it. The plan is to fabricate, mold, and cast a custom base for a larger 16" globe. Here we go!

I did some research into antique hardware for some ideas, and was really attracted to this winged lion motif I found. I sketched out a bunch of designs one day, and settled on this









And then it was a matter of sketching out the deigns full size.









This guy will replace the flowery design in the sketch


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## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

See, I only want to sculpt each of the little critters once, so I'll be molding and casting duplicates to stick around the base.

I laid warm clay over the outlines, and carved it into shape as it cooled









Quick and dirty molds were made in LifeForm silicone (because it is platinum based and therefore will not interfere with the later platinum silicone, and also because it is very quick setting, but mainly because I had it handy)









Now I could spread melted clay into those molds to make duplicates, and stick them onto the base, which I'm forming out of foam core









Those little beads are from the scrapbooking section of the craft store. THey come on a sheet of sticker paper. Super nifty.

Once I put it all together, though, I realized it was going to be much too tall like this.









So now I'm reworking it to be more like this









Next up is finishing off the sculpture and molding it. More to come!


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## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

That is gonna be wicked cool


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

Wowzer Mr. C!
Looking great.....as per usual


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

You are so talented. I love the winged lions.


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## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

Thanks, friends!

On to Phase 2: Molding and Casting!

So, I glued the sculpture to an 18" tile to prepare for molding (typically people use melamine board, but I couldn't find any a reasonable size, and this was only a couple bucks). A gave it three coats of clear spray paint, and one pass of Ultra 4 Epoxy Parfilm, a release agent that is paintable, meaning it won't leave residue on the mold (and later, when I use it in the mold to release the castings, it won't leave residue on the castings, so I can paint on them without having to clean off an oily release).

Then I went in with silicone. The plan is to do enough silicone to cover the piece and fill in undercuts, then back that up with a rigid shell to hold its shape. This silicone is Mold Max 30 from Smooth On. It seems to be working pretty well, and it's a bit cheaper than the stuff that I usually use. Plus it's so pink and pretty! 









That was the first layer, brushed on thin to get the surface details.

I went in with several more layers until all the undercuts of the sculpture were filled in. These layers I added a thixotropic agent to (Thi-vex, from Smooth On). This makes it more paste-like, so I can put on a thicker layer without it dripping so much. There are brushable silicones you can buy, but adding the "thixo" means I only have to buy one kind of silicone, and I can modify it to do different things. In total there are about 1.5 quarts of silicone on this.









You'll also notice some rectangles on there. I made those ahead of time and stuck them on to act as keys, so the silicone would register in the right spot in the hard shell later.

The shell is just two layers of burlap dipped in ultracal:


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## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

And when everything was set and cured, I demolded!









Into the mold, after a few passes of parfilm, I brushed a 2-part expanding rigid polyfoam. I only need enough to make the thing hold its shape, and the weight of the globe.









Once THAT set, I demolded to find a pretty darn good first casting.









A bit of gold, a bit of black, and a nice big acrylic globe on top, and there we go! Here's Sybil's new crystal ball home.









I might still give it a gloss coat...we'll see.

Now, you might be wondering why there's a big ugly hole in the middle of the base, when her head would fit perfectly right on the flat surface that I sculpted. I'm not telling. Not yet. But the reason is really cool, if I do say so myself.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Aww, the pretty pink is all gone

That came out beautifully. It looks like a heavy metal base and has a bit of a vintage appearance.


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## The Halloween Lady (Aug 18, 2010)

Beautiful, just beautiful!!!!


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## Aquayne (Sep 1, 2008)

You must be studying set design in college. That is fantastic!


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## Aquayne (Sep 1, 2008)

Is there a way of making a left facing casting without resculpting?


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## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:jol:Wow! That is fabulous! This begs the question Mr. Chicken,what can't you do?


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## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

Thanks, folks!



Aquayne said:


> You must be studying set design in college. That is fantastic!


Actually, I finished college recently! And you're close. I studied film production, with an emphasis in production design. You can see some of the sets and props I made for student films on my portfolio site www.jasperjanderson.com


Aquayne said:


> Is there a way of making a left facing casting without resculpting?


Haha, NOPE! And that's why I just did the one. A good sculptor would probably use calipers to sculpt a reversed version the same size as the first, maybe using a photoshopped picture for added reference. You could also do a 3D scan, manipulate it in the computer, and 3D print or CNC mill it, but that's a whole other animal...


Pumpkin5 said:


> :jol:This begs the question Mr. Chicken,what can't you do?


Only what I don't have time for...and advanced physics.


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## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

Okay, gang, here's the big reveal...
I needed a new crystal ball because...

Sybil is now _internally projected_, and has _animatronic head movement!_






More about the product in the Sponsor/Vendor forum thread, but I had to share!


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

Wow Mr C......I'm kinda speechless!
That's crazy insane!!!
I may see you at ScareLA?
Still up in the air whether or not I can make it.
Kudos Sir


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

That's pretty sweet, Mr C!


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## Dr Morbius (Sep 21, 2004)

Oh man....Thats the coolest thing EVER!!!! just...I am speechless.


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## Mr_Chicken (Nov 26, 2008)

hmm...works for me...try from my youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/user/jasperjanderson


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## Dr Morbius (Sep 21, 2004)

Ha! cross talk across edited threads....lol! I can see it now.


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## kprimm (Mar 14, 2009)

beyond impressive.You are at another whole level Chicken.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Holy crap, damn, and wowza! If that doesn't draw a crowd at the booth, I don't know what will.

If you ever need a witch or cranky old lady voice for one of these projections, call me:jol:


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## Defenestrator (Aug 8, 2010)

That really is some next level stuff!


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## goneferal (Sep 8, 2010)

That is really nice work.


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## deadSusan (Jun 26, 2013)

Wow!


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