Still Hitting the Bottle

And the jar... I couldn't stop trying to get a system down for making custom hot glue "glass" bottles and ink jars for the Writing Mouse scene. [Did I mention how fantastically fun it is to cast glue in plaster? It's fast, it no tox, and the results are thrilling when they work.] I don't know if I'll use them, but it sure was fun figuring out how to do it. I found the way to make the halves match was to assemble a 2-part mold with rubber bands and the squeeze the hot glue in, slush on all sides, then pour the extra out. Wait until the glue cures and then release the bond mold halves to reveal a round little bottie. They were complete, but the seams were pronounced. It would work if the mold were cut in two more precisely through exactly half of the bottle instead of obtusely like my test bottle had been.

Feeling sassy though, I made other molds that were kept whole. The clear glue skin of the cast was pulled firmly from the bottom while still slightly warm. These then were drilled with a Dremel™ tool when cured and they looked remarkably like hollow glass (Got that, Mikeee? Hold your liquer.). Then I applied dry pearlized pigments and an aging acrylic patina to give them an old, dug up artifact look. Little glass jars with lids were made the same way and filled with ink and leaf quills, ready to write down the wise answers from deep inside the Listening Tree.

STAY TUNED!
Tomorrow I plan to write up my Field Report and Notes from the ASIFA-Hollywood Stop Motion Expo held in Los Angeles on Saturday.