First we need to find a clay mix which lets the tentacles flex but uses a small amount of Bake and Bend clay (B&B clay is in very small packets so I need more to sculpt all the tentacles) I start with the pure B&B clay; on the left, and mix different ratios of bendable clay and ProSculpt until I have the sample on the right which is a ratio of 12 parts ProSculpt to 1 part bendable.
You can see how flexible the pure B&B clay is.
This is the 12:1 ratio sample which is still very flexible. This is the mix I decide to use for the project so I mix up a big batch and leech some of the oil out by placing it between sheets of printer paper for an hour.
The armature is prepared by adding 18gauge aluminum wire to the support rod for each tentacle.
Cut a few strips of clay off the sheet of leeched clay and roll them into tapered tentacles. The tentacle is a round tube with a flattened bottom which will get suckers attached to the flat area. The tentacle slides onto the wire before attaching the suckers.
Another tube of clay is rolled out in a much smaller size which will become the suckers on the tentacles. Small pieces are cut off the tube for each sucker. the taper on the tube will let you start with small suckers at the tip of the tentacle and work your way to larger tentacles as you move to the thicker section of the tube.
The balls of clay are attached to the tentacle in two rows.
The sides of each sucker are seamed onto the tentacle.
The centers of the suckers need not be seamed to the tentacle. Here are the suckers ready to detail.
A ball stylus is used to indent the center of the sucker.
The left row of suckers has the centers indented. The lower tentacle shows the completed suckers.
Next time we will finish the tentacles and do the final fit to the demon body.
Have a great day!
Mark