Backstory: I was wholly unsatisfied with how my previous Mirepoix mask was turning out, so I set out to re-make the whole thing from the ground up. I started with a miniature to figure out what was wrong, and how to fix it.

My hands hurt from working all the plasticine, but I think I'll still manage a wall 'o text on my process. I used 3.5 pounds of Sculptex Medium, but I first made an armature of duct tape and balled up magazine. (Martha Stewart Living, if you're curious. I read it for the recipes. >_>) The eyes are cut up plastic bowl, and the head is a sloppy lifecast of my own head. (I tilted my head back while I was getting wrapped in plaster bandages which explains why my sculpt is tilted up slightly.)

I AM SO MUCH HAPPIER SO FAR IT'S CRAZY. Making a miniature is by far the most helpful thing I could have ever done. I'm not the best at 2-D things, so I think of that process as being equivalent to character development sketches and thumbnails. I highly highly recommend anyone who is making a head (even a foam one) to get a knot of plasticine and play with it. I keep it with me during the process of sculpting the big mask (you can see it hangin' out in the first picture with horns 'n stuff removed). Comparing this to my previous sculpt, she is starting to look so much brighter and smiling. Pulling the eyes back is making her look more dragon-ish, as well as changing the shape of the eyes. The cheeks make sense now! Aaah!

Obviously this is a work in progress, and it may be easier for me to see what I'm talking about than a new observer, but TRUST ME, THIS IS GON B GREAT. Constructive criticism encouraged! I'm putting this down for today; my fingers are killing me.