Black Gold Saw- Skeletal Claws Progress

What is this?  An update?  Gasp! Shock!  But since I finally have some time on my hands, I was able to mostly finish the claws for Black★Gold Saw. 

So I started by making a few sketches from the  Black★Gold Saw figma on which I will be basing my costume.

And then I will pose. Just like this. In front of a wind machine.

I was inordinately excited to be making skeletal looking claws, because I have this strange obsession with bones and pseudo-anatomical correctness, so I spent much time carving and shaping them until they resembled elongated human phalanges.  Oh, and if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm kind of weird.

So I started with Premier stone clay by La Doll, and I found that it is very lightweight but also very sturdy.

I have tried to break my prototype claw, but I have yet to succeed without damaging furniture.

It can be found at pretty much any craft store, and while it is a little pricey, you'll find that the small package actually goes a surprisingly long way.  I managed to make all ten claws plus two prototypes and two "oopsies" when I realized that I needed to flatten out the proximal digit so that it would fit on my finger without being too bulky, and I still have a bit left in the package.

So here are a couple of the claws after they had been carved and let dry for 24 hours.  I think this is a pinky claw and an index finger.

Why hello, Xbox 360, fancy seeing you here

Post paint!

You have no idea how many times I had to retake this picture for it to not come out blurry.  

The claws have been painted with a gradation of red to black.  I'm afraid my camera doesn't really do the colors justice, though.  In order to keep the paint from chipping, I decided to gloss them.  I had bought Sculpey glaze for this express purpose, but after going over one of the claws, it became readily apparent that the paint was cracking, peeling, and bubbling.  So...that idea was definitely out.  The solution?  Clear nail polish.  No cracking or bubbling, and it's cheaper than proper glaze anyway.  Extreme laziness ftw.

Since this may turn into an impromptu anatomy lesson, here is a human hand for your viewing pleasure.

Now there is a reason aside from my own morbid fascination that I have included this lovely anatomical diagram.  I wanted to try and explain where I attached the claws to my own fingers, and this is the best way that I know how.  The claws that I crafted give my hands the impression of having an extra phalanx, increasing length and creepiness.  The claws are attached to my hand at the point between the middle and proximal phalanges, so that I am able to retain most of my mobility and grasping ability.  

I used a satin opera glove that I had lying around (and yes, I actually have several pairs of opera gloves lying around my apartment, thank you very much) as the base for the claw.  Then I used a hot glue gun to attach the claws to the gloves at the beginning of the middle phalanx of my hand.  Of course, this means I was wearing the gloves while gluing things to my hand.  Not quite as painful as I had anticipated, but I'm sure there are easier ways to do it that involve fewer burns. 

And I even have the mobility to use a camera (even if my claws kept photobombing my pictures)

I am also in the process of making some more proximal phalanges and possibly metacarpals to go on top of the gloves to give the appearance of entirely skeletal hands, but that will be updated later. YAY CLAWS.  Time to go freak out the neighbors.

Next up- the perils of sewing pleather. 

~Kathryn