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I recently needed to make a tentacle for a different project, I was rather pleased with the results and ultimately came up with several different ways to use the basic tentacle that I'd made. So this is a quick instructable demonstrating how to make the basic tentacle unit and then illustrating some of the things that you can do with them.
This instructable will also be my entry into the valentines contest. My wife is also pretty geeky so I'm sure she'll love the tentacle heart, but shh! Don't tell her before valentines!
As with most of my project nowadays if you can see it you can buy it, this is due to the fact that I'm currently unemployed and I have a lot of time on my hands, but also because selling little things like this, even with these minimal margins, allows me to save up for workshop improvements. So if you're not creative or you haven't got time to make your own then buy one from me and contribute towards my laser cutter/ leak free shed roof fund.
More information and paypal links about the tentacles can be found here (https://sites.google.com/site/msraynsford/tentacles)
The Octopus and the other monsters under my laptop can be viewed and purchased here (https://sites.google.com/site/monsterundermylaptop/)
This instructable will also be my entry into the valentines contest. My wife is also pretty geeky so I'm sure she'll love the tentacle heart, but shh! Don't tell her before valentines!
As with most of my project nowadays if you can see it you can buy it, this is due to the fact that I'm currently unemployed and I have a lot of time on my hands, but also because selling little things like this, even with these minimal margins, allows me to save up for workshop improvements. So if you're not creative or you haven't got time to make your own then buy one from me and contribute towards my laser cutter/ leak free shed roof fund.
More information and paypal links about the tentacles can be found here (https://sites.google.com/site/msraynsford/tentacles)
The Octopus and the other monsters under my laptop can be viewed and purchased here (https://sites.google.com/site/monsterundermylaptop/)
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Signing UpStep 1The basic tentacle
Tools you will need:
A smooth board to roll clay on.
A smooth piece of plastic to use like a rolling pin (clear plastic allows you to see the tentacle as you roll it).
A scalpel or other sharp knife to cut the clay.
A paintbrush, used to create the shape of the suckers.
2 colours of clay, one for the tentacles and one for the suckers
Start with a block of clay, I used sculpey which comes in 12 handy blocks straight out the packet), so I just cut one of those blocks off.
Kneed the clay until it become malleable,
Sandwich the ball of clay under the plastic sheet, keeping one edge of the sheet against the cutting matt, slowly start to roll the clay into a cone shape.
Taking a much smaller piece of clay for the suckers, roll that clay into a thinner cone, this will become the suckers.
Cut this cone of clay into equal width pieces, because each piece has an equal width but slowly increasing diameter the volume gets larger.
I like to arrange my suckers at this stage into rows that will go onto the tentacle, each tentacle has 2 rows of suckers so if I'm making 2 tentacles I would arrange 4 rows. This ensures that the first row of suckers on the last tentacle are smaller than the second row on the first tentacle (if that make sense).
Roll each of these suckers into a small ball shape trying to make them as round as possible.
Press the point of the paintbrush into the smallest ball, it should stick to the paintbrush, then press the ball against the tentacle, it should leave the brush and stick to the tentacle. (further internet research advises doing this stage on some baking paper which helps with the stickyness)
Arrange the suckers in 2 lines along the tentacle, once complete you can bake it according the instructions on the packet.
A smooth board to roll clay on.
A smooth piece of plastic to use like a rolling pin (clear plastic allows you to see the tentacle as you roll it).
A scalpel or other sharp knife to cut the clay.
A paintbrush, used to create the shape of the suckers.
2 colours of clay, one for the tentacles and one for the suckers
Start with a block of clay, I used sculpey which comes in 12 handy blocks straight out the packet), so I just cut one of those blocks off.
Kneed the clay until it become malleable,
Sandwich the ball of clay under the plastic sheet, keeping one edge of the sheet against the cutting matt, slowly start to roll the clay into a cone shape.
Taking a much smaller piece of clay for the suckers, roll that clay into a thinner cone, this will become the suckers.
Cut this cone of clay into equal width pieces, because each piece has an equal width but slowly increasing diameter the volume gets larger.
I like to arrange my suckers at this stage into rows that will go onto the tentacle, each tentacle has 2 rows of suckers so if I'm making 2 tentacles I would arrange 4 rows. This ensures that the first row of suckers on the last tentacle are smaller than the second row on the first tentacle (if that make sense).
Roll each of these suckers into a small ball shape trying to make them as round as possible.
Press the point of the paintbrush into the smallest ball, it should stick to the paintbrush, then press the ball against the tentacle, it should leave the brush and stick to the tentacle. (further internet research advises doing this stage on some baking paper which helps with the stickyness)
Arrange the suckers in 2 lines along the tentacle, once complete you can bake it according the instructions on the packet.
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Thank you for sharing, it's a very original and easy to make idea (and you can do so many other things with it!!)
My girlfriend and I have a running joke going about Cthulhu, so this would be perfect.
I like your addition of Purple Tentacle. XP That was my childhood, right there.
me and my son made 2 tentacular hearts, one for the missus and one for our daughter. we put a little flat base on them to make them a bit more stable. great valentine presents. they loved them. ta.
Brings back memories of the Lucasarts classic Day of the Tentacle :D
She used glow-in-the-dark polymer clay for the "suckers". Of course you will get our vote.
Nice to know I'm inspiring!
I am curious though, why do you remove the magnet before baking?
I have baked magnets with polymer projects several times, without problem. See for instance http://www.instructables.com/id/Posable-Action-Figure-Building-System/
The baking temperature was to low to affect the magnets. They were of the neodymium type. It could be different for other types, but I guess the baking temperature of 110°C is to low for almost any type of magnets to affect them.
Of course you can not microwave them.
Baking with the magnets in place also removes the need to glue them back in. In most cases anyway. If I do need to glue the magnets, I use superglue.
Also, you may not notice the drop in strength of your magnets, but i assure you there is one, as you will realign the atomic structure with the heat.
Everybody knows magnets lose strength when they are heated, but I have no idea to what heat and what kind of magnets. Mostly I just didn't want to risk killing the magnets or burning the clay. It's not much more difficult doing it this way so this was the way I did it.
And with my way of working you miss out on the blushing contest when buying the KY Jelly!
However, If you ever want to conceal the magnets by incorporating them completely in the clay (near the surface), it is good to know you can bake neodymium (and possibly other types) at 110°C without an obvious drop in strength.
After about a dozen magnets baked together with polymer clay, I never noticed any blemishes. I always use fimo brand polymer clay. It could be sculpey has more problems with it, as I've read it is more sensitive to overbaking. But still I would be surprised. What could make difference is a difference in thermal transfer between hot air/magnet and hot air/polymer clay, but actually there is no reason to expect that, as in both cases we are talking about smooth surfaced solids. Actually, the thermal capacity probably the most important factor. And the thermal capacity of metals is generally high compared to polymers. And the high internal thermal conductivity means the surface of the magnet does not heat up much faster than the inside. Therefore the whole of the magnet will rather suck up a lot of heat, having the polymer clay bake a litter slower, rather than faster.
And in applications where I realy needed high strength (magnetic joints for a self standing action figure) I did indeed not notice any strenght loss. I guess at 110°C the neodymium magnets are not affected. Magnets in electric motors probably also reach that kind temperatures in for example a number of RC applications. It is well known that electric motors can lose their power when overheating (that is why they are often cooled), but good ones wo'nt yet at 110°C, at least not irreversably.
I use the plate upside down, to avoid any polymer clay stains on the side you eat on. Actually I never noticed any stains and any invisible traces are baked and therefore will not react to anything else. But as I would not like to accidently eat on any invisible PVC traces, I still do it that way.
aka: tentacle love...
But exellent ideas!
Anyway, great instructable. ;)
And way cool project, I'll be making some of these!
to provide support and use less material.
I plan to carve a shape the same size as the head and cover it with silicon paper, then the clay should release from the shape without too many issues.