Time of my work
Just realised I haven‘t update my blog for a while now. It has been quite a busy time with Urban Market and an upcoming market in June. Doesn’t sound much, but it can be quite tiring especially when I need to refill all the products that I’ve sold.
Talking about my product, how long do I need to work to create 1 product. For example, with simple shape, it takes like 5-10mins, like a round shape. Why 5-10mins, keeping it round is not simple and to make sure not much finger print marking, it is also pretty hard. Then, I need to smoothen it with water and make sure it doesn’t crack. Usually after the simple shape, I like to put some features on it, like a nose. This is the challenging part, my figurine usually is small, and the nose will be even smaller. So to keep it attach to the shape, I need a steady hand and a tool to merge them together. Thus, it takes like 10 mins roughly to get it nicely attach and smoothen. Total, I’ve used at least 20 mins to mold it. It takes 2 days to dry, sometimes less but usually 2 days are the safest. Sanding comes next.
Sanding is kind of quick depending how smooth I shape my figurine. If it is quite smooth, 5-10 mins can be done. But if it has a lot of rough patches, it takes like 20 mins max. So total of my time used is around 30 mins so far. Next, colouring.
I love to colour my figurine and also hate it on the same time, especially in Summer. Acrylic tends to get dry quickly and if I make it more fluid, it is harder to attach to the air dry clay. So the dilemma here is to paint it quickly but also I need time and patient to wait for it to dry before applying the next coat. Usually, for a pastel colour I need at least 3 coats and for more vibrant colours I need at least 6 coats. This process is the longest and usually it takes like an hour minimum. Then, I need to wait overnight for it to dry for the next process, varnish.
Lastly, the varnishing. It takes around 15 mins to coat it properly. Sometimes if I’m not careful, my figurine might stuck at the table and accidentally peel off the colour when I pick it up. Hate it when this happen especially if I mix the colour. Need to remix it and need to make sure it is the same as the one I did before. So, now the total amount of just 1 product takes like 1 hour and 45 mins with 3 days period time of drying. If it is a jewellery, the assembling times take like 5 mins because of my eye sight which is not that good now. Total time to make, 1 hour and 50 mins with 3 days period time of drying. Here is the outcome of the product for the time I’ve used.
