Jade Cthulhu Idol: Take Two

I decided to take some new pictures of this Cthulhu idol for two reasons. One, it's heading off to a new home soon and I wanted some snapshots before I pack it up. Two, my photography setup has significantly improved since I took the pictures in the original post. I'm still a crappy photographer, and I'm sure it doesn't help that I'm still using a Canon A-20 digital camera that I bought almost ten years ago, but the new light tent somewhat compensates for even those drawbacks.



The beauty shot. There are better Cthulhu sculpts out there, to be sure, but I like how "alien" this depiction is.



From the side. This view gives you a better feel for the proportions of the finished idol.

While there's a lot of room for improvement in my sculpting skills, I'm rather proud of how well the jade finish came out. After painting the whole idol with a base coat of dark green I stippled on two lighter shades of green to create the marbling effect, then coated the whole thing in a couple of layers of clear acrylic.

Period Telegram Blank

So a couple of weeks ago I bought a 1918 telegram off Ebay with the intention of copying the details for a blank prop. I scanned it as soon as it arrived, but I didn't get around to cleaning it up until tonight after dinner. After importing the scan into Illustrator I had begun the long, tedious process of tracing the lettering when my email pings. I open up Gmail and discover a message from Philip Obermarck asking me if I'd be interested in hosting a blank telegram form he's created as part of a project.

Wait, it gets better.

Here's the scan I was tracing just a few hours ago. I'd just finished the "P" and "O" in "Postal" when Mr. Obermarck's email arrived.



Here's the full sized .jpg of the absolutely gorgeous pdf file that he sent over.



Seriously, what are the odds of something like this happening? At the exact same time I'm working on a new blank telegram he just happens to send one over, from the same company and time period mind you, all formatted and ready to use?

I'm very grateful to Mr. Obermarck for the opportunity to host his work. Click through on the picture above for the full sized, CC licensed artwork.

Aging Paper: Brownish Green or Brownish Orange

One of the constant topics of paper prop creation is recreating the yellowing and browning of aged paper. For years I used a staining bath made from water and instant tea powder, but over the past couple of months I've been using a bath brewed from walnut ink crystals instead. Tonight I finally figured out why I haven't been happy with that approach- it's the color.

After a few experiments I've found that, at least to my eye, walnut ink crystals produce a shade of brown that has a green/blue cast while the brown produced by instant tea (Lipton Unsweetened Decaffeinated instant tea, in particular)has an orange/yellow tint. It's a subtle difference, but it helps explain my dissatisfaction with the walnut ink crystals. To me, brown with a greenish note denotes corruption and dirt, while brown with an orangish note conveys age and dissolution. That's an incredibly subjective judgement, of course, but one that's been subconsciously influencing my appraisal of documents produced with the walnut ink crystals from the beginning. In real life I have a severe aversion to dirt and grime. Having the staining process produce that effect, when I actually wanted an impression of age instead of dirt, helps explain my frustration.

On a related note, I'm going to try a few experiments using Diet Pepsi and Diet Mountain Dew as the liquid for staining baths. The first time the idea of using soda as the base was proposed to me I thought it was a joke, but it appears there may be some solid chemistry behind it.

Update: Tiffany over at Curious Goods has some more thoughts on the color shift:

"I don’t get the green tinge when dying with my inks – I switched to making my own ink a couple of years ago and it is a rich golden brown color. I did notice a green tinge on the walnut ink made by Making Memories, but I didn’t notice it on the ink made by 7 Gypsies. Perhaps it’s a brand related issue?"

Surprise, surprise...I just happen to be using walnut ink crystals from Making Memories, so it looks like it is brand related. After seeing examples of paper aged with walnut ink that did have a warm brownish-yellow tone I was beginning to think I was somehow screwing up the process.

Go read her entire post, because it has some great insight into the aesthetics of the aging process.

Doc also raised an interesting point in the comments that the artificial sweeteners in diet soda might promote mold growth. That doesn't trouble me too much, since I've always assumed that artificially aged paper has a shortened lifespan anyway. Nothing catastrophic, mind you, but I'd expect them to start crumbling after 20-30 years anyway. I have acid aged scrolls from 12 years ago that aren't showing any visible degradation. On the other hand, both the ones I have in my files and the ones I have displayed on the wall are shielded from UV light. I suspect the inevitable process of lignin breakdown would be significantly accelerated with even mild exposure.

Theatrics

Paperprop is an archive of printed material for theatrical productions, but you'll find a variety of items of interest to "Call of Cthulhu" gamers. Everything from adoption papers to scans of period passports can be found on the site, including a selection of the period ephemera like matchbooks, beer labels, and cigarette packs that I love so much.

Bioshock Syringe

"Bioshock" is an amazing game, notable not only for it's clever re-imagining of the survival horror first person shooter genre, but for it's amazing design work. Everything, from the architecture of the buildings to the wall posters scattered throughout the environment, was lovingly created by a team of artists that spent years polishing even the tiniest details. Now Harrison Krix has posted a detailed build log for his recreation of one of the game's most iconic props- the Little Sister ADAM Syringe.

"The Little Sisters from Bioshock are among the creepiest characters I've ever seen in a videogame. Their syringes, used for extracting ADAM are even moreso, with vials of genetic material in a glass that the sisters suck from dead bodies, then drink. ugh."

There's some great information there, including some helpful tips for anyone trying to create a "mad science" look.

Cover Me

Rev. Marx has another detailed tutorial on how to create a mouldering tome from an off-the-shelf paperback book over at MRX Designs.

I have had the idea of recovering these types of books for some time now. I have made a couple of aborted starts on other books, but this is the first of its kind that I have completed. I planned to build a hard cover around the existing book, and marry the existing soft cover into the new hardcover. I started by measuring the existing book, and figuring out the dimensions for my new spine and front and back book boards.

The relatively trivial material and time demands of the good Reverend's technique make it one of the most cost effective ways to create a great prop I've seen.

The Dyer Sketches- Inside the City

The second of the Dyer sketches- Dyer and Danforth inside the city.



Another wonderful piece from Danny Cruz. I really like the way he's incorporated the Elder Thing obsession with multiples of five into the architecture of the buildings.