Made some upgrades to the code behind the different pages to help the drawings load more smoothly and reliably. In the process I moved the little essay I'd posted below to it's own page and built a structure into which I can plug future longer-than-normal posts and opinion peices.
In other news, attended the »Gateway Burn« this weekend for the first time. It was a good time. Many of the same people from »Interfuse«, but in a different environment, and without all the noise that comes with an extra 700 people.
Some thoughts on the recently released »Citizen's Briefing Book«. It's being billed as both a means of taking 'suggestions' and as proof of the new administration's commitment to transparency, but even a quick reading reveals some prima facie problems with that depiction.
A real website?
by Rex, May 12, 2008
In my slow progress toward making this a real website and providing some worthwhile content, I also take the opportunity to try to learn some php and sql. To that end I've spent the evening including comment submission code and captchas to some of the pages. Still nothing there really worth commenting on, but hey the code is pretty cool.
Drawing-A-DayDrawing Blog Started
by Rex, May 7, 2008
Since I'm totally failing at producing anything entertaining, I've resolved to at least use the code I'd worked so hard on to do something. So anyway I'm trying to post a »drawing for every day« in hopes that it will help my art skills develop.
EDIT: Okay, I'm doing a really bad job of keeping up, so now it's Drawing-A-"Week".
EDIT: Alright, since I couldn't even do that, I'm giving up on the regular posting idea, so it's just a drawing blog for whenever I want to post drawings or cartoons.
After Action Review
by Rex, May 6, 2008
Enough of the costumes got made to actually wear them at the event. I won't say that I'm completely satisfied, but I'm certainly glad for the experience. I learned quite a bit in the process. Once I get my act together I'll post a photograph or two (no matter how embarassing) so you can see how they turned out.
Okay crunch time, but progress is looking pretty solid. Right now I'm prioritizing. This weekend I should finish up casting and coating all of the foam pieces, then next week I'll paint and finish up the more complex sewing leaving final construction and some of the simpler stuff to be done on site. I'll be there for two days before the costumes will be brought out for wear, so I'll need something to do.
As a side note, I am very proud especially of my havok staff. I finished construction tonight, leaving only coating and painting, and I have to say it looks very much like the toy and with that I'm quite pleased. I admit I had my doubts but it seemed to have worked out well. As I finish painting I think I'll post a few images to give any interested parties an idea of what I've been talking about.
Project Update
by Rex, April 21, 2008
Turns out I had to wait until Sunday to do my casting, but it was a big success. I've discovered that the entire process is much faster and easier than I've anticipated, and I have to recommend »Smooth-On« products based on this limited experience. It's no more messy than you might expect, but the results are absolutely fantastic.
Few people in this world can claim to own a custom-made nerf ram skull, and now I am among their number. On reflecion I think the clay->plaster->foam rubber medium is perfect especially for the production of skeletally themed items. I'm not sure that the same can be said for armor, but I'm just beginning to explore that direction.
This development means that contrary to what I'd previously been thinking, the sewing is going to be the major hurdle. However, if I'm diligent about working on it every night I don't anticipate a problem. I'll also have to work smart. For example, I spent several hours on one of Skeletor's boots Saturday, only to later realize that my design was entirely on the wrong track. The updated design is much simpler while significantly better, so were those hours wasted, or a valuable learning experience? Probably the latter but it's a little late to spend too much time on R&D.
New Project Underway
by Rex, April 15, 2008
I'm currently working on creating a set of costumes for my friends for an event on May 1. With only two weeks to go, I posted a »progress page« so that they could keep track of how I was doing. The most interesting part of the project is that I'm featuring the use of pourable urethane rubber and foam for the armor pieces, so I have to model them and make plaster moulds, which is a new challenge for me. I've experimented a little with trial sizes of these chemicals, but can only hope that they'll work as I think they will. My full shipment is scheduled for tomorrow, so I guess we'll see.
Update: The chemicals came in, and it's a real struggle not to bust into them right away. Must be strong. The fact is that fumes and limited pot life mean I need to make sure I can do this in good ventilation (I'm thinking outdoors) and all at once, so I'm waiting until Saturday. Still, I have plenty to do in preparation.
