"DEATH SQUAD COMMANDER" created by Elias

Not only is today Star Wars Day, but this year is also the 40th anniversary of Star Wars! To celebrate Customs for the Kid figured we would bring an old Vintage figure to life that collectors are still waiting to see made with some modern sensibilities. Namely super-articulation...

Action figure collectors were really bummed this year when the Death Star Commander was released in the 6" scale by Hasbro in his black outfit rather than in his original Vintage Imperial greys.  So to pay tribute to the figure from the childhood of the OTC crowd we figured we'd showcase a custom version of the character to celebrate May the 4th.  Elias made the helmet a little more screen accurate and gave the figure a much needed paint job to complete the piece.

It was a great way to enhance the our collection here at home and a fun way to pay tribute to our favorite film franchise.  Stay tuned for a lot more custom action figures from A New Hope throughout the year as we plan to continue paying homage to the film that started it all on its 40 year anniversary.

"DEATH SQUAD COMMANDER"

created by Elias

SKILL LEVEL: BEGINNER

One figure for inspiration and another for its creation.

"TUSKEN RAIDER CAMP DIORAMA TUTORIAL" created by Elias

So for school, I was recently given an assignment where I had to create a blog explaining the process of adopting a new skill and putting it into practice.  I had hoped I could have written a blog about anything since I had seven years of experience writing this one.  Although that would have given me an unfair advantage over my peers if all I had to do was some copy and paste to get my assignment done. Therefore, I decided to try my hand at something closely related to creating my own action figures, I figured I'd tackle learning how to make a Star Wars diorama.  

You would have thought for as long as I've been writing this blog, that I would have tried it at least once, but we never really had the space in the house to both build and display a large scale piece. Dad once made a small display piece for a few of our Star Wars Rebels action figures, but that is about all we ever attempted and I wasn't even home for that build.

I have a feeling that this may be the only diorama that I do.  Not because I didn't enjoy it, but because I have no idea where I'm going to even put this one now that it is completed.  I probably should have went a little smaller on this build.

Nevertheless, I learned quite a bit making this diorama. By the time I finished, I realized I acquired more than just one skill, but I added several new ones to my skill set.  I learned how to use plaster of paris bandages, installation and utilization of LED lighting in a display, and ways I could create an uneven surface in my display base with a variety of mediums I never used before.

I have to give a shout out to Frank D'iorio's Diorama Workshop website for providing me with a great step by step explanation on how to fabricate the outer shell of the Tusken Raider Hut.  I took it a step further and fleshed out the inside too, complete with tusked supports wrapped in real leather bindings, fur rugs, and a metal fireplace with light effects.

On top of that I had to make my first video tutorial explaining the entire build process in great detail so viewers could recreate my final result.  Dad even taught me a few tricks in post production as I edited what I had filmed.

But enough talk, watch my tutorial!

"TUSKEN RAIDER CAMP DIORAMA"

created by Elias

View inside the Tusken Raider hut. Real leather straps were used to accent the hand sculpted tusks that were painted and then used to simulate the hut's supports.

 A metal electrical fitting was used to construct the fireplace.

 Rugs and wall hangings were made from a furry fabric to simulate animal hides.

SKILL LEVEL: ADVANCED

BACKGROUND IMAGE:

_Pixelpiper. Star Wars Tatooine Landscape. Digital image. Flickr.com. Flickr.com, 13 July 2013.   

     Web. 29 Apr. 2017. https://www.flickr.com/photos/pixelpiper/9280370598/sizes/o/.

"REEGESK" created by Darth Daddy

Reegesk was a Ranat scavenger and experienced thief from Aralia, known as a fair trader. He regularly traded with Jawas such as Het Nkik. Reegesk was not picky, and was willing to steal anything, even trash. His tribe needed power for their bootleg vaporator unit, so he went into Mos Eisley to look for a power source. He attempted to trade a Sand People battle idol to Nkik in Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina, during which he quietly stole the power source of Nkik's BlasTech Industries DL-44 for use with his tribe's vaporator, leading to the death of Nkik, not knowing his gun had no power during a shootout with stormtroopers.

In all honesty, this figure took me about 30 minutes to make.  Exactly as long as it took me to drill the headcast, place it on the body I had in fodder, and sew the soft good robe shut. In less than hour I was able to add another desired character to our Cantina display.

"REEGESK" 

created by Darth Daddy

SKILL LEVEL: BEGINNER

COMING SOON - TUSKEN RAIDER DIORAMA TUTORIAL

So Customs for the Kid have been hard at work all week creating content for our blog. Dad has been working on a new Clone Wars action figure for a future episode of "Customizing The Clone Wars", and I have been venturing into some new territory by tackling my first ever Star Wars diorama piece.  I had a school assignment where I had to document my journey as I adopted a new skill. Since I have been making custom Star Wars action figures for 7 years now, I figured it was time that I tried to make my first diorama. The best part about this assignment was that I decided to do a step by step video of my entire process from start to finish.  I put so much work into the video that I decided I would share the tutorial with all of you once it is completed. In the video, I cover the build of the Sandpeople hut complete with interior details, the creation of the desert environment, and how to use LED's and a glue gun to create fire effects.  I'm almost done with the video editing so stay tuned for the release of my video and pictures of the completed project!

"CUSTOMIZING THE CLONE WARS" - EPISODE 46.5

Clone Wars custom action figure artists, Peak-OB1 Custom Creations & Darth Daddy of "Customs for the Kid" display Clone Wars custom action figures from Season 3 of The Clone Wars TV series episode "Witches of the Mist".