Tutorial corner I

Every now and then people ask me for instructions. I've made quite a few and I've usually asked 30-70 € per model (or made them free when selling the model itself). I used to do them by photographing, but that is not ideal and destroys my poor back; fortunatelt Bricklink's Studio CAD is quite good actually and merely overheats my computer. It has also neat built-it instructions maker, so... here are some tutorials. They are not full instructions, though - if you happen to need a sheet for a whole model, please contact me on Flickr (Eero Okkonen) or Instagram (@eerookkonen). Or similar.

This first batch concerns some body parts of two recent builds, Valerie Orion and Augur of the Last Peak. I chose these two models as they have two most common female head designs I use and Valerie's limbs are quite sturdy and univerally adaptable.

 First up, Valerie's head. This is quite usual basic design, fine-tuned for a bit larger-scale figures. Note that there is a half-plate gap between the space connector piece and the black 1x2 plate on step 6. This Stud.io model also emits the Clickits bracelet halo as it's not available in the software. The main hair block's connection (2x2 plate with two studs to top stud of the travis) is not very sturdy and may fall off. 

This uses Slope 45 2 x 1 Double (with inside bar, 3044b). Similar design can be made in reddish brown and dark brown by using Slope 45 2 x 1 Triple with Inside Bar (3048c) or Slope 45 2 x 1 Double / Inverted with Bottom Stud Holder (3049c) as the chin. The neck joint has to be furter back if 3049c is used (in dark brown). Different eye colours can be experimented on.

 Valerie's boot. An inside-out turned Tire 24 x 14 Shallow Tread, Band Around Center of Tread (89201) works as the mouth of the boot. the dark purple ribbon connects to the inside of the holder bar on 1x2 plate. This is a relatively sturdy design. The other boot is, naturally, mirrored.

Valerie's arm. This is a new, unique design without T-bar (not available in tan and rare in reddish brown). It is sturdy, but some 2x2 round bricks might not have enough clutch for the elbow. If it falls of, try another piece! The combination of step 1 was actually upside-down at first, but this version proved more stabile. The round-plate-with-bar piece as the shoulder joint is not perfect, as it has the little ridge on the side; I used a connection to headlight brick's antistud side, but the connection looses somewhat easily. Looks good, though. A pin hole with hollow stud on the other side might also work; and yes, the tiles and curved slopes can be replaced with printed or stickered ones for tattoos.

Augur's head. Stud.io's medium nougat looks very orange, but medium nougat it is. This design is intented for colours without 1x2 double slopes (medium nougat and dark tan), or if a rounder chin shape is desired. It's relatively sturdy, even though the double cheese slopes tend to "live" a bit. IMPORTANT: The old grey piece on step 2 is the old, obsolate version: Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Light Attachment - Thin Ring (4081a). The regular version with a plate-thick ring won't work. The neck joint is further back than on the head variant above and should be taken into account when designing the torso.

The tutorial corner will return!