cryptic-forge - Tumblr blog

[cryptic-forge]

wip, straight from the printer because i had to string her as soon as the final print finished. she turned out to be the exact kind of Weirdo i wanted + i'm mega happy how the upper fins work as a built-in doll stand.

would have liked to print the entire tail in the silver-gold filament, but ran out midway through, so the first segment will just have to be painted.

also, happy mermay! i've never actually participated before, tends to go more like "oh, yea, merfolk are cool, i should make something" -> i blink and it's mid-july. but it turns out i can be here bright and early on the first day if it happens on accident. i'll do my best to finish styling her & post final photos within the month.

[cryptic-forge]

i'm not deeply into sewing, so i usually sculpt dolls that i can display naked without them looking like they even need clothes. but my orc girl required an outfit, and i ended up having fun making it.

working rope into doll outfits is my favorite thing to do, though it can be a little bit challenging on a body that is 25cm tall, slippery, and has zero softness. also added some straps & buckles this time to go with her vibe. she will have a more elaborate cyberpunk photoshoot later, but here's some quick shots for now.

[cryptic-forge]

cable management? she doesn't care, she's got it under control.

another monster high robot girl custom. this time the recipe is one elle eedee + some transformer wings and gundam bits. she is from 2022, though i did some repainting before taking these photos because i just might have had 16 projects on my desk and 67 on my mind when i first made her & the paint job felt quite unfinished.

[there is never a time when i don't have 16 projects on my desk and 67 on my mind, but i do try to have the patience to see all of them through eventually.]

[cryptic-forge]

i was looking through the Doll Parts Bin -> found this old head sculpt i made, and a torso that happened to match in size -> decided to cobble together a fae. decorating things with fake plants & miscellaneous bits is definitely one of my happy places in art.

the dragonfly wing frame files are from here. i added a coating of thick varnish tinted with acrylics to fill in the holes and make them fit the vibe.

[cryptic-forge]

i promise she's not going in soup for real.

the chanterelle head on this one was a bit of a challenge to get to stop looking like a cartoon chef's hat, but it was interesting to take on a different kind of a mushroom. the lesson learned is that i should sculpt more mushroom folks, in all the ordinary and unusual shapes there are. might do the drippy goth one next.

[photo credit: @posnakkel]

[cryptic-forge]

amidst all the technical problems, we managed to print just the littlest guy. the neck structure needs a couple of small fixes, but otherwise i'm happy with how the birb turned out. i'd love to print a flock of these and paint them in wildly different styles.

[photo credit: @posnakkel]

[cryptic-forge]

a few years ago i had a phase where i made a bunch of animal-themed mecha girls, and this robot rabbit is my favorite. the jacket i gave her later, and it really adds a finishing touch to the aesthetic.

contains: mh rochelle head, inner monster body, and parts of a gundam, a transformer, and some bots Definitely Legally Distinct from transformers.

[cryptic-forge]

since all new 3d printing & photography is still in limbo, a throwback! this is the first doll i ever made. she is from a couple of years back, though a more precise grip on the timeline is lost to me.

i had a brief fascination with bjd head sculpts as a kid, and did a few frankenstein experiments on barbies, but was never really interested in dolls before. the hobby started in a flash when i happened to see a monster high custom video on youtube. i took one look at a cleaned abbey face, went "monster high face sculpts are like THAT?", and got my boots on to go to the nearest thrift store. did not find any monster high at that time, but bought a moxie girlz doll, and came home to make this.

the spider butt is insulation foam and clay, and the legs are worbla over a thick metal wire, which allows them to bend surprisingly well. also, the tattoos are patterns cut out of my childhood satin pajamas, which is an excellent example how a lot of my material storage may be Old As Balls, but eventually compelling things will have their use.

the arms are super charming when i look at them now; a relic from a time when i didn't just have a bin of spare doll parts to get new arms from. i thought about swapping them out now, but i think i'll keep her as she is, as documentation. the harness i do need to retie though, as i did not know shibari back then and it Could Be Much Better now that i do.

all told, i've made about 80 fashion doll customs. most of them have never been photographed, but i'll do some more throwback dollposting when me and/or my partner get time & motivation to take pictures.

[cryptic-forge]

our 3d printer had a brief trip to hell, first spending a month waiting for replacement parts and then the better part of another refusing to produce much anything other than blobs, lines, and spaghetti. my partner finally wrangled it into submission, and we are back in business!

not much to post yet; we also moved house during the printer downtime, and haven't figured out a good photography setup. but i got excited when i noticed this prototype could stand on one foot pretty effortlessly, so here's a peek & a status update. i don't usually do bodies that are this.. unadorned, but i felt a calling to make just a simple orc girl without a thousand things going on in the sculpt. i love orcs, trolls, and other fantasy races that tend to get the short end of the stick and be relegated to mindless enemies without nuance [INJUSTICE], and want to make a fuckload of dolls representing them.

faceup is not fully finished, but i had to see what she would look like with eyes. i love the texture msc gives to even the most basic PLA; it's almost as easy to blush with pastels as resin or vinyl would be.

[cryptic-forge]

feygoat 2.0, now properly able to stand on their own four feet! the client wanted a green & gold nature-y color scheme for this, which was not something i had ever thought of, but which immediately clicked in my mind like "OF COURSE it should be green."

unfortunately our 3d printer broke right after printing this one. i've been working on some new designs while waiting for replacement parts, so there's a parade of orcs and trolls and mushrooms and centaurs and goblins on the way when my partner gets the machinery back together.

[photo credit: @posnakkel]

[commissions reopening in january!]

[cryptic-forge]

a familiar, ready to get this show on the road and travel to its new home!

it has, in fact, already arrived at this point, but the travel vibe with the little suitcase is cute.

[photos & paintings in the background: @posnakkel]

[commissions reopening in january!]

[cryptic-forge]

GOBLINS DESCENDING UPON A FEAST.

i saw a post with this image while being Extremely Tired

and went "yes. i will now make the strawbebby". and then made a couple of other berry goblins for good measure. was extremely good rest for my brain after working on some more complicated commissions for the whole day.

eventually i might revise these in a slightly bigger size with more articulation, so they can descend upon their feast with the superior dexterity afforded by having elbows.

[photo credit: @posnakkel]

[commissions open!]

[cryptic-forge]

catch of the day, fresh from the sea! sometimes you need to make a round little aquatic guy.

[photo credit: @posnakkel]

[custom bjd commissions open, check my blog for info]

[cryptic-forge]

working on a 1/3 scale bjd commission, and the size difference between the quick & dirty mini prototype and the finished head Disturbs Me Greatly. i don't think i'll be making anything quite this big in the future, but crafting a single absolute monster is interesting as a project.

also i think printing the head alone took about four times as long as the entire prototype.

[cryptic-forge]

mushroom twins, mushroom twins, whatever tea could they be spilling?

the purple shroom is the absolute first prototype of this sculpt and still has some joint issues, while the red one is a low-quality print of the fixed, final version. looking forward to printing this one in high quality for the first time.

i painted them as a bit of a self-care exercise after working on the computer too much and needing to touch if not grass, at least a physical paint brush.

[photo credit: posnakkel]

[custom bjd commissions open! check my blog for info.]

[cryptic-forge]

may i offer you an acorn in these trying times?

i started out with wanting to make an empty suit of armor filled with sentient vines, but at some point it turned into this wooden elvish person. haunted armors may yet be on the horizon as a future project, but for now, here's the oak knight & their emergency acorn, for trying times.

[photo credit: @posnakkel]

[custom bjd commissions are open! check my blog for details.]

[cryptic-forge]

COMMISSIONS

if you want to get your hands on one of my critters, a few options are available:

1) off-the-shelf 55€ + shipping: if you want any creature posted in the catalog tag, this option is for you. mini catalog contains simple tiny sculpts that are 15€. we can discuss size, color and paint options, or you can have a blank base for a discounted price. all dolls are made to order. none include clothing.

2) custom 200€ + shipping: a fully custom sculpt made to your specifications, printed and painted. can include hair and eyes, does not include clothing. a custom sculpt will not be sold to anyone else without permission.

i do not currently sell stl files.

additional fees may apply based on things like size (anything over 40cm) or a complex paint job. you will be notified of this before i start working.

all dolls are fdm 3d-printed in PLA. this means the following things:

they are very lightweight and reasonably sturdy.

there will be some layer lines and imperfections. i check the quality of every doll, but a 3d print will never be as flawlessly smooth as a resin doll or a mass-produced plastic doll.

they are non-toxic, though should not be given to children to chew on because they're entirely made of small parts strung together with elastic cord. very much a choking hazard.

turnaround time is 1-4 weeks. payments via paypal invoice before printing begins. bank transfer and mobilepay are also ok for finnish customers. i ship worldwide, cost depends on location; let me know where you live and i'll give you a shipping quote. i'm based in the eu, and additional customs fees may apply outside the eu.

shoot me a chat message to get started!