Mother’s Day Dachshund

Made by Memory Bradley

Thank you SO MUCH for your amazing website. I used your techniques to create this Mother’s Day present for my mom. She loves her dog, and I wanted to try making a life-size version of him to gift her.

I didn’t have him in front of me throughout this process so in some cases (painting) I had to guess. My mom loved it. The dog…. not so much. He wasn’t sure what to make of his clone!

I made a pattern from a picture I had of him along with guessing at his height. I then cut it out onto thick cardboard. I built his armature out of thick cardboard (though, in the future, will probably do the wire elements for appendages). I did add twisted tin foil ropes along his back for added strength (serving the same purpose as wire would). I found using the food service pop up foil sheets worked well. I enjoyed sculpting with the foil much more than the typical balls of newspaper.

I used your original clay to add the first layer (for strength). Then I used the air dry clay for the wrinkles, pads under his feet, and to make strips that helped secure his nails. The nails were translucent Sculpy clay. I did not have any matte varnish (and wish I had in retrospect). He received a couple coasts of the satin varnish I had. He is a bit shinier than I would prefer.

Thanks for sharing your techniques. I have had fun playing around.