Completed Carousel Ram - Part 3

When I left off blogging last week, I noted that the ram's nose was very square and that I would be working to correct that.  I think I must have put the last interior support right at the end of the nose.  It also has toothpicks on each side to help support the face.  The supports were strong enough that it would not allow the face to be pinched and squeezed inwards to collapse that section of the nose.  Rather than take it apart, I decided to shape the nose by adding a piece of aluminum foil and hold it in place with hot glue and masking tape before covering it with layers of paper mâché.

That only netted a partial success.  The square edges of the face still showed up.  So, I started on my next fix for the face.  This time I had better results.  I used a sharp craft knife to shave off the squared off portions of most of the face.  Then I covered it with more tape and paper mâché.  

I also added more layers of paper mâché to the horns to stiffen them.  The horns were a little difficult to deal with.  I had to work around them while adding the layers of paper mâché.  The glue on the horns did not stand up to the pressure well.  I had to go back and add more hot glue on a couple of occasions.  However, time and patience prevailed and now the animal is covered with all its layers of paper mâché. 

At least that was my thought for the moment.  I am considering adding some paper clay to the body and carving into it to give the impression of a ram's thick curly coat.  It will save some time later in the project because I won't have to do so much painting to make it look as if the animal had a thick curly coat.  

Other than that, I consider the ram pretty much finished.  As with the other carousel animals, he will be going into the box waiting to be sanded and painted.  I want to get all the animals to the same point of construction before I start sanding.  Sanding is my least favorite part of the project.  

How many more animals to I plan to make?  I am not sure.  If I do at least one more animal, I could make a small carousel.  If I choose to make five more animals, I will be making a larger carousel.  I am leaning towards making the larger carousel.  I am actually getting a couple more ideas for carousels that don't necessarily involve animals.  They may go onto my list of future projects.  Sometimes I get into doldrums where I am not enthusiastic and cannot think of what I might want to work on.  It is nice to have a few ideas in store.

I will show one last photo next week if I get the chance to add some paper clay to the body.  I am still undecided on that, but I have started working with paper clay on my other project, the Green Man Pumpkin.  If I have some paper clay left over I will add it to the ram.  

The bottom photo shows how I plan to have the ram mounted.  I want it to look as if it is leaping.  It may look a little different than most carousel animals, but I think it will be fun.  

Next blog post I will be back to blogging about my Green Man Pumpkin.  Please check back next week to see the first set of leaves going on the pumpkin's face.