Mealy Bay Wixom

Wixom Gelding in Dappled Mealy Bay

It seems like every time I want to try something new, I have to do it on a Wixom. And halfway through I always ask myself: WHY DID YOU DO THIS?! Don’t you know this horse is HUGE?!

Yes, he’s a hefty sculpture. Yes, it takes a ton of materials to cover him. But that gives me a lot of room to work on the details. I used a really pretty North Swedish draft as his reference picture, and while I still didn’t manage to pack as many details as I wanted into him (I just don’t know how yet but hey, you gotta start somewhere!), I can see the progress I’ve made since my first couple of customs.

This guy was also my NaMoPaiMo horse, so I decided to do something new with him – try my hand at oils! Guys, they’re not kidding when they say oils have a huge learning curve, and I’ve got a long way to go. But I really like the depth of color they gave the finished piece. My late Grandma used to paint in oils and was AMAZING at it, so she was my inspiration for finally taking the plunge. He was also the first model I attempted any resculpting on. Dremeling is very therapeutic – there’s nothing quite like hacking the mane and tail off a plastic horse for relieving stress!