Cheap Sculpting Tools

Simple, yet good quality sculpting tools made out of everyday objects and foam brushes. It costs nothing if you have all this stuff laying around, which, if you're a crafter, you probably do. Let's get started!

Thick wire

X-ACTO Blade

4-5 foam brushes

a pocket knife

2 pairs of needle-nose pliers

1 old (small tip) bristle paintbrush

a random, small, thin sheet of bendy metal

some popsicle sticks

Masking Tape

Paper Mache Paste (3/4 part white glue, 1/4 part water)

Strong glue (preferably E6000 Industrial Glue or Epoxy)

A nail

A small, long screw

A nail file or sander

A thin phillips screwdriver (or a hand drill)

Take your first foam brush and rip the foam off of it. It should have a forked end. use one of your pliers to remove one "prong", leaving one flat piece of wood left. Sand where you removed that piece of wood until it's smooth. Finally, sand the part that's left until every edge is smooth. That takes care of that tool.

Trim your thick wire into 2 strips about 2 inches long and curve one strip into a triangle, leaving extra space at the tips (the two ends must intercept and cross each other). Curve the tips of the wires out until they are parallel to each other, and make sure to leave a little space in between them. Repeat the process for the second strip, but this time, curve it into a loop. Your wires should look like the second photo's. Apply some some of your tough glue to each end of your popsicle stick (on both sides). Slide the wires into place. The popsicle stick should be in between the two wire tips. Position the other loop on the other end of the stick. Cover both finished ends with masking tape. Now take the paper mache paste you made and cover the masking tape with it thoroughly. That one is done.

Curve your thin piece of metal into a hook, glue to another popsicle stick, cover with masking tape, and seal with mache paste. The process is just like your wire tools, so I didn't see a need to go into intricate detail.

The process is the same for both of these tools. Just repeat the steps.

Take your screwdriver or hand drill and drill a 1/4 inch hole. Stick the screw/nail in that hole (pointy side up) and fill with tough glue. let it sit upright.

Get one last popsicle stick and your X-ACTO blade. Simply glue the blade to the popsicle stick, and cover with masking tape. Then, again, cover with mache paste.

Alright! Just let your tools dry a day, and they will be ready to use!