Retro's Hand-crafted Keycaps Adventure!

[retrochick]

Thank you everyone for your kind words of support! It really does make me happy to see people get excited about my work.

Just read through the entire thread, awesome stuff! I really like the idea of fantasy creatures, I don't think anyone is really doing that currently.

I'd love to play around with making some molds, what has the most helpful guide to get you started? Also, do you have a preferred silicon for the mold and resin for the keys?

Thanks!

Thank you! It's been a learning experience for sure. For guides, I used Booper's guide, which was super informative. You can find it in her MST thread. For silicone I use Smooth On OOMOO 30, and for resin it varies. I used Alumilite and now I'm using Smooth On resins. Both are great but I think my favorite is Smooth On. I hope this is somewhat helpful!

< Newbie here. Just read up on the thread and it's so inspiring to see how you've progressed in the short amount of time! I looove Sharpei Beret and the Frankencap, but all of them are awesome and unique. I had no clue about the sheer amount of time it takes to create individual caps, makes me appreciate the few I have that much more.
Thank you for helping me learn a few things! Can't wait to see what you come up with next 

Thanks Jema for your kind words! I'm glad that you like Sharpei Beret; he was my first sculpt with apoxie and I have a soft spot for cute creatures.  )

These look really nice.  I just started sculpting myself, and am scared of getting to the casting stage.  I have no idea how to do the underside of the cap.  The stem n whatnot.  Good luck, man!  Keep us updated.

Keep it up! You're sculpt looks good and casting isn't so scary. It may feel overwhelming, but a lot of it is trial and error. Air bubbles are a big challenge and I was never able to really get rid of them properly without pressure.

Thanks everyone for your kind words! I'm just going to leave these here...
(Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link) (Attachment Link)

I just love them all so much! Welcome back from Hawaii!!

Linkshine you're like the proud father who loves all his children haha!

And nubbs, thank you for the shout out . I love your dollies   






Also.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN Y'ALL

[Dongulator]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN Y'ALL
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)

Multi-shot these.... so yummy.

[SploogeFactory]

So good! Great to see an emerging artist!

[MajorMajor]

Those mint keys look awesome! Just noticed the details in the ogre teeth.

[ripwallet]

That Goyle!!! Loving that design i'll keep my eye out for your future work

[thaddeus]

Are these latest caps glow-in-the-dark? The characters become more and more distinct with each version, nice going!!

[Hexterdude]

My body is ready

[GenKaan]

Nice work man, love the designs and looks really detailed! The middle one is my favorite. Smug as hella!

[MajorMajor]

Nice work man, love the designs and looks really detailed! The middle one is my favorite. Smug as hella!

I believe "retrochick" is a she 

[romevi]

Nice work man, love the designs and looks really detailed! The middle one is my favorite. Smug as hella!

I believe "retrochick" is a she 

It gets really confusing with usernames so I just use "they" to be safe.
I mean, I just found out GirlDC is a dude. 

[retrochick]

Thanks everyone! Here's on my list of todos before I have my super tiny late halloween sale:
- Adjust masters
- Make more molds
- Experiment with multi-shot keycaps

Colorway will most likely be halloween-themed.

There may be a new keycap design that I'll unveil at the time of the sale.

I'll probably produce around ~30 keycaps for this upcoming sale.

Nice work man, love the designs and looks really detailed! The middle one is my favorite. Smug as hella!

I believe "retrochick" is a she 

It gets really confusing with usernames so I just use "they" to be safe.
I mean, I just found out GirlDC is a dude. 

romevi, I really appreciate that you try to be considerate of how other people identify/view themselves. Although I am a cis-female who identifies as female, I have plenty of friends who are trans or who identify as other. "They" is always a good way to leave it up to the person. 

[theteam]

Loving your creations, looking forward to your sale and hopefully snag me a cap(s)

[Jema]

Yes same here very excited! They are too cute to pass up! I hope your multi-shot experiments go well 

[bcredbottle]

Thanks everyone! Here's on my list of todos before I have my super tiny late halloween sale:
- Adjust masters
- Make more molds
- Experiment with multi-shot keycaps

Colorway will most likely be halloween-themed.

There may be a new keycap design that I'll unveil at the time of the sale.

I'll probably produce around ~30 keycaps for this upcoming sale.

Nice work man, love the designs and looks really detailed! The middle one is my favorite. Smug as hella!

I believe "retrochick" is a she 

It gets really confusing with usernames so I just use "they" to be safe.
I mean, I just found out GirlDC is a dude. 

romevi, I really appreciate that you try to be considerate of how other people identify/view themselves. Although I am a cis-female who identifies as female, I have plenty of friends who are trans or who identify as other. "They" is always a good way to leave it up to the person. 

Meh. "They" is ambiguous as to number. Using "he" as a gender-neutral pronoun is kinda sexist. The best thing would be to adopt a new gender-neutral pronoun (like the proposed "ze" and "zir") but until that gets established I'll keep using "she" as my go-to in writing. "They" as a singular gender-neutral pronoun is a bad solution b/c it creates unnecessary ambiguity and often miscommunication.

Sorry to quibble. Your caps are dope btw.

[SploogeFactory]

Thanks everyone! Here's on my list of todos before I have my super tiny late halloween sale:
- Adjust masters
- Make more molds
- Experiment with multi-shot keycaps

Colorway will most likely be halloween-themed.

There may be a new keycap design that I'll unveil at the time of the sale.

I'll probably produce around ~30 keycaps for this upcoming sale.

Nice work man, love the designs and looks really detailed! The middle one is my favorite. Smug as hella!

I believe "retrochick" is a she 

It gets really confusing with usernames so I just use "they" to be safe.
I mean, I just found out GirlDC is a dude. 

romevi, I really appreciate that you try to be considerate of how other people identify/view themselves. Although I am a cis-female who identifies as female, I have plenty of friends who are trans or who identify as other. "They" is always a good way to leave it up to the person. 

Oh sweet, I'll keep an eye out for the sale, there seems to be a lot going on recently.

[QuickDelat]

These look amazing, I'm not that in to halloween & horror, but these look really cool, lovely detail and I look forward to the sale.
Love the ghostly green color btw

Threads like this always make me want to try casting my own keys. Just a  few things stopping me: 1) I wouldn't know where to get the supplies in Belgium 2) I have no talent for sculpting. So I'll just leave to people like you.

[Badwrench]

Made a little change to the cap that retrochick sent that had a slightly defective stem    The cap is now Alps.  I used a fine point grinding tip on my Dremel to clean out the inside of the cap and cut up one of my spare super yellowed caps. 

[retrochick]

Badwrench, great to see you adapting it for your alps board!!!! I'm glad it's getting used     

Did some experimenting today. Wasn't aiming for doubleshot, just some fun with mixture techniques. Please ignore flashing, I haven't cleaned up the keycaps yet.




I like the unintended 'weathered' look. Going for 'marbled' next time  )  )  )

[romevi]

Badwrench, great to see you adapting it for your alps board!!!! I'm glad it's getting used     

Did some experimenting today. Wasn't aiming for doubleshot, just some fun with mixture techniques. Please ignore flashing, I haven't cleaned up the keycaps yet.

(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)

I like the unintended 'weathered' look. Going for 'marbled' next time  )  )  )

Those are amazing.

[retrochick]

Badwrench, great to see you adapting it for your alps board!!!! I'm glad it's getting used     

Did some experimenting today. Wasn't aiming for doubleshot, just some fun with mixture techniques. Please ignore flashing, I haven't cleaned up the keycaps yet.

(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)

I like the unintended 'weathered' look. Going for 'marbled' next time  )  )  )

Those are amazing.

Thank you! It was a nice result from a silly idea I had in my head

[Badwrench]

Badwrench, great to see you adapting it for your alps board!!!! I'm glad it's getting used     

Did some experimenting today. Wasn't aiming for doubleshot, just some fun with mixture techniques. Please ignore flashing, I haven't cleaned up the keycaps yet.

(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)

I like the unintended 'weathered' look. Going for 'marbled' next time  )  )  )

Heck yeah!  I love the way it looks with my SP Infinity set.   

The mixed colors look awesome by the way.  The colors you are using are great. 

[QuickDelat]

that weathered look is pretty amazing, it really fits the Frank-N-cap

[Jema]

Very cute!



I love the minty colors

[thaddeus]

Just checking in to show off my "b-stock" FrankenCap. I received this last Friday but have been too busy with work to upload any pictures. Not anymore:

http://imgur.com/wDx5JPk&sTpnKnn

Impressions: This cap is awesome. Frank has quickly become one of the most endearing characters in the artisan keycap world (to me). He's ugly and creepy, but feels like he's belonged on my board since the beginning of my mech journey. The cap I received from retrochick is technically a b-stock, since there are some rough edges and an air-bubble. But I'm still impressed with the quality. Once the cap is on my board, the air-bubble is not seen, just Frank's beautiful face. He has a low profile, but doesn't bump/grind with other caps or my KUL ES-87 top case. Pretty confident that I'll be picking up more of retro's caps when she makes them available to the public.

A big thanks to retrochick for sending this cap my way. You're doing awesome work -- can't wait to see more!

[romevi]

Just checking in to show off my "b-stock" FrankenCap. I received this last Friday but have been too busy with work to upload any pictures. Not anymore:

http://imgur.com/wDx5JPk&sTpnKnn

Impressions: This cap is awesome. Frank has quickly become one of the most endearing characters in the artisan keycap world (to me). He's ugly and creepy, but feels like he's belonged on my board since the beginning of my mech journey. The cap I received from retrochick is technically a b-stock, since there are some rough edges and an air-bubble. But I'm still impressed with the quality. Once the cap is on my board, the air-bubble is not seen, just Frank's beautiful face. He has a low profile, but doesn't bump/grind with other caps or my KUL ES-87 top case. Pretty confident that I'll be picking up more of retro's caps when she makes them available to the public.

A big thanks to retrochick for sending this cap my way. You're doing awesome work -- can't wait to see more!

 

I need a retrochick cap.

[xondat]

Badwrench, great to see you adapting it for your alps board!!!! I'm glad it's getting used     

Did some experimenting today. Wasn't aiming for doubleshot, just some fun with mixture techniques. Please ignore flashing, I haven't cleaned up the keycaps yet.

(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)

I like the unintended 'weathered' look. Going for 'marbled' next time  )  )  )

These are dope. Love the style you're going for and the detail is amazing. Keep it up.

[suicidal_orange]

Been ignoring this thread for too long again - every time I come back there are more awesome pics!  Love those accidental multishots )

[retrochick]

I kinda like these as pairs...






Almost ready for the sale...!! Just need to test a few other hair-brained crazy ideas I have

[Hexterdude]

I kinda like these as pairs...
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)


Almost ready for the sale...!! Just need to test a few other hair-brained crazy ideas I have

The ones on the bottom left are so adorable

[linkshine]

Those are awesome as pairs!! Look great! ! I have some pics coming soon Can't wait for the sale, will wear my lucky boxerbriefs that day. Do you plan on doing any purply durply?

[retrochick]

Thanks guys! Linkshine I plan on doing a few things . . .so mebbe 

[mobbo]

I absolutely love your designs :3

The orange Sharpei is super hot.

[romevi]

Will you be posting the sale here or start a new thread? These caps are looking mighty fine.

[retrochick]

I'll probably do a sale thread in the artisan forum for the actual sale, but details will be posted here first in this thread.

Also thaddeus oh crap, I missed your thoughtful write up of my cap! I'm really happy that you like Frank - it does mean a lot to me:). Thank you so much for your support and encouragement! 

And thanks Badwrench for starting a retro cap media thread, I was super happy to see it pop up the other day hehe. Linky for those who haven't checked it out.

[jaffers]

You're so talented. There is so much detail there

[Joey Quinn]

Pretty stoked to get some of these, the design is detailed but really clean. 

[suicidal_orange]

First sale looming and there are orange caps involved!  Here's hoping it's not first come first served in the evening US time

[bcredbottle]

I'll probably do a sale thread in the artisan forum for the actual sale, but details will be posted here first in this thread.

Also thaddeus oh crap, I missed your thoughtful write up of my cap! I'm really happy that you like Frank - it does mean a lot to me:). Thank you so much for your support and encouragement! 

And thanks Badwrench for starting a retro cap media thread, I was super happy to see it pop up the other day hehe. Linky for those who haven't checked it out.

Camping this thread like Clay Puppington.

[dohbot]

Just found this thread and I am loving what I am seeing love the cleanliness of this caps especially the Yeti and the Buret Sharpei.

[retrochick]

It's happening

[Hexterdude]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

sooo.......... it begins

[romevi]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

Wow.

[retrochick]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

sooo.......... it begins

is your body ready? 

[romevi]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

sooo.......... it begins

is your body ready? 

Mine's been.

[retrochick]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

sooo.......... it begins

is your body ready? 

Mine's been.

Not long now. Just need to figure out some logistics like getting bags, shipping, etc. The color way will be slightly different, but I think you'll like it

[tigersharkdude]

I  dont know how Ive missed this thread. These caps look amazing

[romevi]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

sooo.......... it begins

is your body ready? 

Mine's been.

Not long now. Just need to figure out some logistics like getting bags, shipping, etc. The color way will be slightly different, but I think you'll like it

Will it be an open raffle? Or first come, first served?

[mobbo]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

Hold the freaking phone.

Those colours are delicious.... like little cotton candy gummies.

That red speckling (idk what its called...) also look amazing. Is that somehow done in the mold, or done afterwards?

[retrochick]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

Hold the freaking phone.

Those colours are delicious.... like little cotton candy gummies.

That red speckling (idk what its called...) also look amazing. Is that somehow done in the mold, or done afterwards?

Thanks! The colors turned out pretty nice. The red specking is done in the mold.

romevi, the sale will be an open raffle!

[bcredbottle]

It's happening
(Attachment Link)

Hold the freaking phone.

Those colours are delicious.... like little cotton candy gummies.

That red speckling (idk what its called...) also look amazing. Is that somehow done in the mold, or done afterwards?

Thanks! The colors turned out pretty nice. The red specking is done in the mold.

romevi, the sale will be an open raffle!

**** yes raaaaafuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhlll


though i prefer raffles where you have to pay to get in (like the binge's sticket raffle) b/c it feels more like gambling