Author Topic: Marshmallow and Mischief: Artisan keycaps in the making! (Read 13904 times)

TastaturenAuslese · « **on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 00:08:07 »

Marshmallow and Mischief

So Moshimalloe, who's new to Geekhack but not all that new to keyboards, and I decided to have a go at making keycaps! It's not much but it's a start.

Base material for the masters. A few brave little Vortex Doubleshots. Bubblegum pink for moshimalloe's work and Matcha green for mine.

Marshmallow.
This one's still a work in progress. I think she's still planning on adding some things to it.

Mischief.
This one's done. I'm keeping this guy as sleek and minimalist as he is now.

And molds are on the way!
After that, it'll be time to try out resins and dyes.
Sidenote: The caps that are in the molds are different from the ones pictured above. We've got a few masters done in clay already, but not all have photos :3 Surprises, surprises.

For the most part, the designs are simple. But they're less simple than blanks

We'll update you guys on our progress, if you're interested

RoastPotatoes · « **Reply #1 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 01:47:17 »

That hair is impressive. I'm interested in how these turn out

Sent · « **Reply #2 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 01:57:10 »

Jumping into the deep end right away, aren't you? Both caps look pretty cute. Good luck!

3K · « **Reply #3 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 02:14:15 »

How cute, a keycap maker couple! That already looks really promising!

moshimalloe · « **Reply #4 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 04:33:21 »

Quote from: Sent on Mon, 17 August 2015, 01:57:10

Jumping into the deep end right away, aren't you? Both caps look pretty cute. Good luck!

Haha thanks! Yeah I've always been into artsy DIY stuff so when I got into keyboards and found out about artisan caps I was naturally hooked!

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #5 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 18:15:11 »

Quote from: 3K on Mon, 17 August 2015, 02:14:15

How cute, a keycap maker couple! That already looks really promising!

Hehehe :3 Inspiration!

Quote from: RoastPotatoes on Mon, 17 August 2015, 01:47:17

That hair is impressive. I'm interested in how these turn out

Hope it works out. I'm trying to figure out a way to get the moustache and the hair a different color than the 'skin'

suicidal_orange · « **Reply #6 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:56:06 »

That Marshmallow cap is going to be tough to cast especially for newbie cap makers but I wish you luck and will be watching for updates

DrHubblePhD · « **Reply #7 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:57:23 »

i feel like the unicorn horn is just going to break off if I press on it wrong

)

Joey Quinn · « **Reply #8 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 20:06:37 »

Quote from: DrHubblePhD on Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:57:23

i feel like the unicorn horn is just going to break off if I press on it wrong )

Make it out of metal so it just goes through your finger. Keyboards > safety

heedpantsnow · « **Reply #9 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 22:11:41 »

Quote from: DrHubblePhD on Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:57:23

i feel like the unicorn horn is just going to break off if I press on it wrong )

I thought the same about some of GirlDC's stuff, but folks buy it anyway. :shrug:

OP, I love your clean and smooth designs. Can't wait to see how they turn out!

GL1TCH3D · « **Reply #10 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 23:20:48 »

Love both but I'd be too scared to put the unicorn on the board

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #11 on:** Mon, 17 August 2015, 23:41:24 »

Really excited to share our results with you guys, especially with all the great feedback.

Just busted out our first two molds from the cardboard. Mine broke unfortunately. Forgot to put mold release and it bonded both halves together :/

Moshimalloe's mold was a success and we've got some trial keys that came out pretty fine !

We'll give you guys a proper update soon. Alas, summer classes and their finals are coming up.

- M&M

moshimalloe · « **Reply #12 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 02:10:50 »

Quote from: temence on Mon, 17 August 2015, 23:41:24

Alas, summer classes and their finals are coming up.

Our finals are finally done!

We tried making some new molds for the Mischief cap and a few blanks, but unfortunately the stem's didn't set properly

Probably going to retry, and remember to pour directly into the stem first this time, before spreading the silicone around.

Like temence said though, we've got some trial keys that set pretty well and we're looking forward to sharing this with you guys once we've got more successful ones

CPTBadAss · « **Reply #13 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:51:24 »

Real talk: A family member would love a unicorn cap. Hook me up? It's cute.

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #14 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:58:02 »

Quote from: CPTBadAss on Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:51:24

Real talk: A family member would love a unicorn cap. Hook me up? It's cute.

More motivation for Marshmallow to finalize that cap

We're also still working on making colors, but is there any specific color that family member would like?

CPTBadAss · « **Reply #15 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:59:21 »

Let me ask her since there's options

.

And great to see ya'll jumping right into the deep end. Looking forward to the progress!

3K · « **Reply #16 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 12:50:07 »

Quote from: temence on Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:58:02

Quote from: CPTBadAss on Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:51:24
Real talk: A family member would love a unicorn cap. Hook me up? It's cute.
More motivation for Marshmallow to finalize that cap We're also still working on making colors, but is there any specific color that family member would like?

I really would like one too! I think this would be a nice color:

More

Don't know how to call it though...

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #17 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 12:50:38 »

Quote from: 3K on Thu, 20 August 2015, 12:50:07

Quote from: temence on Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:58:02
Quote from: CPTBadAss on Thu, 20 August 2015, 11:51:24
Real talk: A family member would love a unicorn cap. Hook me up? It's cute.
More motivation for Marshmallow to finalize that cap We're also still working on making colors, but is there any specific color that family member would like?

I really would like one too! I think this would be a nice color:
More
Show Image

Don't know how to call it though...

"Rarity" lol. :))

Edit: Omg, where do you find a unicorn in Borderlands?

3K · « **Reply #18 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 13:02:41 »

Quote from: temence on Thu, 20 August 2015, 12:50:38

Edit: Omg, where do you find a unicorn in Borderlands?

In the add-on Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep! More information would be spoiling.

moshimalloe · « **Reply #19 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 23:17:05 »

Quote from: temence on Thu, 20 August 2015, 12:50:38

"Rarity" lol. )

HAHA was just going to say that. Rarity is quite the fashion-forward colour choice

moshimalloe · « **Reply #20 on:** Thu, 20 August 2015, 23:19:51 »

3K & CPTBadass:

Hopefully we can make a successful mold in the workings soon! But yeah, let me know what colours your fam member is into

Temence and I just bought a bunch of dyes... despite no mold for it yet. We get excited with colour lol.

zazie_rx · « **Reply #21 on:** Fri, 21 August 2015, 12:14:09 »

Looking good, remember silicone will pick up everything, even things like fingerprints in the clay or the indentations left on your key from the text on top.

Can't wait to see how they turn out

CPTBadAss · « **Reply #22 on:** Fri, 21 August 2015, 12:51:37 »

~~She told me that unicorns are all white and the horn is the color of milk tea. Does that sound doable?~~

Unfortunately I'm going to have to back out of this. Thanks and good luck

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #23 on:** Fri, 21 August 2015, 21:00:43 »

Quote from: CPTBadAss on Fri, 21 August 2015, 12:51:37

~~She told me that unicorns are all white and the horn is the color of milk tea. Does that sound doable?~~

Unfortunately I'm going to have to back out of this. Thanks and good luck

Aww okay! We were so excited to make the keycap for her, but that's fine haha. Is everything all right?

CPTBadAss · « **Reply #24 on:** Sat, 22 August 2015, 08:51:26 »

Yup everything is cool. Funds just aren't going to work out this time.

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #25 on:** Mon, 24 August 2015, 14:01:35 »

Quick update for you guys! So we're running out of silicone, and the trouble is it's so hard to find good sources locally. I tried ordering some QM262 for our molds through hobbysilicone.com, but the shipping costs from the US to Canada is almost as expensive as the silicone itself. That being said, it might be a while before we can properly make molds for our new masters. The hobby store that we bought our first batch of silicone is relocating, so hopefully they'll have the silicone in stock when we move.

Now, with the less-than-good news out of the way, some updates! Of the first batch of molds we made, only Moshimalloe's heart imprints were really suitable for making caps, but the mold did help us learn a lot about the resin and dying process. Here's three caps that we've made for trials.

Opaque/dyed, Opaque/white, Transparent/GID.

Another unfortunate thing is the stem didn't really set for any of them. That's something we've got to work out. Thinking of pre-pouring the stem with the white, opaque resin (since it sets faster, and also dries a bit harder than the clear), before pouring the rest of the cap. The only one that fully set was the opaque, white.

The purple dyed opaque cap never fully hardened. This was the first cap we ever made, and it's funny that we tried to dye before even trying just the resin itself with no dyes. This cap was kind of squooshy and never fully hardened. It's really soft and rubbery, but it returns to its original shape after you squish it. Not sure if this was because of the dye interfering with the resin setting, or because of us failing to mix the proper ratio of the two-part resin.

The other two were quite successful. They hardened fully, and are rock hard now. The white opaque cap has an issue with having some air bubbles at the top, but the stem worked quite well in this one.

I was surprised with the transparent one. I was expecting it not too harden just like the purple cap, because I mixed some Glow-in-the-dark powder with it, but it actually fully set. It glows in the dark quite well too. This would've been a great and usable first batch cap, if only the stem had set properly.

As you can see, there's still quite a bit too do for us, but we're working on it

Next up: more silicone, and more experiments with the resin. Also, gotta fix that stem problem.

_PixelNinja · « **Reply #26 on:** Mon, 24 August 2015, 14:11:01 »

Quote from: 3K on Thu, 20 August 2015, 12:50:07

I really would like one too! I think this would be a nice color:
More
Show Image

Don't know how to call it though...

Buttstallion of course!

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #27 on:** Thu, 27 August 2015, 21:48:06 »

For now, our project is on hold guys. We've run out and we're having difficulty sourcing good silicone in Canada for our newer masters, and any from the US is killer due to shipping/exchange rate. If anyone knows any good Canadian sources of silicone, that'd be a great help

KatzenKinder · « **Reply #28 on:** Fri, 28 August 2015, 02:51:21 »

Yeee, keep it up! Wait Temence this your duo?

GLGL

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #29 on:** Fri, 28 August 2015, 02:53:05 »

Quote from: KatzenKinder on Fri, 28 August 2015, 02:51:21

Yeee, keep it up! Wait Temence this your duo?

GLGL

Yee yeeee. Thanks for the well wishes

Excited for your sale tomorrow too haha.

HendyZone · « **Reply #30 on:** Wed, 02 September 2015, 04:25:29 »

Keep up the good work bro

Semangat!

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #31 on:** Mon, 07 September 2015, 22:21:20 »

Success! With the last of our remaining resin, we managed to make three succesful molds.

Here's a resin cast from one of them. Now, just to work out some kinks with the bubbles and with coloring, and we might be good to go for a first sale or giveaway

He's hoping to hang with the greats.

Sent · « **Reply #32 on:** Mon, 07 September 2015, 22:29:31 »

Quote from: temence on Mon, 07 September 2015, 22:21:20

Success! With the last our remaining resin, I managed to make three succesful molds. Here's a cast from one of them. Now, just to work out some kinks with the bubbles and with coloring, and we might be good to go for a first sale or giveaway

(Attachment Link)

He's hoping to hang with the greats.

(Attachment Link)

I'm liking that hair. Excited to see how it turns out when you get rid of the bubbles and what not.

3K · « **Reply #33 on:** Tue, 08 September 2015, 01:15:53 »

Quote from: temence on Mon, 07 September 2015, 22:21:20

Success! With the last of our remaining resin, we managed to make three succesful molds.

Here's a resin cast from one of them. Now, just to work out some kinks with the bubbles and with coloring, and we might be good to go for a first sale or giveaway

Show Image

He's hoping to hang with the greats.

Show Image

This really makes one get optimistic! I think he could use some sanding on the edges though

tinymakesthings · « **Reply #34 on:** Tue, 08 September 2015, 01:43:34 »

Yay! I love seeing cute keycaps (I have nothing against robots and skulls but just like to see some variation) in the works

Looking good, I'm excited for the end result

Also keymaking couples = awesome!

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #35 on:** Tue, 08 September 2015, 03:27:44 »

Went a bit overboard tonight. Some dye tests here, figuring out how to get the least-bubbly caps, with the best color and the leash "squoosh". They're really rough right now, and I didn't sand down or cut any of the flashing, since they're just test caps.

Very bubble-gummy, so far. Moshimalloe would love these.

Sent · « **Reply #36 on:** Tue, 08 September 2015, 04:17:30 »

Tem, I need a mustache dood with pink hair. Just sayin'.

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #37 on:** Wed, 09 September 2015, 17:39:17 »

Got a name change today, for the record

3K · « **Reply #38 on:** Thu, 10 September 2015, 01:25:45 »

Quote from: TastaturenAuslese on Wed, 09 September 2015, 17:39:17

Got a name change today, for the record

Is there a story behind the name?

Also will this first batch of caps be sold?

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #39 on:** Thu, 10 September 2015, 02:24:53 »

Quote from: tinymakesthings on Tue, 08 September 2015, 01:43:34

Yay! I love seeing cute keycaps (I have nothing against robots and skulls but just like to see some variation) in the works Looking good, I'm excited for the end result

Also keymaking couples = awesome!

Thank you very much for the support, kind monkey.

Quote from: 3K link=topic=74558.msg1861179#msg1861179 date=

Is there a story behind the name?

Also will this first batch of caps be sold?

Yuhh, being from Germany, I think you'd understand the name 3K. Haha. It's quite a short story. So I took a wine course last semester at my university, and I learned about the German wine system. One of their best dessert wines was the Trockenbeerenauslese class, which I think, roughly translates to dried berries select harvest (is that right?). And then, when I started with this keyboard hobby and I was on DT a lot, I saw so much "tastaturen" in the great finds section. Ergo, Tastaturen + Auslese. Select harvest keyboards

And unfortunately no, this first batch of caps are unfit for sale. They're mostly prototypes and color tests. But send me a pm about which one catches your eye and maybe I'll toss it in your bag in our very first sale

Quote from: Sent on Tue, 08 September 2015, 04:17:30

Tem, I need a mustache dood with pink hair. Just sayin'.

Coming your way good sir. I'll let you know once I master the art of double-shotting.

EDIT: Got a crazy idea for how to make a good dye for this and a technique to do the shoot while on my drive home from work. Here's a little teaser for you, Sent. Still some kinks to work out on the white part, but I'll do that as soon as I'm free. Probably sometime later this week. (Just started work at a new place today haha).

And to you 3K, don't you worry. As soon as Moshimalloe gets a working mold of her unicorn, your purple-blue haired beastie will be on its way

Pdub · « **Reply #40 on:** Thu, 10 September 2015, 22:53:09 »

Quote from: Sent on Mon, 17 August 2015, 01:57:10

Jumping into the deep end right away, aren't you? Both caps look pretty cute. Good luck!

They do look cute!

Love the mustache!

Sifo · « **Reply #41 on:** Thu, 10 September 2015, 22:56:56 »

those look delicious...

3K · « **Reply #42 on:** Fri, 11 September 2015, 09:34:44 »

Quote from: TastaturenAuslese on Thu, 10 September 2015, 02:24:53

Quote from: 3K link=topic=74558.msg1861179#msg1861179 date=
Is there a story behind the name?

Also will this first batch of caps be sold?

Yuhh, being from Germany, I think you'd understand the name 3K. Haha. It's quite a short story. So I took a wine course last semester at my university, and I learned about the German wine system. One of their best dessert wines was the Trockenbeerenauslese class, which I think, roughly translates to dried berries select harvest (is that right?). And then, when I started with this keyboard hobby and I was on DT a lot, I saw so much "tastaturen" in the great finds section. Ergo, Tastaturen + Auslese. Select harvest keyboards

And unfortunately no, this first batch of caps are unfit for sale. They're mostly prototypes and color tests. But send me a pm about which one catches your eye and maybe I'll toss it in your bag in our very first sale

Quote from: Sent on Tue, 08 September 2015, 04:17:30
Tem, I need a mustache dood with pink hair. Just sayin'.

Coming your way good sir. I'll let you know once I master the art of double-shotting.

EDIT: Got a crazy idea for how to make a good dye for this and a technique to do the shoot while on my drive home from work. Here's a little teaser for you, Sent. Still some kinks to work out on the white part, but I'll do that as soon as I'm free. Probably sometime later this week. (Just started work at a new place today haha).

Show Image

And to you 3K, don't you worry. As soon as Moshimalloe gets a working mold of her unicorn, your purple-blue haired beastie will be on its way ;)

Omg, Capcakes! They really look tasty, haha.

I'm not much into wines, but I like the metapher! Enjoying a good artisan, like a glass of wine!
Also the translation fits.

Also the news about the unicorn caps sound great! Good luck you guys.

esoomenona · « **Reply #43 on:** Fri, 11 September 2015, 11:56:07 »

TastaturenAuslese · « **Reply #44 on:** Fri, 11 September 2015, 12:10:09 »

Quote from: esoomenona on Fri, 11 September 2015, 11:56:07

Looks like you're getting pretty good at making caps. Will you be taking commissions? I was looking for someone to make me a counterfeit BroCaps Esc key.

I can make you a photo but that's about it

I'd never make a real counterfeit

moshimalloe · « **Reply #45 on:** Thu, 29 October 2015, 23:29:10 »

So.......... I haven't really been on GH a lot, but I just found our old molds from summer. They haven't really been perfected, but I've also got a bunch of resin lying around. Leave me requests if anyone's interested, and maybe just maybe I can make some for you.

3K · « **Reply #46 on:** Fri, 30 October 2015, 16:10:34 »

Quote from: moshimalloe on Thu, 29 October 2015, 23:29:10

So.......... I haven't really been on GH a lot, but I just found our old molds from summer. They haven't really been perfected, but I've also got a bunch of resin lying around. Leave me requests if anyone's interested, and maybe just maybe I can make some for you.

I'm still interested! Also would like to see some progress.

bcredbottle · « **Reply #47 on:** Fri, 30 October 2015, 16:15:04 »

~~Can we lock this thread? OP is the photoshopped-cap-scam guy.~~

Meh, I guess he's not trying to sell any in the thread so w/e

mobbo · « **Reply #48 on:** Fri, 30 October 2015, 21:54:13 »

Quote from: moshimalloe on Thu, 29 October 2015, 23:29:10

So.......... I haven't really been on GH a lot, but I just found our old molds from summer. They haven't really been perfected, but I've also got a bunch of resin lying around. Leave me requests if anyone's interested, and maybe just maybe I can make some for you.

I could be interested if you decide to make any more :3


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Author Topic: Marshmallow and Mischief: Artisan keycaps in the making! (Read 13904 times)