The Struggling Animator...

Tommy's for Tommies

About

Tommy's for Tommies, are hand-made customised Military figures entirely made by Ruth.

The name Tommy's for Tommies, comes from Ruth's original stop-motion animation puppet, Tommy, from her award-winning animated short, A War to End No Wars, which was made in memory of her Grandfather, who served in the RAF during WWII, and her Great Grandfather, who served with the Section Sanitaire Anglaise for the French on behalf of the British Red Cross in Verdun, France during WWI.

During the Summer of 2021, a request from a serving military officer, asked if something similar could be made for his family... And so spawned the idea for Tommy's for Tommies as a personal keepsake for families and friends of serving military personnel... It doesn't stop there either; I am extending this business for emergency services too!

Whether you are someone currently serving, have a friend of family member serving, are a veteran or even want an ancestor replicated as a little caricaturised memento, please get in touch with Ruth to discuss your requirements.

Prices start at £200 with additional postage fees to be calculated.

The "Tommy's or Tommies" logo

The Process

It All Starts With You!

What I will require are some good photographs of you and your uniform, such as:

* Front, side and back head-shots (all three if possible)

* 360 degree photographs of the person in uniform

* Close-up photographs of any insignia, patches, cap badges etc.

* Photographs of any medals and their ribbons, including any additional

If possible, I would like to know what rank the person is and who they are serving with.

The Head

The head starts out as caricaturised sketch of the person being commissioned; I then take my drawings into some 3D modelling software on my PC, model it all from scratch where it is the scaled to the correct size and printed off over a few hours on my 3D printer. The base of the head has a piece of brass tubing inserted to it so it can be attached to the armature later on.

Once the head has been cleaned up and smoothed, hair banks are added and eyes are then sculpted using polymer clay and are laid into the sockets; the eyelids are then added and left to harden overight.

The head is then airbrushed with acrylic colours; once dry, the eyes are painted with enamel paint to give a "wet" and realistic effect.

Short hair is added using a static flocking method; the scalp is covered in glue and a small electric charge is passed through it as flock is shaken over the model which stands up on end as it hits the glue.

The Armature

As these are models for display purposes rather than for repetitive movement as you would in a stop-motion production,
I have fabricated my own simplified armatures in-house in my work-shop; these are a simplified, yet sturdy armature made using K&S brass tubing which is carefully welded (braised) together with aluminum and copper wire inserted for the moveable joints such as the arms, legs and waist.

The Uniform

Uniforms obviously vary from person to person, and each one is hand-made by myself and hand-stitched together.

I create a template based on the photographs I am provided with and this is why it is so important to try and provide me the best photographs and detail as possible so I can get an idea of shape as well as the colour and feel of the material.

As you will see from my first model, I am a stickler for detail such as chevrons, patches/badges, buckles and so on. Attention to detail is something I really get a lot of satisfaction from and I think it is important to capture as much as possible with these models.

Each model is finished with hand-sculpted polymer clay shoes or boots as well as, if required, medals, which are made from hand-painted linen to create the ribbons and polymer clay medals carefully put together with hand-made clasps and pins so they can be attached to the uniform.

Upon request, a ribbons bar can also be provided as an additional feature.