WHAT IS SCULPEY? Sculpey is a brand of polymer clay made by Zenith Products.  It is extremely easy to use.  You simply knead it for a few seconds, sculpt it to form, bake and it hardens smoothly in a matter of minutes. WHY IS IT "KEY?" Sculpey is a fast and simple way to customize small items.  It is also relatively cheap and you can make basically anything small in size.  It is possible to sculpt bigger items, but due to its strength, it's probably not a very good idea to make anything large.  Sculpey can be molded and sculpted by hand to make the simplest of items such as sword handles, small armor, eye goggles, knee and shoulder pads, gun modifications, and many other things I haven't thought of yet.  Because of its ease of use and price, Sculpey is the ideal choice for making and modifying small projects. WHERE CAN I BUY IT? Sculpey is readily available at most craft stores.  I buy mine locally at the Michael's Arts and Crafts Stores.  You can also find them at other art and painting supply stores.  If you still can't find any locally, go to http://sculpey.com to purchase it directly from their website. NOW THAT I HAVE IT, WHAT DO I DO? Obviously, unwrap it, then knead it for a few minutes until the clay becomes soft.  The more you knead it, the softer it becomes.  Once it becomes fairly workable, start sculpting.

THAT'S GREAT, BUT WHAT IS SCULPTING?
I'm not the greatest sculptor in the world, but I managed to sculpt a few things out of sheer persistence.  Sculpting, as defined by Merriam Webster's Dictionary, is the action or art of processing (as by carving, modeling, or welding) plastic or hard materials into works of art.  Sculpting cannot be explained or taught by reading something.  It is one of those things where you just read and learn the basics, then try your hand at it or watch people do it in person before you truly understand the concept.

For the beginners, Sculpey has their own tutorials which should help the most basic of collectors.  Check them out HERE.  Sculpey's tutorial is very, very basic and only mildly touches the surface.  For a full onslaught of what tools to use, how to round out edges, smooth surfaces, and get the real low-down dirt on sculpting, check out http://sculpt.com.

For more specific headsculpting instructions, check out the following sites:

http://www.lewisgoldsteinartanddesign.com/SculptingTutorialFS.htm

http://www.faeryforest.com/sculpting_tips.htm

http://lasculptress.com/tutorials.html

This tutorial is not really a tutorial.  It is more of a way to "get your foot in the door" and let you know that Sculpey exists.  Even if I do a tutorial with pictures and such, it won't make much sense until you actually work through the first time until it makes much sense.  Besides, I would only repeat what is already said by Sculpt.com's website.

BUT APOXIE IS GOLD . . .

While Sculpey is a very good and inexpensive polymer clay, it does have its weaknesses.  There are things you can do with Sculpey and there are things you can't.  That's where Aves Apoxie comes in.  While Aves' products are slightly more expensive per se (since they only sell in gallons) and most people don't use that much (except for crazed bodybashers like me), Sculpey is still the cheaper alternative.  So why is Apoxie any good?

I've used Sculpey for a long time.  I like it, but as mentioned, there are limitations with Sculpey.  First and foremost, Sculpey must be baked.  Apoxie is a self-hardening clay.  You don't have to sit next to the oven and breathe the fumes or worry if the boiling water is going to splatter all over your face.

Apoxie is a lot easier to smooth out.  Its characteristics are very similar to putty and spackling pastes and not your conventional clay.  With a little water, you can smooth surfaces out like a breeze.

Finally, the strength of Apoxie clays are a lot stronger than Sculpey and is almost rock hard.  I dropped a sculpt once and it only chipped.  Whereas, a piece of Sculpey would shatter at the same height and tile floor.

Aves Apoxie clays are easy to mix.  You just take the same measure of parts A and B and knead it together and the working times can last about 2-3 hours - more than you'll ever need to do patch up work on bodies, arms, adding moustaches, facial features, or weapon and accessory mods.  You can get more info and buy Apoxie's clays on their website here: Aves Apoxie

Since I found Aves Apoxie, I seldom use Sculpey any more.  The benefits of Apoxie far outweigh the price difference with Sculpey so you might want to give Apoxie a shot.  I've done many wonderful things that I could not do with Sculpey such as facial reconstruction, muscle enhancements, hair and moustache refining and even larger weapon and accessory modifications that do not bog down the original item.  Apoxie also has a much stronger adhesion to certain things such as pleather, plastic and certain types of thin plastic.  Try Apoxie for a change and you'll see what I mean.