A Creepy-Yet-Cute Custom

[LunaDehligt]

yey so like it

[zzzova]

She looks really well made, really nice.

[Aednatia]

neat looking. I'm curious as to what sculpture she is modeled after.

purple sharpee then wiped and then faded?

[UrocyonFox]

very very cute!

[maycrestmom]

if it's not nail polish than it's sharpie marker or other fabric marker washed/rubbed in - love it!

[Jinxxy]

Oh my gawds I WANT ONE!
So amazing looking, you really captured that stone look well!

I love her! She reminds me of Rochelle Goyle.. Fabulous!!

[Winter Bones]

First of all, thank you so much, everyone! Marble Slab started out as an experiment done out of boredom, I never expected she would be received so well.

Make-Up or Finger Nail Polish that's been wiped off...............

neat looking. I'm curious as to what sculpture she is modeled after.

purple sharpee then wiped and then faded?

Her cutie mark is supposed to be the Venus De Milo, though she isn't modeled after any particular work. I just wanted to re-create the cracking and pallidness of the Classical and Hellenistic ages.

if it's not nail polish than it's sharpie marker or other fabric marker washed/rubbed in - love it!

All of you suggesting marker are right on the money, but there's one special ingredient that helped create the texture. Since the three of you are so close, help yourselves to come cricket crisps and find the answers in the spolier below.

Spoiler

I'm sure we've all encountered it at one point or another: you go to the flea market, find a lovely pony in the five dollar bin that's perfect in every aspect except for the fact that she has "Andy" scrawled indelibly on her hoof. Try as you might, the only option to remove the marker is to sunfade the pony for months at a time. But sometimes the annoying stains made by marker can be useful, even beautiful, with the right technique:

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Here's what you'll need: one bait pony. I used my infamous shredded head Rarity as she's damaged beyond even being a bait. May as well use her for the good of science! You'll also need one prismacolor marker or an alternative (I used brown), and some acetone.

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This step's easy. Color the pony with the marker, and make sure to lay it on as thick as possible for maximum effect.

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Next take a q-tip with some acetone, make sure it isn't too runny, and swirl the acetone over the marker until it appears smudged and blurred. Smudging with fingers will work as well, but I've found acetone is much, much cleaner and creates a cloudier texture.

You might want to repeat these first two steps a couple times when coloring the head, as the head doesn't stain as easily as the body. In fact, I used acetone sparingly when staining the body as each and every stroke already added to the stony effect.

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Wash the smudged marker off with soap, the brown dye should leak out to reveal a pallid purple. Make sure you clean the pony well so there's no excess acetone lurking about on the plastic.

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And there you have it! The eyes were done by lining the eye with marker again and again and washing it off until a dark stain outlined them; I then added a touch of acetone in the centers of the eyes to make them lighter, creating depth. The cracks and pupils on Marble Slab were all carved in after staining then filled with marker, and since it was harder to wash the dye out from those areas they appear darker than the body color.

So if you're ever in the mood to make a custom but don't have any paint, grab a marker and test this method out for yourself. A little patience and you'll have a lovely garden of statues in no time.

[WaePonies]

very cool
xoxo

[Honey Buzz Oregon]

I wonder what would happen if you used chalk???? I wonder if you could get the same type of effect??? Of course you would have to seal it afterwards, but I have some shimmer chalks that I bet would look amazing!!!!!!!! Chalk smudges so differently every time you touch it so I'm just wondering if you could achieve somewhat of the same look..... Hmmmmm......

[Winter Bones]

I wonder what would happen if you used chalk???? I wonder if you could get the same type of effect??? Of course you would have to seal it afterwards, but I have some shimmer chalks that I bet would look amazing!!!!!!!! Chalk smudges so differently every time you touch it so I'm just wondering if you could achieve somewhat of the same look..... Hmmmmm......

Hmm, sounds promising. I'm not all too familiar with the medium myself, but I think it would make for a neat project and I'd love to see the results!