Latex Mask Making: WIP

I did these a while ago, but haven't documented the actual latexing process yet. I'll add that later.

Now first, I have the head already molded. I did this with Monster Clay, sold from the Monster Makers. Don't use any old clay, it has to be a specific oil-based consistency. I'll post more about this process later when I recover the pictures. it requires a lot of heating, mixing, waiting, and very patient molding. This is my finished product. Luckily since the mask I'm making is extremely simple, it wasn't too altogether difficult, far less than my next mask will be.

First you have to make a "Wall". It needs to be halfway across the head, following the natural line of the head (so, halfway on the top of the head, and then around the back of the ears). This is a special water-based clay that's a totally different consistency than the monster-clay. Use a clay cutter (it's a length of string and two wood handles, to the left of the clay there). Cut the clay in longer, thinner pieces, and make it about an inch thick.

Make sure that the wall has these little knobs on them, they help the mold fit together later.

Now mold the back of the head. This is done with Ultra-cal, a relative to cement and equally finicky. It's horrible. Do Not Mix Much. It starts out too wet to use, then there is a two second period where it is perfect, then it becomes hard as a rock. Mix less than a pint full at any given time. Also the amount of water-to-ultra-cal ratio is extremely finite, I continued trading off adding ultra-cal and water between long periods of seeing if it would dry. The first couple layers will be extremely rough. Avoid using the ultra-cal when it's too think and globby on the first couple layers in order to avoid air bubbles. This is one of those processes that takes a few masks to perfect.

I mixed the ultra-cal in a large bucket like this, but in retrospect I wasted a lot of my materials because I poured too much and it dried. I would suggest getting a smaller mixing bowl to use (one that you don't care about, mind you). It's better to have to wait between batches than waste money because you mixed too much and it hardened. This is one those, long-periods-of-boredom-off-set-by-moments-of-sheer-panic, type processes.

Then we remove the wall, and place a few strips of clay on the mold wall (as seen in the picture above). Also cover the mold wall in Vaseline to help aid in the separation. Next time I might try putting Vaseline on the whole head mold as well. Now you can start making the front half, just the same as you did the last. It's also a good idea to occasionally lay down a layer of burlap between the mold layers, as it reinforces it. Do this similar to how you would do Paper Mache, dip strips of burlap in the Ultra-cal and cover the mold with it. This should ideally be done as the outermost layer of the mold as well.

Now, after drying, Separate! The layers dry pretty fast, so you can do this quite soon. The minute the walls get hot, you can pull them apart. Now, this is my first mold, so I messed up in several places. I think I made the ridge between the halves too high and it made it harder to separate them, and it messed with the structural integrity, and part of it cracked (bad news bears). Now, separating these halves is (pardon my french), a real bitch. The back half came off quite easily, (as the manual said it would) but the front half, no matter how hard I tried, would just not come off. At one point I literally had it on the ground, my feet pressed up against the edges, yanking on it. I finally had to pry it off with a hammer and chisel, which is no good because it damaged both the inside of the mold, and my mold-head itself. It was terribly frustrating, and required a fair amount of cursing, yelling and jumping on things.

But eventually it did come off. I though I would be relieved, but I was really just too tired. The two mold halves are united by a thin layer of latex between them, and then strapped together.

This is the inside! I had a few air bubbles in the mold that left little pockets that I had to fix it with a thin layer of Ultra-Cal just in the holes. This is not really an ideal situation, so next time I will definitely be more careful in the molding process.  

After I finish Latexing and painting the thing, I will post the process. Then, next, now that I've more or less learned the ins and outs I plan to make and Ood costume for Emerald City Comicon 2012. Whoo! Should be exciting (if not, slightly, intimidating).