Anyone know where a fellow can find plain rigid plastic face masks?

[Sulla]

All I can find locally are those flimsy child-sized shiny white masks with the pull-your-hair-out rubber band on the back. I was hoping to find a somewhat rigid mask of an adult sized face that I can make into a death eater mask.

Anyone know where I can find one?

Anyone out there with a vac-former that could do a simple androginous adult face for me in styrene or ABS or something?

Is there a way I can do this at home without a vacuform table?

 

[Coz]

I bought a couple of white 'robot masks' which are adult size, but an ebay.com search fails to find anything similar.

However, try a search for
"WHITE MARDI GRAS FULL FACE MASKS"
and you'll find the flimsy adult-size mask, and could maybe glue a couple together to help reinforce it.
Replace the rubber band with a length of 1" wide elastic for comfort.

Heh, you could just use the one plain mask, and wear a skull mask underneath!

C.

 

[juno]

Check this out:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Harry-Potter:-Make-a-Death-Eater-Mask!/

 

[Sulla]

Thanks. I also did a slightly fruitful ebay search on venetian masks.

Is there anyone out there selling deatheater masks that aren't those rubber Halloween masks?

 

[Sulla]

Well, thanks to my 10 year old niece I found my plastic masks. After taking her to dinner Saturday night, she noticed that they'd opened another United Arts & Education store close to the restaurant so we stopped in. I needed to get some paper for my Grail Diary Inserts.

We were walking around the store looking at everything, when she said, "Look Andy, here's your masks!" And there they were: about four different kinds of human faces in fairly sturdy plastic! I bought two on the spot and spent some of the weekend working on a death eater mask.

Pics will come soon. I have it all carved up and assembled and the first coat of paint applied, but it is not finished yet.

 

[blufive]

Can you share any more information on those masks? I'm trying to find one for myself and eBay isn't showing any pieces like I have in mind.

 

[Sulla]

I used the male plastic mask. I had to canabalize a second mask to legthen it to fit my face, but it is a good size other than the short chin.

I'll post pix of mine tonight.

http://www.unitednow.com/search_res...earch&txtsearchParamSort=None&txtProjNbr=None

 

[Jedirick]

Is there a way I can do this at home without a vacuform table?

Since this mask does not demand much detail and if you have access to thin, (.03-.06) styrene sheet you can make a positive face form from plaster of paris let it harden, cover with a coat of vaseline and a few layers of saran/plastic wrap and add more plaster to face to form a negative. When cured seperate and clean up.

Place an oversized sheet of thin styrene over inside of negative and heat with a hair dryer until it softens and settles into negative, force positive down into negative and you'll get a pretty decent mask. may take a few dryer touch ups in some parts of mask to get it to form completely.

I've done this with different types smooth cuff and forearm armor with good success as well as clear plastic forehead, cheek and chin pieces for special prosthetics.

 

[Sulla]

Since this mask does not demand much detail and if you have access to thin, (.03-.06) styrene sheet you can make a positive face form from plaster of paris let it harden, cover with a coat of vaseline and a few layers of saran/plastic wrap and add more plaster to face to form a negative. When cured seperate and clean up.

Place an oversized sheet of thin styrene over inside of negative and heat with a hair dryer until it softens and settles into negative, force positive down into negative and you'll get a pretty decent mask. may take a few dryer touch ups in some parts of mask to get it to form completely.

I've done this with different types smooth cuff and forearm armor with good success as well as clear plastic forehead, cheek and chin pieces for special prosthetics.

Cool, Thanks!

I had to go with a Dr. Doom mouth on this plastic face thing (which I will still finish 'cause I think it's looking pretty cool,) but I think I may try your method to get a sculpted mouth foor my mask.

 

[Sulla]

How hard is it to sculpt with plaster of paris? Could I not use some kind of clay that can be bake-hardened as a form for a one-time use?

 

[blufive]

I don't think you can sculpt with plaster of paris. IIRC, it's basically craft cement that you can pour.

Thanks for the tips, fellas! My mask requires absolutely no surface details so making my own is certainly a good option.

 

[exoray]

I don't think you can sculpt with plaster of paris. IIRC, it's basically craft cement that you can pour.

You can pour a block (or rough shape) and sculpt it with files/rasp and sand paper that is if you want a solid hard sculpting medium... It's brittle so fine details will probably chip off while you work it... Not the best medium to work with but it has it's uses and it's cheap...

 

[DemonSeed]

why not just use WED clay?

 

[Sulla]

Could WED clay be used to form hot plastic over (pushing it against the surface of the [hardened?] clay surface as heat is applied?

AND - is WED clay available in, say, local hobby stores or art stores in sizes less than 50 lbs.? (My goggle search too me to a few sties that sell WED in 50lbs. incriments.)

If I can sculpt a simple no surface detail face into some easy to use material, anchor it to a square base, and heat up a sheet of styrene in a wood frame in my oven then press it over the face mold, I could do some easy mask making.

Or am I being naive?

 

[DemonSeed]

Could WED clay be used to form hot plastic over (pushing it against the surface of the [hardened?] clay surface as heat is applied?

AND - is WED clay available in, say, local hobby stores or art stores in sizes less than 50 lbs.? (My goggle search too me to a few sties that sell WED in 50lbs. incriments.)

If I can sculpt a simple no surface detail face into some easy to use material, anchor it to a square base, and heat up a sheet of styrene in a wood frame in my oven then press it over the face mold, I could do some easy mask making.

Or am I being naive?

i dont think it would do well in the oven. make your sculpt then use plaster of paris and burlap to make a mold, then you can make latex pulls.

 

[Sulla]

Ah, no, not looking for molding and casting. Just loking for an low tech kind of vacu-forming-like technique. Using the clay as the form and heating the styrene plastic in the oven to press down over the clay form like a vacu-form proccess.

The question then becomes, will WED clay that has been sculpted and dried be firm enough to keeep it's sculped shape and live through having droopy hot plastic (not melted, just hot and flexable) layed over it and pressed onto it.

 

[Sulla]

NM, I get the idea using a negative. Sorry for the belligerent ignorance.