#expanding foam
You have a bunch of cans of expanding foam at the ready and you’re wondering what to make with them. The easiest answer to this is pretty much anything, but very large props or weapons with solid bases and clunky armor are your best bets.
That’s because anything made out of expanding foam will naturally be a little thick. Those props will have seven layers once completed: cardboard base, foam, masking tape cover, newspaper paper mache cover, clay paste paper mache cover, primer, and paint. You could make, for example, a great Buster Sword from Final Fantasy VII out of expanding foam, but try to do that with a pair of delicate Steampunk wings and they would just look awkward.
Take a look at some of these amazing props to get an idea of what’s possible.
Weapons
Armor
viaIrarenovo
Large Props
viaTemperance
Basically, the sky’s the limit. Get your base ready and spray away!
This guide was made under the wing of Costume Discounters (www.costumediscounters.com). Please go check out their site!! They sell wigs, shoes, shirts, essentials…all sorts of goodies.
Since expanding foam is so easy to use and plot out, there aren’t many step-by-step tutorials out there (when the process goes so smoothly, there’s isn’t much to explain!). Here are the best available:
Preparing and carving:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O23TM-z0OXk Look at how much she uses, and how much she carves away. Don’t go chintzy when you’re spraying on the foam.
Applying paper mache:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn_RosA4uFc&list=UU79qFuymkVas5dCScbLF9fw Remember, you have to cut your newspaper into tiny squares! None of those long strips you used as a kid. They willbuckle, bend, and make unattractive gaps in your prop that you can’t cover up.
Making a sword (this has really well-explained steps at the bottom):http://doxiequeen1.wordpress.com/2010/12/13/how-to-make-a-lightweight-cosplay-sword-tutorial/
Examples of complex shapes: http://www.kamuicosplay.com/2010/10/about-my-love-to-expanding-foam.html
And that’s it!
This guide was made under the wing of Costume Discounters (www.costumediscounters.com). Please go check out their site!! They sell wigs, shoes, shirts, essentials…all sorts of goodies.
Using expanding foam is a pretty straightforward process–you spray, carve, cover, and paint. You can’t get to that point if you don’t have the right tools, though. This is what you’ll need to make your next prop:
Cardboard
For making the base that the expanding foam will stick to.
Craft Knives
You’ll want a whole bunch of these–they get dull fast.
Masking Tape
Newspaper
Water
To help the foam rise.
Spray Bottle
Wallpaper Paste
You can use regular old Elmer’s Glue if you can’t find any, but this will work a lot better.
Paper Mache Clay
This may not be the paper mache you recognize. When mixed with water and glue it becomes a thick, clay-like material that is very durable once it hardens. It will give your prop its hard coating.
Sandpaper
For smoothing out the paper mache.
Since it isn’t a tool it isn’t listed above, I’ll write it here: remember to get several cans of expanding foam. You’ll carve away a half to two-thirds of the foam on your prop to get the right shape. You can also always add on foam and recarve if you make a mistake, but you’re out of luck if you don’t have any more left to use.
All of these materials are pretty cheap and commonplace–just pick them up from your local craft and hardware store and get working!
This guide was made under the wing of Costume Discounters (www.costumediscounters.com). Please go check out their site!! They sell wigs, shoes, shirts, essentials…all sorts of goodies.
