Mask Making

Here follows a full guide to making your own theatrical half mask. 

Products Needed:

You will need a roll of 'gum strip'. It is basically a long strip of brown paper with brown-paper-envelope-glue on one side. You can get it from any good art shop. Get the one which is roughly 5 cm wide. You will be cutting some of this into half width strips (~2.5cm wide) and third width strips (~1.5cm wide). So cut the gum strip into the following lengths (the number in brackets in the number of each length you need):

Strip A (5) - 24 cm long, full strip width

Strip B (1) - 25 cm long, half strip width

Strip C (1) - 23 cm long, third strip width

Strip D (2) - 11 cm long, full strip width

Strip E (10) - 6 cm long, half strip width

Strip F (2) - 8 cm long, half strip width

Strip G (42) - 0.8cm long, full strip width

Strip H (1) - 6 cm long, third strip width

Strip I (2) - 13 cm long, full strip width

Strip J (4) - 15 cm long, full strip width

Strip K (18) - 7 cm long, full strip width

You will also need a length of elastic cord, about 40cm long should be plenty, and a sheet of cling film about 50 cm long.

That's it!

The Mask Speaks:

Hi there !

I might not look like much at the minute but believe it or not the pile of things you just collected together is a full-on, living and breathing half-mask.

And I am all yours !

Alright, I know what you are thinking; all I've got is a big pile gum strips, a bit of cling film and some elastic. Don’t panic. With your help, and these assembly instructions my Dad wrote with me, I will soon be looking you in the eye like my brother below.

So prepare yourself. Let’s do this together, step by step.

(For someone without my own mouth I talk a bit too much, so this guide goes on a bit, but don’t worry I’m really pretty simple to make. Should take an hour tops from start to finish.)

Step 1 – Ground work

You will need an old damp cloth and a bowl of water to keep the cloth damp. You could also do with a mirror to look at your pretty face in. That’s it.

Go on. Go get them and meet me back here.

Back already? That was quick. Love you already.

Might be best to sort the strips out into piles. You might want to label them with letters to help you keep track of what goes where. Leave all the G strips though. There are too many of those to label. It's like a jigsaw without a picture, huh?

Step 2 – Sticky barrier

You might have been wondering who exactly I am going to look like. Well funnily enough I’m going to look a bit like you. That’s because we are going to use your face to mould me on.

Now don’t be scared, beyond a bit of sticky residue, which is easily washed off, there’s no lasting damage. And what harm is there in sticky residues?  However, you might want to wet your hair back and tie it out of the way. Oh, and you can put the cling film over the front hair line so there’s no danger of getting all those lovely locks tangled up. (If you are bald, sorry, I aint got eyes so I can’t see you yet.)

There, that wasn’t so hard…although you do look a bit silly:

At least you’re smiling still.

Step 3 – Browsing

Find the five strips you marked A. These are my brow strips. A broad brow gives a person a sense of authority don’t you think?  

Dampen a strip on the glue side with the cloth and stick it firmly onto your brow along your hair line. This will be over the cling film so it might slip about a bit. Don’t worry about the odd wrinkle or kink. We’ve all got a few wrinkles. Just get the strip firmly down. Now follow up in the same way with the next four strips, overlapping them to make it into one nice solid surface from your hair line to just above your eyes. Like this:

Good job. I feel a bit more solid already. Now I know it feels a bit sticky and icky but I wont be on your face too long. Bear with me. Onto step 4.

Step 4 – Nosy

Guess which strip next. That’s right, strip B. You got the pattern already? There is just one strip B and it goes across the nose, down the sides and across each cheek. Go on, wet it up and stick it on like this:

Good job. I feel like Adam Ant. (If you don’t know who he is, shame on you, Google him later.) Onwards friend.

Step 5 – Underneath the arches

This time take strip C, wet it up and stick it in line across face under the nose. Best if you curve it a bit then the ends will touch strip B, like this:

I bet that tickles. Not too much longer. On, on we go.

Step 6 – Chubby cheeks?

Now its time to decide exactly how far down your cheeks you want me to go. I think its best to have a nice straight line across bottom of me which is in line with the bottom of strip C. So stick on the two strip Ds on either cheek to give me a nice defined bottom line, kinda like this:

That’s it. Don’t worry too much about precision though. I like it wonky and a bit wrong, don’t you? On to step 7.

Step 7 – No more breathing

Now find a strip E, there are loads of them but you only need one right now. Wet it up and stick it right over your nostrils wrapping it round to join the other strips. A bit like this:

It’s best to breathe through the mouth from now on. Don’t worry. Not much more. I’m nearly here. Can you see what it is yet?

Step 8 – Lock down

I feel a bit wobbly still around the nose area, so why don’t you get the two F strips? You can stick these onto the cheek near the sides of the nose to tie everything together. Like this:

 That is so much better. Still, there is probably a bit of a hole right at the point of my nose. I can’t see it myself but there often is. Onto the next step to fix that.

Step 9 – Nose point

Get yourself two G strips. They are not labeled, but they are the tiny ones you have nearly 50 of. You can use these across the nose point. Pull tight to get it nice and smooth. Like this:

You are getting good at this. Let’s join up the two sections of me shall we?

Step 10 – Bridging

Big moment now. Get yourself the single strip H. Wet it and stick it down to the bridge of your nose to connect the two parts of me. Like this:

Wow! That’s better. I’m whole again. Quick, how about my sideburns?
 

Step 11 – Sideburns

Take the two I strips and use them for my sideburns. These will stick me together even better now, like this:

Blimey, that good. How about those big holes on the outside edges of my eyes?

Step 12 – Insideburns?

Take two of the J strips. With these, close the gap between the sideburn strips and the outside edge of the eyes. Like this:

You can see me now, huh? Last step on your face coming up.

Step 13 – Eye liners

You should have nine E strips left. Using eight of them lets round off those square corners to my eyes. Otherwise I am going to be left looking like a 70s robot. The eyes are the ‘windows of the soul’ after all. Do them like this:

Pretty pattern. Now I doubt there will be, but if there are any holes now is the time to use bits of emergency backup strip L to patch them. Just cut, wet and stick to plug any gaps.

Well that’s it. All done on the face. Oh, well nearly, I didn’t mention this at the start did I? Well………

Step 14 – Tea through a straw?

Now don’t freak out, but you gotta kinda keep me on your face for a little while to give me a chance to dry out. How long? Well, the longer the better really, although 15 minutes should be plenty. I know it’s a pain, sorry, if I’d told you earlier you might not have made me.

Drinking tea through a straw can be fun. Or maybe reciting your times tables? In your head of course, speaking too much at this stage might make me go funny.

Step 15 – Facial peel

Well done. We are finally to be parted. Taking the cling film and mask at the hairline you should be able to gently peel me off your face. Don’t worry if I get a bit pulled out of shape as I come off, you can always push me back.

Well, much as I love you, it’s good to be free of you for a bit. You might find that your face has a dry white sticky residue on it? Don’t think about it too much, just run to the bathroom and clean it off. See you in a sec.

Well here I basically am. We just need to strengthen and tidy me up a bit.

Step 16 – Edgy

What I think you should do next is go round my outer edge and firm me up. Take each of the twenty two K strips in turn and glue it on along the edge. They should be glued half on the front of me and folded over so their other half is stuck to my inside to get a nice tight sandwich. For the edge just under my nose use your one remaining E strip side on. This will fit better. This is where all the edgers go:

God, I feel stiffer already. Two more steps and I’m complete, although admittedly the next one is a bit fiddly.

Step 17 – Edgy eyes

Good eyes are the key to everything don’t you think? You’d better use all your remaining G strips to delicately edge mine. Give me a nice elegant curve will you? Sick them half on and fold other half into the inside to stick down, as before. The edgers go here:

Gosh, I look pretty. One more proper step. And we finish where we started.

Step 18 – Inner browsing

Take the two remaining J strips, wet them up and stick them into the inside of me around about the brow area. This will make me more solid and also make me feel nicer when you are wearing me. Do them like this:

That’s me. Go on admit it, you love me.

Step 19 – Elasticated

Make two lovely holes in me on either side at ear height so that you can tie my bit of elastic on. A hole punch is great for this you know. But be careful to make only one hole per side. I don’t need filing.

Adjust the elastic for the size of your lovely head and tie it on. Now you can wear me close and I’ll never fall off.

Step 20 – Admire me

So well done, stand back, admire me. I’m gorgeous. But then I would be, I look like you. If there are any problems or blemishes you could always cut a bit more glue strip and patch me up.

But, if I am perfect, which face it, I probably am, just stick the rest of the glue strip into your friend’s hair when they aren’t looking. Funny, huh?

Step 21 – Pamper me

Now I think about it…I’m a bit plain like this. Not right now, but maybe later you could give me a makeover?

I love acrylic paint…or ink.

You could glue feathers to me !

Or cover me in glitter !

If you like you could use PVA glue and papier mache to build me up into a tremendously detailed character mask. If you do this a final coat of PVA on top of everything dries clear and shiny and is great for holding everything together.

Its up to you really.

Sky’s the limit.

Here is a picture of my oldest bother, he started off like me.

My Dad’s real good at making masks don’t you think? If you need any advice or help, or if you want him to make a mask for you, then you can email him. If you want to call him his details are at the bottom of the page.

Please drop a line to Dr. Dan. Even if you don’t have any problems he would love to see a picture of me I know for sure.

Please, play with me, paint me, pamper me, and show me off to all your friends. 

And don’t forget…a mask isn’t just for Christmas, it’s for life.