SKULLpture
Halloween decorations are expensive. If you have some time and patience you can make your own for less than $10.
Supplies:
Styrofoam bricks - Any foam should work, I used the kind used for floral arrangements since it is strong and easy to mold and you can smooth it with your bare hands. $3.50
Sharpie Marker - To help guide your carving. < $1
Coarse File - I used a Foot Smoother from the Dollar Store. $1
Saw - To remove the largest scrap pieces. I used the saw that was on my Multi-Purpose tool. $0
Sharp Tool - To make precision scraping cuts around the face. I used the can opener on my Multi-Purpose tool. $0
Model - I had a skeleton decoration that I used as a model to guide my design. It is useful to consult with, but not necessary.
Wig - To dress up your sculpture. This is also optional.
Supplies:
Styrofoam bricks - Any foam should work, I used the kind used for floral arrangements since it is strong and easy to mold and you can smooth it with your bare hands. $3.50
Sharpie Marker - To help guide your carving. < $1
Coarse File - I used a Foot Smoother from the Dollar Store. $1
Saw - To remove the largest scrap pieces. I used the saw that was on my Multi-Purpose tool. $0
Sharp Tool - To make precision scraping cuts around the face. I used the can opener on my Multi-Purpose tool. $0
Model - I had a skeleton decoration that I used as a model to guide my design. It is useful to consult with, but not necessary.
Wig - To dress up your sculpture. This is also optional.
Carve the General Shape
Use the Sharpie to draw an outline of your design on the Styrofoam. Then use your saw to cut away the big chucks of scrap.
Be careful not to accidentally snap the Styrofoam pieces off, doing so might cause an unexpected chuck snapped off too.
Be careful not to accidentally snap the Styrofoam pieces off, doing so might cause an unexpected chuck snapped off too.
Smooth Out the Rough Cuts
Use the coarse file to smooth out the cuts from the saw.
Scrape Facial Features
Use a cutting tool to scrape away the facial features. This is where I used my model for guidance.
Use your fingers to smooth out the finest features of the face. You can also use your finger to make indentations like I did for the dimples.
Use your fingers to smooth out the finest features of the face. You can also use your finger to make indentations like I did for the dimples.
Dress Up Your Decoration
You can use anything to dress up your Decoration. For my SKULLpture I had a wild orange wig that contrasted nicely with the green foam. Another option would be to use paint but I haven't tried this.
Since the wig was bigger than the SKULLpture I had to make a hair tie with string and tie back the hair.
Since the Styrofoam is so flexible you could experiment with other shapes and even pin pieces together to make a body. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination. Have a fun and safe Halloween!
Since the wig was bigger than the SKULLpture I had to make a hair tie with string and tie back the hair.
Since the Styrofoam is so flexible you could experiment with other shapes and even pin pieces together to make a body. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination. Have a fun and safe Halloween!