Building Apple puppet

[biblebetty]

Hi everyone,
I need HELP !!!! I'm trying to build a puppet, It needs to be an apple. I have looked for patterns and I tried everywhere. Can anyone give me a suggestion, I know I can make my own but the shape and the fact that the top needs to be round and close in to make a space for a stem, and the bottom needs to have a hole for the hand. This is driving me crazy. (I know it's not a long distance.) any ideas?

Bible Betty

 

[ravagefrackle]

Hi everyone,
I need HELP !!!! I'm trying to build a puppet, It needs to be an apple. I have looked for patterns and I tried everywhere. Can anyone give me a suggestion, I know I can make my own but the shape and the fact that the top needs to be round and close in to make a space for a stem, and the bottom needs to have a hole for the hand. This is driving me crazy. (I know it's not a long distance.) any ideas?

Bible Betty

Why not scultp it, start with a block of foam, big enough to put your hand in , and the create a round flat apple pattern that fits the block of foam , and is the right size for your apple(maybe a little bigger), then trace it on two sides of the apple, use a electric knife or a bread knife, and cut out the shape all the way thru the apple this will gice you a rough apple form that u can then shape with very sharp scissors or razor blades, then use sand paper(if you have a belt sander even better) smooth out all your rough areas after you have trimmed with scissors, then determine were the mouth will be, and were the hand will enter the puppet, hollow out the apple shape from the bottom, and then cut open your mouth area, you can then make a simple mouth interior using some black foam, glued to the inside of the apples lip area, but before you glue in the mouth you can dye the foam red or gren, or what ever, be sure it is completley drie before glueing, then you can add some paint to the apple surface(acrylic), you can also cover it in latex or sclupt or coat to gice it a shiny and firm skin, finnally make a puppet sleeve that will hide your wrist and fore arm, glue it to the bottom of the puppet inside the neck opening,

look at some of the muppet food for refereance for your mouth shape,

good luck

 

[Iokitek]

or:

you could make a clay sculpture. Then make a plaster mold out of it and cast foam latex in it. That's how they made Miss Piggy. You can also make a shape for the inside and place it in the mold before you cast the latex. Then you have a hollow puppet and you can stretch the mouth with your fingers. I hope I explained that well enough. But I'm abit tired at the moment.

 

[ravagefrackle]

or:

you could make a clay sculpture. Then make a plaster mold out of it and cast foam latex in it. That's how they made Miss Piggy. You can also make a shape for the inside and place it in the mold before you cast the latex. Then you have a hollow puppet and you can stretch the mouth with your fingers. I hope I explained that well enough. But I'm abit tired at the moment.

thats a good idea as well , but might be a little expensive and complicated for a beginer, you could also take a pattern of a real apple, drapping the way you would clothing , then enlarge those patterens on a copy machine or on your computer, trace them onto the foam, and develop the mouth after you have the shape you like,

of course you will want to cover the foam apple though so you can hide the seems,

 

[erniebert1234ss]

Good ideas all!!!

I always thought the singing food was made of foam latex! It looked so rubbery! I guess I was wrong!!!

BJ

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Another method for doing this would be to use the "wedge method"; by experimenting with the size and shape of the wedges you could make an apple shape. You would have to use 1" thick foam to prevent it from sagging though.

Personally I would carve it from a block of foam and coat it in latex as Ravagefrackle suggested.

 

[ravagefrackle]

I always thought the singing food was made of foam latex! It looked so rubbery! I guess I was wrong!!!

BJ

its all in the covering, they also used something called flock glue , which was used as the base for flock fibers like on the pig heads , it is a dries to a flexible rubbery skin, and is great for covering raw foam that you want protected, unfortunetley it is not avalible to the general public , since you need to by vast amounts from dealers , many of whom wont sell to random people, and only to large manufacturing corporations

 

[KermieBaby47]

Personally I would carve it from a block of foam and coat it in latex as Ravagefrackle suggested.

Where do you find blocks of foam? I've looked at Ben Franklins and Michaels, and nothing!

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Usually it's good to try upholstry suppliers, check your local yellow pages under "upholstry" or "foam". You could try searching Froogle for "foam block" too.

 

[biblebetty]

Boy! I got a lot of good ideas from you guys, thanks a bunch and when i'm finished with the puppet I will show you the pictures.

thanks very much!!!

Bible betty