Mouth problems

[biblebetty]

Hi everybody,
boy do I have a problem! I don't make people puppets I make object puppets. For instance in October I made a large Whale for Jonah and the whale script. He is 5ft long by 3ft. Also in December I made three talking christmas gifts for the play "The Greatest Gift, now for Easter I'm creating a cactus & two trees. Now for the problem? when I make the mouth I have to create my own mouth to fit the puppet, but when I make the pattern for the material to fit over the puppet, the mouth is never the right size, the big problem is that when you move the mouth the corners of the material come off of the corners of the foam, it is like I did not cut the mouth large enough. can anyone tell me how to measure the mouth properly so the material will fit the foam mouth right. I love making these weird and drifferent puppets and the kids love the ones that are really drifferent but what stops me is the mouth because I'm afraid it won't hold up to the performances.

HELP!!!!!!
Lovebearth

 

[Puppetplanet]

Im wondering..... does the fabric have a stretch? It should, and if it has a stretch in one direction more than the other, then I would suggest putting the stretch in the best position to help with your problem.

Also, what are you using to attach the fabric to the mouth? Hot glue is okay, but if you know you've got problems or that this puppet is gonna go thru a lot, I would carefully use contact cement. I use the gel type of contact cement and apply it with an old spatula looking butter knife from a utensil set. (easier cleaning). Do this outside for the best ventilation to protect you from the fumes.... and it will dry faster.

If you don't feel comfortable using the contact cement.... make sure your hot glue is high temperature type so that it permeates the fabric a little better and creates a better bond.

Hope this helps,
-Michele

 

[biblebetty]

thank-you

Im wondering..... does the fabric have a stretch? It should, and if it has a stretch in one direction more than the other, then I would suggest putting the stretch in the best position to help with your problem.

Also, what are you using to attach the fabric to the mouth? Hot glue is okay, but if you know you've got problems or that this puppet is gonna go thru a lot, I would carefully use contact cement. I use the gel type of contact cement and apply it with an old spatula looking butter knife from a utensil set. (easier cleaning). Do this outside for the best ventilation to protect you from the fumes.... and it will dry faster.

If you don't feel comfortable using the contact cement.... make sure your hot glue is high temperature type so that it permeates the fabric a little better and creates a better bond.

Hope this helps,
-Michele

thank-you
that is a great idea I may have had the material in the wrong stretch. but should i not measure the mouth? how would I do that. In other patterns the mouth is already in the head of the fabric pattern I have to make my own. So how do they measure to get the mouth to match the foam?

lovebearth

 

[Puppetplanet]

Well, since no one else here is responding, I will try to explain my very crude method to making a fabric pattern to cover a foam character I've created.

Before I do that, I would like to make a suggestion...... just a suggestion..... I have heard of many highly respected builders mention that they don't make or save patterns from most (many?) characters that they create. I ALWAYS do because, lets say I sell a poodle character that I or a client designed as a mascot for her pet store. She uses this poodle puppet to promote spaying and neutering pets or to adopt from shelters and this character becomes well known and loved by the community and puppeteer. Then one night the owner forgets little Fe Fe the poodle puppet on a counter in a rush to get out the door and a dog in a nearby cage is just within reach of poor Fe Fe.... and well, you can guess the rest. How do I create the exact same size, shape, and features of little Fe Fe if I didn't make a pattern and file it away?

Not to mention, the more patterns you have in your possesion, the easier it would be to pick one up and alter it a little for a similar character..... saves a lotta time.


ANYWAY..... my method. I make my foam heads/shapes in a way that no matter how many pieces I use, I always have a right half and a left half at some point.... both are usually mirror images of eachother. I take one of those halves and trace it on a roll of that brown paper bag looking stuff (packaging material) and then use that to trace and cut the fabric. Be sure to pay attention to the direction of the stretch before you trace so that you are using the stretch to your advantage when it comes time for that mouth!


Hope my two cents helps! Maybe Buck, Dpuppets, toastcrumbs or one of the other talented builders will submit a hint or two.

-Michele

 

[Buck-Beaver]

You know what people who ask this question need? They need a good sewing tutorial on...is this called draping? Whatever it's called, it's more of general sewing/patterning technique than a specific puppet building one.

I've writtena tutorial on this BTW, my site should be back up with it by the end of the weekend.

 

[Buck-Beaver]

I'm can't quite grasp the *exact* problem. Do you have pics? Can you take some?

Something that I know helps is to build the puppet so it's mouth is naturally open, rather than closed. Not sure if you have done that or not.

 

[Puppetplanet]

I believe what she's talking about is the fabric in the corner of the mouth is lifting off of the mouth board...... actually, she said FOAM..... hey are you attaching the material to foam or the mouth board?

Anyway, I had this happen to me once when I cut the pattern without paying attention to the direction of the stretch and the fabric didn't have enough stretch to stay glued to the mouth board.

She's having a hard time with that problem on all of her puppets because she doesn't use a pattern and isn't sure how to cut the fabric so that it covers the foam and leaves enough material for the mouth.

 

[biblebetty]

that is the exact problem, but I did what the first person suggested and it worked perfect. I have pictures of all my puppet friends but I don't know how to post them on the web site for you to see, I'm asking my daughter's best friend if he knows how to do this so give me a little time and maybe I can show you Ernesto the Cactus

 

[Buck-Beaver]

I'm still confused.

 

[scarylarrywolf]

Oh my gosh!

We've actually stumped Buck! Mark the calendar!!