What's the best way to 'mold' foam?

[yetiman]

In viewing a lot of the production photos that puppet makers have put up on the internet, I've seen a lot of carved foam with no fabric (a la Gonzo's face ), and I was wondering what the best way is to accomplish that. When I use scissors, no matter how careful I am, it is always a bit choppy.

Thanks!

 

[Buck-Beaver]

What you really need to do in order to get a smooth finish is carve the foam and then sand it to smooth it out. It takes some practice to get really good at this (I have never had a knack for it myself). Swazzle's "Frosty" tutorial has a good overview of how to do this. Also worth checking out is John Kennedy's book Puppet Planet, which has a short section on carving puppets from foam.

 

[Keeermit]

hey Yetiman,

When I carve foam I only use scissors - it takes alot of practise and even more time to accomplish a smooth finish. Luckily I am a very patient person - I would suggest you practise alot on scrap pieces of foam - also reticulated foam is easier to carve, but more expensive. goodluck

 

[AEaston]

Hey all, so I have never carved foam either, but am interested in trying as well. Having an interest in stop motion animation as well, I found hot foam carving tools. Now, I know that they use these tools to carve styrofoam into set pieces, but I have often wondered if it might work for our purposes as well...This could be a really dumb idea as the two kinds of foam are very unsimilar, but it was just a thought. I am posting a link for you all to check it out.

Hot Wire Sculpting Tools

 

[AEaston]

ah, answered that one myself by looking at another thread. I may give it a try OUTSIDE one day