Best Of
Re: what is the color of paintless silicone head?
Hi Pinar - To give silicone an intrinsic base color when casting a silicone makeup, mask or puppet, you have to add silicone tint. Several of our online courses show how to do this process, including Silicone Mask Making Part 3, chapter 6: Tinting the Silicone, which you can find here: https://www.stanwinstonschool.com/tutorials/silicone-mask-making-part-3-casting-and-demolding
We aren't sure of the exact color that was used to tint the head that Jamie Grove painted in his silicone painting course, but it would have been a very light flesh tone. As a rule of thumb, it's always better to go lighter when pre-tinting silicone because you can darken with paint later on, but if you pre-tint too dark, it's nearly impossible to lighten it with paint later in the process.
We aren't sure of the exact color that was used to tint the head that Jamie Grove painted in his silicone painting course, but it would have been a very light flesh tone. As a rule of thumb, it's always better to go lighter when pre-tinting silicone because you can darken with paint later on, but if you pre-tint too dark, it's nearly impossible to lighten it with paint later in the process.
Re: Silicone Masks & Prosthetic
Hi Rachelle,
To attach stuff to silicone I usually use more silicone as an adhesive. When you mix up your silicone for the mask, mix up a bit extra of the pigmented B side and save it for patching/gluing on extras when the mask is done.
Gluing extras onto a mask requires a mechanical bond, where the silicone you are using as an adhesive physically grabs onto the part, so having small holes or features on the under side of the part that the silicone can seep into or fill will help.
You can also embed plates to bolt/screw onto, magnets, or other connection methods. Doing some smaller scale tests can help you work the process out.
/Chris
To attach stuff to silicone I usually use more silicone as an adhesive. When you mix up your silicone for the mask, mix up a bit extra of the pigmented B side and save it for patching/gluing on extras when the mask is done.
Gluing extras onto a mask requires a mechanical bond, where the silicone you are using as an adhesive physically grabs onto the part, so having small holes or features on the under side of the part that the silicone can seep into or fill will help.
You can also embed plates to bolt/screw onto, magnets, or other connection methods. Doing some smaller scale tests can help you work the process out.
/Chris
my take on a Cenobite (hell raiser)
Sculpted and painted using acrylic airbrush paints and use my mix of rubber cement and little sugar with Matt gloss liquitex for the blood to thicken the blood a bit. 
Hope you guys like it!!! I know I do!!
Hope you guys like it!!! I know I do!! 
Re: Learning past 40, looking for new friends on new paths.
I'm right there with you! Grew up addicted to Fangoria, dreaming of being able to afford all the cool masks and props in the back sections. The learning never stops, and it's always a good time to learn something new!
/Chris
/Chris
Re: Learning past 40, looking for new friends on new paths.
Hi Shane. I'm much in the same boat as you. Being nearly 39 I feel like I'm playing catch up after years of being an onlooker and admirer of practical fx just in the last year been learning how to sculpt, mold, cast and paint.
It's incredibly rewarding/ frustrating and so thankful for the stan winston school as a valuable resource to turn to when learning new disciplines.
I've got a good handle on making latex masks so about try try my first silicone creature project.
Best of luck on your journey and look forward to seeing your work
https://www.instagram.com/porkpiesamurai/
It's incredibly rewarding/ frustrating and so thankful for the stan winston school as a valuable resource to turn to when learning new disciplines.
I've got a good handle on making latex masks so about try try my first silicone creature project.
Best of luck on your journey and look forward to seeing your work
https://www.instagram.com/porkpiesamurai/
Learning past 40, looking for new friends on new paths.
I just signed up for Courses, am staring with the basics of design. Over 30 years ago I was an 8 year old kid addicted to Horror, and Fangoria, I dreamt of working on creatures and movies. Spent my life on different paths but always kept my love of art and horror.
I am now ready to explore my capabilities and learn the craft of creature design and horror effects. I feel my 40 years of consuming horror, pop culture, and art can pay off finding me a place in the industry.
Im looking for friends and contacts to share the journey with, looking for adults like my self new to the industry, comment here if you are on a new path, what are you starting with? what brought you to this path and how long have you wanted to be here?
I am now ready to explore my capabilities and learn the craft of creature design and horror effects. I feel my 40 years of consuming horror, pop culture, and art can pay off finding me a place in the industry.
Im looking for friends and contacts to share the journey with, looking for adults like my self new to the industry, comment here if you are on a new path, what are you starting with? what brought you to this path and how long have you wanted to be here?
Bib Fortuna -Latex Bust
Heres my finished Bib Fortuna latex piece. Sculpted in Wed and cast in latex, painted with my trusty Iwata cm-sb with Tim Gores bloodline. Fourth Seal eyes (which I had some trouble getting inside the eye) and dental acrylic teeth.
Re: Sculpting Head Core in Silicon Mask Making Part 2: Finishing the Epoxy & Fiberglass Mold
Hi Brian,
I was able to find one location in the UK that sells an armature/core for silicone mask making.
https://www.neillsmaterials.co.uk/product/silicone-mask-armature/
The price looks reasonable, considering the expense of making your own. With a bit more searching you may be able to find others.
We don't have a course on silicone mask cores at the moment. The silicone mask-making course does cover a lot of information about the core, so with a bit of research, you should be able to make your own from a lifecast. I don't know of any resources that cover the full design and construction of a silicone mask core. But with a bit of google/youtube research, and possibly watching this course again, you should be able to design and build your own.
The basic process (as I might approach it) is as follows:
Hope that helps!
/Chris
I was able to find one location in the UK that sells an armature/core for silicone mask making.
https://www.neillsmaterials.co.uk/product/silicone-mask-armature/
The price looks reasonable, considering the expense of making your own. With a bit more searching you may be able to find others.
We don't have a course on silicone mask cores at the moment. The silicone mask-making course does cover a lot of information about the core, so with a bit of research, you should be able to make your own from a lifecast. I don't know of any resources that cover the full design and construction of a silicone mask core. But with a bit of google/youtube research, and possibly watching this course again, you should be able to design and build your own.
The basic process (as I might approach it) is as follows:
- Make a silicone or alginate life cast from the shoulders up, with a plaster bandage shell.
- Pour melted clay into the mold to create a positive bust
- Simplify/remove the ears, leaving a small mound where the ears were to provide some space for the wearer's ears.
- Smooth out and simplify the surface, and remove clay in areas where you want the fit to be snugger.
- Simplify the area around the eyes so your final mask can blend properly
- Sculpt the mouth in a slightly open position with a small shallow cavity between the lips
- Sculpt in some keys and a flange so the core could socket into and be centered/supported by the final outer mold
- Mold and cast in epoxy and fiberglass.
Hope that helps!
/Chris