Help Needed regarding Character Nose

Ace

I'm working on a show and I'm playing multiple characters. I want to use a fake nose for one of the characters. However, the nose will need to come on and off a few times in the show. Does anyone here have any solutions or resources to help pull this off? Any ideas would be appreciated. Thank you in advance. 

Alexander H

Will you need to be changing costumes quickly or will you have decent time between when you need to be on? How close up will the camera/audience be to your face? And are you looking to blend it into your face, like with liquid latex, or something you can quickly just slap on/take off without the extra prosthetic work?

I'm not too knowledged in prosthetics yet, but I think these questions might help others help you!

Darrell Green

I would have the same questions but would add that it pushes you toward the sturdier materials which might mean it is stiffer and less natural looking when using extreme expressions. The alternative would be finding an adhesive that is only partly tacky and not a full bond. This would inherently add the risk of decoupling during performance. Depending on the answers to @Alexander H , above, it sounds like we need input from a quick change or theatre performer with some experience in this exact scenario. If you could incorporate a center shell or spline in the casted material it might make it more durable while also holding the shape more than a fully casted material. There are nose openers for athletes that have a metal band that is shapable. This could be useful if cast over because you could place it on your face and then squeeze it to make it want to partially clamp on with inward pressure, releaving some of the necessary bonding agent. I know that bandage and dressing catches are made of the material I am envisioning, strong but malleable aluminum sheet. Interesting dillema, will follow this for the pro tips.

Ace

Thanks for your response, Alexander and Darrell! I’ll need to change costumes quickly and won’t have a lot of time to blend into my face. So, I’ll need something I can slap on and take off. There will be moments where I’ll be around 2-3 yards away from the audience. Darrell, did you have a particular adhesive in mind?  

Chris Ellerby

I would look into having the noses either clip onto your septum or use something like elastic straps.   With adhesives, you would need to apply it, clean it off, and re-apply it.

Theater can be forgiving to small details, so you may not need to worry about edge blending or hiding elastic straps.

If you really want to go the adhesive route, one option would be to use the same type of double-sided tape often used to hold on hair pieces, fake mustaches/beards, etc.  I don't recall all the names it goes by, but searching for "lace wig tape" or "toupee tape" will show some versions.

/Chris

Darrell Green

Adhesives: For this idea of quick on and off the tape Chris mentioned would work well if placed sparingly, maybe just down the bridge or in 3 quarter inch dots at the extreme edges (top of bridge, one on each side of nostrils). This would be 1)place on face 2) push on top of nose prosthetic at bridge, straight into the bridge of your nose 3) pinch at nostrils 4) run on stage.

Another option is poster dots, scrapbooker dots from a craft store but make sure they do not state "permanent" or "pressure sensitive" (which generally is also permanent). You want tacky temporary dots.

Another thing you could practice with is skin cleaner wipes. Hand wipes come in several types. If you get an alcohol wipe or an oil remover that can be used to quickly clean the nose and, when needed, the prosthetic.  Clean skin sticks extremely well to most smooth cast prosthetics. BE AWARE of the harsh nature of these cleaners and oil and condition the skin after performing. Practice with a few types of wipes. Avoid any that say not for skin. Use a lighter percentage of alcohol if you can. Do not get them in your eyes which is a touchy thing when we are talking about the nose. Eyes closed while wiping the nose.

I really like Chris's suggestion on nose clip of some kind, septum, partial nostral fit (maybe a half circle to fit into the top of both nostrils like an m or actually two upside down u). This would be molded into the casted piece with enough skeleton up into the cast piece to make it a secure part of the whole.

Wrap up: With a well color matched prosthetic (not makeup but the actual cast material color matched to you), with minimal edging, with a solid internal skeleton and nasal fit/and/or clip, keeping the skin clean (repeatedly during performance) and some possible minimal use of tape or dots..... and a lot of pre-performance practice, you have a plan. I would love to hear how your project turns out. 

Ace

Thanks, @Chris Ellerby
 & @Darrell Green these a very helpful tips. I appreciated. Let me get to work. All the best.