Turkey neck process and product question

Darrell Green

I need to do an aging makeup and wanted to add the stranding or seeming of an aged under chin and neck. When we were kids we called this turkey neck because of the obvious resemblance to actual turkeys. I have found the stipple latex lesson with Barney Burman and the witch hag prosthetics of Bruce Spaulding Fuller. I was hoping for a non prosthetic, cosmetic process to create Burman's wrinkles in larger scale on the neck with less dramatic accenting than Bruce's going full hag. My intention is to create an impersonation cosplay of a known elderly but fit individual. Is there a lesson that creates more than the double chin, more like the vertical strands of an aged thin person? And am I thinking correctly that the latex stipple is the right product? I thought of rigid collodion but it likely won't give the soft skin effect that would be realistic. I want the strands and hanging skin, in moderation and I don't want stiff gill like flaps.

Chris Ellerby

The stretch and stipple effect would produce smaller tighter wrinkles and not the look of looser hanging skin that you get with aging on the neck.  You can give it a try and see how your own neck responds to see, as the effect will differ from person to person based on their skin.  It can get kind of close, but for the much loser hanging skin, you can really only go with an appliance.  There are places out there that sell pre-made neck appliances in silicone, foam latex, or prosaide transfers.  So that might be an option if you don't wish to make your own.

/Chris

Darrell Green

I found several posing methods that gave me enough wrinkle for a front picture and a second method for a side shot. These are all muscular movements, no makeup, so not a production technique as it cannot be applied and can only be managed while not moving or speaking. But it worked well for my purpose of single photo likeness to my target cosplay. 

Here are two recent photos of my neckline showing the relative smoothness and skin tension as compared to the two following shots:

The following are my attempts to create striation loose skin in the first picture and in the second, the long "turkey neck" skin from the side angle.




I used a drying skin lotion to get the overall texture (aging about 15 years) but the first frontal picture was pushing upward with my tongue (very strenuously) into my palette and the second was pulling down with my tongue, creating a vacuum against the palette. I figured out that this vacuum could be held even with mouth open, so I was able to do an open smile in some poses.

Overall it was very successful, adding 15 to 20 years aging.

Chris Ellerby

Nice problem solving there, glad it worked out for you!

/Chris