Flexible styles-  Suitable for fabric, fur or leather- In this method you cut out a covering for your eyes, face or head. Think Zorro mask or Bag-with-eye-holes kind of thing. The only tricky part is getting something that stays centered on your eyes and the holes do not shift around to where your eyes aren’t!

Shaped Masks-  Depending on the medium and the desired result, you will need to decide whether you are going to use a positive or negative casting method. I am going to call the positive a form and a negative a mold. These are my own terms and don’t be confused when reading something from someone else!

Creating a form- In using a form, you are building your mask form the inside out. Your form should be as close to your actual face shape as possible. You can get this by doing a casting of your face, sculpting one from wood or clay, or getting a styro foam head and altering it by adding clay to it. Then you build up your mask on top. This method works for sized fabric or felt, as well as leather (Read Leather section). You can have some luck with the other methods , but many of them would do better with a mold. (paper or foam methods, mache types)

Creating a mold- A mold is what you use when you are creating from the outside in. You can do this by creating what you would like you finished mask’s shape to be (out of clay, wood, etc.) and taking a plaster cast of this, or if you are really skilled and visualizing in reverse, you can carve a negative image. You would then use the negative image to create your mask. This is particularly good for paper mache, laytex, foams or friendly plastic.

Creating an understructure- Some masked create such extended shapes, that they really need an understructure. This can be created by wire, foam, industrial felt, or bristol board. Your main concern here is not only supporting the shape but also adding as little weight as possible.

Sized Fabric-
You can size fabric by infusing it with glue. (This is what Buckram is). While wet, it will have no intrinsic support of its own, so you need a form to shape it over or a mold to shape it in. The type of fabric and amount of glue used will determine how hard the final mask will be both in integrity and in surface texture. For example, satin is thin and will make a hard shiny mask. Fake fur has a lot of depth and you could choose to only get glue on the inner "fabric" part to make a slightly flexible mask with fur on the outside, or you could saturate it and get a mask with hard spiky bit on the outside. The stretch of the fabric will also have some direct effects. Fabrics that are woven with little stretch in them, such as tight plain weaves, will not conform to your desired shapes easily. You may have wrinkles, etc. Felt and stretchy fabrics will conform more smoothly to your form or mold.

When choosing what type of glue to use, keep in mind the conditions the mask will undergo. It needs to dry hard (rubber cement is right out!). I have used Elmers, Ailene’s Fabric Stiffener,(both are PVA white glues, I think) and wallpaper glue and I have read about using a flexible bookbinders glue. I suppose that a heavy starch glue or flour glue would work, but you need to check to see if the heat from your face, or your sweat will dissolve this glue and make you mask soggy. I would not recommend any glues that give off fumes-- Even if you think your mask is dry, you will be surprised at how strong it will smell with your head in there!

Method-
Set up form and cover with protective material if it needs it. (foil, plastic wrap, masking tape, etc. NOT VASELINE–makes inside of mask mucky and hard to dry)
Soak fabric in glue or sizing
Drape soggy fabric over form and gently smooth out. Try to use ONE piece of fabric over form. Trim off excess that interferes with shape (leave other excess on for later trimming)
Blow a little dry with hair dryer to form a surface skin, and then smooth out more. This way your fingers won’t get as sticky.
If using a thin fabric, do a second layer over the first.
Let dry completely (over night).
Pop off form (ususally pretty easy)
Trim off perimeter but leave ½ inch surplus around rim
Make tiny slits in this outer excess and fold back onto inside edge and glue down.
Cut out eyes and add fastners (straps, ribbons, etc)
Decorate by sewing, gluing or whatever (can mix dye with glue to paint on)!

Paper Mache-
Also a period style. There are two basic styles of mache, pulp or strips. I prefer strips for strength. I would not recommend using pulp for anything other than the use of a mold. However, you can also combine the two. You can use these with an understructure of paper covered wire or twisted paper if you need to bulk out a piece. Best method is in a negative cast, although over a form works too. This biggest problem is that it shrinks when drying, and over the form it could crack or weaken if it shrinks too much. In a cast it will only appear to shrink a little and make it easier to get out of the cast.

Strips method-
Set up form and cover with protective material if it needs it. (foil, plastic wrap, etc. NOT VASELINE –makes inside of mask mucky and hard to dry)
Soak paper strips (newpaper, paperbags, tissue…NOT shiny like magazine! Strips must be TORN, not cut)
Overlap soggy strips over form. You can tear into smaller pieces. Smooth out surface as you go. Put on 2 applications, each around 3-4 layers thick due to overlapping.
Let dry 48 hours!!
Pry off form and trim edges and eyes
Cover with a last layer of paper toweling, tissue paper (big sheets, not stuff you blow nose on) or some other thin but strong paper.
Coat with some sort of sealant…glue, shellac, or lacquer primer.
You might have to gently sand rough spots or to great a smooth texture. Repeat coatings and sanding until as smooth at you want it.
Decorate with paint or glued on decoration
Add fasteners (straps, ribbons, etc)

Leather-
This medium is best used for Positve cast methods. The following is the "Master" mask maker process used to create the Comedia masks in Italy. If you do not intend to do quite as detailed or extensive a mask, you can use the method similar to the sized fabric, only you don't need any glue. (Soak the leather, drape it over the form and let it dry.) The process described below is for a much more detailed and durable mask. It is a time intensive process, where you really can not stop and come back to it later. Allow at least 6 hours for this method!

Important things to note, you should use VEGETABLE tanned leather! The directions I have call specifically for a piece of the cow belly. You want this to be in one piece. (Splicing in leather to creat unstretchable shapes, like a really long nose, is another whole chapter!)

Italian Leather Mast Method
Create a firm form, such as wood, for the mask. It needs to be wood to absorb moisture, withstand pounding, and be able to be nailed into.
Submerge the leather (cowhide belly…and it must be VEGETABLE tanned) in very hot water and soak for 10 minutes or until completely saturated.
Rub, wring and twist to soften.
Dip again in water.
Cover the form with the wetted leather and smush into depressions of mask form. Be generous.
Tack leather on the underside of the mold and into the eye sockets. Carpet tacks made of iron will discolor leather, but it’s going to be cut off anyway, so it shouldn’t matter. Brass or copper tacks do not discolor. Tack midpoints of sides, and then work toward corners.
Make sure you leave sufficient fullness on front of the mold for the leather to reach in all depressions.
If you get folds of surplus leather make little "v" cuts (on back only) to release and allow to lie smooth.
Press leather into all grooves and depressions of the mold with fingers and wooden tool (hardwood sticketta). Keep heaviest strokes running toward low places rather than away from it. Tack if you need to in the eyes, nostrils, etc.
This should take about an hour. Take an hour break at this point.
When leather is getting dryer, but is still slightly damp, peck with horn hammer to force to lie close to mold. Little dimpling (not breaking) points all over.
As you finish each section or plane, rub over with sticketta again to smooth and squash.
Once this is done, polish the formed leather with a flat edge of sticketta, rubbing to a smooth gloss.
Remove nails and finish perimeter (like fabric mask, clip and turn overlap, and glue in place…if you need a wire to reinforce, here is where it would be inserted.)
Seal interior with varnish
Color exterior with leather dyes and paints.

If you would like better directions on these and many other techniques, you should obtain a copy of The Prop Builder's Mask-Making Handbook by Thurston James. It is currently out of print, but many libraries have it, as well as some used bookstores. It is the bible of theatrical mask making!

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I hope that these have given you some ideas of how you would like to progress! Please feel free to contact me with questions or suggestions!ladysveva@yahoo.com