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Special Effects: Prosthetics

Prosthetics are a highly versatile tool for a costumer/cosplayer. They can add a bit of natural look to any unnatural additions to your body such as pointed ears, horns, long noses, and much, much more. 

Materials - Allergy Warning

The most common material for prosthetics is LATEX. This is a rubbery, thin material that blends very nicely with human skin. However, some people have an allergic reaction to latex so you may need to look for alternative materials such as silicone. There is a growing market for non-latex Prosthetics parts. 

Depending on the part you are making, you may decide that a rubbery flesh texture is all wrong. Some alternatives to latex and silicone are: 

  • Resin - great for claws and horns and such
  • Paper-Mache - great for a bone structure, claws or horns
  • Foam - expanding foam that you carve, EVA foam, or furniture foam that you shape can make just about anything.
  • Fabric and stuffing - you can be very clever with your plushie patterns to create soft horns, hooves, muscles, and other body parts. 

Pre-Made vs DIY Prosthetics

Making your own Prosthetics takes some practice. I highly recommend checking out Monster Makers, for resources on how to create things out of latex. The process for creating a prosthetic is to create a mold and use the slip-casting technique. To be honest, I've never done it before, but I got their book on it. It requires skills in sculpting, molding, and casting. 

However, I find that there's a very healthy market of pre-made prosthetics available at retail stores around Halloween time, party stores, as well as artists selling their own things. 

Commonly, you will find prosthetics for ears, noses, horns, wounds, and other skin textures (like scales, warts, gills, and scars). You can also find a few latex masks to match a character. 

If you're looking for something a bit more unique or specialized, you'll likely need to search online especially if you need a certain look to your ear, horn, or a customized headpiece. 

Stickin' it to ya!

The most common "glues" to keep these things on are Spirit Gum, Pros-Aide, and liquid latex. These are all skin-safe, water-based adhesives for latex/silicone prosthetics. They often will have their own removers as well. They stick pretty well, although Pros-Aide does last longer and is better for sensitive skin. Do NOT use any other glues to put these on your skin. 

Blending  

So, I learned a bit about coloring latex while working on a costume. By default, latex pieces are usually an ivory or peachy tone. You can get latex in other colors or dye it beforehand, but if you purchased pre-made stuff, you're going to need to color it yourself. 

Note, you can't use an oil-based makeup or color. Don't use your make-up foundation cream or powders! It will dissolve the latex. 

You can use: 

  • Acrylic Paint
  • Water-based Body Paint
  • Rubber Mask Grease (RMG)
  • Creme Make up

I have used eye shadows on my ears but after they were painted with body paint and coated. 

Once the prosthetic matches your skintone/bodypaint, you can use liquid latex to blend the edges of the piece with your body. This always comes in white so you'll need to paint the edges as part of your blending. This video shows how it's done.


For whatever prosthetic you use, make sure you know how to apply it and remove it safely! And have fun!

Resources

Making an Asari Headpiece 

 Aradani Costumes

Make your own Elf Ears





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