Duct Tap Torso - Part 1
Nothing new about making a duct tape dummy so you can work on yourself while making a costume. If you hit up YouTube for it there's videso going back 8 years. After watching several here's a collection of tips gathered one here, and one there.
Some people wrapped the subject in kitchen wrap or aluminum foil then they duct tapped them. I didn't see the point. We all have old t-shirts that can be considered sacrificial, plus its one more element of woven structure when it comes time to fill the dummy and not have the tape split. So in my case, my helper taped directly to the shirt then cut the shirt off me.
- Extra long sacrificial t-shirt gives you a torso that covers all the way down past the belt and cod piece.
- A balaclava will let you extend up above the shirt neckline so you can plan making a neck piece.
- Medical emergency shears help make the cutting-off process easy and safe.
- Two colors of duct tape make it easier to see layer 1 and layer 2.
- Tape the hems (shirt cuff, neck and sleeves), then the rest of the body.
- Horizontal layer 1, vertical layer 2.
- Sharpie some alignment marks where you are going to cut so you can put it back together again.
- Mark body elements like spine, collar bones, tail bone, navel for later reference
- A couple brooms or ski poles so the subject can keep their arms up {for a couple hours} goes a long way for their comfort.
- Plan ahead for when you backfill the dummy you will put a PVC pipe core down the center and horizontally out the arms. This will give connection points later.
In part 2, I intend to do the internal pipe and filler. I've got a couple tweaks of my own planned on this proven technique for making your own body double.
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