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Thursday, October 21, 2010

Owl Mask

The owl costume is complete, but for now you get a peek at the final mask.  I’ll be wearing the complete costume this weekend at our first Halloween party of the season.

Extreme closeup

The mask has gone in various different directions.  Initially I was planning a feather covered mask with a basic ‘mardi gras’ frame.  After scouring the internet for more ideas and inspiration, I was most inspired by the recent Cirque du Soleil mask link combined with the idea of thick rimmed glasses.  My cape itself is all ‘feathers’ so I decided to skip the actual feathers and maybe use them as accents elsewhere.

First round of materials
Construction of the mask was very simple.  The materials I used included:
Sheet of felt
Various lace trims - depending on your design, less than a yard of each
Ribbon trim
Ribbon to attach the mask

Second round of materials.  All of the lace is black, it just looks purple in the light.

I wanted a sturdy mask so I folded the felt in half before cutting it.  Then I positioned it over my face making note of where I wanted to cut and what shape I wanted.  I outlined the idea of my shape, but when it came time to cut, I did so slowly, trimming only when I was sure it was still within the range.  I didn’t want to risk taking off too much, though depending on your trim, it can help cover any mistakes.  
When I had the mask in the right shape, I attached the ribbon to tie the mask and I began playing with various ways of layering the lace over the top of the felt.  Once I was satisfied, it was time to hand stitch.  This method made it very easy to change the design as I saw the mask come together.
In the end, I only used two types of trim.  The mask is very comfortable, unlike the original mardi gras mask.  I can’t wait to see the costume as a whole this weekend!

1 comment:

  1. I was thinking it was very Cirque Du Soleil inspired :)

    ReplyDelete

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