# Holy Hoofers!



## Nargle (Apr 22, 2010)

I'm currently sculpting a set of cloven hooves out of Sculpy for my faun costume that I'm going to wear at the Renaissance Faire this year. I decided to try and make them as realistic as possible and each hoof is two completely separate parts because I wanted to be able to move each half independently when I wiggled my toes. And this is kicking my ass, lol! I half wish that I was making horse legs because it would just be so much simpler! But I think they're going to be pretty cool. So far I've only gotten one foot done, and it's waiting to be baked.







They're about 5 inches long at 1/4 inch thick all around. The whole thing is hollow and only has two sides, the backs and bottom sides, plus a notch in the inner hoof are all open. I'm planning on painting the hooves with a glossy black acrylic paint and attaching them to a pair of socks (Plus some cut up flip-flop foam bottoms) to make removable hooves for my legs. I sort of plan on making just about everything removable: the foam padding for the digitigrade illusion will have fabric "cases" sewn over them and I'll attach them to a pair of tights with safety pins, and a sewn pair of faux fur pants will go over that. The hoof socks will not be attached to the rest of the suit, but I may make a couple of flaps of faux fur with some velcro to wrap underneath the arch of my foot. The reason I chose to attach the hooves to a pair of socks instead of a pair of shoes is because I prefer the flexibility of socks and I don't really fancy a big ol' heel sticking out of the back of my leg, ruining the digitigrade illusion. 

I do have a problem, though. I'm not 100% sure how I'm going to attach the sculpted hooves to a pair of socks. I'm thinking of maybe carving some foam, gluing it inside of the hollow cavities inside of the hooves, then gluing that to the socks. Does this sound like it would work? What if I just glue them to the shaped flip-flop bottoms which will be glued onto the socks? Would that be stable enough? Anybody have any other suggestions? I'd hate for the hooves to like pop off or something, lol!

I also have another question. As this is the first costume I've made out of carved foam, I don't have a lot of experience working with foam. I have an old memory foam mattress pad that I used to use on my twin sized mattress, but I live with my boyfriend and we have a queen sized bed now. I decided to keep the foam in case I might need it for some sort of craft like this. Has anyone else used memory foam for a costume? Does it work well? What's the best way to carve/shape it? Are there any kinds of fumes I should worry about when using a low-heat hot glue gun? 

And just for fun here's the plans I sketched out on an image I found on Google =P


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## CoonArt (Apr 23, 2010)

Looks nice! I wonder how it's gonna look like when it's finished.


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## Riyeko (Apr 23, 2010)

Wow those look really well done!

Since you want to move the hoof parts seperately when you wiggle your toes, why dont you try putting them on a base similar to a flip flop, or a thong sandal. 
You could then just cover the inner parts with fur or whatever fabric you plan on using (even if it is just plastic), and your toes will be separated and you'd still be able to wiggle your toes.


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## SpartaDog (Apr 25, 2010)

I'm not sure how you'd actually get them to stick to the socks, but you should try Japanese tabi socks. Yknow, the ones with the big to separate? They're really comfortable, but your hooves might be a lil off-center.
http://www.karatedepot.com/wp-ni-15.html


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## DArtJunkie (Apr 27, 2010)

OK, first, the good. These are looking absolutely* gorgeous!* You're doing a terrific job with the detailing, and they will look beautiful when painted.

The bad. I've been using Sculpty, Premo, Fimo, and just about every polymer clay out there since....*thinks* Dear Goddess......going on 15 years or more. O.O Damn, I feel old. lol

Anyway, while the polymer clays sculpt beautifully, and look nice, they do NOT hold up for the type of application you are intending. You will wear them once, and they will get stress fractures, cracks, chipping, and dings. I would not be at all surprised to find them falling apart by the end of the day. 

Not trying to puncture your dreams here, because I think the idea is bloody amazing. I just think you need to upgrade your supply. If you can get ahold of Apoxie Sculpt, you will have a medium that can be sculpted very much like Sculpty, but is 
A. Water_proof_, not just water resistant
B. Comes in black, so no worry about the color chipping off
C. Worlds apart in terms of durability
D. Far, FAR stronger structurally when cured/dry. 

Again, just my 2 cents, but having been there and done that as far as having something I've worked my butt off on fall apart same day I wore it, I know how frusterating and heartbreaking that can be. 
Hell, if you use the Apoxie you can drill/sculpt TINY holes along the edges and _sew_ them to the socks.....and they will hold! The stuff is that strong.

So, best of luck, and please regardless of what way you go post finished pics! I'd bea eager to see these finished, as they show great potential so far!

Cheers!
~D.


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## Nargle (Apr 29, 2010)

Thank you for all of the replies! I appreciate all of the advice.

DArtJunkie, you raise a good point! I have little experience with most sculpting mediums, and I was afraid to buy something that might produce fumes and kill my parrot, so I just went with what I was familiar with. However, that Apoxie Sculpt looks very interesting! Do you know if it produces any fumes? (I seriously can't even light candles for fear or irritating my bird's respiratory system, and I live in an apartment so I can't work outside) Also, about how much do you think I would need for a pair of hooves? Would the 1/4 lb work? I have no concept of scale with this kind of thing, lol!

As of now, I think I'm going to finish the sculpy hooves and hot glue them to some carved black flip-flop bottoms. Hopefully this will keep them up off of the ground so they'll be less likely to get messed up. I'm only going to be wearing this costume a few times at the Renaissance Faire this year, so there's no big rush to make them capable of daily use. However, upgrading to a more durable set of hooves wouldn't be a bad idea for the future.

And I'll post pictures ASAP!


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## Ilayas (Apr 29, 2010)

If you do run into fumes and you can't work outside there is always the option of opening a window, setting up your works space right next to that window and running a fan  right next to your work space so as to push any fumes directly out the window.   When I worked with stained glass windows we used something called a "fume Trap"  because breathing in soder fumes isn't terribly good for you (or those around you).  If your bird is as highly sensitive as you claim it might be something worth investing in for use in future projects in addition to this one.


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## DArtJunkie (Apr 29, 2010)

Oh no sweat! Like I said, they're coming out absolutely beautiful, and I'd hate to see them get trashed after all your hard work! 

The AS does not give off fumes, it's a 2 part putty/clay like stuff that cures/hardens once it's fully mixed in about 1/2 hour. So you have a bit of working time 1/ it, though obviously not as much as the sculpty. Another note is that it's much softer to start, so I'd almost cut a paper/cardboard form to sculpt the AS onto. Once it dries you can just tear the paper backing off, and you're good to go! (not so much w/ thicker items, but with as thin as the hooves will be, you'll need some support until it hardens)

You could probably get away with the 1/4 lb, if you wanted to do JUST the hooves. Though I get the 2lb set and end up using it for a number of projects....it's super useful stuff!

Understood. Ferrets have a really delicate respiratory system too, and are very prone to infection/damage. Our friend has one and uses the AS all the time. No troubles!

Best of luck with this, I really hope you post pics when done because they sound like they're going to look really awesome!


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