| Before anything else, we must have an idea for a puppet which we think
would appeal to our customers. This is at times the most difficult step
and is most certainly one of the most important parts of the puppet-making
process. |
|
|
|
|
A clay sculpture must be made which contains all of
the features which the puppet is expected to exhibit. We use both
modeling
clay and normal pottery clay and hand sculpt each figure ourselves. The
Monkey Marionette head is shown to the left with his big stuck out
ears, wide smile and sockets to attach his eyes..
|
|
|
|
|
| After the sculptures are prepared, a plaster mold is cast around the figure.
We typically make two-piece molds which can be taken apart easily in order
to remove the latex pieces from inside. A three-piece mold is shown to the left
for our new Dino Marionette. After a time, the mold gets worn out and a puppet
model must be retired. New sculptures must be made if the particular model type is to be replaced.
|
|
The next step is to pour the liquid latex into the plaster mold. It takes
about a day before the latex skin is ready for removal and final curing
outside of the mold. A seam forms on the latex piece which must be removed
and sanded down. If air bubbles form in the latex surface, they must be
patched and additional sanding is required. Holes are drilled in the pieces
in order to secure the control strings in the final assembly.
|
|
|
Once the latex surface is properly prepared, each piece is hand-painted
using acrylic-based paints. Some of the paint colors must be specially mixed
in order to get the right shade required for the particular piece. The lighter
colors usually need more than one coat and fine details are added later.
|
|
Each
puppet has a specially-designed costume which is sewn individually
for each puppet. We generally buy our fabric from retail fabric sources
which contain limited quantities of each pattern so there are
distinctive differences even within each model type making the SanDart
Puppet a truly unique item.
|
|
|
In the final assembly of the puppets, soft fabric bodies are attached
to the latex pieces after being stuffed with a polyestester filling. The
control lines are then tied to the latex pieces on one end, and to the wooden
hand controller on the other. Each puppet is checked thoroughly after assembly
to assure proper movement of the body parts.
We are preparing a CD available for purchase which contains complete
step-by-step instructions and tips on how to create marionettes of your
very own. Send email using this link
for more information. Be sure to include in the text your interest in our
CD.
|
|
|
