Help fix boring Helm

[Sir Ancelyn]

Try man traps. Dig a pit right in front of the door and plant sharpened trees point up very close together in it. Then cover it with a tarp and some leaves. >

It also works for door to door missionaries.

Heh heh heh.

[Sir Patrick]

Put some oil onto boil? 

It would only encourage them to deep fry something.  Like a turkey.

how did you make that thing?

It's paper mache over a cardboard skeleton, built up over many layers.  The feathers are cardboard squares.  The details were worked in using a paper mache "clay" recipe I found online.  The whole thing got a skim coat of vinyl spackle, then roughly ten coats of decopodge glue.  It's pretty durable and very light.  Attached it with rare earth magnets epoxied to the underside.  Here's a few more pics of the build.

[Sir Wolf]

wow that is sooooooooooo cool

[Sir Edward]

Excellent! People don't give Paper Mache enough credit. It's remarkably versatile, and can be strong and lightweight.

[Sir Wolf]

you are right Sir Edward. i would have never thought of that medium to work in. nor do I think I could do any good with it.

wanna make a lion head? heheheh jkjk

[Sir Patrick]

Excellent! People don't give Paper Mache enough credit. It's remarkably versatile, and can be strong and lightweight.

I felt the same way at first (shudder as I think about grade school art projects), but then I stumbled upon this site and found out how versatile, and durable it can really be.  http://ultimatepapermache.com/  The trick to strength is avoiding voids in the skeleton, and using multiple layers of of paper mache.  Also, don't use newspaper, use drywaller joint tape instead.  MUCH sturdier.  FYI, if you spackle to get an even smoother finish, use VINYL spackel (flexes more than traditional).

[Sir Patrick]

wanna make a lion head? heheheh jkjk

To do list:  Shield for paladin, lion head crest for Sir Wolf,...

[Sir William]

Hey, that'll work, Red Knight!  And we'll pay!!!  Kudos on the use of papier mache...who would've thought?

[Sir Patrick]

Kudos on the use of papier mache...who would've thought?

I read somewhere (can't remember right now) that paper mache was one method used to build tournament crests in period.  That's what got me trolling the net for paper mache techniques in the first place.

[Sir William]

Agreed; you seem to have channeled a previous ancestor maybe- the detail on your crest is clear, that it is done in papier mache is what's incredible, I never knew.  And I've used the stuff before...well, in art class.  lol

I always thought it was some dumb trick to keep us occupied!

[Sir Edward]

As an aside, I did some quick googling, and it looks like paper mache was invented in China about two thousand years ago. It didn't become popular in Europe until the 17th century, but doll heads may have been made out of it in the 16th. So I'm guessing it wasn't used in crests until the 16th or 17th, but as a modern tool it can certainly get the job done cheaply.

It's very popular amongst the Halloween hobbyists, where you can see some amazing detail. Check out this site: http://pumpkinrot.com/. All his props are paper mache, using paper towels.

[Sir William]

It is amazing what a little creativity can accomplish; on the Assassin's Creed forum, I ran into some youngsters who fashioned their own costumes long before Windlass got involved; some of them of course were very rudimentary but there were others that were quite detailed and when you realized all they had to work with was cardboard, aluminum foil and cast-off sheets of material, it was very impressive.

One of those kids actually managed to make the retractable hidden blade out of cardboard and tin foil and it actually slid in and out of the harness with just a quick motion of his arm!  Yea, I was pretty quiet on those particular threads having nothing to offer along the same lines.

[Sir Patrick]

I did some quick googling, and it looks like paper mache was invented in China about two thousand years ago. It didn't become popular in Europe until the 17th century, but doll heads may have been made out of it in the 16th. So I'm guessing it wasn't used in crests until the 16th or 17th

I got to thinking about that after I posted and was going to Google that myself when I got home from work.  Why was I looking up paper mache?!

[Sir Edward]

I got to thinking about that after I posted and was going to Google that myself when I got home from work.  Why was I looking up paper mache?!

I wouldn't sweat it. They were made out of all sorts of materials, so fudging the century in terms of the material isn't a huge deal in my book.

[Sir Patrick]

The helm is done.  I finished the mantel tonight.  Here's a few pics.