Introduction: Adam and Barbara Maitland Costumes From BeetleJuice!
For Halloween this year my boyfriend and I decided to go as the Maitlands from Beetle Juice. We are both huge fans of Halloween and Tim Burton and wanted to do a monster mask costume. These costumes are much easier than they look and there is plenty of room for variation to suit individual tastes. They were as much fun to make as they were to wear! We hope you enjoy them!
Step 1: The Materials
For these masks you will need:
Thin cardboard
One roll of Masking tape
Wire hangers
An old helmet or a hat
Newspaper
Paper mache clay ingredients
Black Nylon
Brown fur
Crayola Model Magic
Various colors of Acrylic paint and brushes
One rubber glove
These materials in total cost less than $50 to accumulate and are used for both of these masks.
Thin cardboard
One roll of Masking tape
Wire hangers
An old helmet or a hat
Newspaper
Paper mache clay ingredients
- Cheap toilet paper (measure the wet paper pulp, and use 1.24 cups – some rolls contain more paper than needed)
- 1 cup Joint compound from the hardware store (get “regular,” not “fast set” or “light”.)
- 3/4 cup Elmer’s Glue-all
- 1/2 cup White Flour
- 2 tablespoons Linseed Oil
Black Nylon
Brown fur
Crayola Model Magic
Various colors of Acrylic paint and brushes
One rubber glove
These materials in total cost less than $50 to accumulate and are used for both of these masks.
Step 2: Step 1
For Barbara I used 2 clothes hangers made from wire to shape the outline of the mouth. One hanger was folded 'pizza style' to make the two points of the jaw. The second I wrapped around my head for support and it is basically what attached the mask to my face and made for an easily removable costume.
I then used cardboard to make the shape of the upper and lower parts of the mouth. This will NOT be visible so it doesn't have to be exact. I then taped them on to the upper and lower wire to fit my face. This is where your best judgement comes into play. leave plenty of room for your face so that you can build onto it later. you also want them to be slightly smaller than you want the actual mask to be since you will be covering them in paper mache* at a later date.
Adam's mask was a bit easier. We used an old helmet that we had laying around and wrapped it in newspaper like a Christmas gift.
The bridge of his nose was an empty paper towel roll and just above his ears we attached two strips of cardboard and taped it to the roll. This is all taped to the helmet to make the initial shape for this mask.
I then used cardboard to make the shape of the upper and lower parts of the mouth. This will NOT be visible so it doesn't have to be exact. I then taped them on to the upper and lower wire to fit my face. This is where your best judgement comes into play. leave plenty of room for your face so that you can build onto it later. you also want them to be slightly smaller than you want the actual mask to be since you will be covering them in paper mache* at a later date.
Adam's mask was a bit easier. We used an old helmet that we had laying around and wrapped it in newspaper like a Christmas gift.
The bridge of his nose was an empty paper towel roll and just above his ears we attached two strips of cardboard and taped it to the roll. This is all taped to the helmet to make the initial shape for this mask.
Step 3: Add Paper and Fluff the Masks
For Barbara- After you get the initial mouth to fit your face you are going to tape small balls of paper to the top of the mouth. The reason for this is so that the face has volume. It doesn't have to be perfect, just a little puffy. See photos. I chose to add this step so that the mask is larger without the added weight of extra paper mache. If you choose to build your mask up out of only the paper mache it will become much heavier.
I then taped a cardboard border around the upper and lower jaw and wrapped either side of the exposed wire hanger in paper to build on to the mask.
For Adam's mask I added a lower jaw made of cardboard and masking tape. It fits like a chin strap, but you want to leave a big enough gap so that the person wearing it can breathe and talk. At this point we also filled in some of the gaps with more masking tape to make the shape of the eyes. the under side of the 'nose' was also covered. This step I also added a hand to the top. It is just a rubber glove stuffed with paper towels. I taped it to the top.
*Note -neither of these masks will feel extremely sturdy but you are really just making the initial shape which we will then cover. They will be solid in the end so only use as much cardboard and tape as you need to keep them in place.
I then taped a cardboard border around the upper and lower jaw and wrapped either side of the exposed wire hanger in paper to build on to the mask.
For Adam's mask I added a lower jaw made of cardboard and masking tape. It fits like a chin strap, but you want to leave a big enough gap so that the person wearing it can breathe and talk. At this point we also filled in some of the gaps with more masking tape to make the shape of the eyes. the under side of the 'nose' was also covered. This step I also added a hand to the top. It is just a rubber glove stuffed with paper towels. I taped it to the top.
*Note -neither of these masks will feel extremely sturdy but you are really just making the initial shape which we will then cover. They will be solid in the end so only use as much cardboard and tape as you need to keep them in place.
Step 4: Paper Mache Clay
Now comes the step when you get to cover the masks in paper mache.
I found a recipe online from the ULTIMATE PAPER MACHE website. A recipe perfected by a woman named Jonni Good.
Here is her website if you want to see the paper mache clay in action.
ultimate paper mache
Basically we thought that this recipe would be easiest to use to add detail to the masks without making them too heavy.
It does have a lot of ingredients that you may not already have. But it worked well for us and was actually really inexpensive to make. I recommend this recipe for these masks but you do not have to use it. you can work with regular paper mache and paper strips if you see fit!
The recipe-
Tada! paper mache clay!
I have posted photos of the detail of our masks but what you decide to add is up to you!
I made a nose and eyes for Barbara and I also made individual teeth out of the clay. You do not have to do this. you can let the detail come out in the paint it is totally up to you!
For Adam we basically just covered the paper and tape, we added ears out of the clay and minor detail to the eyes.
This stuff is REALLY easy to use. It sticks to everything and dries hard like a cast. just keep in mind that the more you use the heavier your masks will be.
*Tip You can store this paper mache goop in an airtight container in your fridge so that you can add onto the masks later. I kept a small bowl through Halloween week so that I could touch up the masks if they needed it!
Let them dry for about 2 days.
I found a recipe online from the ULTIMATE PAPER MACHE website. A recipe perfected by a woman named Jonni Good.
Here is her website if you want to see the paper mache clay in action.
ultimate paper mache
Basically we thought that this recipe would be easiest to use to add detail to the masks without making them too heavy.
It does have a lot of ingredients that you may not already have. But it worked well for us and was actually really inexpensive to make. I recommend this recipe for these masks but you do not have to use it. you can work with regular paper mache and paper strips if you see fit!
The recipe-
- Cheap toilet paper (measure the wet paper pulp, and use 1.24 cups – some rolls contain more paper than needed)
- 1 cup Joint compound from the hardware store (get “regular,” not “fast set” or “light”.)
- 3/4 cup Elmer’s Glue-all
- 1/2 cup White Flour
- 2 tablespoons Linseed Oil
Tada! paper mache clay!
I have posted photos of the detail of our masks but what you decide to add is up to you!
I made a nose and eyes for Barbara and I also made individual teeth out of the clay. You do not have to do this. you can let the detail come out in the paint it is totally up to you!
For Adam we basically just covered the paper and tape, we added ears out of the clay and minor detail to the eyes.
This stuff is REALLY easy to use. It sticks to everything and dries hard like a cast. just keep in mind that the more you use the heavier your masks will be.
*Tip You can store this paper mache goop in an airtight container in your fridge so that you can add onto the masks later. I kept a small bowl through Halloween week so that I could touch up the masks if they needed it!
Let them dry for about 2 days.
Step 5: Painting Your Masks.
I used Craftsmart Acrylic paint to paint the masks.
Choose a neutral skin tone- like color for the initial coat. I painted the hallows of the eyes black and the inside of the mouth and the gums red. For the teeth I used a cream color since white was a little too bright. For Adam I added some detail to darken in the area around the eyes and hand with a light brown color. I painted the inside of the mouth Black and added some small white teeth to the bottom 'jaw'. Don't forget to paint the hand and the underside of Adam's nose!
Choose a neutral skin tone- like color for the initial coat. I painted the hallows of the eyes black and the inside of the mouth and the gums red. For the teeth I used a cream color since white was a little too bright. For Adam I added some detail to darken in the area around the eyes and hand with a light brown color. I painted the inside of the mouth Black and added some small white teeth to the bottom 'jaw'. Don't forget to paint the hand and the underside of Adam's nose!
Step 6: The Finishing Touches
To complete the masks I added hand painted eyeballs for Adam's fingers and for the inside of Barbara's mouth. These, along with the tongue were shaped out of Crayola Model Magic. You can get cheap packages of it from any craft store (about $5 total).
It is also very easy to use packaged eyeballs from a Halloween store or ping pong balls for this task.
We covered Adam's head in cheap sale rack brown fur from a fabric store and just used the Elmers glue-all to attach it to the helmet.
The mouth of Barbara and Adam's eye sockets were covered in black nylon from a pair of old tights and glued on.
I purchased a cheap brown wig from the halloween store as well to cover the back of Barbara's head (since I am a blonde). You don't need to spend much money on this. People wont be paying attention to you hair. Trust me!
I also used some of the Crayola Model Magic to shape a few teeth for Adam and glue them on to the lower part of the nose.
In the meantime I also painted the cover of the "Handbook for the Recently Deceased" to use as our prop book.
All of our clothes were purchased from a secondhand store like the Salvation army or Goodwill.
It is also very easy to use packaged eyeballs from a Halloween store or ping pong balls for this task.
We covered Adam's head in cheap sale rack brown fur from a fabric store and just used the Elmers glue-all to attach it to the helmet.
The mouth of Barbara and Adam's eye sockets were covered in black nylon from a pair of old tights and glued on.
I purchased a cheap brown wig from the halloween store as well to cover the back of Barbara's head (since I am a blonde). You don't need to spend much money on this. People wont be paying attention to you hair. Trust me!
I also used some of the Crayola Model Magic to shape a few teeth for Adam and glue them on to the lower part of the nose.
In the meantime I also painted the cover of the "Handbook for the Recently Deceased" to use as our prop book.
All of our clothes were purchased from a secondhand store like the Salvation army or Goodwill.
Step 7: Enjoy!
Go out and let others marvel at the hard work you put in to make the coolest Halloween masks around!