Corpse Bride and Groom Couple Costume

These are both handmade costumes inspired by the characters from the movie Corpse Bride, directed by Tim Burton. For those who are interested, I have explained the process how they were made below. For more pictures, feel free to follow me on Instagram @DaleonChase. I hope you enjoy!

1. Masks:

a. I made a lifecast of myself and girlfriend with alginate and plaster bandages. The final cast was done in urethane foam. Using the same process, I also made a copy of my girlfriend’s arm and leg, which was used to make the bones shown on Emily.

b. WED clay (Walter Elias Disney Clay) was used to sculpt Victor and Emily on our foam life casts. It’s a great water-based clay that does not dry out as quickly. This ensured a perfect fit for the masks.

c. The masks were covered in crystal clear matte finish to seal the sculpture and prep for molding.

d. A mold of the sculpture was taken using a brush on silicone rubber and a plastic resin to support it. When demolding, the clay is thrown out and the mold is prepped for the final casting.

e. Resin was roto-casted by hand (good shoulder workout)

f. Both full head masks were cut in half and mini magnets were epoxied on the inside to hold them together when wearing it.

g. Eye holes were cut out and replaced with Buckram fabric. Both masks were then airbrushed and minor details added.

2. Suit: Painted jacket and vest. Spandex gloves were sown to show elongated fingers. Tie was made in latex to make it look more cartoon-like.

3. Dress: A bed sheet was sowed to a corset. I added latex ribs, pearls, rubber swirls (latex + blue acrylic paint drawn on with a squeeze bottle). I then airbrushed the dress and used an aqua blue leotard underneath it.

4. Veil: I attached flowers and rubber swirls to fabric then cut out the pattern and airbrushed dark blue shadows. Flower crown was made and zip tied to the rubber part of the veil.

5. Worm, Tie, and Bones: The worm, tie, ribs, arm bones, collar bones, and leg bones were sculpted in Chavant NSP medium clay and molded with plaster to make latex castings. The raw rubber pieces were then airbrushed and covered in glow in the dark paint.

6. Flowers: White plastic flowers were airbrushed.

7. Butterfly: I made the butterfly out of a piece of plastic Milk carton then airbrushed it.

8. Dog: Each bone was sculpted using regular Mexico white water-based clay, I then molded it in silicone and resin castings were made. The bones were fed through a wire and glued with liquid nail. It was then airbrushed and made glow in the dark.