Introduction: Aradia Horns/homestuck/using Wooden Wiggle Snake
After scouring the internet, and finding it lacking, these horns were born! I made these for my daughters cosplay outfit for Tokyo in Tulsa 2014. I tried to take pics of each step, as well as the items used in the creation. I know the color is a bit stark, but this material only comes in so many colors and this is as close as I could get.
Step 1: Making the Base
Creation began with party city not having the demon horns in stock, I was going to re paint them. I went to the nearby hobby lobby to see if they were stocking Halloween yet... nope :( so, i wandered toward crafts and let my visual creation process begin. I spied the wooden wiggle snake, played with its moldability, and thought "Bingo!" I bought 2 and came home.
Step 2: Making It Stable
At first, I was going to cover it in wood glue and hold the shape still until it set up. My husband had a better idea, copper wire wrapped around it. He went out to his truck and came back with a length of Romex electrical wire, he striped the 12 gauge ground wire out of it and wound it around the snake.
Step 3: Top O' the Horn or How It's Gonna Get Attached to the Headband
I started with a 2 ft piece of wire, I wanted to make sure I would have enough wire to attach it to the headband later. fold in half and work it around the head. I choose the cardboard egg carton because it is more stable than the Styrofoam.
Step 4: Continuing the Base
that hood part really needs to be secure to the wood before you start with the tape wrapping or it will slip around. I used wood glue in this one, but it took a while to dry, so I suggest using hot glue. this tape only sticks to itself, so you do need the glue slathered on the cardboard before you begin adding the base layer. hot glue would not work for this because it would set too quickly. the tape shown is some I had laying around, it was a bit old and didn't want to stick as well, hence the bit of duct tape to make sure it would stay. I got by with 1 roll of the white, but only because I also had the beige stuff. buy 2 of the white, you will only need one each of the red, orange, and yellow. the colored stuff is made for animal bandage wraps, I got it at the farm store. it's online too.
Step 5: Finishing the Base of the Horn and First Layer of Wrap
to create a firm base, I used the foam sealer stuff. I had this can on the shelf, I didn't use much, so I used the rest on some areas of the house that needed sealing. I suggest buying the smallest can you can find. it overflows, use a razor blade to trim it. before it sets up, make sure the wires are straight out and about an inch apart to accommodate the headband. once it's set up, begin the first layer of wrap. stretch it as much as possible when wrapping it around in a sorta spiraling way starting at the base. don't worry if you see the end of the wooden tip, this will get covered when you do the yellow wrap.
Step 6: Adding Color!
this stuff is easier to work with in smaller strips, so unroll about 8 inches, cut it and use it that way. when I got to the orange and red, I cut those strips in half long ways for better control. leave the ends uncovered for now.
Step 7: Attaching the Headband
have the person you are making these for put the headband on and stand in front of the mirror so you can mark where to put them. any angle problems can be fixed when doing the duct tape reinforcement. did my best on the 3rd pic. hope you can see what I did. wrap another piece or 2 around the horn at the base for good measure.
Step 8: Finishing Up!
use the red to cover the black tape and you're ready to go! I had some width issues with one of them, so I used more red on one side to build it up.
these are fairly lightweight and easy to wear. lighter weight than clay, I figure, so that's good.
hope you can use this, message any questions :)
