This instructable will show you how to make this Skyrim Replica Iron Helmet, and the best part... NO FIBERGLASS/RESIN NEEDED!

Step 1: Crafting From Pepakura

Papercrafting is all the rage it seems within the Creativity Realm of the Interweb. Thus I began my helmet from a Pepakura (.pdo) file I found online.

Step 2: Hardening Phase 1

At this point your helmet is only paper and tape. It doesn't have much of any structural strength to hold paint at all. Now most people use Fiberglass Resin to make their project tough as nails, with this project I hardened mine with spray-on sealant. After about 5-6 good coats your helmet should be plenty able to support Hardening Phase 2.

Step 3: Hardening Phase 2

So it may seem too obvious, and frankly very 3rd Grade, but for the last bit of strengthening I went with classic paper mache. However, instead of balancing out a recipe by trial and error, I simply laid dry brown-bag strips and painted on layers of wood glue/white glue.

Step 4: Painting Phase 1

To achieve the look of worn metal, I looked on the internet and found the general census that a base layer of black would give the finished product a more authentic look. Be especially careful not to get any on your horns, as it will be a pain to cover. For a good bone color, I was advised to lay a white paint base first, thus I painted my horns white initially.

Step 5: Painting Phase 2/Detailing

Now to finish painting, the "metal" portion at least, throw on a light-medium coat of metallic paint. I chose metallic gun-metal acrylic paint in the crafts dept. of Walmart. To make the horns resemble real bone, I took bright white yarn and tightly wrapped it around the horns (overlapping strands here and there is OK) from base to tip. I then painted on Mod Podge in the cracks between the yarn strands much like a filler, this both sturdies the horn and makes it look less stringy. And finally added parchment colored paint on top to give the dirty/worn natural bone color.

Step 6: Fus Ro Dah!

When all is said and done, throw one last layer of matte sealant to keep the colors pristine and protect against a drip of water should the problem arise. It's a great project, especially if you're addicted to the series like I am. It took me approximately 30 hours total from .pdo download to finish and was totally worth it. Enjoy, and please look forward to my next posts (because there's so many other replicas to craft).