Introduction: Entrails (Intestines) Prop

About: Been tearing stuff down and putting it back together my whole life. "To Invent you need a good imagination and a pile of junk." -Thomas Alva Edison

Have you ever wondered how they do the guts in zombie movies when the zombies tear into a victim? Well they use real pig intestines and since that is not an option for the average person decorating their lawn, I decided to show how to make the static version of intestines.
These entrails can be used over and over again even though their not flexible like the real thing.


This project only takes about two days to make and costs about $6 from Home Depot/Lowes and $6 from Michaels. 

Step 1: Materials


These materials can be found at Michaels, Lowes, and around the house-
-Great Stuff Expanding Foam ($3.86)
-Gloss Clear Coat (around 4-5 dollars)
-Cherry Red, Real Red Gloss, and Alizarin Crimson Acrylic Paints. (or any reds ranging from light to dark)
-Paint brushes
-A straw
-Wax Paper
-Cup of Water
-Paper towels
-Newspaper

Step 2: Making the Guts

Lay a sheet of your wax paper on top of some newspaper as extra protection so that you don't ruin your work surface. Decide the way that you want the entrails to look. Once you have the shape you want figured out, spray the foam onto the wax paper and allow some room because the foam will expand 2 or 3 times its original size. 

Let the entrails dry overnight. 

Then carefully remove the guts from the wax paper once they dry.

(Note: I was spraying the foam in 113 degree weather and it was not setting. It was almost like soup. So a tip to set the shape you want quickly is to fill a spray bottle with water and mist the water onto the foam.)

Step 3: Painting and Finishing

This is where your work determines the look of the guts. First thing you need to do is set up your work surface with newspaper, a cup of water, and some paper towels. Next thing to do is get your paint ready for use.

Start  by using the Real Red Gloss acrylic paint . Paint the entire piece of foam with this paint. Then switch to Cherry Red acrylic paint and only paint little tiny areas in order to create some contrast to the piece. Sometimes I use this darker paint in the cracks and crevasses to make the guts "pop".

The darkest red (Alizarin Crimson acrylic paint)  is for blood splatter. I use the straw in order to create the blood splatter. A better way to have done this is with an airbrush, but I couldn't find where mine was.

In order to create the blood splatter with a straw, you need to use your breath. You suck up a little paint into the straw and then blow it back out until theres very little left in the straw. Then blow the rest of the paint onto the workpiece  so that its doesn't glob in only one spot.

The last step is to apply the clear coat and let dry.

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