Introduction: How to Make Adult Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck's Hollow Mask

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A quick, VERY inexpensive way to make adult Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck's mask. It's great for cosplay since it's durable, but lightweight.

Materials:
- A thick, styrofoam circle (I got mine from Michael's, $4)
- A spoon (or anything else you want to use to hollow out the mask)
- A knife (a sharp one, of course)
- A sharpie (any color, although black would be best just in case)
- White clay air-dry clay( I got a 5 lb. container at Michael's for $5, but you won't need that much)
- Time and patience

Assuming you already have a spoon, a knife and a sharpie then this project should only cost you around $9-$10.

Step 1: Buy a Styrofoam Circle

Buy a thick, styrofoam circle (Michael's, $4).

Step 2: Start Carving the Styrofoam

Use a spoon to carve into the circle (this is where your head will go). Feel free to use anything that you think would work best for this step. For me, the spoon took more time, but it gave me more time to make sure it fit my head just right.

Step 3: Carve Styrofoam to Fit Your Head

After you carving with the spoon, the styrofoam circle should look a little like this (kind of like a bowl). It will differ for you, depending on the size of the top of your head.

Step 4: Smooth Out the Other Side of the Circle

Use a knife to smooth out the harsh edge of the circle. Any knife will work just fine.

Step 5: Keep Smoothing Out the Edges

After you smooth out the circle, it should look something like this.

Step 6: Start Carving Features

With a knife, start carving out the features of the mask. I did this by looking at pictures of Nel's mask as a reference. Also, save a part on the mask for where you can put the individual hollow teeth later.

Step 7: Draw Features on the Mask

With a sharpie, draw the features of the mask (for reference)

Step 8: Push in Eyes

With a sharpie, push in the eyes to make an indentation so you know where the eyes are after you put the clay on (don't push too hard, or you may break too far into the styrofoam).

Step 9: Start Covering With Clay

Start putting clay on the mask (white air-dry clay, $5 at Michael's). Don't be afraid to use a lot of it to cover up all of the styrofoam.

Step 10: Smooth Clay Out With Water

After completely covering the mask with clay, smooth it out with some water. It should look something like this. Let dry.

Step 11: What to Do If the Mask Dries and Cracks

Don't worry if the mask cracks after drying. I fixed this by using the end of a spoon to scratch the cracks away (or you can fill in with more clay).

Step 12: Fixing the Cracks

I also found it helpful to rub in the now powdered bits of clay that you scratched off with the spoon into the cracks.

Step 13: Color in Features

Color in eyes and nose (use sharpie, paint, etc.). I used paint, but only because my sharpie was dried out.

Step 14: Add the Teeth

Roll up 4 sticks of clay and place them on the mask as teeth. Don't worry if they aren't perfect, they can be fixed later (the dark spots on the mask are where I added more clay to cover up blemishes).

Step 15: Make the Crack Feature in the Mask

Use a spoon (or anything) to carve the crack in Nel's mask. You can draw this, but I think actually making the crack looks better.

Step 16: Create the Horns

Use plenty of clay and water to sculpt the horns any way you want (use a picture for reference). I used a toothpick to make little lines, but using a sharpie after they dry will work too. Also, fix the teeth with a spoon and water (like you fixed the cracks) and any other blemishes and let dry.

After it dries, fix any other mistakes, and you're done!

Step 17: Using the Mask for Cosplay

If you wish to use this for cosplay, you can do two things:
-If you're using your natural hair and not a wig you can superglue a few sturdy hair clips to the bottom of the mask which you can then fit into your hair. 
-If you're using a wig I suggest you just superglue the mask to the wig. Using the hair clips works, but not as well on wigs. Also, if you superglue it to the wig then you don't even need to need to put clay on the very bottom of the mask.

Enjoy!