Working With Foam Tips and Tricks - Details and Templating

First up in my weekly posts for tips and tricks working with foam is about details and templating. Specifically, creating simple, bespoke, templates that can be reused and increases accuracy in templating, rather than lots of back and forth and tracing of the same shape.

These instructables are designed to be simple and informative, and the skills can be transfered easily across to other mediums.

If you have any questions about the tips or any suggestions or comments on tips you'd like to see, I'd be very interested in hearing them.

Step 1: What You Will Need

- Pen or Pencil

- Masking Tape

- Box cutter or scalpel blade

- sheet of paper

- the prop or armour you are adding detail to

Step 2: Adding the Detail

First we find the area that we want to add detail to with thinner foam and lay on our masking tape to cover the area.
Once we have done this we can draw on the pattern or detail that we want to transfer to thinner foam.

Step 3: Making the Template

When we are happy with the design, we simply peel back the masking tape and lay this onto the paper (or card).

We can now tidy up any of the lines and adjust the shape if needed.

Step 4: Cutting Out

Now we have our detail pattern or shape how we want it, its time to cut it out. for this use a scalpel or box cutter and trace around your drawn design.

Now you have a thicker template that is accurate to the prop or armour and is durable to be used multiple times.
It also now wont damage your thinner foam when transferring the shape or pattern.