For this example, I’m sculpting Barbecue Leona’s scarf! This is a super simple and easy process with a very dramatic outcome.
First, cut your 2mm foam! For my initial shape, I made a guess based on what a flat kerchief looks like.
Next it’s time to get an initial drape going! Don’t worry about what it looks like – this is just an ugly starting spot.
Now we start the work – heat the foam past where you would to seal it… you’re looking to overheat it not to burning, but where it starts falling in on itself. Make sure you’re wearing your heat gloves, and start pressing the foam into folds. When you have a spot manipulated the way you like, turn off your heat gun and hold the foam in shape until it cools and sets.
In some spots, the 2mm foam won’t be strong enough to stay the way you’d like with just heat forming. In that case, use glue as backup! I used contact cement and really only had to use it in the front pleats.
Once you have your basic shape created, trim the foam down, if necessary.
Repeat the heating, gluing, and trimming process as needed! I found that this was definitely a slow and steady process… I just heated, worked, held, and glued spot by spot, repeating until I was happy with the overall shape.
It’s definitely not a difficult technique, but it’s a little fiddly and does take some patience to get through the ugly spots (cosplay, amiright??).
Once your sculpting is done, you can finish as you like! I chose to bevel the edges to make them more fabric-like. Then I CAREFULLY heat sealed, barrier sealed with mod podge (I was afraid Plastidip would flatten the folds), and spray painted with a regular rattle can. It’s still very flexible, and I installed a purse snap under the foam “tie” so it’s easy to put on!
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