Dee, my primary right hand woman through this process, has been an unofficial doula quite a few times, which is part of the reason why i elected her to be with me during this transition, that and she's just a complete artful angel, helpful, wonderful creative cook, queen of many trades and badass through and through.
She has made these body casts before for mamas and so we thought it would be fun! and it was!
so here what you need to do your own body cast :
-a place to make a bit of a mess (easy clean-up though, so no fret)
-some fabric or old tee shirt (flexible but not stretchy)
- plaster of paris, we used "yeso" from the hardware store here in costa rica, a couple dollars per kilo bag and we got 2 bags. most likely this option is cheaper than an art supply store! ****however the rolls of plaster of paris are very convenient!****
-dee set up a pot with a plastic bag in it for easy clean-up
-some oil or vaseline for your body for easy removal, we used olive oil.
-some towels or rags
-maybe a bucket of water to rinse your hands off afterwards so you don't ruin your drain!
- also maybe a fan/do it during the day in sunlight to help dry.
Dee cut up an old dress and a tee shirt in to strips and then mixed the yeso with water in the bag lined pot, as i covered my body in olive oil from my neck to the bottom of my belly and we got to work!
*DISCLAIMER*
DON'T BE SURPRISED GETTING CAUGHT IN THE HEADLIGHTS!
video has some nudity :)
and please enjoy the original audio scrappy scraps ;)
What we learned:
-Day time might've helped the drying factor, we are 2 days out from creating the cast and its still a little wet! mostly because of the climate- but at least putting in sun afterwards might speed up the process. Also maybe letting each layer dry before adding a new one?
-using non-stretchy fabric is clutch because one of the old dresses we used was a little stretchy and it wanted to pop out of form a little bit.
- doing one later at a time, and only mixing half of the mixture at a time too, because we had to rehydrate the yeso and yet the cast still wasn't dry!
all in all it was super fun and i was even talking to a friend here on the property and she was saying how she suggests it to all her pregnant friends just because its so amazing to see afterwards when your body is back to normal and your kids are growing. she says she still has hers from years ago.
Dee suggestions: -cutting the edges after dried, for clean edges
- options for using something to keep its form:
-potentially spray foam from the hardware store, she says works great but of course is kinda toxic and gnarly
- chicken wire molded to form
- even newspaper
- and of course decoration! you can paint it, or collage it, dee has used pressed flowers, the options are endless!
- she also suggests as an option using a thin layer of plaster after it dries to make a smooth layer before decorating.
I decided i'm going to plaster mine onto my wall in my house! and of course decorate it too!
Happy casting!
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