Now that you’ve gotten your foam, you need to know how to work with it. There is a variety of methods used to turn the sheets of HD foam into a prop or armor piece. How you approach it depends on your mindset and what you are more comfortable with. It also depends what you want your final results to be.
Some approach it as sculpture and gradually add or remove bits and pieces as they see necessary, others approach it similar to a sewing project where they create a pattern for each piece and slowly put them together. Some people approach it as an engineering project and build it from the ground up. Each person approaches it differently.
No matter how you look at your upcoming cosplay project you are going to need some basic tools. There is a wide variety of tools you can use, this is just a guideline to get you started, you will eventually find the tools and methods you prefer.
Cutter – You will need a sharp blade, in fact you will need several sharp blades. This is going to be one of your commonly used tools. Some like to use the standard box cutter, while others like a finer blade such as an X-Acto knife. You will also want several replacement blades so you can keep a nice clean edge on your cut.
Scissors are another very popular tool for foam cutting. You will want at least one heavy duty pair. Do not but the standard pair you would find in the school supply section. You want a large comfortable grip, the ability to open wide and nice sharp blades.
A common pair is the Fiskars Amplify Mixed Media Shears which are designed for heavy duty crafting. The heavy duty Slice Large Ceramic Scissors also work great for thick materials.
You will find that foam is hard on the your scissors. They will dull quickly and your edges will no longer be smooth. You could go buy a new pair of scissors, but I recommend that you simply sharpen them. This extends their life and ensure you continue to get a nice clean cut.
Fiskars has a good sharpener that is fairly inexpensive.
Stay tuned as we further explore other tools that you will need on your journey to cosplay crafting.
