My friend Adam at Jawbone Puppet theater has a philosophy for mask and puppet making he's focused on later in his career, to focus on what can be done as simply and quickly as possible to get the point across and focus more on the performance than detailed puppets. A similar, even more strict philosophy shared by Tim Giugni, who goes a step further is using entirely found objects and puppets made so quickly he can make them new every performance. I'm using a bit of that energy here, just getting the simplest shapes figured out with cardboard strips and a stapler before slapping on one-and-a-half layers of paper mache. I'm also a little tired of looking through black fabric, so to prove my own philosophy on the suspension of disbelief, all the eye-holes on these pieces will be open.

The cat here is based more on Basilio from the Russian Buratino, since I find his design more distinct than the Pinocchio version of the cat. I wanted him to have large, droppy cheeks and a wide face. The hat in the photos was a scrapped project, not lined yet, so I didn't mind cutting holes for the ears, and it gives him a lot of character to base the design off of. It also serves as the elastic to keep the mask on.

The fox is also based on the Buratino version, Alice. She is very dainty and made-up in fancy clothes. I don't have a hat for her yet, but I plan on giving her a bonnet with lots of lace.

I hung out at Wildland Roots for a day to get all this paper mache done!

A primer coat of white, now time for paint. My partner suggested that he should be a Siamese pattern, specifically a lavender point (which is a real coat pattern, though a lot less vivid purple than this guy). The fox got a classic fox palette, I know foxes don't have green eyes but needed the contrast, maybe she wears contacts in addition to her makeup.

I don't plan on covering any of the masks with fur, but I will likley use some yarn wefts along the edges to smooth the transtion between face and mask. And I do so love sympathetic movement.

In the meantime, they're getting hats! For the Fox, I found a large-brimmed staw hat at the thrift store (yes, in November) and cut the brim off. My plan was to give her a sort of bonnet with a ribbon around the chin that would hold it and the mask in place. I had to cut a bit of cardboard off the top of the mask, but I eventually got everything to fit and simply hot glued the brim of the hat to the head and backs of the ears.

I used an assorted collection of scrap fabric for the headscarf, pinned in place initially. To make sure it all stayed fairly in place, I sewed all the smaller pieces of lace and ribbon along the back. Resisting the temptation of more hot glue, I sewed the scarf to the hat by tacking it in four spots along the edge. Rubber bands hold the ends together and make it easier to tie.

She's a pretty lady, she needs more accessories! I wanted to match the green in her eys and makeup, and went to my box of faux flower bits. These are also sewn into place, with a bit of hot glue for stability.

She is such a fancy lady! I immidiately felt the character as soon as I put on the mask. The visibility is great too, a bit of a blind spot in the middle but very easy to see out of.

I already had plans for the cat, I just had to make some further adjustments to the hat. I finished the brim (still unfinished since I abandoned it months ago) and cut the lining away from the holes for the ears. I take less care in the little details with a costume than with something I plan on wearing regularly, so a zigzag stitch to hem the edges worked just fine. The elastic in the back makes it easier to get on and off and fit different head sizes. Starting with the holes for the ears, I fit the hat and glued it on.

He also got some earrings! He's a bit of a rouge, of course. Mostly small gold loops, and other assorted things I had in my stash.

The Tuna here doesn't have specific inspirations besides actual bluefin tuna fish. I want to make sure he still has some character, so I'm debating finding some accessories for him later too.

The eye-holes on this mask are through the mouth. There's limited vision to either side, but it's still not difficult at all to see.

Shiny!

I have a simpler plan for each of these. In total, the human characters are Mangiafuco (the puppet theater owner), Geppetto, and Candlewick. Mangiafuco has the clearest design: the Buratino version Karabas Barabas has a beard so long he tucks it in his coat pocket, and he's depicted with crazy facial hair and excited, intense eyes. I of course had to give him a big curled mustache.

For Geppetto I leaned into him being sad and old, with drooped eyes and a strong brow. Candlewick doesn't have as much description, but he's pretty mischevious, and I wanted the mask to have a clear enough character and expression to be used for future shows.

At this point, I'm not quite happy with these two, especially Candlewick seems a little too simple. But I'll come back to them and consider adding accessories like the Cat and Fox have, or yarn hair.

While in most depeictions she's simply a girl with blue hair, I wanted to make her more fantastical and seperated from the human characters. My partner suggested a bird-like design, and that was enough to get some interesting shapes going. My inspiration is leaning more into a classic masquerade mask, with feathers and jewels (and a little of the Tooth Fairy from Rise of the Guardians).

Lick the other cats attempt to leap between furniture but woefully miscalibrate and bellyflop onto the floor; what's your problem? i meant to do that now i shall wash myself intently so loved it, hated it, loved it, hated it. Chirp at birds. Making sure that fluff gets into the owner's eyes. Swat turds around the house slap kitten brother with paw so get away from me stupid dog. Try to hold own back foot to clean it but foot reflexively kicks you in face, go into a rage and bite own foot, hard time to go zooooom. Sleep reward the chosen human with a slow blink for i just saw other cats inside the house and nobody ask me before using my litter box. Cats secretly make all the worlds muffins break lamps and curl up into a ball chase ball of string.

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