How do you make a horsehair plume on a papier maiche greek helmet?

Answer 1

I'm actually doing a very similar project right now! What I'm planning to do is to use broom bristles as the main part of the plume. Brooms can be found relatively cheap and separating the bristles from the broom handle isn't hard at all. For a regular corn broom, about $4 for the Wal-Mart Mainstays brand broom - it's a matter of either cutting the bristles towards the base of the handle or unwinding the metal wire that holds them to the broom handle for a little extra length. Once you have the bristles off, you can cut them in half if you don't need their entire length. This will give you extra body for your plume.

For the base of the plume, it can be easily built out of cardboard by taping the shapes together and then covered with papier maiche for strength. Once built, you can paint it whatever colour you'd like. At this time, I would also suggest painting the bristles if you would like you change their colour. To do this, spread them out on a surface you wouldn't mind getting paint on (I would suggest newspaper outside) and go over them with spray paint. Remember to hold the spray can at least 8 inches from the bristles or they'll get too much paint on them and will tend to stick to the other bristles. It's better to do several light passes with the paint than to make sure they're all covered in one go. Keep in mind that they'll need to be turned over to get every spot on them!

After the body is made and papier maiche'd, you can use glue to adhere the broom bristles (or whatever you decide to use) to the inside of the plume. I would suggest an expanding glue like Gorilla Glue (can also be found at Wal-Mart). Cover the bottom of the inside of the plume (piece C or F on the diagram, depending on how you chose to build it) with a layer about a quarter of an inch thick. Now you're ready to start sticking in the bristles. Work from one end to the other, layering them in neatly. When you get to the end, you can add a little flair to the plume by adding in some longer, flimsier bristles. If this is what you want to do, it's helpful to have a material standing by that more closely mimics the feel of horsehair so that it lays properly from the back of the plume.

Let the bristles and glue set overnight at the very least; it's best to leave them alone for about a day for them to really set up. Once they're dry, though, you can now glue the plume to the helmet. (Gorilla Glue works well for this, too, although you won't need very much at all; a small line or two down the middle usually does the trick.) Let everything dry overnight again and you're done!