For those interested in what went into this costume...
My forehead and cheeks were a foam latex prosthetic from
Scream Team (their "Creature" design). It's adhered to my face with spirit gum, with edges sealed with liquid latex. It moved and wrinkled realistically with my face, which was great.
I added a bit more liquid latex around the edges of my face, and peeled it off in spots to simulate some scarring/decay, and added gel blood to the holes. A little more gel blood around my mouth as well. The blood is thick and dark. Stays wet, but stays put.
The appliance on my face (and exposed skin) was painted with a few colors of rubber mask grease paint, and set with powder.
The contact lenses are by
Wild Eyes (their "White Out" style). I don't need corrective lenses and have never worn contacts before, so I had to get an eye exam specifically to be sized for these contacts.
The teeth are made by
Dental Distortions (their "Dead Zed" model). They are "veneer" style special effect dental prosthetics that cover only the front of your teeth. You custom fit them to your teeth with the supplied low-melt thermoplastic. (those are my real teeth in the above photo though, I wouldn't buy fake teeth that look just like my own)
It took about 2 hours to do the make up the first time I wore it. And about 1 hour to remove it all. I used rubbing alcohol and spirit gum remover to slowly remove it so I could reuse it (and not yank off my eyebrows in the process).
The shirt and suit came from Goodwill and were actually the cheapest part of the costume. I cut up the edges of the clothing with a razor blade (and made a few holes here and there) and then roughed up all these cut edges with a stiff wire brush, for a nice tattered look.
I painted the clothing with a water based latex paint. First I wet the clothes thoroughly, and then brushed on layers of brown, white, black, and green... and then red and black in the front. I used a spray bottle to mist the paint, so it would bleed together further, for a realistic blended look. Thanks to the Undertaker at
Haunted Hot Sauce for giving me the tips on this step.
Once dry, the painted suit was totally clean, so I could sit down or grab people without fear of staining anything. I may have left permanent mental scars though.
