These photos are from a demonstration given at ConFurence 9 by Robert Beech.
Kit, my wife, prepares herself for the ordeal. A bald cap is being applied by Robert to protect the hair; otherwise, the alginate can get caught in the hairline and ruin the casting of the forehead. Vaseline (or another petroleum jelly) is spread on the eyebrows and eyelids to ensure a clean release from those areas.
Alginate is mixed up in a bucket from powder and water; the consistency is about like a thick pancake batter. The alginate is then applied, starting with the sockets of the eyes. The eye sockets are the toughest areas to avoid bubbles because of the sharp undercuts in the shape of the face.
Alginate is then applied over the rest of the face, taking care to get the underside of the chin (a task made somewhat challenging by gravity!). As alginate runs off of the face, you can move it back into place and reuse it until it begins to set (gel).
Once the coating of alginate has set (this takes only a few minutes), plaster bandages are applied over the alginate. Since the alginate doesn't have much strength by itself, this plaster layer is used to help the alginate retain its shape. As soon as the plaster outer mold has hardened, the entire thing can be removed from the face.
