As soon as the plaster has hardened, the alginate and plaster can be removed from the face. A little pressure from the edges, as shown here, and it should slip off easily. Be sure that the alginate pulls cleanly away from the face. If part of the alginate holds onto the hair, it may tear the facecast. If you need to repair a tear in the alginate, use CA glue to bond the edges.

Here, you can see the inside of the alginate casting. The face has been reproduced in negative with great detail. This will now be used as a mold for pouring a positive cast. The plaster bandage shell helps prevent the alginate, which isn't rigid, from distorting when the mold is filled.

Robert begins to fill the alginate cast with Ultracal. Ultrcal is a brand of gypsum cement; it is similar to plaster except that it is much more dense and can pick up greater surface detail. The Ultracal is scooped carefully into the alginate mold to avoid trapping air bubbles.

And here is the finished facecast! The Ultracal sets relatively quickly. The positive cast can be removed (and the alginate and plaster negative discarded) as soon as the surface of the Ultracal is cool to the touch. The alginate negative can usually be used to make several casts, if necessary, though it does not store well.

For a more complete lifecasting process, check out the Headcasting Demonstration pages.