Rumpelstiltskin is my name

Hi Friends!

So I'm currently having to put some other projects on hold as I had a large and exciting project drop into my lap.

Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, VA is doing a production of "Rumpelstiltskin is my name" and they have decided to make the title character a puppet (stellar choice in my opinion).

After discussion with the director and costume designer, we've decided to create Rumpelstiltskin as a four and a half foot full bodied puppet which will be operated by two puppeteers.

Being asked to build this character is a great opportunity and I'm currently up to my neck in foam, fabric, and all sorts of other notions!

This project is also going to provide an excellent subject for the blog to follow; so stay tuned for a step-by-step updates of the build process!

- jonathan

New Build

Currently I'm building a new puppet, which is finishing an old project from 2006 actually!

I thought it might be interesting to share some of the patterning process. The foam head had already been built from scratch, but was never fabricated. I decided I want to do a dual fabric head, with the back being fur (which will match the body) and the face being Antron Fleece.

Pinning fabric with a similar stretch to my final fabric to the foam head

Pinning around the edges and cutting along the seams, to create a pattern that can be mirrored to cover the entire head

Pinning darts to make the fabric conform to the contours of the foam

Labeling the cut fabric, once it's peeled off it can be anybody's guess which edge is which!

Smoothing the fabric on the head to re-pin and clean up the edges

Flattening out the fabric pieces to see the rough edges.

Pinning the fabric pieces down to freezer paper to sketch their outlines in pencil, cleaning up the edges

Once the edges are cleaned up, they are traced in marker to create the final patterns

The head is now fabricated, and I can cut out the Antron Fleece and Fur Pieces to splice together and cover the head!

Kate Smith Likeness Commission

I recently had a commission for a puppet in the likeness of Kate Smith:

Here are some photos of the build process and finished puppet!

Internal mouthgrip, before being mounted into the head and upper foam pocket for the fingers:

From In The Works

Basic Head assembled and sewn:

From In The Works

Head and Body, no neck yet!:

From In The Works

Head with necksleeve and eyes attached:

From In The Works

Finished Puppet:

From Portfolio

Side view, note the more 'rotund' body design:

From Portfolio

And so the possibilities begin!

Welcome to Carlucci Puppets!

Here you can get sneak peaks of the debut of new projects, as well as projects in the works!

Who knows exactly where we'll go!