Hello everyone!
This is my first how-to tutorial, so I apologize if it’s not the best. =P
Materials needed:
Insulation foam boards (they look like this)
Cardboard boxes
Pencil
Permanent Markers (in red and black)
Razor blade or a serrated kitchen knife (please be careful not to cut yourself!!!)
Scissors
Great stuff foam sealant (I used so much of this 
)
Quilting batting
Elmer’s Glue
Velcro straps (to go around your shoulders for support)
Green Paint
Orange stretchy fabric
Orange thread
White paper
Sewing machine
Pins
Newspapers (to protect your carpet if you’re working inside)
Instructions:
So I guesstimated a lot of the measurements of the carrot because I wanted it to be fairly large but not quite AS large as Ranka’s. I think I measured about 13 inches in width and about 30 inches in length (you can always make it longer to be more accurate).
I sketched two carrot shapes to these measurements on the insulation foam board. Then I cut out two carrot shapes with the razor blade. This material is easy to cut through and be sure to protect whatever surface you’re cutting on.
There’s a groove cut out for the back of my head on one of the foam board, and I notched the two pieces so that they would easily slide together (I also labeled them so I wouldn’t get confused).
Next I slid the two pieces together being careful not to bend or break the foam. It’s pretty sturdy, but caution at first is better than having to start the whole thing over later.
Then I cut a few notches on one of the foam boards where I will be putting some cardboard to make a “skeleton” for the carrot. Do not cut notches on both pieces of foam board! It is not necessary and you might weaken the foam too much.
**I chose to cut on the same side where my head groove was because you’ll need to attach something to the other board later on.**
With the cardboard boxes, I cut out long rectangles to make the “skeleton” to support the shape of the carrot better. I needed 13 of them 13 inches in length.
Then I stuck them into the slots.
Next I used my pencil to draw a semi-circle shape on the cardboard, to round out the carrot shape.
And cut off the excess with scissors.
Once all the cardboards slats are in place, you can then break out your cans of Great Stuff and begin filling in the spaces in between the slats. DO NOT FILL THE SPACE WHERE YOU WILL PUT YOUR HEAD!
You won’t need to fill up the entire space because Great Stuff expands. Fill it up about ¾ of the way.
Please do this outside because the smell of the foam is very overwhelming and probably not safe to inhale.
Also PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be careful NOT to get this stuff on anything like clothing or carpet or any surface it’s not supposed to be on. It’s very sticky and it NEVER comes out of clothing. I was unfortunate enough to get it on a pair of jeans and a shirt. It doesn’t come off hands very easily either… =(
I’m not sure how many cans it took to fill it all up. Perhaps 5 or 6?
After you’ve filled up all the empty spaces, let the whole thing dry overnight, outside if possible or inside a garage on some newspaper to protect the floor.
The next day after it’s completely dried, carefully cut off any extra foam with the razor blade or a kitchen knife if you are more comfortable with that. A serrated knife works best.
When you’re done it should look something like this:
Next I had to think of some way to keep the carrot on my head without taking away from the costume. I opted to use two Velcro straps to tie around my shoulders. I cut two small slots in the vertical foam board and two small slots in the one with the head groove. Try to keep the two small slots away from the head groove.
I used the smoother strip of Velcro (not the strip with the tiny hooks) and fed each strip through the slots in the foam board starting with vertical board. I tied a double knot at the end of the strip to hold it in place. Then I fed it through the board with the head groove
Next you can cover up the carrot with the quilting batting to make the carrot a bit smoother. I secured the quilting batting with Elmer’s glue.
I cut out a leaf shape from the cardboard also and painted it green on one side, using newspaper to protect any surface you are working on. Let that side dry and then paint the other side.
**I’m not happy with the current construction of my leaves and I have been tossing around other possible methods.**
After that I don’t have many pictures because I finished the rest in the car on the way to Youmacon last year. =P
Next I took the stretchy orange fabric and pinned it inside-out to the carrot. I marked where it needed to be sewn along the side and then removed it from the carrot (leave the flat end and the tapered end open for now).
Next sew the line you marked on your sewing machine and cut off any extra fabric.
Place the orange sleeve back on and pin together the fabric along the tapered edge to bring it to a point and mark where you need to sew. Remove from carrot body and sew along those lines. Cut off any extra fabric.
I left the flat end of my orange fabric unsewn and I just pinned it down to the foam.
Next I had to cut out a place for my neck and face to come through. I just used scissors and cut out a circled area on the lower part of my fabric, where my shoulders are at, and another where I wanted my face to come through. Since the fabric was elastic I didn’t need to add anything to keep it from fraying. I then added some “carrot lines” on the fabric to give it texture with the marker.
Now this part was tricky. I bent the cardboard for the leaves into a circular shape and used these heavy duty pins to hold it to the carrot body.
I couldn’t think of a better way to connect the two pieces. =\
And it worked, sort of. I had to keep pushing the pins back in to keep the leaves in place.
The final touch is the sign Ranka has on her back. I don’t know what it says, but it looks like this:
My friend actually did the design on white paper for me in red permanent marker, and I just taped it to the back of the carrot.
Then I just tied the straps to my shoulders and:
If you have any questions, let me know!
Happy crafting! =)
