# spell books



## Allen H (Feb 13, 2010)




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## Spooky D (Oct 4, 2011)

Great work as usual Allen.


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## ouizul1 (May 22, 2010)

Excellent, Allen.


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## Rahnefan (May 1, 2009)

Very nice. You knock that out like you've made hundreds of them.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

Nice Allen.


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## pennywise (Aug 5, 2008)

Another awesome tutorial, Allen. Thanks for sharing. I would like to see how you do paper mache. I have been doing it for awhile now, but I am always looking for new techniques, recipes, and such.


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## Bascombe (May 18, 2010)

Good work Allen. I always enjoy your work.

I did three of your shrink wrapped corpses this year. Turned out great.


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## HalloweenZombie (Jul 22, 2007)

I made one of these a few years back. Yours came out much better. Sewing the eyes shut was a great idea. Great tutorial as always!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Finished product in your face right at the beginning of the video - you da man, Allen

Thank you for taking pity on all those who want to see what you did before you do it


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## Headless (Sep 4, 2011)

Love it. Thanks Allen


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

Interesting piece.
A couple of questions and maybe a suggestion or two.
First, how do you use this prop? Is it left on a table or bench for viewing?
I'm surprised you didn't do a title at least on the spine if not the front board/cover.
How do you store this? I would imagine that you run into some issues with the fragility of the face and latex coating in general.
Have you thought of mounting a rocking/movement inside the book, and maybe a small speaker too? Having the book shake or tremble with a voice screaming to get out or be released could make this a big hit for a witches/warlocks/mages workshop scene.
Do you run into any issues with the latex not holding onto the cover of the books? Do you clean or treat the covers before you do your latex treatment?

Have you run into issues with the pages sagging or distorting with age? I'd think that gluing the pages together would help you with your support and handling of the book for yourself or for shipping.


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## Plastic Ninja (Sep 30, 2010)

I saw those on your website and went straight to the free book bin at the closest used book store. Now this is even easier! Thanks once again Allen!


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## The Halloween Lady (Aug 18, 2010)

Awesome. Disturbing, but awesome!!!! Can't wait to make one.


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## Allen H (Feb 13, 2010)

First, how do you use this prop? 
It is a display piece. I display it.

Is it left on a table or bench for viewing?
I have had them screwed down to tables, held in book holders, and I have a shelving unit full of them at my monster museum (all taken from Hags).
I'm surprised you didn't do a title at least on the spine if not the front board/cover.
I dont see the need, when I look at them its pretty obvious they are not about botony or math, If I were going to do a title I would make it very specific and do a bunch of them- like a human heart sculpted to the front and have that be love spells, and several different black magic books.
How do you store this? 
They look pretty cool, I have no issue with keeping them on display in my library in my home.

I would imagine that you run into some issues with the fragility of the face and latex coating in general. 
No, that is very sturdy the only issue I have had it the clay seal I made on some of the books have broken or fallen out if it was kept in non climate controlled conditions.

Have you thought of mounting a rocking/movement inside the book, and maybe a small speaker too? 
I have done several books that I had added servo eye movement (back and forth) mouth movement, lid opening and closing and brow furrowing. I use a pololu micro maestro and servos inside the book to move the functions. The maestro will hold 1000 lines of code so you don't need a separate controller to run the servos or be hooked to a computer. Just plug and play, and can be triggered by triggering power to the board.
I have never added sound but Im not much of an audio guy to begin with.

Do you run into any issues with the latex not holding onto the cover of the books? 
No
Do you clean or treat the covers before you do your latex treatment?
No, unless they have bee sitting in the shop for long time and have a lot of plaster dust on them.

Have you run into issues with the pages sagging or distorting with age? I'd think that gluing the pages together would help you with your support and handling of the book for yourself or for shipping.
No it has never been an issue- when I stain the pages it gets them wet and then they dry, that stiffens the pages nicely. Again durability has never been an issue- please make one so you can understand that they are quite solid. I have made close to 60 or so of them over an 8 year period and I still have the first one I made- avoid paper clay and paper mache as mice and rats like to eat it when its being stored, but other than that the latex and fabric are very durable.
Latex is an organic material like wood, so it will deteriorate over time. The kind of latex and the kind of paints you use will affect this. Spray paint makes latex crack and breakdown in a year or two. Thats why I use acrylic and water based stains and dyes. I expect if I armorall the books once or twice a year I will get 10 years out of them before the latex starts to degrade. 4 or 5 for carpet latex because it uses propellants as a thinner and that eats the latex after curing. Never use vaseline on latex as it also eats latex, but much faster.


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## trishaanne (Aug 20, 2005)

DANG IT...I still can't see it because of hubby's stupid computer. I'm assuming, from all the comments, that it's another amazing prop though! *sigh*


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## TheDarkRideBoy (May 18, 2013)

Mr. Allan, you've done a fantastic job!!! As always!


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## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

Old computer game boxes work great for shelved books. Stacked books are a little trickier, depending on viewing angles, because you have to create covers and page leaf edges.

- Treat the cover, spine and edges to your liking.
- Glue all the boxes together in an arrangement that you desire
- Display


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

Very cool!
Nice work


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