Nezuko Kamado from the popular anime Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba was my first ever anime cosplay. I was quite nervous about dipping my toes into the anime cosplay world because anime make-up, hair/wigs, and outfits can be a totally different skill set to the one I was used to. I’m super glad I did it though, and so happy with the results.
So I’m here to encourage you, if you’re feeling a little nervous, don’t be, do your best and even if something doesn’t turn out how you’d like it to, then you’ll have still learnt some skills or knowledge along the way which will help you out on your next cosplay project. I learn something new every cosplay I make and that’s exactly why I love this hobby.
Anyway, enough intro, into the making of my Nezuko bamboo muzzle.
What will you need?
- A4 card and paper
- Pen, Pencil and Ruler
- Scissors
- Craft knife
- Sanding paper
- Dremel with grinding stone and sanding bit, goggles and dust mask
- Contact glue (also known as contact cement)
- 10mm EVA foam
- Decorators’ filler
- PVA glue
- Red ribbon
- Green and brown acrylic paint
- Clear lacquer spray
Step 1 – Figuring out the size
Draw out a rectangle onto your card. I went with 13cm (W) x 15cm (H).
You may want to temporarily roll this card to double check it’s not too large for your face, so adjust the size if necessary.
Step 2 – Gluing
Roll the card into the tube shape you’re happy with, and mark where it overlaps. Measure to this mark and draw a line – this will be where you place the contact glue. If you need to, you can trim down the overlap.
Apply the contact glue up to the mark, on each side, and stick together one ready (follow the contact glue’s instructions).
Step 3 – Making the bamboo rings
Tip - you make the bamboo rings while waiting for the contact glue to dry!
Measure the circumference of your tube and create a paper template. I made mine 15cm (L) x 1cm (W) – this was so I had a little bit extra length to adjust with if needed.
Trace your template onto the 10mm foam and cut out – you will need four strips of foam.
Tip – cut the ends at opposite 45-degree angles, so when you attach them around the tube they will connect smoothly.
Double check the bamboo ring will wrap around your tube and join up. Then, roughly mark out where the rings will sit. Two rings are for the ends so you can mark 1cm in and then measure from there to mark where the inner two rings will sit, I marked mine at 2.5cm for the inner two from the first 1cm.
Bevel the outer edges of the foam strips with scissor and put them to one side for now!
(They will look a little rough but it’s okay, we will smooth them out later with the Dremel)
Step 4 – Marking and cutting the mouth hole
Now we know where the bamboo rings will be attached, we can mark out the space for where we want the mouth hole to go.
Draw this out in pencil, then carefully using a craft knife, cut into the tube. Use scissors to make small cuts to create flaps and fold them back. If they are quite long, you can trim excess off.
Step 5 – Creating the ends
Using your tube and another piece of paper, trace around the end to mark out a template for two foam discs which will get inserted into the ends to close off the tube.
Trace the template onto your foam and cut out the foam. Once cut out, carefully puncture the middle of each disc – this is so we can thread the red ribbon through in the final stage.
Step 6 – More gluing
Okay, so now we have all the pieces (4 x foam strips and 2 x foam discs), insert the two discs into the ends of the tube. This will help hold the shape of the tube while we apply the foam strips for the rings.
Apply contact glue to the back of the foam strips and the areas you’ve marked out on your tube, wait for the glue to dry, and stick together.
Step 7 – Sanding and smoothing
Time to grab your goggles and dust mask – stay safe when crafting!
Using the sanding bit on a Dremel, smooth out the foam rings.
I then swapped to a grinding stone bit to refine further, and for the final step I used CW-1000 sanding paper to make them as smooth as possible.
Step 8 – Filling
For any gaps in the rings make sure to use some filler (I used decorators caulk) – this will mean you need to leave it to dry and sand down smooth again!
N.B. You don't have to use decorators caulk, there are cosplay specific options which are a little bit pricier but are better designed to adhere to foam. It is also worth noting that decorators caulk is not flexible, so you won't want to use this type of filler on props where flex is likely, i.e. foam armour.
Step 9 - Priming and painting
Apply PVA glue all over the tube, making sure to pop the foam discs out the end, and apply all over and stick them back in. Leave to completely dry. There may be some more gaps to fill for the end discs, so apply the filler and sand at this stage again if necessary.
It took 2-3 coats of green paint to completely cover the tube. Repeat as many layers as you like until you’re happy with the coverage.
Once the green paint is dry, use brown paint to paint the ends of the discs but make sure you don’t go all the way to the edges as you’ll want the raised bamboo rings to still be green.
I forgot to show the painting of the brown ends so please forgive the red ribbon showing in this part!
Step 10 – Sealing
I use clear lacquer spray on most of my props to finish them – it’s usually used for cars or furniture. This is a personal choice, and you can use any sort of craft sealant, but I have found clear lacquer to be the best as it’s waterproof and gives a shiny finish, which means your props really “pop” in photos. It can depend on the prop though, as sometimes you may prefer a matt finish.
So, to finish your prop make sure you seal it and we’re almost done!
Step 11 – Final details
Grab your red ribbon and thread through the ends and ta da! We’re finished. Now you can look adorable at cons and for photoshoots as our best girl 😊
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