# Need Help with Madame Leota Costume!



## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

*Haunted Mansion's Madame Leota Costume!*

I've decided that, along with a female version of Beetlejuice, I'd like to be Madame Leota this year. (Madame Leota is the fortune teller head inside the crystal ball in Disney's Haunted Mansion attraction, for those that don't know.) References: http://www.doombuggies.com/secrets_seance.php

I've found these two pictures of people who have done the costume:










I believe I found this picture on here, from someone's Nightmare Before Christmas party last year? Either way, it was awesome. As you can see, she didn't have a ball around her head. And while that may be more practical, I'd rather find something more along the lines of this:










I could obviously very well get away with not having a ball around my head, but it would be more effective with one, I think. Trouble is, I don't know where to find something like that. I've looked for round, plastic punch bowls with no luck. I've found a few globe-shaped, plastic light covers, but none with an opening big enough for my head.

I would also like to have an audio track attached to me that played her seance spiel. I have the Haunted Mansion attraction soundtrack, so that's not the issue. I just need to figure out something that will attach to me easily and be loud enough to hear.

And what should I use to built the table? I'd like to be able to remove it fairly easily, if possible. As you can see, I'm pretty clueless!

Any suggestions are welcome! I've never really built a costume like this


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## peterose (Oct 13, 2009)

Holy Cow, I can't believe no one has posted here yet! OK if you want to do the "spirit ball" around your head, Michaels (the crafts store) has an animatronic fortune teller head that comes out round halloween. You can remove the ball from the head and wear that if you want, it should be big enough, however you will get hot in there and it will fog up. She must of had a way to remove the ball or get her head out of there, or had adequate ventilation. Keep your eyes peeled on Ebay and don't forget to youtube the homemade madame leota videos.
The Table can be made of a corregated plastic with a hole in the center big enough for your head. This can be cut with exacto knife, then the sides padded with a clothe to soften the edges around your neck. Table clothe and doilie on top from the fabric store/thrift store. Tarot cards, and an old candle holder glue gunned tot he top. (also from thrift store)
Don't forget the wig. AS for your voice track. You'll need to find a set of speakers you can glue to the bottom of the table that are connected to an old cd walkman or MP3 player you can wear on a belt or in your pocket. Ensure the wires are secured to the table underside as well. You don't want to be tripping all over them or getting your hands tangled when you go for a drink. Then again the ball! Just ensure the whole sound system is concealed under your table clothe. 
GTG any questions, be happy to field.


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

The spirit ball head is a good idea! Now it's just a question of whether or not I can find one at a good price. Do you think it would be possible to drill some holes in the plastic for ventilation? I wouldn't want to crack it. Of course, the hole around my neck might be enough for ventilation. I'll try it like that first before I do anything to the ball.

Where can you buy corregated plastic? I don't even know what that is.. haha.

I'm planning on using my own hair instead of a wig. I'm pretty good at big hair  And it's a lot easier to control short hair. As for the items on the table.. I do plan on having tarot cards and a bell. I'm also going to get a battery-powered candle stick and replace the bulb with a flicker bulb. And I'll make the candle stick look a bit more antiqued.

It seems like my boyfriend has some portable speakers for his ipod. I'll see if he'll let me borrow them for my costume.

Thanks for all the input! I'm still open to any and all suggestions!

I'm so excited about this!


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## peterose (Oct 13, 2009)

OK Corregated Plastic looks like this and you can buy it at Home Depot for like 25$ for a huge sheet.

http://www.libertycarton.com/libertycarton/libertycarton.nsf/0/84AD27A5A25CCE1F862571E3005DB479/$File/beauty-shot01.jpg?Open

It's basically Plastic carboard and is typically used for real estate signs. Be careful cutting it into a circle, it can be kind of tricky. You are cutting it into a circle i hope, like the real one. That first picture you posted kind of stinks. The second is awesome! Totally use those old speakers, and do you have a shoulder strap for the ipod? Make sure you can fasten the wires somewhere so they're not getting caught under the tableclothe. And if you get a bell, it would be cool if you can remove the little dinggy in the middle and then attach a dowel to it on the inside through the table. SO when she says "by ringing a bell" you can make it look like it's ringing by itself. Or I don't know, think of something else for that one, it would be cool to add some little magic detailing.

I'm building a Madame Leota myself for a haunted house. As an avid disneyland fan, I am happy to help.


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## Frankie's Girl (Aug 27, 2007)

okay that was a tough one... but I'm known as the Google queen in my area, so I had to try! 

http://www.rosebrand.com/product802/Clear-Plastic-Spheres.aspx 
Looks VERY promising, and it's not too expensive. It's a theatrical supply company that I have heard of before, but don't know how safe the site is. Only drawback is cutting in the neck hole (no idea how hard it would be to cut) and the obvious seam where the halves come together, but it splits apart easy for quick removal. (I would think you could get away with the 18 inch one, but the 24 inch might be better for the hair and such. Depending on how hard it would be to cut, you'd be able to gauge how hard it would be to pop in some air holes as well... I believe the good photo example you had is using something like this as I think I can see a seam on her globe.


http://www.complexplastics.com/lighting/SPHERES/index.htm
This one looks pretty good as they can custom make the size of the neck hole and there is no seam. I would think they could put in some air holes while they're at it... but no prices and that usually means big $$


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## Madame Leota (Sep 19, 2005)

I am making a Leota prop this year and this is what I got for her ball:
https://www.1000bulbs.com/product/7570/3202-14020-003.html

It is very lightweight and should be easy to wear. I had to make the opening a little larger to fit a wig head but it was very easy to do. I used the soldering tip for my wood burner and cut right through it.

Since Gemmy is no longer making the Spirit Balls, this seemed to be the next best thing and much cheaper. Hope this helps!


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## peterose (Oct 13, 2009)

Ahh that 1000 bulbs place looks awesome! I may just have to place an order as well. Is it alright if I consult you (Madame Leota) on future questions about the prop? My biggest concern currently is the locating of a projector. Any suggestions?


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## Madame Leota (Sep 19, 2005)

peterose said:


> Ahh that 1000 bulbs place looks awesome! I may just have to place an order as well. Is it alright if I consult you (Madame Leota) on future questions about the prop? My biggest concern currently is the locating of a projector. Any suggestions?


Although I'd love to take credit for the how-to's on this prop, at least for name's sake , I must defer to Mr Chicken for the best tutorial I've found anywhere: http://hauntforum.com/showthread.php?p=265397

Mine is a work in progress. Maybe we can compare notes as we go?


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

Thank you, Frankie's Girl and Madame Leota! I e-mailed the Complex Plastics website for a quote. Superior Lighting said I would need to cut the opening with a band saw and sand it down in order to get my head in. Does anyone know what a band saw is, and if I can take the globe somewhere to get this done? I wasn't really planning on buying expensive machinery for this costume. Superior Lighting also said many people bought their globes for costumes last year. Which makes me wonder..

Can someone please explain to me the measurements of these globes? I'm seeing 14" as the most widely used for this kind of thing. But my head is 22" around. How the heck does that work? Is the 14" measurement just around half of the globe? If that makes it 28" around, my head is going to be a tight squeeze. I'm thinking I might need a 16" or 18" to allow for my big hair I'm planning on for this costume.

Input?


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## Madame Leota (Sep 19, 2005)

The measurement you are seeing is the diameter, which is roughly one third of the distance round the ball; circumference = diameter x pi.

There is definitely no need to buy a band saw for this project. The plastic melts easily with the tip of a wood burner, If you don't have one of those, they can be purchased for around $10 at wal mart or the craft store. Just make sure you use it in a well ventilated area.


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

Madame Leota said:


> The measurement you are seeing is the diameter, which is roughly one third of the distance round the ball; circumference = diameter x pi.
> 
> There is definitely no need to buy a band saw for this project. The plastic melts easily with the tip of a wood burner, If you don't have one of those, they can be purchased for around $10 at wal mart or the craft store. Just make sure you use it in a well ventilated area.


You are a lifesaver. Thank you so much. I think I'm going to order from Superior Lighting. I'm pretty sure my boyfriend has a wood burner. But, if not, I can get one at Michael's with a 40% off coupon.

I am so excited now!


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## halloweensal (Oct 3, 2008)

View attachment 11893


We did a generic fortune teller a few years ago. 
I was thinking of converting it to a Madam Leota.

This was the biggest Spirit Ball we could find at Michaels. I hacked all the guts out of it and drilled ventilation holes in the back.
The table is just a few layers of foamcore. There's a hole in the bottom of that black cup so the candy fell thru to my son's bag inside.


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

halloweensal said:


> We did a generic fortune teller a few years ago.
> I was thinking of converting it to a Madam Leota.
> 
> This was the biggest Spirit Ball we could find at Michaels. I hacked all the guts out of it and drilled ventilation holes in the back.
> The table is just a few layers of foamcore. There's a hole in the bottom of that black cup so the candy fell thru to my son's bag inside.


Awesome! So, what did it look like underneath? Was the table wobbling all over the place, or did you have something securing it to his shoulders?


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## halloweensal (Oct 3, 2008)

View attachment 11900


View attachment 11901


I just dug it out f the crawlspace for you.

I made some foamcore handles for my son to hold. It was better than strapping it to him; it allowed him to take it off and breathe better between houses. (The black tube is the candy chute.)

The globe had a lip on the bottom so I made a collar on the top of the table that would hold the globe in place.


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

halloweensal said:


> I just dug it out f the crawlspace for you.
> 
> I made some foamcore handles for my son to hold. It was better than strapping it to him; it allowed him to take it off and breathe better between houses. (The black tube is the candy chute.)
> 
> The globe had a lip on the bottom so I made a collar on the top of the table that would hold the globe in place.


That was really nice of you to do. 

I didn't even think of having handles. That will work out very well, especially since I wouldn't be able to use my hands underneath there anyway. And, although I won't be needing it, that candy chute in genius!

Now I have the problem of figuring out how to secure my globe. I'll probably be ordering one of the plastic globes on their own, then cutting the opening. So there won't be a lip that I can push into anything. Do you think hot glue would be enough to hold it in place? Since I don't have my globe yet, I don't know how heavy it is.


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## halloweensal (Oct 3, 2008)

I suggest waiting till closer to Halloween and try and buy the Spirit Ball (made by Gemmy). We got ours at Michaels. 
After we were done with the costume I put it back together and now use it as a tabletop decoration at Halloween. 

The lip really came in handy when mounting it. 
I'd be afraid of not being able to find a glue/cement/screws or something else to hold generic globe in place. 

So that's my 2-cents.
Good luck.
Post a pic when you're done.


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

They don't make the Spirit Ball anymore, from what I've read  The only place I've been able to find it is eBay, for ridiculous prices.


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## Frankie's Girl (Aug 27, 2007)

Ross! I think the large spirit globes have been sighted there again this year.

I would see if you can find it first (and I'm going to one tomorrow so I'll let you know!)


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## v_gan (Aug 19, 2009)

Frankie's Girl said:


> Ross! I think the large spirit globes have been sighted there again this year.
> 
> I would see if you can find it first (and I'm going to one tomorrow so I'll let you know!)


I just went to one today, and they only really had a small section of kitchen items  Please do let me know if you find one! Do you know how much they're selling them for?


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## mojonesy (Aug 28, 2010)

*Our Leota Costue*

We did a Leota costume a couple years ago. The hardest part was finding a ball big enough and light enough to wear over the head. We finally used two large clear plastic punch bowls I found in a party supply store. I cut off the lips of the bowls using a craft knife and using clear tape, taped the ends together. I cut a hole out for the neck and then cut the flat bottom out of one for the hole for the face. Didn't intend originally to cut a hole for the face, but it fogged up and got claustrophobic in there with out it. Back we carefully warmed up to soften the plastic a bit and rounded out the back. Picture doesn't show, but at night we had a little green light that lit up the wig. 

Table was just cardboard with tablecloth and printed out tarot cards. Hope this helps, good luck!


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