# Plague Doctor: assistance requested



## RunawayOctober (Jul 3, 2011)

I <3 Plague doctors. 

I probably wont be much help with sourcing though. Are you looking for a blank mask to modify or something premade? Steampunk leaning or no? Instead of a censer, you could always aim for smoke from the nostrils of the beak, which is more accurate. 
And, most importantly, are you looking for a once a year costume, or something more authentic and durable?


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## rosella_au (Sep 23, 2010)

I've seen the venetian masks on eBay from US sellers for relatively cheap (about $6-8) for a simple beaked one. You could also decorate it to look a bit more authentic. Assuming the attatched pic is the type you mean?







you could always look on eBay for the cloak as well... I find that the capes that are costume specific can be quite flimsy looking (not what your looking for by what you said) so try looking for something that you can use for the same purpose. Wiccan or ritual capes can be quite nice but sometimes abit costly.


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## DeathDealer (Jun 18, 2004)

Tom Banwell made some plague doctor masks.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/TomBanwell?ref=em


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## Hoodoo_Hermit (Nov 4, 2009)

RunawayOctober said:


> I <3 Plague doctors.
> 
> I probably wont be much help with sourcing though. Are you looking for a blank mask to modify or something premade? Steampunk leaning or no? Instead of a censer, you could always aim for smoke from the nostrils of the beak, which is more accurate.
> And, most importantly, are you looking for a once a year costume, or something more authentic and durable?


Runaway: I'm looking for something basic for now, perhaps just black, brown, or even white (at least I can paint it). Not steampunk, more of a half-mask to start, like they wear at mardi gras but without the frills. I love the idea of steam from the nostrils but not sure how I'd pull it off. Instead of a censer I think I'll just look for a stick or cane as it appears they used those to inspect people. I'm looking for something durable but it doesn't have to be completely authentic since I'm going with a half-mask for now. I have a beard and I deplore the thought of wearing a full mask if I can help it. If I can get it put together I will wear it yearly and try to theme my home haunt around the plague 



rosella_au said:


> I've seen the venetian masks on eBay from US sellers for relatively cheap (about $6-8) for a simple beaked one. You could also decorate it to look a bit more authentic. Assuming the attatched pic is the type you mean?
> View attachment 84740
> 
> you could always look on eBay for the cloak as well... I find that the capes that are costume specific can be quite flimsy looking (not what your looking for by what you said) so try looking for something that you can use for the same purpose. Wiccan or ritual capes can be quite nice but sometimes abit costly.


Rosella: Thanks! I'll check out eBay and see what they have. I was curious if the reenactment costumes they sell were actually durable or not. The mask you posted a pic of would be perfectly fine to begin with if I can find it in plain black or something similar. I'm a fairly big guy (and by big I mean "fluffy") so I have difficulties finding costumes in my size. 





DeathDealer said:


> Tom Banwell made some plague doctor masks.
> http://www.etsy.com/shop/TomBanwell?ref=em


DeathDealer: Man those things are awesome but a bit out of my price range at the moment. It looks like I'll have to spend about 50-75 bucks on a good robe/cape of some sort. Thanks for posting the link and I'll keep it bookmarked.


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## RunawayOctober (Jul 3, 2011)

Tom Banwell is amazing! Amazon has venetian mask blanks too. I was hoping to pick up a few just for decor. Lemme find the links from my wishlist.

Here:
http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Mache-V...TF8&coliid=I3G9VYT5SUDSSQ&colid=2D006BA0NJ7JN
http://www.amazon.com/Disguise-Vene...TF8&coliid=I3CJMP01KQZING&colid=2D006BA0NJ7JN

The clothes worn by plague doctors were typically waxed leather. Do you or your wife have any sewing skills? It would almost have to be by hand with something that sturdy (ouch) but what about an Army Surplus store for old tents or tarps and make your own? They'd be more along the lines of waxed canvas, but same difference.


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## Hoodoo_Hermit (Nov 4, 2009)

RunawayOctober said:


> Tom Banwell is amazing! Amazon has venetian mask blanks too. I was hoping to pick up a few just for decor. Lemme find the links from my wishlist.
> 
> Here:
> http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Mache-V...TF8&coliid=I3G9VYT5SUDSSQ&colid=2D006BA0NJ7JN
> ...


Oooh that is exactly what I'm looking for and it's in my budget range lol. Don't get me wrong I'm willing to go cheap on things like masks to start off with and just build it up. To be completely honest with you...I think I will be going completely outside history with the costume. Here is what I've envisioned (and perhaps it is to fit within my budget a little better): A half faced bird/plague mask, heavy hooded cloak or hooded robe (always pulled up), and a cane/staff. Perhaps I envision it as a poor-man's or rural version of a plague doctor. More like a village healer/medicine man who is simply attempting to cover the stench of the decay with the mask and has no illusions that he will probably contract the plague. I was talking with my wife and I thought of doing a horror take on it and make people wonder is this "plague doctor" trying to cure people or is he helping spread the disease on purpose? And she, being my witchy mate, would be brewing up "healing" tonics.

One question: are those "decorative" masks actually wearable? It appears as if they are meant to hang in your home and I plan on wearing the tar out of it lol


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## RunawayOctober (Jul 3, 2011)

Well, you're not far off from a typical plague doctor. They didn't necessarily wear cloaks, more of a long tunic kind of like priest robes, but I think a cloak fits more into people's visions of that time period. But, it cancels out the wide brimmed hat. 
The masks should be okay to wear, depending on how you finish them. Also, I don't think it would be hard to convert these masks to a full beak with some paper mache. Paper mache is pretty sturdy in general, so also long as you sealed it from sweat and body oil, they should last a while. Wooden canes are historical, so I would go with that for sure. 

Plague doctors ARE scary to begin with. Especially when you're silent. Eek!


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## AGhoulishOne (Sep 6, 2011)

I did a plague doctor costume last year. I found Tom Banwell's mask online and used it as inspiration among others. It was the first mask I'd ever made and really enjoyed it. I went to a thrift store and bought a used leather (pleather?) laptop bag that I cut up. I sewed it together with of those hand-stitchers and I think it gave it a cool look. I bought some welding goggles and painted them with a layer of textured paint and then a bronzish color so they kind of looked like cast metal. I also added some metal studs to attach the headbad. For the rest of the costume I bought a long black raincoat at the discount store. I needed a nice raincoat anyway so I kept it after the party, but I probably could've returned it and they'd never know. Then black pants, black gloves, and black shoes. For the stick I bought a 36-inch dowel rod, approx 1" diameter and stained it with wood stain I already had. For the hat I started out with a cheap flat brim hat from the costume store, then bought a black fabric remnant and recovered the hat to make it larger and kind of floppy looking, just a quick whip-stitch to sew it up around the edges.

All in all, the costume got a really great reception. People said it was really creepy, the scariest one there, etc. A few ladies even said that it was sexy. Some people actually knew what I was going for, but even those who didn't seemed to really like it. And I did stay stay silent. It was a little hard to breath, but worth the effort. Here's a pic:

View attachment 85023


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## Wyrmling (Mar 16, 2011)

Just for some ideas here was someones costume last year from another forum I visit.



















Keep us informed how yours comes out!


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## Hoodoo_Hermit (Nov 4, 2009)

Wyrmling said:


> Just for some ideas here was someones costume last year from another forum I visit.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks so much for those pictures  I've been brainstorming and the wife and I are going out to check the local Halloween shops for half-masks soon.


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## BlueFrog (Oct 20, 2009)

There must be something in the air because I'm creating a plague doctor costume for one of my mannequins this year. Are you going with a hooded robe, or a more traditional hat? I ask because a local costume shop that's going out of business had a great felt hat that's _very_ plague doctor that was only $7 on clearance. Otherwise, I had a decent plan for making one out of a cheap top hat, witch hat, and pleather. 

My doctor will be wearing an actual vintage priest's cassock I bought on eBay that, including shipping, cost me less than $15. I got extraordinarily lucky on the mask at a garage sale. A world traveler gave me an Italian made papier mache beak mask that had gotten seriously damaged at some point. I think someone deliberately ripped it apart. It's taken lots of elbow grease to get it back together but I think the end result will be worth it.

If you decide to go for a fancier looking beak mask, check out Design Toscano. I don't recall whether they still sell one but the one they had was quite pretty, although definitely more decorative than something an actual physician would have worn back in the day.


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## Hoodoo_Hermit (Nov 4, 2009)

BlueFrog said:


> There must be something in the air because I'm creating a plague doctor costume for one of my mannequins this year. Are you going with a hooded robe, or a more traditional hat? I ask because a local costume shop that's going out of business had a great felt hat that's _very_ plague doctor that was only $7 on clearance. Otherwise, I had a decent plan for making one out of a cheap top hat, witch hat, and pleather.
> 
> My doctor will be wearing an actual vintage priest's cassock I bought on eBay that, including shipping, cost me less than $15. I got extraordinarily lucky on the mask at a garage sale. A world traveler gave me an Italian made papier mache beak mask that had gotten seriously damaged at some point. I think someone deliberately ripped it apart. It's taken lots of elbow grease to get it back together but I think the end result will be worth it.
> 
> If you decide to go for a fancier looking beak mask, check out Design Toscano. I don't recall whether they still sell one but the one they had was quite pretty, although definitely more decorative than something an actual physician would have worn back in the day.


To be honest, I'll probably going with a cloak. I had a general idea of what I wanted to do and it turns out I'm way off base on it even being a real plague doctor lol. The great thing is that I have gained some wonderful ideas from you all and I think I'll be taking a few elements from the plague doctor at least.


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## Saruman of Many Colours (Sep 8, 2010)

Just happened to notice that Walgreens.com is offering this black Venetian raven mask: http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/buyseasons-venetian-raven-adult-mask-black/ID=prod6080083-product

Hope that helps.


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## Hoodoo_Hermit (Nov 4, 2009)

Saruman of Many Colours said:


> Just happened to notice that Walgreens.com is offering this black Venetian raven mask: http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/buyseasons-venetian-raven-adult-mask-black/ID=prod6080083-product
> 
> Hope that helps.


Thanks for the link  I've been meaning to give an update: I found a high-grade black venetian mask that is dark brown, faux leather, with some cushion behind it for 15 bucks at target and nabbed it. The beak is more hooked and seems creepier to me and my wife; we're very happy with it. Doesn't look like I'll find a really good cloak before the big day but I'll keep looking


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## Saruman of Many Colours (Sep 8, 2010)

Hoodoo_Hermit said:


> Doesn't look like I'll find a really good cloak before the big day but I'll keep looking


Check out Grandin Road: http://www.grandinroad.com/halloween-cloaks-in-black/10058, because they've reduced the prices. And don't forget to use the free shipping code D1109 (which someone else had posted over in the other thread.  )


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## Hoodoo_Hermit (Nov 4, 2009)

Saruman of Many Colours said:


> Check out Grandin Road: http://www.grandinroad.com/halloween-cloaks-in-black/10058, because they've reduced the prices. And don't forget to use the free shipping code D1109 (which someone else had posted over in the other thread.  )


Thanks so much! I'll see if I can find some reviews on it and that may be what I end up going with


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## icyuod2 (Oct 27, 2009)

I was just in spirit and saw a cheap ($10) venetion raven mask that would be perfect for your build/costume.








With a little modification, might be just what ya need.


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