# Good Looking Prop Hands on the Cheap



## Scary Papa (Jan 31, 2012)

Did you ever want a good looking pair of hands for a prop but after an internet search you found they are just too expensive to buy? I have had this very problem. I am very frugal (my wife says cheap) and I like the realistic look of hands that I have seen on commercial sites but I just can’t justify buying expensive latex hands to use on the simple static and animatronic props that I make. So I use those inexpensive costume “glove hands” that you can buy at party stores or Halloween shops. I use the “full” glove hand for some props but I also use the “partial glove” hands because sometimes they look the best for a prop I am building. You know…those costume hands where the palm is open so they are not really a glove or a hand and when they are put on a prop they look…well…bad. With the open palm any armature that is placed inside will not stay in place and you can’t fill them with foam because, you know, the palm is open. But there is a solution. These “open palm” costume hands look pretty good for the price, they usually run about $14.00 per pair, and with just a little modification they work well for my props. For this project I chose a pair of pumpkin hands to go with a pumpkin man prop. Here’s how I do it for anyone interested.

First the materials:
1 pair of glove hands
1 pair of jersey work gloves
Scissors
Glue gun
Glue sticks

To make the wire and PVC hand armature you will also need:
Wire
3/8” PVC tubing
3/4” PVC cap
Wire cutters








Now with everything ready you need about 30 minutes to complete the project. In this case I was using some pumpkin costume prop glove hands.

First, cut the finger tips off the jersey gloves. This is necessary because the fingers of the glove hands are usually longer than normal fingers. You will need to open the jersey work glove fingers to allow the fingers of your hand armature to fit through.








Second, put the jersey work glove on your hand and insert it into the prop glove hand. Be sure to work the jersey work glove fingers up into the fingers of the prop glove hand.








Now remove your hand and using the glue gun run a bead of glue around the inside edge of the open palm of the prop glove hand and glue the jersey work glove in place. You should also put a dab of glue onto the bottom of the fingers of the jersey work gloves to secure them in place as well.








Finish by painting the exposed jersey work glove a color that matches the color of the hand and that’s all. You’re done. All that is left is to make and insert a pair of armature hands onto the jersey work gloves and work the fingers into the prop hand fingers and you have a pretty good looking, poseable hand. There are a variety of methods to use to make the armature (skeleton) hands. There are several tutorials on this so I will not present one here. Just use the method you like best. I use the wire and 3/8” PVC tube method because the fingers are jointed and very flexible, insert easily into the glove, and can be posed in a variety of positions.


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## budeena (Jul 4, 2011)

This is a very good idea for the fact that the jersey glove has a cuff below the hand at the wrist and will hold the hands in place a lot better. Oh and I did I say this was also good for the budget?


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