HOW TO CLEAN and REFINISH WAX FIGURES INCLUDING FULL FORMULA OF ALL MATERIALS USED THE MOST COMPLETE BOOK EVER WRITTEN ON THE SUBJECT Formula of Materials Used In The Oil Finish Outfit No. 1 . WASH SOLUTION. Formula of contents. Best grade of Benzine. No. 2. WHITE POWDER. Formula of contents. 1 pound of powdered pumice stone. % pound of best grade corn starch. Mix together. No. 3. La Verona. Tinting liquid. Formula of contents. y 2 pint clean white varnish. 1 tablespoon of turpentine. Shake well. No. 4. La Verona Burnt Umber. (Brand Artists Oil Paint.) No. 5. La Verona Rose Madder. (Brand Artists Oil Paint.) No. 6. Brush for cleaning. Stiff bristle sash brush. No. 7. Tinting Brush. Medium stiff real hair brush. No. 8. White powder brush. Very soft grey hair brush. No. 9. Brush for darkening around eyes. Stiff hair Artists brush. No. 10. Lip, Eye, Nose. Brush No. 2. size camels hair Artists brush. No. 1 1 . Brush to remove surplus powder. Soft camels hair bush. OCT 13 1914 NOTICE— All brushes used in oil should be cleaned in benzine after using to keep them in good condition for future use. ^CU37998o\ Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from The Library of Congress http://www.archive.org/details/howtocleanrefiniOOplac Instruction No. 1. Preparing the Head for Cleaning, etc. Remove the Wax Head from the form, place same on a clean table (covered with paper). Remove the hair pins from the hair, and comb the hair with coarse comb and brush till all the knotty hairs are straightened out. Now take the hair and gather together and twist same to the top of the head. Hold them into place with common hair pins. This operation is required to prevent the loose hairs from interfering with washing and retinting of the head. Instruction No. 2. Cleaning the Face with Solution No. 1. Cleaning the face is very important. With a piece of white cheese cloth about 18 inches square freely sat- urated with Wash Solution No. 1, wash the entire Face, Lips, Ears, Neck, etc., till all former color and soiled parts are removed if much difficulty is experienced in re- moving all soil or former color. Use Brush No. 6 sat- urated with Solution No. 1. It may be necessary to use a small pocket knife to scrape the paint off the lips also the corners of the lip where the dirt might lodge. The knife will also be required to get the dirt out of the ears. After all of the dirt is removed from the head wipe dry wuh a piece of clean white cheese cloth. (Do not rub hard.) Instruction No. 3. Apply White Powder No. 2. Plunge the short hdavy brush No. 8 into the white powder No. 2 and apply all over the Face, Chin, Ears, Nose and Neck, in fact all over the wax head which was washed. While applying this powder give the brush a circular motion with the powder; this operation will give the wax a dull soft appearance. Where the powder has accumulated this can be removed by blowing it off, also by shaking all the surplus powder from the brush and lightly brushing away the powder from the face. (Never use a cloth to remove powder.) Instruction No. 4. Oil Tinting Cheeks and Ears. Take a piece of glass about 6 inches square. Pour about one-half teaspoon of tinting liquid from the bottle onto the glass. 'Now take the tube of "La Verno Rose Madder" No. 5 and squeeze about one-fourth of an inch from the tube. Mix this very thoroughly with the liquid. Now you take the tinting brush No. 7, dipping the points of the bristle very lightly into this mixed solution of oil tint. With the wax head (thoroughly cleaned) begin at the ball of the cheek stippling same (Tapping) with brush No. 7, working gradually back towards the ears and partly into same. Repeat this operation until a rich pink appears on the cheek. Great care must be taken so that the color blends to a lighter pink, away from the ball of the cheek. (Do not load the tinting brush too heavy; also, do not drag the -brush over the face as though painting.) After the cheek is tinted and the ears are also tinted let the head dry for about five (5) minutes. You then proceed to use White Powder No. 2 again. With Brush i\o. 8, plunge same into the white pow- der and stipple the entire face and ears. Use plenty of powder. This operation will soften the expression and blend the color of the cheek to a beautiful pink. All surplus powder which may remain on the face can be removed with No. 11 brush. Instruction No. 5. Coloring the Lips, Inside of Nose and Corners of Eyes. Place a small quantity of "La Verno Rose Madder" on the glass; add a few drops of Tinting Liquid. Mix same thoroughly and proceed as follows with ^rush No. 10: Dip the brush into the paint very lightly; part the upper lip at the center directly beneath the nose, curv- ing out toward the corner of the mouth, and curve down to the other side of the mouth. The best plan is to first outline the lips with the brush and paint, then fill in aft- erwards with the paint. This way you will be able to judge the proper thickness of lip. Should any error occur in applying the paint, same can be readily cleaned off by using No. 1 solution and applying 'No. 2 white powder. Note — After the lips have been painted and when dry, apply white powder No. 2 with brush. Use plenty of this powder. This is purposely to soften the color of the lips. The result of this last operation will be a rich pink color. For the corner of the eyes nearest to the nose apply the paint very carefully so as not to have any drop on the cheeks. For inside of the nose apply the paint also. Instruction No. 6. Darkening Around the Eyes. Proceed as follows: Place a small quantity of "La Verno Burnt Umber" in a small piece of glass; add about one-half teaspoon of tinting liquid; mix together thor- oughly. With brush No. 9 stipple the wax directly above the eyes also beneath the eyes. Do not apply the tint very heavy. Stipple very lightly until a golden brown appears. After this operation is completed let same dry for five (5) minutes, then apply the white powder the same as was used on the cheeks. Instruction No. 7. Cleaning the Eyeballs. After the wax head has been retinted the eyeballs will no doubt be dimmed with powder. To remove this light coating of powder from the eyes, use the blade of small pocket knife and scrape away the powder. Then take a small piece of tissue paper and twist it around the point of a lead pencil and polish the eyeball till it appears clean. The dressing of tne hair of the wax hgure can be very easily accomplished by one of your sales- ladies as most any woman is adapted to this particular work. Instruction No. 8. Resetting Eyelashes and Eyebrows. Many wax heads require a few extra Eyelashes or Eyebrows from time to time to give them a proper appearance. To apply these, proceed as follows: Remove some hair from the head where it is thickest and it will not be noticed. To insert the hair, secure the finest sewing needle to be had, break off part of the needle at the eye so that it will make a prong. Now, with a pair of pincers, force this needle into a piece of wood about tne thickness and length of a lead pencil. After the needle is forced into the end of this piece of wood you have your hair setter. If the hair to insert in the brow is say four inches long, "lay this hair over the part where you intend to insert it. Now, with the hair setter slightly heated, force the hair, placing point of hair setter in the centre of the hair. After the hair is forced into the wax this will give you by one forcing two hairs in one place. Repeat this as often as necessary where the hairs are needed. After you have completed inserting the eyebrows and eyelashes trim off loose ends of the hairs with a pair of very sharp scis- sors. Instruction No. 9. Cleaning and Retinting Wax Arms and Hands. To clean and retain retint wax arms and hands. Proceed as follows: Use wash solution No. 1 and apply the same method as for the face, etc. When dry use the powder No. 2; give the wax the dull finish. Use the same tinting mixture as was used on the cheeks. Stip- ple the back of the hands to about the wrist until a pink appears. Blend the color to a very light pink away from the center of the back of the hand. Tint the finger nails a darker shade than the hand. After the hand is tinted and dry apply the white powder to soften the color. Instruction No. 10. Repairing Wax Heads, Arms, Hands, Fingers, etc. IMPORTANT. All parts before repairing or join- ing together must be thoroughly cleaned and all traces of dirt removed. This can be done by using Solution No. 1 and with the use of a small pocket knife. • Repairing Cracks. First secure a small alcohol lamp, a small tea spoon, and a small piece of wax, the same shade as the part which is to be repaired. (Note— To secure a small piece of wax the same shade, this can be secured from inside the bust of the head where it will not be noticed.) After the part to be repaired is thoroughly cleaned and all traces of dirt removed from the crack, proceed as fol- lows: Heat the handle of the teaspoon over the flame of the alcohol lamp; if it appears smoked wipe off same with a piece of cheese cloth; now take the heated handle of the spoon and plough through the crack about one- fourth of an inch deep. This will give you an opening to pour wax into, to repair the crack securely. Hold over the crack the spoon (heated) and with the other hand press the small piece of wax against the heated spoon, allowing the molten wax to fall into the crack till it is over filled. After the wax is fully hardened remove the surplus with a small pocket knife till it is level with the foundation. With a small piece of tine sandpaper finish it smooth. After the repairs are made your figure is now ready for cleaning and retinting. Building a New Wax Nose. If the entire nose is broken off, thoroughly clean and remove all dirt from the broken parts. Lay the head on its back. After securing a piece of wax the same shade of the face, from beneath the bust where it will not show, proceed as follows: Heat the handle of a tea spoon over alcohol flame, wipe off smoke from the spoon if any ap- pears on it, with the other hand press the piece of wax against the heated spoon and let the wax drop upon drop till the nose is built much larger than usual. After the wax has hardened shape the nose by using a small pocket knife and the ladle end of a tea spoon. To smooth the nose«use very tine sand-paper. A perfect model of a nose can be secured by comparing it with the nose of another wax figure, while moulding it. After nose is completed wash and retint same as former instructions. Instruction No. 11 Repairing and Rejoining Broken Fingers. To repair Broken Fingers. Proceed as follows: Clean all broken parts free from all dirt; take a piece of thin wire about the thickness of a common hair pin. This wire should be from two to three inches long, de- pending largely upon size of the part to be joined to the hand. Heat the piece of wire, holding same with a pair of pincers over an alcohol lamp flame. The wire should be just heated enough to force into the broken part, so that it will not crack. After the wire is forced into the part of the hand then take, the broken-off part of the finger and force the wire into it, taking particular care to have the parts meet. Carefully note the posi- tion of the finsrer so it will look natural as the rest after it is joined. Enough wax can be secured from the screw end of the hand or arm to melt and drop into the crack to give it a smooth surface, so the crack will not show. All surplus wax can be removed with a small pocket knife and fine sand-paper. After all repairs are made to hands, clean and retint as instructed.