Thread: Blood that dries on plastic?

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We're thinking of covering the walls of our party with plastic, then putting blood splatter all over them. The store bought blood I've used before seemed to never dry and get on things it wasn't supposed to. Is there a fake blood recipe or product that we can put on the plastic walls that will dry there and not come off?

I'd like to know as well...thinking of using latex paint or even stain.Would have to put it on plastic first and then hang to avoid splashes.Was gonna do dexter theme in basement.

Red paint maybe, like from a hobby store? Or white latex house paint stained red with food coloring? Or white Elmer's glue stained red? You may need to do some pre-build experimenting on that...

Check out the craft store for acrylic paints. Look for ones that are glossy and maybe one that's specifically designed for painting on plastic. Also see if you can find a clear gloss medium from the same brand to mix into the paint if it's too thick to use on its own.

Remember, real blood is darker red than most people think. You could also use tissue paper and a darker red/brown pant to make dried scabs mixed in with it.

Are you set on using plastic or will something else work?

I picked up some painters cloth (in white) at WalMart - size was about 10 feet by 8 feet or so, it was a light cloth on the front and a plastic'y backing on the back (so paint and whatnot doesn't seep through). Nailed it up on the walls and sprayed blood all over it using a water bottle and store-bought blood (watered down a bit to lighten it up so the spray bottle will shoot it further). It looked great, dried instantly and gave a great effect.

I've attached a quick shot of it - the odd lighting is because it's in front of a window (during the daytime).

If you need to do plastic, I suggest getting a can of "Clear Finish" spray - I bought the "Krylon brand Low Odor Clear Finish spray - Glossy" at Michael's. It was only a few dollars after a 40% coupon (look online!) It's meant to be a finish for spraypaints, but found it worked great on fake blood (which, like you said, never seemed to dry on plastics). Put the fake blood on, spray a coat of the finishing spray and let it sit for a little while. I did this on a few props and they were completely dry to the touch in no time.

Dexter theme is exactly right. So a lot of surface area and probably a lot of fake blood. Can acrylics be thinned so much that they can be squirted out of a squirt bottle?

We did this for a shower curtain one year:

DO IT OUTSIDE. It's messy!

SUPPLIES:
Spray paint in bright red.

Medical gloves (like what the doctors use - available from medical supply stores or beg your local doc to let you have a few pairs).

Clothesline/clothespins - string it up between two trees away from anything you don't want painted and you might also want a few bricks as well to weigh down the bottoms of the plastic sheets.

Once you have everything, this is the fun part. Get your plastic pinned to the clothesline and stretched out so there are no wrinkles in it. Put on the gloves. Spray the can close to the plastic surface to simulate arterial spray (make an arc from the top to bottom), spray onto your gloved hands and grab the plastic or have someone on the other side to provide a surface so you can make handprints with your paint hand (flat surface behind the plastic so there's something to support the plastic when you touch it).
Spray more into your hand and flick your fingers at the plastic to get splatters and drips. Use old brushes (old toothbrushes that you're throwing out are great for this) and run your hands over the paint covered brush to get fine spray.

If you're careful, you could even save the medical gloves covered in red paint once they are dry - use them as props!

Our curtain turned out great, and once it's dry it stays put and only started flaking off about 3 years later... and mostly due to the fact that I folded it up for storage and it's flaking from the folded line parts.

Spirit usually sells a gel blood, you have to heat it up and it drys as it runs, it has a nice 3D look/effect.
I use it every season.
http://www.spirithalloween.com/product/blood-gel/