Monster Teeth

$15 - $20 (based on 2024 prices)

Makes one set of teeth

These monster teeth were a project I had intended to make for two haunts (the oddity display in 2019’s creepy carnival and a random specimen for 2020’s mad scientist laboratory), but they never came to fruition during either season. So, to jumpstart the builds for 2024’s haunt, I decided to finally check it off my to-do list.

• Three yards of steel wire
• One 6 oz. container of soft modeling compound
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat black*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat brown*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat orange*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat turquoise*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in glossy red*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in glossy white*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in metallic copper*
• One 0.44 oz. bottle of clear nail polish*
• One fake mouth from a dental play kit
• One 4” x 4” wooden plaque
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat black*
• One sheet of cardstock with medical labels printed on it
• At least four tablespoons of dark roasted coffee grounds
• One pan large enough to soak the cardstock
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue*

1. Cut the steel wire into twenty-six four-inch sections, fold them in half, and, using a pair of pliers, twist them together to form stands for the teeth. Although they will be trimmed down in step eleven, you want to make them long enough to give you ample room while painting the teeth during steps three to six.

2. Form the modeling compound into the shape of teeth, inserting a steel stand into the base of each one. It may help to consult a zoological textbook during this process to make them look more animalistic; however, you can form the teeth into whatever shape you want your monster to possess. Once this is done, insert the stands into a sheet of cardboard or Styrofoam to hold the teeth upright for the proceeding steps. 

3. Once the compound dries, apply several even coats of white paint to the teeth. I used two, but you may want more or less depending on your desired coverage. For the time-pressed haunter, this step can be bypassed by using white clay.

4. Give the teeth a smudging of brown paint. You do not want an even coat. Rather, you want a series of lighter and darker hues with areas of white still showing. I found that apply a small amount of paint to your thumb and index finger and rubbing it onto the tooth works well.  

5. To give the teeth more definition and additional rot, use black paint to fill in fissures and darken the area around the roots. If there were any cracks formed during the drying process, you can accent them with the paint.

6. Brush the teeth with one or two coats of clear nail polish to give them a glossy finishing that simulates enamel.

7. Hot glue the fake mouth open. You want the space between the upper and lower jaws wide enough to accommodate the teeth. Then, glue the mouth to the wooden plaque to form a display stand for the teeth.  

8. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, give the prop an even coat of black spray paint. Since this will become the base for the aged patina, you will only need one to two coats because much of it will be covered by the other hues.  

9. Starting with a stippling of copper paint, build up layers of orange and turquoise to give the stand the look of aged metal. How heavy you apply the patina depends on your aesthetic: you can go heavy for an extremely weathered look or light for a softer touch of age.  

10. Use the remaining compound to fashion upper and lower gums. It may work best to insert the teeth into them to ensure each one will fit before allowing them to dry (this is what I did, which is why there are hole in both items). Then, apply a coat of glossy red paint once the compound dries.  

11. Trim the wire short enough to fit into the gums and glue the teeth in place. Following this, affix the gums into the display.  

12. Add the coffee to twelve cups of boiling water. The longer you allow the coffee to brew, the darker the stain. Likewise, greater amounts of coffee will produce a richer stain. Since I wanted irregular spots rather than a unified discoloration, I placed the cardstock on a baking sheet, splashed coffee and grounds onto the surface, allowed the liquid to sit for a few minutes, and then moved it to a space to dry.

13. Cut out the dentes label and glue it to the stand. For an alternate look, you can create a specimen tag and attach it to the prop with a strand of twine wrapped around one of the teeth.

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.