• attach theatrical makeup appliances
• attach cosmetic prosthetics
• attach catheters

If you don't know what I mean by "cosmetic prosthesis", see the story under "buying".

The strength of the adhesive should be matched to the weight, size, and wear time of the prosthesis. If you are wearing a lightweight rubber thing, Spirit Gum or Liquid Latex might suffice; heavier items might require a stronger (and more expensive) adhesive.

• Availability
• Buying
• Gallery
  • Spirit Gum
  • Benzoin Tincture
  • Liquid Latex
  • URO-BOND II
  • Nu-Hope
  • Skin-Bond
• Other Stuff
  • Colloidion
  • Rubber Cement
• Usage
• Problems

Availability

Now, the only adhesives left are second-rate products. Your theatrical production will be poorer, movies are tougher to make, and victims of accident find it harder to cover their disfigurement. Thank your congressman.

Buying

The worst way to shop for prosthetic adhesive is to go to a pharmacy and ask for it. You will be treated to a puzzled stare, as if you had already glued on an extra head.

You can help them understand by phrasing it like this:

Let's suppose that I was in an accident and got my left ear cut off. Suppose I had a plastic ear made, allowing me to appear in public without the disfiguring scar where my ear once was. Where would I find an adhesive to attach that plastic ear?

Chances are that the clerk in the drug store will now brighten up and tell you that he knows exactly what you want, and they have no such thing. See why I suggested that you not go to a regular pharmacy?

Your best bet is to look in the phone book. Start looking under "prosthetics" or "prosthesis". If you find nothing there, try "medical supplies". And before you drive over, call them on the phone, tell you about your ear, and ask what they have in the way of adhesives.

Gallery

• Spirit Gum

  Spirit gum has a long history of use for attaching theatrical makeup.

  Basically, it is pine tar dissolved in alcohol. Spirit gum is watery in consistency, and varies in color from pale yellow to orange.

  Spirit gum is the cheapest and easiest adhesive to get.

  If you are planning to drink booze, avoid spirit gum; enough alcohol might come out in your sweat to make the prosthetic fall off.

• Benzoin Tincture

  I found a bottle of this "prosthetic adhesive" in a pharmacy. Since it was runny as water and yellow in color, I suspected that it was spirit gum. I questioned the pharmacist, who seemed to know his stock well. He told me it was benzoin tincture.

  Benzoin is another plant resin, so I would expect this material to have characteristics similar to those of "spirit gum".

  Benzoin has historically been used as an antiseptic. It should be fairly safe on skin.

• Liquid Latex

  Latex is another kind of tree sap, but instead of drying into a hard resinous mass like "spirit gum" and "benzoin", it turns rubbery.

  Some people are allergic to latex; ask befor using latex on them. If latex appears to provoke an allergic reaction, switch to something else, like a silicone-based adhesive.

• URO-BOND II (3.5oz/$39.98, circa July 2002)

  According to the package, URO-BOND II is a silicone-based adhesive using 1,1,1 trichloroethane as a solvent.

  The package bears the following manufacturer information:

    Urocare Products, Inc.
    Pomona, CA 91767-1931
  

• Nu-Hope Adhesive (3oz/$18.95, circa July 2002)

  I have tried this material. It works like a contact cement, and seems similar to rubber cement, but much, much stickier.

  The package bears the following manufacturer information:

    NU-HOPE LABS, INC
    Pacoima, CA  91331
    cat. no 2400
  

  
  

• Skin-Bond (4oz/$12.85, circa July 2002)

  This appears to be some form of rubber cement with hexane as the solvent.

  The package bears the following manufacturer information:

    Smith & Nephew, Inc.
    Largo, Fl  33773
    (800) 876-1261
  

Other Stuff

• Colloidion

  I haven't heard of this stuff being used recently, but it was a high-tech makeup effect in the 1930s.

• Rubber Cement

  Common rubber cement from the stationary store is not manufactured to go on your skin. Using it as a prosthetic adhesive is probably a bad idea.

  Despite the fact that numerous other prosthetic adhesives seem to be a form of rubber cement, the stuff made for office use doesn't work very well on skin.

  
  

Usage

All of them require that you start with a clean, dry skin surface. I recommend thoroughly washing the skin with soap and water to remove skin oils. Dry well.

I would also suggest placing the appliance on an area that lacks hair. If you put the appliance on a hairy area, removing the appliance will probably rip the hair out by the roots. If you must place the appliance over a hairy spot, shave it first.

Problems

Problems in putting on a prosthetic will reduce with practice. Check the instructions on the adhesive and the prosthetic, if any.

Removal is simplest if you don't have to worry about reusing the prosthetic, or if it is durable enough to withstand abuse. There are also solvents that can be used to disolve prosthetic adhesive. They cost about as much as the adhesive does, but may be worth it.

Problems in wearing a prosthetic come in two flavors: falling off, and allergies. If your prosthetic is falling off, either you did a poor job of applying it, you used the wrong type of adhesive, or did something incompatible with the adhesive (like drinking alcohol after using spirit gum).

Allergies are the big problem. Your prosthetic might look great, stay on all night, and leave your skin looking like it was roasted with a blowtorch. If you are allergic to the adhesive try another; latex allergies are common, switching to a silicone adhesive may help. You might also consider use of a "barrier cream". Smearing it on the skin before applying adhesive is supposed to protect the skin from irritation by the adhesive.

Thank you for visiting. Your comments are welcome.
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