How to (Make) Pick a Mandrake Root and Live to Tell About It!

I made this little Mandrake root for a good friend. I'm assured that keeping a mandrake root on your living room mantle will keep away spirits and demons. It's also rumored that if you put money near your mandrake root overnight, your money will double itself. Place the mandrake root under your pillow and it will instantly make you irresistible to whoever cuddles up next to you.

Things you'll need to complete this project:

Fimo air for microwave
(I used what was left over from the horn and antler projects)
acrylic paints in earth tones
paint brushes
Clear glaze or varnish
microwaveable bowl with water
microwave
clear dome
Styrofoam to fit the bottom of the dome
fabric (I used burlap) to cover the styrofoam
Piece of black felt
Hot glue gun and glue
Moss and dried flowers to decorate

Sculpt the rooty shape of your dreams. I made mine look very human in shape. It has arm and leg off shoot roots and a roundish head with one leaf. Either air dry or microwave the piece according to the directions on the package. Mine was microwaved for five minutes with a microwaveable mug half full of water.

Let the piece cool and then base coat it in a yellow colour. I used nickel azo yellow but any mustard colour will do. Let the piece dry.



Give the piece a wash of dark brown paint thinned out with a retarding medium. Use a damp cloth to rub the brown paint off of the high points of the root. Make sure to leave enough brown in the crevices to give the piece some interesting depth. Allow the piece to dry. Dry brush some white paint onto the high points of the root to make them stand out. Let the root dry again.



Paint the eyes in brown and the mouth in a brick colour. Paint the leaf with different shades of green. I added some glaze to the eyes and mouth so they look a little bit wet.

Cut a piece of styrofoam to fit the bottom of your plastic dome. (I got my plastic dome from my brother...... not sure where he got them...... you can use a round shaped vase or a bell jar, or even a round glass turned on end from the thrift shop.) Cover the sides and top of the styrofoam disc with some burlap or coarse fabric. Stick it down well with the glue gun. Add a disc of felt to the bottom to cover the rough edges.

Glue the root to the top of the covered disc and add some moss to make him look comfy.
I added some moss and little dried flowers to his hand because I thought it made him look friendlier.

What do you think?
Shouldn't everyone have their very own Mandrake Root?