There was a time when facehuggers were something you needed to avoid at all costs. The 1979 science-fiction horror film Alien made that very clear when one such facehugger attached itself to Kane and injected its eggs into him.
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So, you never would have thought that people will all of a sudden be keen on shoving a facehugger onto their faces to minimize the spread of COVID-19.
One of the latest entries to the “my mask is definitely much cooler than yours” competition is this intricately made leather facehugger mask as crafted by James of Pirate’s Leatherworks, with whom Bored Panda got in touch for an interview.
Why wear a boring cloth mask when you can have a realistic leather facehugger on your face instead?
Image credits: James, Pirate's Leatherworks
Meet James, a UK-based artisan leather worker, owner of Pirate’s Leatherworks, and a proud member of the guild of master craftsmen who has been making headlines with his leather facehugger mask.
The mask is extremely detailed: everything from the leg joints to the skin curvature to the scales on the tail realistically mimic the actual anatomy of the facehuggers as seen in the movie. The only difference is that the leather is of a brown color tone, whereas the beasties seen in the horror film are of a pale skin tone. Also very slimy. Eww.
Since face covering is now compulsory in the UK, artisan leather worker James decided to have some fun with it
Image credits: James, Pirate's Leatherworks
“The mask was made from a pattern I found on Etsy. As a professional leather worker and carver, I wouldn’t normally use bought patterns and was dubious about spending a whole £14 on myself, but I saw it and thought that it’s for me and I could have a laugh walking around the local supermarket with it on,” joked James.
Now, the mask you see in these pictures was his first facehugger mask. It took him around three days to make and it ended up consisting of 59 separate parts, all of which were meticulously sewn and formed to create a very realistic facehugger.
The pattern was created by LeatherHubPatterns, also found on Etsy, and you can get it here if you wish to make your own.
This face mask consists of 59 separate parts and is made of roughly 2–3 square feet of leather
Image credits: James, Pirate's Leatherworks
It took three days for James to create the first one, but later versions were done in just two
Image credits: James, Pirate's Leatherworks
“In total, you're looking at around 2–3 square feet of leather for each one. I’ve priced them to sell on my Etsy shop for £130 each (around $170), as I buy a pattern for each one I make (so that the designer gets something out of it too) and I’ve managed to get them down to two days per mask to make,” elaborated James.
He continued: “A lot of people have said they’re too expensive, but if I was to actually charge the price they would cost paying myself a decent hourly rate, they would be double the price. So, I have to work for as cheap as possible in order to get any orders and to compete with those making them as a hobby rather than a living.”
James prices them at £130 on his Etsy shop, which is around US$170
Image credits: James, Pirate's Leatherworks
Believe it or not, there are many who have ventured into making their own facehugger mask. Bored Panda has covered some of them, including one where a guy converted a CPAP mask to help him breathe during sleep and also this list of creative mask designs featuring several submissions of facehugger masks.
“So far, the public’s reaction has on the whole been rather good. A few people were taken aback and a couple were rather scared, but most don’t know the film Alien with it being made in ’79, but on the whole it’s been a good response, especially on the internet. I must admit, it has gone absolutely mental and I never thought it would be as big a hit as it has been,” explained James of his surprise with how much the internet enjoyed his creation.
"A few people were taken aback and a couple were rather scared, but most don’t know the film with it being from ’79"
Image credits: James, Pirate's Leatherworks
Even though this is James’ first endeavor at cranial accessories, he has a slew of very beautiful and intricately made wallets, bags, belts, journal and book covers, household items, and many other things made from leather, all of which you can find on his Etsy store. And if you’ve enjoyed his work, you can also follow James on Facebook and Instagram.
Turns out, facehugger masks are now a thing and others already made their own as well
Image credits: Jared Gray
Image credits: Unknown
Image credits: Cristina Rodo
What did you think about this? Where would you go with a mask in the shape and form of a facehugger to scare unsuspecting people? Let us know in the comment section below!