What is Belly Casting?
A belly cast is a three-dimensional plaster sculpture of a woman's pregnant abdomen as a keepsake of her pregnancy. It can also be known as a belly mask, pregnancy belly cast, a pregnant plaster cast, or prenatal cast.
What is the process?
Bellycasts are made by covering the pregnant tummy with layered strips of wet plaster gauze. After setting for 20-30 minutes, the cast is lifted from the tummy and air dried for 24-48 hours. The bellymask can then be left in its natural state or decorated using any number of finishes or designs
Display ideas
Bellycasts can be mounted and hung on a wall, framed in a shadow box, placed on an easel or displayed on a shelf. They can also be turned into functional objects such as a bassinet when lined with sheepskin or a bronzed, decorative bowl. You can keep your belly mask in its natural, white form or paint, decoupage or embellish it with fabrics, ribbon, beads, etc.
Using your cast for photography
A different type of newborn photography is utilizing an exclusive craft called a bump bowl. The custom piece of art makes the photos even more special to families wanting to see in life what their baby looked like cuddled inside the womb.