Styrofoam Carving

Definition of Centerpiece
- something in a central position, especially a decorative object or arrangement placed at the center of table.

Type of centerpiece

wood carving
flower management/ decoration
butter sculpture
styrofoam carving (thermocol carving)
ice carvng
fruits carving

History of Styrofoam Carving
    Stryofoam is a tademarked brand of closed-cell,extruded polystryrene foam currently made for thermal insulation and carft applications.It is owned and manufactured by the Dow chemical company.
     In the United states and canada,the word styrofoam refers to expended polystyrene foam,such as disposable coffee cups,coolers or cushioning materiall in packaging,which are typically white and are made of expended polystyrene beads.This is a different  material from theextruded polystyrene used for styrofoam insulation.The polystyrene foam used for craft applications,which can be identified by its roughness and by the fact  that it 'cruches' when cut,is moderately soluble in many organic solvents,cyanocrylate and the propeliants and solvents of spray paints,and is not specifically identified as expended or extruded.Another trademark for expended polystyrene is thermacol.
     In 1941,researchers in Dow's chemical Phycic Lab found way to make foamed polystyrene.Led by Ray Mclytire,they rediscovered a method first discovered by Swedish.       Foam is made by mixing a number of chemicals and adding a "gassing agent" that makes bubbles that make the plastic cellular. Foamed plastics are heated from within- the heat comes from the chemical reaction. When the block of foam has finished rising, it's called a bun of foam. Theoretically, there are as many different kinds of foam as there are different kinds of plastics. But practically speaking, there are only three families of foamed plastic used for sculpting.

Tips in styrofoam carving
- cutting
- sanding
- sculpting
- texturing
- cookie cutters
- curling
- painting
- gluing