One way to make a puppet head
The Firlefanz Puppets

The Rhinoceros puppet heads were sculpted in plasticine clay (1), then covered with a layer of marine epoxy and thin cloth strips (2). When that hardened, the shell, clay and all, was cut in two (3), and the clay was removed. The halves were epoxied together again and smoothed with a dremel/drumsander and then painted (4). This method is a lot of trouble! But it does make a light and durable shell. Click photos for more info.
Making hands
 One way to make hands is to carve them out of rigid foam.
Click for info:

Hand Puppets
I'm no expert, but these came out pretty well.

For the heads I used the same epoxy and cotton over plasticine method as above, only a lot smaller and thinner.
1) The clay sculpture. 2) The cotton epoxy wrap and smooth. 3) Cutting the shell. 4) Ready for gluing back together. 5) Base coat. 6) Finished shells. Click the pictures for details.

A (frog) hand puppet with moving eyes, mouth, and tongue!
Click the pictures for details.

The rhinoceros helmet/masks
Click the pictures for details
The Rhinettes. There were eight rhino helmet/masks used in front of the stage plus one smaller one made to fit over Jean's head for his transformation scene. They're made very simply of burlap and West System epoxy over a plasticine mold.
These instructions are pretty specialized, rhino masks, but this technique is so great for making any kind of big rough masks.
A chicken foot base for a theatre
Click the pictures for details
I had the idea to make a small theatre that would stand on a chicken leg. Click on the pictures for a step by step.
The Man at the Controls
The Man at the Controls. Here are some shots of this project. Click pictures for details.