Papier Maché: Rough Bowl

This process involves 2 preparatory stages: 1) shaping and 2) the surface(s). Since the rough side may be inside and or outside, I discuss several methods for preparing the surface(s) below. The surface preparation methods that I cover here are as follows: extreme texture, subtle texture, smooth surface and crackled paint effect.

STAGE 1: SHAPING

• Tear roughly 3 oz of newspaper, directory pages or egg cartons into 1 square inch pieces and soaked these in hot water. This quantity of paper will makes roughly 1 large bowl.

• Make a very thick glue paste (with flour and water). Gradually add and mix in paper that you remove from the water. Do not squeeze the paper as you remove it (so as to give each piece of paper a better chance of making contact with the glue). Mix the paper into the paste as homogenously as possible. Set aside.
• If your bowl is large, make a layer of strips on the mold beforehand before using the torn bits. Without the strips, the bowl was relatively weak when it dried. Smaller bowls can do without strips.
• Boil flaxseeds and flour in water. Allow to cool into a stiff gel. If you do not want the gel to have seed chunks, strain the gel before it cools. When the gel is dry, it will be able to separate from a spoon only if flicked very vigorously.

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• Place the mold upside down.
• Grab handfuls of paper. Squeeze out excess liquid and then combine the clump with gel. Apply the mass to the mold. Do this as firmly as possible to remove air pockets. Start packing the paper from the bottom upwards so that you are building on lower levels.

• Allow the bowl to dry in hot sun.

STAGE 2: SURFACE METHOD 1 (Extreme texture & Strength)

• Inspect the dried bowl. If its surface is covered with holes, sharp edges and gaps (as pictured immediately below), use a paint brush to apply stiff gel over the surface to allow the gel to get into and fill crevices. 

This was the small bowl. The rough side was inside because, unlike with the larger bowl,  the paper was placed INSIDE the bowl. This smaller bowl was considerably stronger than the larger bowl. It did have a few pin-sized holes that can be seed when holding it up against the light. These holes were filled with the stiff gel.

• Before mixing the Plaster of Paris, have available the stiff flaxseed & flour gel
• Make a very thick mix of Paster of Paris and water as pictured below

• Below is a small batch that I applied to a test plate that was falling apart. As shown immediately below, mix the flaxseed & flour gel into the Plaster of Paris paste. 

• If you wish, add color at this point
• Apply the mixture to the surface with a brush. Mend broken or falling apart sections.  

 

• Place the bowl out in the sun to dry as thoroughly as possible



This is what it looks like when dry



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This also has crudely torn crepe paper. The surface was black and red. however, when it was completely dry, gold acrylic was lightly brushed over the top.

STAGE 2: SURFACE METHOD 1 (Filling holes & Smoothing with Plaster of Paris)

• Inspect the dried bowl. If its surface is covered with holes, sharp edges and gaps (as pictured immediately below), rub stiff gel over the surface to allow the gel to get into and fill crevices. 

This was the small bowl. The rough side was inside because, unlike with the larger bowl,  the paper was placed INSIDE the bowl. This smaller bowl was considerably stronger than the larger bowl. It did have a few pin-sized holes that can be seed when holding it up against the light. These holes were filled with the stiff gel.

Never use tape to patch holes unless the tape will be covered completely by another layer. Besides, it is best to fill the holes with gel before applying another layer.

• Place the bowl out in the sun to dry as thoroughly as possible
• Make a very thick mix of Paster of Paris and water to be painted on the outside surface. If you wish, add color at this point.

• Apply this paste to smooth out the rough surface(s).

• Egg cartons may have a smoother look. See what that looks like.
• See a very intensely textured surface below (from a different project). For this effect, combine the previous step with this one. To do this, combine the plaster of Paris and flaxseed gel for a very strong and rougher surface.

This is what it looks like when dry

STAGE 2: SURFACE METHOD 2 (Crackled Paint Effect)

• Inspect the dried bowl. If its surface is covered with holes, sharp edges and gaps (as pictured immediately below), rub stiff gel over the surface to allow the gel to get into and fill crevices. 
• Paint the base coat. This is usually a darker color (than the top predominant coat). Unless you want your base color to bleed, use a paint that is not susceptible to bleeding when the glue and second coat are applied. I think acrylic is ideal in this regard.

When the pain is dry, apply a liberal coat of glue.

Wait until the glue is partially dry. Its appearance will no longer be white. Additionally, it will still be 'tacky' and can be smudged to the touch. At this stage, apply the top coat with water color paint and allow to dry. FYI, Acrylic paint as a top coat was the only of several crackling experiments that did not work. I will therefore suggest always using water color paint as a top coat (and, unless you want a color bleeding effect, a paint that is not susceptible to easily bleeding when the glue and second coat are applied).

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STAGE 2: SURFACE METHOD 1 (Mash with crepe paper)

• Inspect the dried bowl. If its surface is covered with holes, sharp edges and gaps, rub mashed toilet and crepe paper into the crevices.
• To make this mash, combine toilet paper, flour, a pinch of salt and water. Additional options include paint, crepe paper, flaxseed gel and flaxseeds. This small quantity was sufficient for the small bowl, whose dimensions are 3 inches tall and 6 inches wide (diameter). Very little goes a long way as you will apply by pinching the mash into small thin patches that you press bit at a time onto the bowl's surface.

As an option, use the flour glue that remains in the mash mixing bowl to apply randomly torn pieces of crepe paper over the damp mash. This may be used for color variation.

Still wet

Still wet