Pre-packaged paper mâché
Last class several
people, including me, mentioned having pre-packaged paper mâché. Celluclay by
Amaco is one brand but Activa is another. These packaged products advertise
that you just need to add water and you end up with a paper mâché clay that you
can then mold into the shapes that you want.
I decided to put my
product to the test. I had one product
from my local dollar store and a package of Celluclay. I decided to give both a try. The dollar store product had absolutely no
instructions at all, so I used the ones that came with my other product and
decided to apply them to both. That
worked reasonably well, though the $store product seemed to require less water
or didn’t have any sort of binder in the product itself. When dry, my vessel felt more like a cast
paper product than a firm, papier mâché product. I would add glue to my water the next time I
use my $store paper pulp.
Basically, you add your
pulp to water and mix until you have a thick pulp and no air bubbles. You want all the paper pulp to be wet and to
have absorbed the water, but you don’t want it to feel sloppy. You want it to stick together in a ball, like
dough. I kneaded mine with my fist after
mixing it with my fork. I wanted my fibres to mix together and mesh. The Celluclay
gave precise measurements of water to pulp. I found that product dusty and
would recommend good ventilation or wearing a mask so that you don’t breathe in
the powder.
Video: Making the Pre-Packaged Paper Pulp Product
Once you have your
dough, you can prepare your mold in the same way that you have for your other
vessels and begin applying the paper mâché.
You will find that it is a bit moist and therefore does seem a bit
more susceptible to gravity. It will
also take longer to dry. If you plan to texture it in any way, it is best to wait
until it has begun to firm/dry up a bit before doing that. I waited several hours before planning and
working on my handle areas on my first vessel.
Video: Making a Vessel with Pre-PackagedPaper Pulp
My second experiment
with pre-packaged pulp was with Celluclay and that proved to be a little
firmer, though still not quite as firm as the DIY paper mâché. To be honest, I may not have been as accurate
in following the directions as I could have been but the vessel did seem strong
when released from the mold.
