Joined in 2023 
82 
63 About this deal
If you want to sculpt large pieces, and especially if you want them to be light enough to hang from the ceiling, her methods will be invaluable. You can utilize her method of creating a strong, hollow inner form, even if you don’t think you can create the skin the way she does, (and I’m pretty sure I can’t). One possibility that I’ll be experimenting with is to create the inner form as she recommends and then cover the hollow inner form with crumpled paper and masking tape to fill out the muscles and features. This feels more intuitive to me. The crumpled paper can then be covered with either paper strips and her glue formula, or my paper mache clay. This method should create pieces even lighter than Dan Reeder’s hanging monsters, (and way lighter than my baby elephant, who weighs in at over 40 pounds), and there’s nothing to prevent someone from mixing the two methods to create an entirely new technique.
I then started to attach the lights to each room. I needed to get all this completed and all the wiring in place to start on the outside of the tree. By 1860 papier mache production had reached its peak. England was still producing a lot of wares, while still importing vast amounts from China. The market became saturated leading to a decline in popularity. Competition from new materials helped the papier mache industry die a death. The final British manufacturer, McCallum and Hodson, closed in 1920. This is a fun tutorial guide for all ages to making and styling papier mache sculptures. I liked the book's logical layout and the author's easy to understand writing style and instructions. It includes a good introduction with chapters covering tools and supplies, basic general techniques, and finishing instructions. The following chapters include 13 really appealing and colorful projects. The tutorials each have a description, tools and materials lists, and step-by-step instructions accompanied by clear full color photos of each step.You’ve heard that people who carve sculptures out of stone often say they’re “liberating” a figure that they see in the stone. They feel they’re letting the figure out when they chip away the excess material. Inuit sculptors are rather well known for making this statement about their sculpting technique.
Note: It is not a good idea to let children use wallpaper paste in case they put their fingers in their mouths.First of all, I was immediately attracted by the whimsical characters on the cover. If you like the cover, too, then you will LOVE the contents. Cling film (this will not leave any residue but may leave a slightly crinkled texture on the papier mache) With the outside covered, I started thinking about the windows and doors. Firstly I had to make sure that the large opening outside doors still fitted. This was a little bit of a nightmare, and I had to add some ModRoc to them to make them larger. I had originally intended them to fit perfectly in the space, but then realised that it would make them very difficult to open. Please note that on the photo the doors are only balancing on the tree. Boxes are soooo much fun to make. Let your imagination tell you how to make your box. Try one really original cookie box from scratch and sell it for a special price. It can be in the shape of a cookie or a cookie jar, etc. Get the picture? It doesn't have to be square or rectangular. It can be whimsical and ornamental. You can enjoy painting it with variations on a theme simply by changing the colors or adding a few chocolate chips. I mention that right at the top of this review because most books on paper mache are written for a younger audience, and include step-by-step how-to instructions so you can make specific projects that will end up looking exactly like the ones the author made. However, Monique’s book will not show you the specifics of how she built that fantastic creature on the front of her book. She assumes the reader is a sculptor, with a mind already filled with creative ideas about projects the reader wants to build. She trusts you to absorb her methods into your own work.
My new idea came when my husband's beloved bonsai tree died. He was very upset about this, but all I could see was a little dead tree that I could use. So, if you are looking into investing in a whole new hobby and you got the money and the means to do so, I would definitely recommend this book to start your projects! Fun projects, easy to follow, and tons of cuteness! Her method of preparing sculptures to hang, including the way she reinforces her work and how she installs the wire hangers. The result of her method is a very strong, highly detailed sculpture that is almost completely hollow, yet amazingly strong because of the geometric shapes inside the sculpture, the type of glue she uses instead of flour and water paste, and her method of building up shapes with the paper mache.Because I can’t see a finished sculpture so clearly in my mind as she does, I would not be as successful using her complete method. However, there are many things in her book that I’ll be including in my own work, especially the larger pieces that I’ve been thinking about lately. One thing I’ve noticed is that every book on paper mache has something in it that can be incorporated in my own work to make the process easier or stronger. (For instance, I used some of Dan Reeder’s methods to build my bobcat and lion cubs, but they don’t look anything like his monsters.) This was a lightbulb moment when I thought "wouldn't it be great to make a Faraway Tree along with all the characters." So my mind was made up in a split second! It is advisable to prepare everything before starting. Firstly, tear the newspaper into strips about an inch wide by 4 inches long. This is only approximate. Tear the paper with the grain. My first task was to work out what I was going to use for the Slippery Slope Slide that would run down the middle of the whole tree. I looked at tubes, pipes, guttering, and researched a whole manner of different objects. The problem that I would have is that none of them were flexible enough, or they were too narrow for a small doll to slide down. I finally settled on an extending tube that is made for hamsters or rats. This was bendy enough and wide enough for a doll. So with that worked out I started to assemble the house.
I received an advanced review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley, and here are my thoughts. As it was Silky's window, and after the door I had made, I decided to make some sort of butterfly stained glass window. The window frame itself is made out of cardboard. I traced out a butterfly shape at the top of it. I used some coloured plastic sheet as the glass, and decorated the butterfly with a few beads used for nail decorating. I again used fake leaves to surround the window and attached a few apples and small roses to the branches. Papier Mache lived on in America more as a craft form rather than a manufacturing material. Women started to make useful and decorative household objects. In the 1960’s a bit more papier mache interest was injected by a New York artist called Gemma, who while working with her husband in Mexico managed to stir up a lot of interest amongst Mexican artists who were inspired by her work and later even taught by her. This is despite Mexico’s long history of using papier mache for festivals and traditions, which are still going on today.
When you have decided which glue to use, the next thing to do is to decide what to make. To start is it advisable to use something to mould on. Make up a bowl according to the manufacturer�s instructions. Use a little less water than recommended if preferred. Keep in an airtight container. It will keep for several days in a fridge or a cool place. Wallpaper paste has the advantage of containing a fungicide to prevent mould. Monique seems to see things in a third way that I didn’t know about before. She creates hollow inner forms that will fit inside a finished sculpture, and then “draws” the actual skin of her sculptures in thin air. I can’t explain how she does this, although she shows the method very clearly in her book. The reason I can’t explain it is that I don’t personally have the ability to see the way she does. Instead of “liberating” a figure out of a solid piece of stone, she forms the shape of a figure that she sees in empty space. It’s a remarkable ability, and one I wish I had. And you probably have EVERYTHING you need to get started in papier mache already in your house. If you have flour or cornstarch, cardboard, foil, a utility knife, masking tape....things along those lines are all you need to get started. The projects and finished objects are simple, folksy, and primitive (in a good way). The techniques taught in the book could of course be utilized to create finished objects of whatever style the crafter wishes.
Great Deal 
New Comment