August 2009

Paper Mache/PVC Didgeridoo

ShareThis handmade didgeridoo (didge, for short) was made with a 4′ section of 1 1/2″ ABS plastic plumbing pipe, covered with paper mache and then painted. I finished mine in one day. You buy the pipe at the hardware or plumbing store in standard 10′ lengths, so you will have enough material for two didgeridoos. [...]

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Elephant Sculpture – The Movie

ShareI wanted to do something just a little different today, so I created a how-to video showing the baby Indian elephant coming to life, from beginning to end. This big baby used several of the techniques you’ve probably already seen in other tutorials on this site, but this is definitely the largest project I’ve done [...]

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Oops, Elephant Needs a Bandaid…

ShareI was so excited this morning when I woke up.  This was the day that Elsie the Elephant would be finished. But dang -  it looked like she’d come down with some rare disease during the night. In five or six spots on her legs and tummy perfectly round areas about the size of a [...]

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Seattle’s Mystery Sculptor

A mysterious artist left a rather elaborate multi-piece paper mache sculpture at Gas Works Park in Seattle last night. The newspaper sent me an email just a few minutes ago to see if I knew who the artist was – which I think is rather flattering. Unfortunately, I don’t know who created this piece, which:

…consists of several pieces: a full-size gold-plated man standing on the waterfront surrounded by what appear to be shells, some with the heads of people emerging from them…

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An Artist’s View of the Health Insurance Debate

ShareUpdate, 9/27/09: If you support real health care reform, as I do, please take time to sign this petition and ask that the Senate pass the bill that passed Ted Kennedy’s senate committee. I know this is supposed to be a blog about paper mache – but paper mache has been used traditionally to make [...]

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My Next Paper Mache Project – What Should It Be?

ShareI’m waiting for the second-to-last layer of paper mache to dry on my big baby elephant so I can attach the ears and add the final “skin” of paper towels. (Paper towels looked very skin-like on my other hairless animal, the flying pig.) While I wait I’m trying to decide what I should work on [...]

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Paper Mache “Bronzed” Dog Portrait

ShareOne of my readers just posted a fully detailed and illustrated blog post, telling how she used some of the techniques shown on this blog to create a fantastic “bronzed”  paper mache portrait of a friend’s dog. In fact, she created a sculpture that is so lovable you wouldn’t be able to stop yourself from [...]

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Baby Elephant is Progressing

ShareMy paper mache elephant project got sidetracked temporarily by an Elizabeth George novel, and I’m now working at my computer because a yellow-jacket got a bit too interested in the paste. (I’ve already been stung twice this week, so I get a little nervous around the little beasts). But all in all, I think the [...]

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Baby Elephant Pattern to Download

ShareA reader asked me this morning for the pattern for the baby elephant I’m working on, so here it is. The sculpture isn’t finished, of course, so we don’t really know yet how it will turn out – but if you’re brave, you’re certainly welcome to the pattern. [edit - I made a video about [...]

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Next Progect – Baby Elephant Yard Sculpture

ShareMy house has run out of room for any more critters, even if they don’t eat or shed, so I’ve decided to be brave and try to make a paper mache elephant sculpture that will survive outside.  I’ll try to waterproof the paper mache with marine varnish, like I discussed in a previous post. Wish [...]

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Ideas for a Cheap and Affordable Artists’ Community

ShareUpdate – 9/22/2011: This is a rather old post, but if you’re interested in intentional communities, you can find the latest discussion about this subject at The Querencia Project. (It gives us more room for ideas and discussion). We hope to see you there. Original Post: I thought it would be fun to digress a [...]

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New Horse Sculpture – “The Old Gray Mare”

ShareThis sculpture was a  lot of fun to make. I worked off a sketch and exaggerated the features to emphasise the heavy bones of a typical draft horse. Then I spent a long time painting all those varieties of gray on the coat. The colors – dappled gray for the body and blond for the [...]

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