For your felted hats – I think paper mache hat stands would be a *fabulous* idea. They would definitely stand out from the run of the mill display stands you see everywhere. And in addition to getting people to check out your hats I am positive it would have the other crafters checking out the stands (and maybe asking could you make them one!) I think a lot of accessory artisans are looking for “something different”.

Incidentally, I don’t know if you are familiar with her work, but Gemma Taccogna was a gifted paper mache artist who also created busts – a link to some info about her (and her creations) can be found here: http://www.papiermache.co.uk/articles/gemma-taccogna/2/ (this is page 2 of the article which has more info about her process).

Hope you find it interesting and good luck with the display stands – thank you for all the info you provide on your site!

And that reminds me that you might want to look at the posts I made about the chimpanzee bust I made – the techniques would work as well for a human face. The first experiment in making a hollow chimpanzee bust is here. Once I knew the technique worked, I made another one, and the final chimpanzee is here. It was much easier than the Dionysus wall hanging, by far.

I’m getting ahead of myself, anyway – I will be starting small, having no paper mache or even sculpting experience. The idea was just so exciting. I will be picking up some Elmer’s and boiled linseed oil this weekend – I can’t wait to give paper mache a try!

If I did this today I’d probably do the entire piece in clay, including the frame, make a silicone mold, and then use the techniques I used for my recent cougar and hippo masks to create a thin plaster and paper pulp shell.

In other words, if I did this over I probably wouldn’t use any paper mache at all, and I definitely wouldn’t use the doll composition, which is too slick and difficult to paint. You’re giving me some ideas, though – this piece is actually one of my favorites, but the method I used to create it was so tedious that I never made another one to display with it. Maybe I should use the ideas I just gave you and go back and make another one – Artemis, perhaps?

I would love a full tutorial on this – I’ve been wanting to buy a small Grecian bust for jewelry displays at craft fairs – but even the faux ones are prohibitively expensive – I think there might be a way to prop this up on an easel, and drill holes in the frame for a necklace to drape – or, possibly complete a front and back to the bust (if I can get it to stand on it’s own).

Thank you for all the great information you have provided on your site!

I recommend using the crumpled paper and masking tape for armatures, instead of chicken wire. It takes a lot of effort to get the wire in the shape you want, but shaping the paper is easy. To make sure your paper mache people will stand up, you might want to tape their feet to a cardboard base, at least until the first layer of paper mache is dry. You might also want to consider using the Super Sculpey to form the features of the face, then add a layer of paper and paste, and dry the face under a hot lamp. (Not too close – you don’t want to burn down your house!) This will cook the Sculpey so you won’t have to remove it. You would need to make the features exaggerated so the details don’t get lost when the paper is added and the paint applied.

Be sure to let us know how your project turns out!