Paper Mache Clay
Paper Mache Clay
A few months ago I developed a new recipe for a sculptural material I call “paper mache clay.” This material is so easy to use and so easy to make that I now use it exclusively for all my paper mache sculptures.
It might be a bit more accurate to call this material “home-made air-dried cellulose-reinforced polymer clay,” but that’s way too hard to say (or type!), so for now, let’s just call it paper mache clay.
I’ve been making paper mache sculptures for over 50 years, and for almost all that time I’ve used the traditional paper strips glued together with wheat flour paste over a crumpled paper and masking tape form. Almost all the tutorials on this site are made this way.
However, I now use the clay recipe exclusively, because it allows me to create fine details easily, it dries extremely hard when applied in a very thin layer (1/8 to 1/4″ thick) and the clay dries much faster than traditional paper mache pulp. (And it only takes about 5 minutes to make).
Paper Mache Clay on Snow Leopard Sculpture
As you can see above, the clay can be modeled into fairly fine details. Using the clay for modeling feels much more intuitive than creating sculptures with paper strips and paste, and once the clay is dry it is a pleasure to paint.
The ingredients are inexpensive, and can be found at your local grocery store and hardware store. You will need:
- Cheap toilet paper (one roll per quart of clay)
- 1 cup Joint compound from the hardware store (get “regular,” not “fast set” or “light”.)
- 3/4 cup Elmer’s Glue-all
- 1/2 cup White Flour
- 2 tablespoons Linseed Oil
See the video below for details on making your clay. And if you try this recipe, please let us all know what you think of it–and also please share a photo of your finished work. We’d love to see how it comes out. (Can’t see the video? See the instructions printed below).
Making Your Paper Mache Clay
Ingredients:
1 roll of toilet paper
3/4 cup of white glue (Elmer’s glue-All)
1 cup of joint compound
1/2 cup white flour
2 tablespoons linseed oil
Tools:
You’ll also need a large bowl, (use one with high sides so you don’t splatter clay on your cupboards), an electric mixer, a measuring cup and a tablespoon measure. To keep t he finished clay from drying out, you’ll need an air-tight container. The recipe makes approximately 1 quart of paper mache clay.
Note about Toilet Paper:
Unfortunately, the people who make toilet paper don’t expect us to turn their product into great works of art, so they see no reason to include the kind of information that would make things a lot easier for us.
I use a brand called “Angel Soft,” in the “regular” 2-ply rolls. I buy it at my local Wal-Mart. Each roll contains approximately 1 1/4 cup of paper, which I measured by wetting the paper, squeezing out the water, and then firmly squishing it into a measuring cup.
Since brands differ so much, the first time you make this recipe you should take a few minutes to find out how much paper is in the first roll. Then adjust the recipe if your brand don’t contain about 1 1/4 cup of paper. Fortunately, this is not a chemistry experiment or rocket science–if your mixture contains a little more paper than mine, or a little less, your sculptures will still be stunning.
Step 1. Fill a high-sided bowl with warm water. Remove the toilet paper from the roll and throw it into the water. Push down on the paper to make sure all of it gets wet.
Step 2. Then pick up the paper and squeeze out as much water as you can. Pour the water out of the bowl and put your paper mass back in.
Step 3. You will want to break the paper into chunks about 1″ across. This will allow your mixer to move around the pieces and break them apart.
Step 4. Add all the ingredients to the bowl and mix, using an electric mixer. The mixer will pull the fibers of the toilet paper apart and turn it into pulp. Continue to mix for at least 3 minutes to make sure all the paper has been mixed in with the other ingredients. If you still see some lumps, use a fork or your fingers (with the mixer turned off!) to break them apart, and then mix some more.
Your paper mache clay is now ready to use. It will look a bit like cookie dough—but don’t eat it!
If you don’t plan to use your clay right away, place it in an airtight container to keep it from drying out. The clay should stay usable for 5 days or more, if you keep it covered. The recipe makes about 1 quart.
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Hi! Just wanted to mention that glycerine is used in some icing recipies or is used to thin out food coloring paste, so you can find it at places like Michael’s that sell cake decorating supplies.
Love the clay recipe, hope to give it a try!
Joan
Bonjour amoureux du papier mâché!
Here’s some pics of my work in progress. It’s a Pepakura model (which I modelized myself) partly coated (only the botton for now) with Jonni’s magical paste (!). Like I said on another post, I want a straight and smooth finish for this one. So I have a good amount of sanding to do afterward (it’s very pleasant to sand I must say) and the wet knife technique works well to prepare the surface.
Voilà!
Simon
It’s really turning out great! Excellent modeling of the complicated shapes. I can’t wait to see the finished piece.
It’s so fun to see what others are doing and hear how,etc. And all due to you, Jonni!
I am a few months pregnant and was wondering if this recipe is safe for me to use? Any help guys
You would probably want to leave out the linseed oil (maybe use glycerin instead, since people do ingest the stuff for medicinal purposes.) You can see our discussion of this substitution in the comments above. Also, you’ll want to avoid sanding your sculpture, or use a good face mask if you do sand. That’s the advice I give everyone, since fine dust particles aren’t good for the lungs.
And lastly – if you’re concerned about the safety of any art material, home-made or not, you should ask your doctor. You’ll find health info listed on almost every product sold, so be sure to read them carefully, and take the labels with you when you go back for your next checkup.
Of course, the traditional paper strips and paste can be used by anyone, as long as you use flour paste instead of wallpaper paste, which contains a fungicide.
Linseed oil is flaxseed oil. It is non-toxic. In fact, flaxseed oil is recommended as a supplement for pregnant women (but I wouldn’t drink the non-food-grade stuff). It is different from castor oil.
But the boiled linseed oil from the hardware store does have additives that are not edible. I use it all the time, but I’d be careful about using it with a project with young kids. And you don’t need to – the clay recipe works just fine without it.
My son has a school project due in 3 days. He/we are making a swordfish. Do we have enough time to let it dry completely. Should we use the paper mache clay or just plain p/m? Any suggestions on how to do it?
Any help is much appreciated!!!
Geri Forkum
Hi Geri. In my experience, the clay dries a bit faster because you only need one layer instead of five to eight of the paper strips and paste. You didn’t mention your son’s age, but I do like to remind people that the clay recipe isn’t edible, and you’ll probably want to leave out the linseed oil if a young child is using the clay. (Read the comments about using glycerin instead, or try Bob’s idea of using Karo syrup. Or just leave out the oil and don’t bother to substitute anything for it – the clay will still work fine.
I’d suggest you mix up a batch of clay in the morning, if that’s what you decide to use. Or use paper and the least amount of paste that will keep the paper stuck on. I assume the armature is already done. Put on a thin layer of clay or three layers of paper and paste, and then sit the piece in front of a fan. Turn it around occasionally so you get all the parts dry. You may be able to paint it the next morning.
Good luck! And please let us see the swordfish when your son gets it finished – we have a new page now just for showing off artwork.
HI
love the website
just a few questions if I may. I live in the UK and need to look for equivalent UK materials, “white glue (Elmer’s glue-All)” is this a PVA based glue?
” cup of joint compound” not quite sure what this is, is it a white powder filler such as Polycell Polyfilla ?
thank you in advance
Karen
Hi Karen. According to some of our UK readers, you can find joint compound under the term “joint filler.” (For a full list of terms for joint compound sent in by readers, click here and scroll down the page). I use the pre-mixed joint compound, but it does come in powdered form, too. If you use the powdered version, you’ll need to experiment with the recipe, so you don’t add too much water.
I don’t know what brand of glue will work if Elmer’s is not available, but any PVA glue should work just fine. Buy the smallest bottle you can find, and try it. (and if you find a brand that works well, please let us know!)
I just wanted to know if you could tell me what kind of joint compound you use.
I use the pre-mixed kind that comes in a plastic tub or box. I haven’t tried the lightweight joint compound, but my dad used it in the recipe and it worked just fine. However, you definitely do not want to use the fast-setting joint compound, which contains plaster. It will get hard right in your bowl.
Update on project: The dissertation I shredded [very therapeutically, I might add] and turned into a paper mache form with embedded lenses in the lid turned out very nicely and got into a juried show, The Text and Its Discontexts, to be held in September in Towson, MD, USA.
Thank you again for this incredibly helpful site and the community of people here all sharing their experiments!
I assume the dissertation was yours? I love that! I bet it was therapeutic!
How did you so neatly set the lenses into your pm?
Good luck with the show!
Yes indeed, it was mine; and it’s twenty years this fall since I started collecting the data. Now I hear that one of the people I interviewed just had her own Ph.D. student defend a thesis and graduate!
The lenses are held in with sculpted epoxy, but all I had to hand was the 5 minute kind, which didn’t allow for a lot of shaping. Next time I’ll get the stuff actually meant for creative projects, as opposed to stopping up leaks.
My paper mache mix used a heaping spoon of methylcellulose powder, in half a cup of water, then a quarter cup of joint compound, a handful of Sculpta-Mold, a tablespoon of flour, and some PVA glue. It had a nice gloppiness to it, and didn’t obscure the words of the shredded document too much. To prop the “book” lid open, I used the joint compound over some bookbinding mesh, then put a layer of paper mache over that to hide the joins.
Inside the “box” section of the “book”, I put sample of all the formats the text has ever inhabited, along with finer shreds of material, then put a fresnel lens over the top.
I was just curious how you would prefer to apply the paper mache clay? If you didn’t necessarily need details but just needed to cover something would you use your hands or a rubber spatula or knife?? Also, how thick do you suggest putting it on?
I use a knife, usually a slightly damp knife, because it lets you get a nice smooth surface on your clay. Also, the clay is kind of wet and sticky, and I don’t like getting it all over my hands. The knife definitely works best for me, but you might want to experiment a bit. I put on a very thin layer for small sculptures, as thin as 1/8 inch. If the armature is fairly tight and strong, you don’t need more than that. If the sculpture will be hollow, with no armature supporting it, you’d want at least 1/4 inch and probably more. Play around with it and see what you think.
Hi Marija!
For me, the best way to spread pm clay is to take a relatively small amount of clay, make a sort of pizza paste with my hand, plug it on the surface and make sure that all the clay is in contact with the underneath surface. Then you take a wet butter knife and smooth it untill it looks good. You don’t have to put much clay to get an hard coating (about 1/8 – 3/16 of an inche). The tricky part is keep the thickness event.
Wow! This looks like a really cool technique. I’m still fairly “new” to papier-mache (in terms of how many projects I’ve completed). I’ve been using paper strips and an elmer’s glue/water mixture for my pieces, but I’m going to bookmark this page and hopefully give it a whirl soon–thanks for sharing it!
Is linseed oil dangerous? I saw glycerine being recommended as a substitute. If you substitute glycerin for the linseed oil, is it in the same proportion?
Boiled linseed oil does have some drying chemicals in it that makes some folks nervous. It also has to be stored properly, and that makes some people nervous, too. I’ve substituted the glycerin in the same proportions, and it worked great – it would be a better choice for school projects, I think.
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