Finally!
The last date of my year end exams was 18th May. I went to the library on 19th where I found an interesting book on papier mache, the fun craft we did when we were kids! I was so intrigued by those wonderful illustrations and the easy to understand guide to do everything related to papier mache (The Art and Craft of Papier Mache by Juliet Bawden), I decided to have fun with this craft this vacation!
I guess I started on 20th May, with a basic experiment in mind. First I wanted to make sure if I could create something that's strong and sturdy, using the right materials and what kind of stuff I could make. So, I started with a shoe-box and used the layering method. Being the careful freak that I am, I used a generous 8 layers over four solid days (it takes time because each layer has to dry before we can apply the next. And oh, also because I'm a lazy bug who went on a 'reading' break after pasting each layer, with each break lasting longer than it should! :P). Then I left it to dry completely so that it gets really hard and unbreakable. Maybe a week more!
Then it was time to remove the shoe-box and have the solid paper in shape. Thankfully, the shoe-box came off easily, but the layers were so dry that the newspapers were peeling off! Not wanting to waste my ten days worth of time and effort, I put in glue wherever required and for good measure, added another layer, this time with light tissue paper and kept it to dry for another four days! I got around to the decoration part today, when the boredom seemed to be crossing its danger line, so I collected everything required and began with it. Three hours into it and here's the result! :D
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| The front view |
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| The side view... |
I'm very happy with this result, primarily because it's my own design! I mean, there wasn't a mention of a shoe-box in the whole book! I had the shape ready and solid, but didn't know what to do with it. What to make of a shoe-box shape? A tray? Nah! This idea just came from nowhere and I liked it. Initially it looked like this:
Then, since I would have had to get up, switch on the laptop, then wire in the internet to look for a design, I totally gave up the idea of Googling. All that effort for a design? When will my brain be of any use? I sketched a rough design in a notebook and went with it, not bothering with more designs to choose from (see how lazy I can get? :|) But then, I liked the idea of bold shapes and colors and a demonic face and it turned out so cool, so I forgive myself! Laziness can really bring out your creativity, right? ;).
The design was made with a pencil, then colored with poster colors and this was the shoe-box-shaped-my-first-papier-mache-art-object-of-this-vacation!
It looked as if something was missing, so I added even more 'boldness' to it by outlining the features with a black felt tip marker! Then it was all done! :) Tell me what you think of it! And oh, if any of you decide to create something yourself, don't use tissue paper as the last layer, like I did, because it gets all crumpled up and the surface isn't smooth. But of course, if you're wanting something that will look good with a rough surface, use it! Though using markers would be tough too, because of the surface being uneven. I'll be using computer paper for the last layer next time. :)
Apart from the wall hanging thing, I thought it would suit me well. You know, bring out my personality if I wore this as a mask so that people know how I really am from the inside ;)
It was just fun! I had thought waiting for days to let it dry would leave me dry, but with so many books to read (yay vacation!) and the sense to start with another object for this craft, it didn't matter much. I love the end result so it's alright! :D
