Welcome to a new series I am making called Craft-in Chaos where each week I will be sharing a super fun and easy craft that is accessible for all ages and skill levels. Crafting is good for the mind, body and soul so lets get making!
Materials:
- Newspaper (cut into 1-2 inch squares/strips)
- PVA Glue
- Paint - Any colour
- Gesso- Optional
- Toilet Paper - Optional
- Water
-
Balloon
Tools:
- Paint Brush
- Scissors
- Pot for Glue
- Pen
- Bowl or plastic tub to hold the balloon whilst you work on it and for it to dry.
Instructions:
Step 1- Preparation
For this first step you're going to want to get all the materials and tools together so that you can save time in later steps by having everything ready to go.
For me that means, cutting the newspaper to strips of about 1-2 inches, the last thing you want to run out of is newspaper strips especially when you're covered in pva glue. (There is no such thing as having too many paper strips, if you cut more than you need right now, store them and keep an eye out for other crafts coming soon that will utilize them!) Depending on how prepared you want to be you can also portion out some PVA Glue in a sealable tub so that you can water it down when needed.
Step 2- The Balloon
Now we need to use the balloon, and yes you've guessed it, it does need to be blown up! When blowing up the balloon try to remember that you want it to be slightly smaller than the finished bowl as we’ll be working on the outside so the outer curve of the balloon will be in the inner curve of the bowl. During this step, I usually draw a line around the balloon that estimates the depth of the bowl that I want, as this lets me have an edge to aim for when applying the paper and glue.
If you have an aversion to balloons then you can find anything that has the right curvature that you want, potentially a bowl. Just make sure to cover it in a few layers of cling film so that you can get your bowl off the shape.
Step 3- The Fun begins 
This is where it gets messy, in the best way.
First you need to get the balloon sticky, paint a thin layer of PVA glue on the balloon (it will bead up on the surface of the balloon) this is to give the paper something to adhere to. Depending on the thickness of your PVA glue you may want to thin it down slightly, for example if its the consistency of mayonnaise (gross I know) then I would add a tablespoon of water to help it loosen up, but if your glue is the consistency of ketchup (specifically Heinz) then you probably don't need too, just make sure that you use actual glue and not a condiment.
Now apply some more glue and a strip of paper, this will take some glue to make it stick, make sure that you do a layer of glue underneath and on top of the strip as the lower layer sticks it down, the upper layer seals it. Repeat this until the top and sides of the balloon have been covered, with the paper strips overlapping. If you want to get clever you can try and make a nice straight edge that follows the line we drew around the balloon earlier but if not we will neaten it up later!
Step 4- The boring bit
Waiting… Unfortunately we do need to wait for the first layer to dry before we continue. But on the plus side as it's only the first layer it will dry fast! I usually leave mine overnight to make sure that it's as dry as possible before working on it again. If it's not dry before adding another layer it could trap the moisture making it more likely to damage and break when working on it in later steps.
Step 5- Groundhog day
For the next few steps it's actually a repetition of step 3, it's all about building up the thickness of the bowl. Now the first layer is dry, check over it to see if any areas are weaker or haven't dried flat, as we’ll need to glue these down and add some more strips to those areas. After any potential patching you need to do we can go ahead and a second layer, this will increase the strength of the bowl and help it keep its shape. As we already have a layer of newspaper under this we need to make sure that it doesn't get too wet, as that could cause issues later down the line. If needed you can use PVA glue that hasn't been watered down, I usually just make sure to keep checking with my hands how wet the paper is as it's easier to tell with your hands than with your brush, trust yourself you’ll be able to tell if it's starting to get too wet.
Step 6- The boring bit… Again
Patience is a virtue, which is great because by the end of this we will be really good at waiting for things to dry.
Step 7- A slightly different ground hog day?
This step is yet again a repetition of step 3 BUT with an exciting difference! We need to work on the inside of the bowl, that means removing it from the balloon. Scary and exciting all at once I know, but trust me it is actually incredibly simple. Some people can pop the balloon if they wish, but I personally hate the sound (plus I have cats who would not be happy) so instead I peel the balloon away from the paper mache bowl. Making sure the bowl is completely dry, place your hand just under the rim of the bowl on the balloon and squeeze slightly, you will be able to hear the balloon unsticking itself, rotate the whole thing and repeat, this will work the balloon off the inside of the bowl.
Now you get to add a layer to the side of the bowl so that it can be nice and sturdy, but also smooth.
Plus if you want to be really fancy you can add a rim to the bowl so that the edge is nice and neat. I do this by placing overlapping strips half on the inside of the bowl and folding them over and sealing them to the outside.
Step 8- Another Boring bit… The last one I promise!
Now the bowl is its own entity, it can fully dry on the inside meaning that unless any problems occur (which they shouldn't) the paper mache aspect is finished. Once it's fully dry it's time to decorate your creation!
Step 8 ½ - Optional Advice
So I know I just said that adding layers is done and it's time to decorate, well that's true. Kind of.
These are completely optional suggestions that are commonly done but are entirely up to you. As you may have noticed, newspapers have some interesting patterns on their pages which have now transferred to your bowl. We will be painting the bowl, however if you want to save paint or just get rid of the images then you can do either of these two things.
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Add another layer of papermache, but instead of newspaper use toilet paper, this will help disguise some of the images and additionally help strengthen the bowl. If you do this you will need the additional layer to dry fully, I’d advise doing it in two halves, the outer and the inner, just so the structural integrity is safe.
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Gesso the bowl, gesso is a common primer that creatives use to prime their canvas, it comes in all sorts of colours but most commonly its white. This will help remove the newspaper images and create a neutral base to decorate. It is a thicker paint that drys fast, I would advise to do this in two halves as well. If you use this it will need to completely dry before we decorate the bowl so that it doesn't lighten any of the colours you use.
Step 9- Decoration!
This step is the easiest for me to write about because it is entirely up to you! You can decorate this bowl however you would like.
Here is the picture of how I decorated mine
You can use colours, shapes, patterns, anything to create a bowl masterpiece. If you are having trouble coming up with ideas, I created this pinterest board of other creatives amazing artworks to give you some inspiration:
Once the masterpiece has been created, let it dry completely, then I advise you coat it in PVA glue to help protect the artwork. Once that layer of PVA is dry you’re all ready to use your bowl however you want!
Step 10- Use your bowl!
Enjoy your bowl, use your bowl, knock your bowl over when it's full, keep anything you want in your bowl.
Congratulations! You followed my tutorial on making a bowl, I said it would be easy didn't I! Plus we’re really good at waiting (somewhat) patiently now.
If you did create a paper mache masterpiece I would love to see it!
Please send it to me on Instagram, email or facebook @worldofthoodles
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