Few tips from my diary on the pepar mache:tutorial

hi

Dear All

The readers who has been following my posts on PM ( paper mache ) research( I should really call it casual exploration),knows that I have been writing about the Kashmiri pm crafts and few homemade recipes to achieve that porcelain smooth look...my exploration still continues...

here in this post I want to share some of the tips/Points ( that I have found during the exploration) if you want to get it "right " from the beginning...

I dont know if these tips will be helpful or not in your case ,but I will advice you to explore more..

please go trough my other posts ,if you find these tips "confusing",that will help you to co-relate


sanding must be done after the layer dries completely,and each layer should be sanded smoothly,then only next layer can be applied smoothly.this should be our process beause we dont have factory quality equipments at home,I am yet to try "file" that are used to smooth out metals ...sanding should be done in 3 stages ,gradually moving from bigger grain to finer grain..

to protect the surface craftsmen of Kashmir often use TISSU or butter paper ,as the final layer,in my experience ,it can give a good surface ,if it can be sanded again..

many artists boils toilet paper to the point ,and keep soaked a day or two before using,these extreme treatement often make the paper so creamy so that it could be squeezed through a strainer,people who don't have hand blender or a mixer ,can use this method,I am yet to do it.

I have read in Kashmir Pm craft ,cloth and saw dust are used,to make to bonding good,we can easily do it in our home.many foreign sites have used "wood filler" for their projects,I never found such thing in our local market ,actually we fill wood in a old-school manner,hence I had to use saw dust -it works

always use a pallet knife or a blunt knife-like object to smooth the clay out when its wet-the smoother it is from the beginning --you have less headache afterwards-like sanding.sanding can be a  very boring process,unless you use a electric sander,that's a luxury for me!

I had mentioned in my other posts that ,saresh -a laquare ,rubbery glue they use to join the cut -we can use our glue gun-it works

I used acrylic distemper in one of my project as final coat,Its thicker than the gesso,thinner than the putty,and its too runny,--now use your best judgement

Kashmir"s craftsmen,use a burnt brick or pumice stone,to sand the surface smooth-the pumice stone that I had ,was bought from a beauty supply store ,I must tell,it got sanded mode than it actullly sanded LOL!! i know pumice are soft stone ,but...anyway am not done with it ,one bad experience should not discourage me.


Remember I am a beginner,I may have made mistakes,hence your advice solicited.

after this experiment I have formulated another pm clay,I will talk about it some other time..

till then bye