How to Make Paper Maché Clay (Super Low Cost)
My love for sculpting led me to explore a way to make clay for pennies. The best part is that I had everything I needed at home! Come see my new fascination; how to make Paper Maché Clay.
Paper maché clay is a versatile, easy-to-make medium that’s perfect for creating sculptures, masks, decorative art and anything you can imagine. Unlike traditional paper maché strips that needed many layers, this clay-like mixture offers a smoother, stronger texture that’s ideal for adding fine details and achieving a polished finish. Best of all, you can make it at home using just a few simple & inexpensive ingredients, no need to buy any Elmers or Pva glue!
Why Make & Use Paper Maché Clay?
- Smoother Finish: Allows for more refined, detailed work than traditional strips.
- Stronger Structure: Dries harder and is less prone to cracking.
- Flexible & Versatile: Great for sculpting, molding, and layering.
- Almost costs nothing; basic household ingredients, no glue needed to buy.
Ingredients for DIY Paper Mache Clay Recipe
Here’s what you’ll need for this recipe:
- 1 Cup of wetted toilet paper (50grams dry/250grams wetted)
- 1 cup of Homemade glue (recipe below))
- 1 cup of Cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons of mineral oil or baby oil (optional, for a smoother texture)
- 1 cup of joint compound or drywall compound (for added strength and smoothness)
Make your own Glue:
It is very easy to make your own glue and it works great to lower the cost of making your own paper maché clay.
Homemade Glue Recipe;
- 1 Cup cold water
- 4 Tablespoons of White Flour
- 2 Teaspoons of Cornstarch
- 2 Teaspoons of sugar
- 2 teaspoons of vinegar
Whisk together ingredients in a saucepan until there are no lumps. Once blended warm this flour mixture on medium heat (just to boil) & stir until thickened. Pour into a container and let cool.
Step-by-Step Instructions;
Step 1: Prepare the Paper Pulp
- Tear the toilet paper into small pieces. Weigh the amount dry.
- Place the paper in a large bowl and add warm water until it reaches the weight.
- Soak the paper and break it down with your hands until it turns into a pulp. (optionally you can use a blender)
- Drain the excess water by squeezing the pulp through a fine mesh strainer or cloth. Weigh again. Eventually you will get a ‘feel’ of how wet it should be.
Step 2: Blend the Mixture
- Add the paper pulp to a large mixing bowl.
- Add the Homemade glue (1 Cup) made previously.
- Knead or blend with a hand mixer or stick blender for a smoother texture. The paper fibres should get well interspersed with the glue.
- Use a spatula to scrape the bowl.
- Make sure the fibres are well mixed into the glue
- Add 1/2 cup joint compound to the mix.
- Add remaining 1/2 cup joint compound to the mix.
- Mix well by hand or with an electric mixer.
- Add the corn starch in sections and incorporate well. I do not use the mixer as it tends to fly out and is too thick for the mixer.
- Keep folding to incorporate the corn starch. Silicone tools are quite helpful.
- When it comes together and is less sticky start to knead with your hands.
- It may be messy but once the cornstarch is worked in it will get less sticky. Adding some baby oil (tablespoon) may help. I personally did not add oil.
Add more cornstarch and continue to fold over and knead…
Step 3: Use or Store for later use:
When it is holding it’s shape and forms a ball you can use it right away or store in the fridge for later use. It will eventually get mold if it is an extended time. (depends on introduced bacteria) You could consider some clove oil or other addition to help preserve it longer. I usually use mine up within a week or 2.
To prevent drying out place in a plastic bag and air tight container for storage. More corn starch can be added if too wet, similar to working with dough.
As a small test I made a little bowl, about 2 millimetres thick. After drying I could not believe the strength that it has! I have been won over and will be challenging this media in many many ways, I hope you join me!
The ornaments I made with Cold Porcelain Clay are wonderful but this material adds another element of strength and hardness.
I am already imagining a bunch of ideas and ways to use this sculpting material! I’ve done a lot of challenging concrete but this may be even simpler. Yes, there’s a lot of ways to adjust this mixture and it’s ingredients to your needs; making some unique possibilities! Most often there is a sturdy sub-structure or armature is used as a base for the clay layer. That layer can be applied with whatever tools work as well as fingers! Once dry more detailing can be added or finishing as desired.
Here’s a sneak peek! Yes, I made mushrooms, complete with textured stems and paper gills. If you want to be creative but do not have the budget then this is perfect – only limit is your imagination!
The paper gills are really a nice touch to these mushrooms…just amazing. The recipe makes me want to start thinking what I could make with it. Thanks Barb for all the inspiration once again.
I’ll have a post on this project soon, it was a good way to test! I also made a snail! The making is the absolute fun part; the digital work isn’t that much fun!
Hi Barb! This looks like fun and the mushrooms look amazing!! Any suggestions for drying the creations, and how long does drying take?
In my current projects and tests I used a thin wall or covered a base structure with a thin coat. It would not be advisble to make solid things as it would not get dry inside. It took over night to dry for me as I put them near the fireplace. I’ve got a few more uses of the clay that will amaze you…
My gosh , how did you make the mushrooms, brilliant,
I’ll be sharing that soon, don’t worry. It was just a lot to get written and posted for one week… ‘Just wait until you see them finished – amazing!
Barb, thank you so much for this tutorial – I absolutely love the “mushrooms”, very realistic.
I often wonder why certain things seem to resonate with me, maybe those mushrooms are on my radar from my early years in Germany and going mushroom hunting with my father! They have some great character that is fun to replicate – a nice relief from the news of the day…
Those mushrooms are a French Kiss. Perfection! There’s a lady named Jonni who has a YouTube channel called UltimatePaperMache. She mainly makes animal masks.. She developed a weatherproof formula of paper mache for outdoor sculptures that stood up to the elements over a years time.
I only mention it because your work is so incredible that a weatherproof formula might be useful to you.
Can hardly wait to see what you do next! 🙂
Yes, Jonni is great with the paper maché clay too! She is quite talented! I am looking to try the outdoor version very soon! We are still in winter mode here right now but I am excited. Since my concrete has been quite popular I will definitely try it. The PaperCrete I made has been outside for almost 9 years 100% in Canadian Winters!
Hi Barb,
Those mushrooms you made are so….cool! I love the detail. Are you going to try and make some Easter Bunnies? You can paint them I presume? You have such wonderful ideas, so creative.
Keep creating!
Linda M.
Thanks! I was just working on the full tutorial of the mushrooms! This media is great! Yes, it paints great! So far, no easter bunnies, but I am sure you could adapt the sculpting to make some! The post will be up soon! Enjoy!
You have been busy this Winter creating new projects! The paper Maché clay is inspired! Love, love, love the mushrooms. So much easier than using cement to work with!
I hope you perfect the water resistant clay since most places I would decorate would have moisture involved such as potted plants or outside.
Thank you for sharing your amazing gift!
I get quite excited when I am learning and discovering! I can only imagine what it’s like in my brain! Yes, so far I am quite impressed. My papercrete bird has been going strong for so long!
Hi, Barb. I found your site when I goggled diy cold porcelain clay to use with mosaics. I am working on a set of angel wings that I was originally going to use wediboard as the base and have the insulation foam shaped the same way but I would be carving/sanding each part of the foam to look like a feather that will then get mosaic-ed. But I was wondering if the cold porcelain or your clay could be shaped, dried and sanded first then could I glue my diy gold leaf tiles on it? It will for interior use only but there will be lots of humidity as my daughter lives in the South. Thank you for your help!
Sounds like quite a project! The humidity is the issue that concerns me. You will probably be hanging it on a wall and weight may be an issue. Styrofoam sounds like a better idea to me but then again I do not know what shape it will be. When I am not sure of a media I like to make a tiny piece that I can test against strength etc. Have you seen this post? You can also use the ‘contact me’ form
Thank you so much for your help. Each wing will be about 25″ so I will stick to the foam but at least now I know I can move forward with my project but use your clay recipe for another project.
You are welcome! I’d love to see the final result!