The texture of dried paper mache is like store but finer thus carton-pierre which is sort of stone cardboard in French. Papier-mâché can be decorated to resemble stone, wood or metal, and is used as in various items used for decoration.

A paper mache project always begins with preparing the materials. For the base material, you may look for old pieces of paper. Old newspapers, computer paper or whatever used paper will do. Paper mache is very environment friendly. Tear the paper into long and short strips.

For your paste, add 1 cup of flour to 5 cups water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil for about 3 minutes. Constantly stir the mixture so that no lumps will form. After about three minutes, turn off heat and let the mixture cool. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl. The mixture should have a consistency like starch.

For the mold, you can look for any mold that you would like to use. If you decide to make paper mache boxes, then you may look for an old shoe box that you can use as a mold. Paper mache boxes are very useful, and very versatile.

Now if you have all three, you can now make your paper mache box project. First dip the strips of paper in the paste. Make sure that each strip is well coated. Squeeze excess paste so it does not drip and make a mess. Then place the coated paper strip on the mold. Smooth out any wrinkles and creases. You would not want any bubbles forming on your paper mache boxes. Continue this process until the mold is entirely covered. Try to place up to four layers of paper on your mold. This will make your paper mache boxes stronger when it dries. Set your project aside and let it dry. Drying takes some time, about a few days. Once dry, you can separate the paper mache boxes from the mold. You can apply another three to four layers of paper strips on your paper mache boxes.

The fun part of any paper mache project or this is finishing it off. Since your project is paper mache boxes, you don’t need to cut the paper mache from its mold. Try to pull out the mold from the paper mache. Once you have done this you can straighten the edges of your paper mache boxes using a pair of scissors or a cutter.

You can now paint your paper mache boxes with acrylic paint. Now painting takes a little of creativity, so think about how you plan to paint your paper mache box. And remember to paint in open areas. You might inhale the fumes from the paint. Enjoy making paper mache box. You can do this with family and friends.