Jewelry Lovers

Papier-mâché literally means chewed paper. It’s a crafting technique that requires you to take a basic form (like a foil ball, a balloon, chicken wire form or just about anything else) and cover it with a mixture of paste and sculpting medium, usually newspaper. Papier-mâché is great for making lightweight sculptures and other items like beads and pendants.

Papier-mâchè is one of the mucky, goopy creative memories of childhood. Maybe you covered an air filled balloon with papier-mâchè to create a dinosaur egg, a planet, or your own face. Today, you and your kids can use that same formula and process to create beautiful jewelry sensations.

Making papier-mâché for jewelry design

Because you have to let the papier-mâchè creations dry, you need to plan ahead for finishing your projects. You can craft the beads one day, paint them the next, and string them the following day.

Here’s the basic papier-mâché recipe for beads:

1. Combine one part white glue with one part water.
2. Mix together until smooth.
3. Use small strips or tiny pieces of newspaper, recycled computer paper, or other paper to use as your sculpting medium.

For a pulpier version, soak the newspaper overnight in warm water. Make sure you squeeze all the excess water out of the newspaper before adding it to the glue and water mixture.

We recommend this recipe for bead making, because it dries faster and has a harder, glossier finish than the traditional flour and water recipe. You can also buy commercial papier-mâchè mixes at your local crafts store. Most mixes just require you to add water and give you specific drying times for their mixes. Look for names like Activa!, Celluclay, and Claycrete for instant papier-mâchè mixes.

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