Craft With Paper Mache Dolls

Fairy

Bend a pipe cleaner in half and twist the folded end into a 1/2-inch-long loop for the head of the fairy. Twist the two ends together and spread them apart about 1 inch from the ends to form the legs. Twist another pipe cleaner into a bow shape and twist the ends around the other pipe cleaner right below the loop for the head. You should now have the two loops of the bow on either side of the fairy for the frame of the wings, as well as the arms, which are the ends of the bow. Apply a layer of paper mache, allow it to dry and paint with acrylic paints.

Cut the bottom off a 3 1/2-inch-side Styrofoam craft ball so that it sits on a table without rolling. Cut a wooden skewer in half and pierce it into the middle of the top of the ball and stick a 1 1/2-inch-thick Styrofoam craft ball onto the top of the skewer. Twist a pipe cleaner around the middle of the skewer so that the two ends extend outward by 2 inches. The ends of the pipe cleaner are the arms of the princess, the skewer is the torso and neck, the bottom ball is the dress form and the top ball is the head. Apply the paper mache, let it dry and paint it. Drape a coffee filter around the ball for the skirt of the princess gown.

Wad up a sheet of paper into a ball and tape it on top of the head of a clothes pin with masking tape -- this is the head of the doll, while the clothes pin is the body. Cover the head of the doll with paper mache to make it smooth and even and let it dry over night. Paint the face and hair of the doll with acrylic paints. Wrap a 3-inch-wide by 4-inch-long piece of fabric around the doll just below the head and secure the ends together with a hot glue gun -- this is the dress of the doll. Clip the "legs" of the doll wherever there is a sturdy, narrow surface.

Sculpt the facial features of the head of the paper mache doll with air-dry modeling clay. Once air-dry modeling clay has dried for 48 hours, it will retain its shape. Sculpt a round or egg-shaped head with the clay and use a smaller piece of clay to make the shapes of the nose, lips and apples of the cheeks. Arrange the pieces on the face and blend the edges. Before it dries, insert the end of the wire for the neck into the bottom of the head to attach it. Wrap the wire form with paper mache and allow it to dry before painting the paper mache body and the clay head.