These tips are generally for when you are adding layers on top of a structure to add stability / a solid surface. These tips might not work as well for using molds (like the old paper-mache-over-a-balloon trick) because that's not a technique I use.
- I know newspaper is common, but it has a waxy coating to repel water. Same with magazine paper and printer paper. The best material is brown paper bags. They have less coating, and can be much thicker.
- Tear your material into aproximately palm-sized sections first. Take a piece, soak it in your glue solution, and wipe/squeeze off excess. Crumple the paper into a tiny ball and massage the glue into the cracks.
- Prepare a couple of these, then take a single section and tear it into smaller pieces. For something with complicated surfaces, think as small as 1/4 inch.
- Learn how to find the grain of the paper. Just like fabric, there will always be one direction where it ripe easily. Rip along the grain to create long even strips, which will curve around complex shapes.
- Wet your surface with glue before adding strips.
- Avoid folding or wrinkling paper to fit around curves, if it doesn't lie flat, tear a smaller piece.
- Start with thicker paper for the bottom layer and thinner paper for top layers.
- Choosing slightly different shades of paper for your laters allows you to track which layer each section is on.
- When a layer is halfway dry (think of it like the "leather hard" stage in pottery) massage it with glue-soacked fingers. This will break down the sharp edges and smooth out the lines along curves. I also do this at the end after all layers are dry.