Hello, fellow ceramicists! This is a quick tutorial on adding paper pulp to kiln-fire earth-based clay (eg, porcelain, b-clay, terra-cotta, white stoneware, etc.).
Why add paper pulp to your kiln-fire earth-based clay?
- The paper pulp fibers strengthen your piece, which means you can build thinner, taller pieces and create stronger joints.
- The paper pulp burns out in the kiln, which leaves your creation lighter than a piece made of clay alone.
- You can add wet and dry pieces together (whaaaat?!).
Supplies:
- Plaster container (plaster is an aspiring vampire and sucks moisture from clay -- I cast one in a rubbermaid container to suit my needs)
- Cheap single-ply toilet paper (that terrible SCOTT brand 1-ply toilet paper no one would ever actually want to use is my favourite paper pulp)
- Small bucket or mixing container (this will hold the shredded paper and water -- I personally use one of those plastic trick-or-treat pails)
- Large bucket or mixing container (this will hold the paper pulp mix and clay -- the Home Depot five gallon Homer buckets are my go-to)
- Immersion blender (don't raid your kitchen for this -- get a separate, inexpensive hand mixer like this one for your clay work)
- Cup for measuring (this doesn't need to be an actual measuring cup as this requires easy part-to-whole ratios -- but again, have a container specific for your clay work and don't raid your kitchen)
- Plastic bag to store finished clay once done.
Steps:
1) Shred a few handfuls of the 1-ply toilet paper into tiny pieces.
2) In your small bucket/container (trick or treat pail), add one part shredded paper to two parts water and blend with submersion blender to create wet paper pulp (aim for wet porridge consistency).
3) Pour porridge-like wet paper pulp into cup for ratio measuring and dump one full measure into larger bucket (Homer bucket).
4) Tear clay into small pieces and fill previously used measuring container to the same height as the paper pulp mix. You will do this three times (75% clay to 25% paper pulp mix).
Side note: I like the one part paper pulp to three parts clay mix, but you should experiment and see what blend works for you and your work after you've tried this out once).
Second side note: I make my paper clay in small batches because adding the organic component (the paper) to the clay means the clay will grow mold if left alone over time. Make as much paper clay as you'll use quickly to avoid mold colonies. Not that it's the end of the world if you do end up with mold. Easy fix: if your paper clay does grow mold, adding a bit of bleach will get it back to less gross functionality. You can also add bleach during this stage if you want to pre-empt the potential mold.
5) Add the small pieces of clay to the Homer bucket. Once you have your three parts clay to one part paper pulp mix, begin to blend pieces together by hand. (Squish, squish, squish!)
6) Continue to squish pieces together until you have few large chunks left and you've reached an almost slip-like consistency (thick soup). You want it to be as smooth as you can get it by hand before you go in with the submersion blender to help keep your blender's motor from burning out.
Side note: if your mix is still too thick and the clay too chunky, add water until you get a workable mixture. You won't hurt your mix by adding more water -- it will simply take a bit longer to dry out when it's in the plaster container.
7) Blend the clay paper pulp mix with the submersion blender until smooth (the consistency here will be like cake batter).
8) Pour your mixture into the plaster container. It should come out smoothly.
9) Leave the mix to sit until your clay is the consistency you like to work with. In my studio this takes about three days, but the time will vary based on airflow, humidity, temperature, etc. You can also cover it lightly with plastic to slow the drying period if you want.
Once all this is done, your clay will function as it usually does, but with more flexibility and strength! Play around with your new paper clay and see how thin and tall you can build it and what else you might be able to do with the fibrous structure. Have fun!
A Quick Note about Clean up:
If you're making your paper clay at home, don't use your regular sink to wash out your clay tools! You'll destroy your own plumbing. Do your clean up with a hose outside and mind the waste. If you do have a home studio and want to be able to use one of your sinks for your clay, you'll want to get a dentist office-style plaster trap or otherwise outfit your sink for clay.
Until next time, clay fiends!
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