Fish Motif - Dory and Marlin Papier-Mâché

During yet another convalescence, I have documented my delve into the creative with my adventure with the Whale Song art paper purchase. I asked my sisters if they want the Orrefors crystal whale that my mother picked up at some soirée. And, now, because I need to put up not one, but 2 curtain rod holders, I am fashioning Dory and Marlin figures from paper cutouts transferred to cardboard.

The crystal finback?

Before we get into the process, let me tell you about my esteem for this film. In a way, needing to plan everything so meticulously I think led to its brilliance. The staff were taught to scuba, and everyone at Pixar became immersed in the underwater. And the story came from a long drive shared between the producers or directors, bemoaning how this very drive was preventing them from being with their children. Separation anxiety is real. Life is an adventure, and adventures involve risk. It takes Marlin a while to understand that Nemo can do it. And it took a tang fish with a short term memory problem to show him how.

Cardboard armature base scaled and traced from the internet, I loaded up the base with balls of paper, and then set those in place using masking tape. Over that rough situation, I did a papier-mâché covering, and then set to smoothing this out more by making papier maché clay. Mhhhhhm. With grout, because all the other recipes called for calcium carbonate or spackling compound, not DAP. We are shopping from home, so, I had grout. So, my adapted recipe consisted of the following:

The paper tracing from
internet, plus wads of paper,
masking taped to Dory
armature. Two masking taped
balls will function as her eyes

Now I have started
adding my paper
clay slurry to smooth
out the eyes and
other oopsies.

2 parts water to one part flour, or is it the other way around? The papier mâché base, plus salt, to preserve it. To this, I added shredded paper and let it sit for a bit, and added some light napkins and then Aleene's Fabric Glue, because this is what I had on hand. And, a quick whirl with my immersion blender, and then add in the grout and some corn starch. With this concoction, I smoothed out the joints with the fins and also built up their eyes and brows. And generally made them more symmetrical, if possible. It was fun. Finally, I gave the whole figure a smooth skim coat with my offset frosting spatula.

I also cut out a hand-drawn coral and some wavy grass that I repeated 5 times. The grass was veined with another sliver of paper and papier-machéd with textured crepe paper. The coral was just cut from cardstock and thickened with multiple Modge Podge and supported with scraps of cardboard. These will form the backdrop of the curtain holders. No idea where the fish will go. I kind of wished I would have made an anemone! 

To cover the horrible spackling
job that I did over the staircase:
fronds like you, who needs 
anemones?

In any case, I need to figure out how to make these 3D figurines really smooth, as in the tutorial that I am boldly ripping off. I suppose a sanding is in order. And then, to smooth it out with Modge Podge for that final glossy finish. Then, the paint, the fun part. The part where I realize that the surface is not glass-like enough, as I did with my Bjorn Winblaad vase. We're trying to live and learn...the hard way.

Now, to find out how my DIY paper clay recipe holds up to sanding. It's like sanding grout. But doable. And, sturdy, so that's a plus! But, after painstakingly sanding the dry figurines, I finally decided to rinse them of the dust and then I found that a quick dousing and they are so much more easily sandable! So, even better. Now that they're painted and sealed, I put them in situ, over the staircase. I love my little fish friends!

Well, now the whale is going to eat Marlin while 
Dory watches. She then decides to be ingested
with him and they argue about his belly being 
half full or half empty.