FreeShip- Paper Pulp, Bleached, For Paper Clay, Mache, or Paper Making- (Prompt rebate on orders with 3 or more FreeShip items!)

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We have two kinds of paper pulp. When dry, one is bleached (white) and fluffy (this listing). The other kind is non-bleached and it's tempting to call it a "raw" pulp because it is in dense, irregular slabs almost like wood and colored a wooden-like light yellow. But, if you dunk a smaller slab piece you're in for a surprise! It almost instantly bursts into a soft piece of pulp like a kind of popcorn, several times larger and almost just as soft as the bleached, fluffy pulp is when it's placed in water. When in water the bleached kind is a little bit darker than when dry, and the "raw" type is a lighter color than when dry so they look much closer in color when wet than when dry. Both have relatively long fibers. They're similar to the fibers in paper mache made from scrap paper but they are much longer.

These paper pulps are intended to be mixed with a clay body (wedged or mixed with a power mixer), although they can be used to make paper mache much more easily than using newspaper or toilet paper. It can also be used for paper making. You can make a "traditional" paper clay, the kind meant to be fired in a kiln. But it can also be used to make a premixed air-dry clay which has additives (like PVA glue) that make it reasonably hard and permanent without firing. It will work with almost any natural clay body. Paper clay is a very unique material, and one of the most striking things is how strong it is when green, and how many things can be done with it that are impossible with traditional clay (although the trade-off is less strong ware after it's fired).
The air dried clay is especially good for all the crafts people who don't have a kiln, which opens up a much wider market for this material. After it has been completely dried, the non-firing kind will benefit from a final non-water based epoxy, alkyd, or urethane varnish coating.
When working with the fired type of paper clay and getting all the paper pulp mixed evenly into the clay, it is then shaped into a vessel by throwing on a potters wheel just like standard water clay (almost), or shaped by hand into a vessel or sculpture, dried, and then fired. The traditional to-be-fired "Paper Clay" is something of a miracle, it's amazing how many things you can do versus standard clay, both when wet and when dry. When mixed with a white clay slip, paper pulps will not turn the mix off-white. If you mix alone with water it becomes translucent/transparent. If you add it to a pure white kaolin clay powder with about 30 parts pulp per 70 parts clay, with enough water to create a very thick paste (it's a quick and easy way to create a test mix for evaluation), you'll get a bright white material.

Mixing the pulp into a clay can be difficult (unless you happen to have a pug mill!). An easy way is to mix the pulp with a clay in slip form with a high shear power mixer, with perhaps a little additional water if mixing is too difficult. It's an easy way to get the pulp broken down and thoroughly distributed. Dumping it onto a plaster slab and flipping it over several times will give you a clay body ready to be wedged/kneaded.
Paper clay is popular and has been around long enough for there to be lots of info online with articles showing mixing methods, proportioning, etc. Read about working with it in more detail in one of those many tutorials and videos available on the web.

Here's a couple of sources that I respect, one is Wikipedia (usually accurate but not always) and Digital Fire (a ceramics database).
The Wiki article is general and a good starting place { https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_clay } :
"...The more fiber added to the clay body, the stronger the unfired dry paper clay, but the weaker the fired body. The less fiber added to the clay body, the weaker the unfired dry paper clay, but the stronger the fired body.... Re-wetting paper clay is faster with paper clay than pure clay, as the paper fibres pull water more quickly into the clay body. The damp sections can be then joined. Accelerated drying of paper clay work is possible, and results in less warping and cracking, compared with drying conventional clay. The more fiber in the paper clay, the more rapid the drying with less warping and cracking...The firing process for paper clay is similar to firing of conventional clay. The clay still needs to be completely dry before firing so the change of water into steam does not cause the clay to explode. Maximum firing temperatures, firing schedules and types of glaze to use for paper clay, are the same as that used for the specific clay used in the paper clay...Nonconventional clay techniques are now possible after adding processed cellulose fiber to any clay: First, joining dry-to-dry paper clay and dry-to-soft paper clay are the most radical new techniques. Secondly, metal supports and ceramic material may be used within paper clay, with less cracking than conventional clay"

From Digital Fire and its links there is a gold mine of valuable information. Their article and links are recommended { https://digitalfire.com/4sight/education/overview_of_paper_clay_108.html } :
"Find out more about the many varieties of paper clay earthenwares, terracottas, raku stonewares and porcelains for firing in kilns at { www.paperclayart.com }. See what the expanded sculptural possibilities of this clay for firing in kilns can be. These types of clays can be used for vessels, pots, tiles, sculptures, figures, casting and/or press molds, wall works, murals and are normally compatible with all kinds of glazes, terra sigillatas and in all types of firing.........
Paper Clay, The Good:
"Combining clay and cellulose fiber from paper produces a versatile clay body that can be molded, modelled, slabbed and coiled in ways that seem to break all the rules of working with clay, and by people possessing little skill. The unique properties of paper clay are thought to be due in part to the fact that the fibres are hollow and the tiny clay particles are able to fill them from the inside. Paper clay is claimed to be impossible to crack, difficult to warp during drying and capable of being rewetted from bone dry by immersion in water. It is also claimed that it can be joined at any stage, dry to wet, wet to leatherhard using the paper clay slip as a glue and is said to develop very high green strength that makes it possible to create much lighter ware. However, we found it difficult to use on the wheel and almost impossible to trim or carve (others claim they are able to do so)."
Paper Clay, The Detailed:
"One user adds a paper pulp slurry to a clay slurry in a proportion of 30 volumetric parts paper slurry to 70 parts clay slurry (a long ruler is held in the slip to get the right level). Another person uses 3-5 gallons of wet paper pulp to 100 lbs of dry body mix. A sample of good material we tested showed only 10% loss of weight on firing. Taking into account LOI it would appear that about 2-4% of the mix is paper by dry weight. When a dry slab is broken, there should be a fine even network of paper fibers. Thus the amount of cellulose possible is far higher than with other fiber or particulate fillers."
Paper Clay, The Ugly:
"Paper clay [before being fired] will quickly begin to smell when kept wet in storage. Anti-bacterial agents can be added (small amounts of chlorine are one example), or it should be stored in a refrigerator while wet. When dried, if you don't fire it, it should be painted with a sealer. Since the organic fiber must burn away during firing, slow firing and adequate draft are needed from the 300-500C range since significant smoke is generated. After firing the surface has the same appearance as normal clay."

Some other sources on the stinky odor which will happen after it's stored:
One source says a dab of vanilla extract around the rim of the container acts as a masking agent. Another says "try some electrolyzed silver water ("colloidal silver").
From an article in a site listed below, a solution to the smell issue:
"There are several advantages to drying and storing slabs of paper clay, including saving space; avoiding the rotten, moldy smell of wet paper clay as it ages; and the fact that when reconstituted, it’s easy to roll, drape, cut, or form in a multitude of ways. The biggest advantage to making dried paper clay slabs is the time savings. It’s easy to make, and when you need to reconstitute the paper clay, just break up the slabs into smaller pieces, add water to the desired consistency, and you’re quickly resupplied."
Here are a couple of other anti-stink articles found by googling (there's a lot available):
http://www.ccpottery.com/paper.html
https://ceramicartsnetwork.org/daily/ceramic-supplies/pottery-clay/making-paper-clay-storage-easier-and-less-stinky/

Reviews

Reviews (19)

Average:

Dec 19, 2024

Iuyt iuyt iuyt iuyt iuyt

barbara laforge

Dec 17, 2024

Great gift for the artist at work

Ryan Wellman

Apr 22, 2024

Exactly what I was looking for!

gabriela pagan

Mar 13, 2024

Great item will buy again

Tim Louden

Jan 24, 2024

Great article and service, thanks!

Lynn