today i'll be showing you how to make a mushroom hat.
i didn't want to buy anything for this project so all the materials are either
recycled or things i already had in my collection. i did a lot of small scale
testing and i found that this shape will create a three-dimensional dome similar to a mushroom cap.
it helps to curve the cardboard with your hands so that it gets
comfortable with its new shape before you glue it together.
i used masking tape on one side to temporarily hold
the edges together while the glue was setting.
and that's how you turn a two-dimensional shape into a three-dimensional shape.
you can use any kind of paper for paper mache. i'm recycling readings and notes from my degree,
and tearing them is better than cutting because the edges will be less blunt. mix pva craft
glue and water together to create the paper mache liquid and fully saturate the squares.
i wrapped cardboard strips around my head to create a comfortable headpiece
and i hot glued it inside the dome.
thicker paper may need to soak for a few minutes so that it becomes soft
and malleable and the edges lay flat. let the paper mache have as
much time as it needs to dry between the layers. i did about four layers in total.
to create a blank canvas i painted everything with gesso and white paint.
i also decided to experiment with some texture paste and it was like icing a cake.
this isn't a necessary step by any means but i think it looks cool.
for the gills i decided to repurpose this lace curtain .as i was cutting i followed
the shapes within the lace because i wanted the gills to look more organic and unique.
the reason i'm doing the gills this way is to look more like a real mushroom.
when you slice a mushroom down the middle this is what the gills look like.
i attached them to the hat by drawing a line of
hot glue and sticking the edge of the lace onto it.
most of the pieces had to be trimmed as i went along to make sure they fit just right.
the gills are my favourite part of the mushrooms. not only is it a really cute name,
they're so delicate and dainty.
i painted the top with several coats of acrylic paint.
it took me a few layers and some mixing to get the colour just right.
and i faded orange into the outside edges.
this mushroom is called an amanita muscaria, also known as a fly agaric mushroom.
if you take a look at reference photos you'll see that the spots are actually raised.
to capture this three-dimensional shape i'm using texture paste. the more lumpy and bumpy
the better. i agitated it with a butter knife and i applied everything quite loosely. it really
helps to take a step back now and then to make sure that the spots are balanced with each other.
i have these hexagonal and teardrop beads which i attached together with jump rings
into four different arrangements. i laid them out around the cap before attaching them
to make sure that it was all completely symmetrical.
i attached them with hot glue on the inside of the cap and i tried to encase the ring in the hot glue
for more security. i thought it would look very pretty to have dew drops dripping from the edges
creating a little veil between me and the outside world when i'm wearing the mushroom hat.
i documented the whole process of this mushroom cap on tiktok in real time
so if you'd like to see what i'm working on before it reaches youtube that's the
place to go. thank you so much for watching this video and as always i let the algorithm choose a
specific video for you if you're looking for something to watch next. i'll see you there.