ACTIVA Fast Mache Fast Drying Instant Papier Mache - 4 pounds

I had never used a packaged paper mache' before and I am very impressed with this product. I have done several art projects with it and highly recommend it for creating sculpted objects. The caveat is that it is difficult to smooth, so if you want a really smooth surface (I actually like the sort of organic texture), you might stick with the pre-made paper clay in small packages. However, you can get it fairly smooth by spritzing the moist sculpture with water and smoothing with fingers. Also (IMPORTANT!) break up the amount you want to use BEFORE you add water. This eliminates most of the paper lumps and gives you a creamy consistency. Put paper and water into a plastic bag, seal the bag, then squish and knead until it is mixed well. This may take some time. Average 8-10 minutes to get it really well mixed. Have fun!

Love it easy to work with easy De-Molding lightweight material so sad it is too expensive for my budget then out of a 40,00 dollar bag I was able to make one 10" x 12" x 6" inch Lion Head

I had grabbed a smaller box of this a little while back that I picked up at a craft store & have been using it more often for vintage style creations. I was finally running low & went to order it from a local big box store and honestly, I thought i MUST have the wrong product! I triple checked & came over to Amazon after checking every local box store that carries it bc I could NOT believe how much it had gone up on price, WOWWW. I don't know what changed or why paper pulp is so costly now, but this stuff used to be a staple in anyone's DIY supply closet BECAUSE it was affordable & easy to work with & much easier than having to make your own paper pulp & papermache with far less room for mistakes & wasted products, now not so much.It wasn't in stock at my local craft or box stores, so I'd have to have it delivered, paying delivery costs, so luckily it was available on Amazon Prime. It arrived in time & honestly I do not see a single difference between this & what I had already (that literally was about $6, but I got it on clearance for $4 for the regular size, see photos). One says Gray & the other doesn't have a color that I noticed, but I don't care if it's white or gray or any variation of those bc I paint it anyway.This stuff is sooo easy to work with especially after trying a few fancy DIY papermache recipes & wasted products after the recipes fail (not cheap recipes either with joint compound, tp, glue, etc). It's literally as easy as adding water & mix! I find using warm borderline hot water to be best, then I mix it in an old food processor I grabbed at thrift, it's just easier than mixing by hand bc it is sticky & the food processor also shreds the fibers better making a much smoother mache. Using foam balls & Dollar Tree tinfoil to take up more space saves on product too.This stuff dries pretty quickly, I think most of my smaller figures dried within 24hrs. Cracks were non existent and using water to smooth it over before letting it sit to dry really does make a difference. Once dry it's super lightweight, surprisingly so, & very easy to paint. I love working with it, even more than air dry clay in many projects, it just doesn't work great for me in most of my clay molds, unfortunately. My only complaint is I just don't understand why it now costs like 10×s more than it did just two yrs ago & really hope it either goes down in cost or someone comes out with a competitive product at a much lower cost. I didn't see any other brand of this product & competition keeps brands from price gouging bc they're the only one on the block. Seems crafty materials are popular again & companies are noticing and raising costs along with popularity, sadly, as it's usually very small handmade businesses or hobbiests buying this type of stuff.If you really like working with clay & papermache, but don't like all the fancy recipes with costly ingredients that don't always come out right, OR you don't like using food products like flour in your projects, than I'd highly recommend this product, just not for detailed or small clay molds. There really is so much you can do with this & tons of tutorials online to show you the ins and outs. Have fun & get creative.....luckily it's a big bag, so it'll last a long time!

This FastMache was very easy to use. It dries quite stiff, so I made my mix with more water so it was just barely a paste. I found that this was easier to sand than using a drier ratio. The spots I used the stiffer mixture didn't smooth out much when sanding. It won't leave you with a perfectly smooth service, it will have some texture to it even when sanded.

Works really well! Even with a moderately thick layer it seems to be fully dry in 24 hours. Easy to use and mix to your desired consistency.

We used this to make a volcano for a school project. It turned out great. It held to together well and was easy to paint. My only complaint is the powder prior to mixing is VERY dusty. I had to use a mask to measure and mix it.

I tried all kinds of papier mache recipes and techniques while making some papier mache jack-o-lanterns for Halloween. I found this product worked best. You can follow the directions on the back, but I just mixed in enough water to get the consistency I wanted. If you have a hand blender you don't use for anything else, it would be a great tool for working out lumps. Another tip: let this dry slowly - don't put in under heat or it will crack. Sands really well - I even took a rasp and drywall screens to it and it was fine.

Cracks. Takes forever to dry. Complete waste of time and money. Must only be for smallish school projects. I wasted three days trying to use this stuff. Must be something better than this. How about newspaper strips with flour glue? Much better and a fraction of the cost.