I don't know what it is about shrunken heads I find so interesting. Maybe it stems from a love of the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland, and the head hunter at the end of the ride. Or maybe it was trips to Ye Olde Curiosity Shop in Seattle as a kid. EIther way, at some point something romanticized in my mind what in reality is a pretty gruesome thing. With Halloween just around the corner, I decided to make my own paper mache shrunken head, and I intend to see how far beyond Halloween I can get with this thing in my living room before my wife complains. Comment below with your guess, then I'll let you know when she makes me pack it away :)

Step 1: Materials

Oven bake modeling clay
Tin foil
Heavy duty shop paper towels
White PVA (Elmer's) Glue
Pre-mixed drywall joint compound
Cooking spray or petroleum jelly
Water
Newspaper
Masking tape
xacto knife
Scissors
Twine
Craft paint
Paint brushes
Hot glue gun and glue
Costume wig
Rolling pin (optional)
Glass dome with base (optional)

Step 2: Sculpt Your Base

You'll need a base to apply your paper mache to. I decided to try sculpting a head out of oven bake modeling clay (Sculpy) that I could re-use it to make multiple heads. If you don't feel up to sculpting, you could use a small plastic skull, a doll head, wadded up newspaper and masking tape, or just tinfoil. But honestly, this was my first attempt at sculpting anything since Kindergarten, and it turned out pretty well… so I say give it a try.

First shape your tinfoil into a ball the approximate size and shape you want your head to be. There are a lot of good photos online to give you reference for the size. Also take into account how you want to display your head. I wanted to place mine in a glass dome so I had to make sure it would fit. Use your rolling pin (if you have one) to roll out a sheet of clay to create a base layer of clay on the front half of your foil ball. Make a sort of pyramid shape for the nose and put a clump of clay on each side where the nostrils go. Roll out two clay snakes for the the lips, and two smaller snakes for the eyebrows. Place two more clumps for the cheek bones and two smaller lumps for the eyes. Smooth the tops of the eyes into the eye sockets, but leave a seam at the bottom. From there, just shape things to how you want them. I ended up with a pretty exaggerated mouth and nose, which I really liked. The nice thing about this project is that we're doing paper mache so little imperfections won't matter in the end. When you're finished, use the instructions from your clay to bake it to harden it up. Next, mix up some paper mache paste. I used one part white PVA glue (Elmer's Glue), one part pre-mixed drywall joint compound, and then added water to make a runny paste. It should be thin enough to brush on and soak into your paper towels. Next tear up your heavy duty paper towels into little pieces. I start by tearing off and discarding all the straight edges. The rough edges feather out better and help hide any seems. Cover your face sculpture with cooking spray or petroleum jelly to act as a mold release to get the paper mache off easier once it's dried. I used a paper plate to set my paper towel pieces on and then brushed the paste on both sides of each piece of paper towel with a stiff cheap art brush. Once thoroughly soaked place the paper towel pieces one at a time onto your sculpted face. Use your paint brush to press it in to all the nooks and crannies so you get all the facial details. Cover the entire face with a layer of paper towels, let it dry for about an hour, then follow up with a second coat. I used a small heater to dry things quicker.

Once your two coats of paper mache are MOSTLY dry, carefully remove it from the base. I found it a whole lot easier to remove when it wasn't completely dry and stiff. You may need a butter knife to help release the edges. Then it's just a matter of pushing, pulling and wiggling to get it off. Once removed, place another layer or two of paper mache on the inside to strengthen it up. You'll never see it so It doesn't have to look pretty. Let it dry completely.

Step 3: Paper Mache

Mix up some paper mache paste. I used one part white PVA glue (Elmer's Glue), one part pre-mixed drywall joint compound, and added water to make a runny paste. It should be thin enough to brush on and soak into your paper towels. Next, tear up your heavy duty paper towels into small pieces and strips. I start by tearing off all the straight edges. The rough edges feather out better and help hide any seems. Cover your face sculpture with cooking spray or petroleum jelly to act as a mold release to get the paper mache off easier once it's dried. I used a paper plate to set my paper towel pieces on and then brushed the paste on both sides of each piece of paper towel with a stiff cheap art brush. Once thoroughly soaked place the paper towel pieces one at a time onto your sculpted face. Use a stiff paint brush to press it in to all the nooks and crannies so you get all the facial details. Cover the entire face with a layer of paper towels, let it dry for about an hour, then follow up with a second coat. I used a small heater to dry things quicker.

Step 4: Add Some Color

Get out your paints and squeeze some out on a paper plate. I used black, dark brown, dark red (alizarin crimson), burnt orange, yellow, and a little bit of white. The head isn't complete at this point, but I wanted to get the paint down on the front of the head before sewing the eyes and mouth shut with the twine. Start with a base layer of the dark brown and let dry. Next take some of the black and water it down and use as a wash to darken the recessed areas of the face. You mainly want to darken the nostrils, between and under the lips, and the eye sockets. While everything is still wet, use your other lighter colors to subtly build up highlights on the nose, lips and forehead. I ended up painting inside the nostrils solid black. Let it dry.

Step 5: Sewing the Mouth and Eyes

Take your X-acto knife and poke it into the face where you want the holes for the stitches to go, then spin it to drill your hole. I did two holes above and below each eye to make an X. Thread your twine through the holes and tie with a couple overhand knots on the inside of the face. You could repeat this and sew the mouth shut with X's, but I chose to tie the lips together at three points using hangman's nooses, and then untwisted the loose ends. You can easily find directions online on how to tie a noose.

Once you have all your stitching complete, make a watered down wash of your black and brown paint to dirty up the twine.

Step 6: Paper Mache the Rest of the Head

Wad up some newspaper and masking tape and make a ball to complete the shape of the head. I didn't put ears on the head, since it will be covered in hair. If you're leaving yours bald, now would be the time to sculpt them on… maybe with paper clay. If you plan to hang your head, at this point you could add a piece of twine sticking out of the top. Cover with two layers of paper mache paste and paper towel. Once dry, paint to match the face. The hair will cover up the back of the head with hair, so a covering of brown and maybe a little black wash should be all you'll need.

Step 7: Make a Shrunken Toupee

Take your costume wig and place it on your shrunken head and mark how much of the wig you'll need. Cut it off with your scissors, then hot glue it to the head.

Step 8: Put It on Display!

I was originally going to use a block of wood and drill a hole in it and use a dowel to mount the head, but then I found this awesome glass dome with a base at the local craft store. With a 50% off coupon it was only $10 and it was my only expense since I already had all the other materials for this project. But I think you could do it for about $20 or less. You could use just cheap white glue and water for your paper mache paste and use a bunch of twine to create hair instead of a costume wig. I had a lot of fun with this one, and I hope you do too. Let me know how it goes :)