Carnival in Italy

My friends & I's Masks!

 I had the wonderful chance to make my very own carnival mask this last week.  Traditional mask are made from paper mache, jesso and sometimes clay.  My mask is made from paper mache.  Mask were made for Italy's Carnival. They were also used to disguise people and their voice.  Men's masks were full faced and it would change the sound of their voice.

My Mask!

The mask was pre-made for me to save time.  But it was started like this:

1. First a clay form is made from the face or shape that you want. 
2. Then you put plaster over the clay form, leaving a face mold to make multiple masks. 
3. You then put a layer of soap on the face mold to ensure that the mask comes off.
4. Then layer by layer you put tiny pieces of paper onto the face mold along with glue.  
5. After the layers of paper and glue are dry you pull your mask from the face mold. 
6. Then you put a layer of thin cloth on the front of the mask.
7. Now its time to decorate.
8. Usually you start with a layer of white paint.  Then to make the mask look older you can sponge on a rust color paint. 
9. From there you can add any colors you want.  

More info here for Carnival:  http://www.livetravelhelp.com/info/events/mask-carnival-venice/