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I've made a mold. I put cling wrap on a doll's face and pushed pulp around it. It is dry now, but the inside surface is much more rough than I thought it would be. So, now what should I do? Should I try to smooth the inside of the mold, or just build the layers inside, then smooth the final face?
My plan is to coat the inside of this mold with petroleum jelly, then lay the first layer with wet paper (newsprint), no glue. When that is partially dry, I'll build up layers with newsprint + wallpaper paste + PVA, the paste I've been using. When this is 3-4 layers thick, I'll remove them from the mold and then continue working it. Does this sound about right? Or should I start the first layer with just wet pulp? How thick should the petroleum jelly be? Once I get the face out of the mold, what do I use to clean the petroleum jelly off?
I'm afraid to use cling-wrap inside the mold, because I doubt that I can fit it tight enough. However, this might be better 'cause then I don't have to clean any petroleum jelly. What's a way to get the cling wrap in this nice and tight? Maybe use petroleum jelly, then cling wrap?
I dunno what to do. What's the fastest and easiest way to do this?
p.s. I'm not going to reuse this mold. it is for one time use only, so it will be destroyed upon or during removal.
Please advise. Thanks!
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Can I suggest that you work at this from another angle!
Firstly how precious is the original doll? Is she plastic?
If not precious and plastic the I would cover her face with a thin layer of Petroleum Jelly and then layer PM strips over the face. Build up 3 or 4 layers making sure that the strips are of paper no harder or thicker than newspaper, that the glue is fairly thin (and definitely not lumpy) and that you smooth and push the paper over the features to get as much definition as possible and to eliminate air bubbles as much as possible.
Once this is dry paint over a layer of PVA to fix the shape. Once this is dry remove from the doll's head. This will give you a base mask upon which to build up your doll.
If you don't want to throw away the mould that you have already made then I suspect that you will need to sand back the rough surface as far as possible. If this is difficult to get into then try wire wool wrapped over a cotton bud. Then put over the surface a layer of paper such as tissue paper.
I hope this helps
Charlotte
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Do I understand correctly that you're using paper pulp for the mold AND your doll head? Maybe it's possible, but it sounds like of iffy to me.
By using cling plastic directly over the face, you're going to lose definition and details. When you use the pulp on top of the plastic, you're going to lose even more. Then, when you make the original from the pulp mold, you're going to lose even more detail in the face. I'm just afraid that it's not going to be what you intend.
Newmodeller's suggestions are good. If you follow her suggestions and make a thin mask*, you can build up features as you wish. But if you're wanting to make an exact replica of the doll's face, you're probably going to have to make a plaster mold.
If you can find some Japanese Sum-e paper or other 'rice' paper (it's really made from hibiscus plants, not rice), tear the paper into quite small pieces (not much larger than fingertip size, depending on the size of the doll's face) to get good overlap and no wrinkles.
Sue
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No. The mold is made and I'm not starting over. I expected to lose some detail and that's fine. I'm gonna slightly reshape the final 'cast' using pulp to build up the cheeks and brow. I'm concered about keeping as much detail as possible in the cast.
I'll get some steel wool and smooth the mold as best I can. Thanks. But I don't wanna spend time on the mold -- I'm more willing to spend time on the cast. I just wanna make sure that all wrinkles get filled. Should I assume that PVA will fill these crevices sufficiently on th cast?
The cast will be strips for a base. Cheeks will be built with pulp and then sanded (and sanded and sanded). I doubt that I need much weight for this. This face will then be attached to the head (probaby a sculp of florist's foam or possibly a balloon. I'm not fure on that yet, 'cause I'm gonna need dimensions off the face to get the right size for the head.
The doll cost me 25 cents. I don't care about this thing at all, but I'll save the head for possible use in the future.
So, back to the question. If I use petroleum jelly to line the mold, how do I get this off the cast? Also, will petroleum jelly help fit cling wrap to the mold, preserving what detail is there?
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sidebar.
This is my first piece. I've got the body built and it's plenty strong now. I've got approx 5 layers on it. The first was a double layer of newprint (on the form, a balloon). The next layer is a single layer of newsprint. Then there's a layer of thicker paper. High spots on this were sanded before putting down a single layer of newsprint. Then another layer of the thick paper was applied, and I'm now sanding it some more. I expect to put on at least two more layers after I attach the arms. It should be plenty strong at 7 layers.
At this stage, a lot of anxiety is gone. I can see how strong the layers are. Sanding is easier than I thought it would be. Some shaping using pulp where the legs are attached has been done. I an also visualize where I can build up this body's chest, giving my "man" some upper body strength. It is now getting fun!
With this success (using pulp to round corners at joins), I can see that I should have little trouble building the face from this mold using pulp and sanding. My only conern is preserving as much detail as possible in this face, 'cause I've already lost quite a bit. I'm not worried, though. I know I can build and sand to get the shape I want. I'm only trying to minimize the amount of work.
My BIGGEST concern: The arms. I need symetry. If these are not the same size, I'm gonna be very disappointed. This better work or... or..... or I'll use it for a football! 
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Why not try using the cling plastic inside the mold instead of the petroleum jelly? It's difficult to clean all of the PJ off paper. Most adhesives don't stick well to plastic. Why not try some of your paper and adhesive, just a few scraps, and try gluing them to the cling plastic, letting it dry, and seeing how easily it comes off. Usually, you shouldn't have much of a problem. Since you're making a mask that you're building (or extending) features onto, the perfection of the mold shouldn't be much of an issue.
Sue
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When I use cling film on a mold I use petroleum jelly first because sometimes it dosen't like sticking to some materials this allows it to stick in all the different shapes. Then gently smooth around with a soft cloth as this helps with all the little creases.
Sue.
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Thanks! That's what I suspected but before I start I wanted some confirmation. I'll press the mold today.
My balloon-belly guy is coming along. I have his belly done except for sculpting, his shoes done, and have his upper arms done (structurally). I gotta get my sculpting clay to make his fore arms, then attach the arms and build the shoulders. I'll probably get to paint starting this friday.
Thanks for your help. Everybody's been really helpful, here! 
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