Toilet Paper Roll Mummy

This is my toilet paper roll mummy.
There are many like it, but this one is mine.

The two things that I've added that I don't see on most others is a rounded head and stable base.

For this mummy you will need:

Thin cardboard (cereal box)
White craft foam sheet
Toilet paper roll
Paper towels
Googly eyes (15mm)

Printer
Scissors
Glue
Tape (clear or white)




The first thing to do is cut strips.  For this I used paper towels, but you could use anything whitish and pliable that can be cut into strips.  Cheesecloth, muslin or old white T-shirts would all work well.

I like the Bounty select-a-size.  Each sheet is 11x6 inches.  You will need 4-5 of these cut into four strips each.  After the strips are cut crumple them into little balls to give them a little more texture.



Feet Template
 

Then make a template for the feet. You can skip this step if you're only making one, but you'll want to make more, so just make the template.

Just to make sure the scale is right, when printed the feet should measure 3 inches across the widest point.


 

 

 

Glue a rough cut of the template onto the cardboard and then cut along the outside edge of the line when it's dry.

 

If you plan on using this for a craft party and don't want someone gluing the template to their project thinking they found a pair of feet already cut out or for the template to accidentally get tossed during cleanup write "TEMPLATE" on it.  I speak from experience.

 

Then trace your template onto the white foam. 

 

 Cover the foam with a thin layer of strips. Tear them into smaller pieces, leave parts of them crumpled and twisted, but make sure all the folds are glued down well. After it dries trim around the edges. 

 

While waiting for the feet to dry, make the mummy body. Start with a toilet paper roll.  I prefer the brown ones, but if yours are white you might want to use paint or construction paper to darken a face area.  Create an "X" across one end of the roll with tape. Then loosely crumple 3 sheets of the aforementioned paper towels.  If yours are a different size or thickness you'll have to adjust. 

 

 

Gently stuff the tube with paper towels, until just a little dome sticks out the top.  This will be the mummy's head. Create another "X" over the dome with tape.

 

 

 

Lay a strip across the top of the mummy's head. Then cross another strip over the first, not quite perpendicular, so that you leave some room for the face. This lays down a nice layer of white, to build on. 

 

 

Next gently tie a strip around the middle of the tube to hold them in place. Then tie two more, one at the bottom and one at the top, staggering the ties so it's not all bulky on one side.  The reason I tie instead of glue is to be able to move things around.  Make sure the two strips from the previous step are where you want them and push them aside near the top to create a face area. 

 

 

To lay down the strips put a little dab of glue where you want to start and then just wrap them around every which way. Twisted, crumpled and messy gives it more character.  I use a dab of glue at the ends, maybe one in the middle, but I don't glue too much until I'm done.  Then I make my final adjustments and add glue anywhere that needs it.    The last step is to add the googly eyes and glue the body onto the foot base. 

 

Below are a few variations we've come up with using scraps of this and that. The bats were made by the kids in preschool. I have not made TP bats, but when I do I'll use the body style shown at Filth Wizardry.