A paper mache teacup pattern to  mark the 5 year anniversary of my blog, my experiment.  A  perfect time to say thank you and give you a present.
There is a template you can download here. Â And lots and lots of photos and instructions. Â If you do make teacups I’d love to see and you can upload a photo here if you like or leave a link to your photo in the comment section below.
What you need:
- Click here to download the template
- paste – Â I use golden harvest wheat paste ( wall paper paste)
- light cardboard – cereal or frozen pizza box is great and a bit of thicker cardboard for a base
- newspaper – it’s nice to have different colors
- scotch tape ( not the invisible gift wrap  stuff- the shiny sticky stuff)
- glue – elmers, glue stick, hot glue  - whatever you like
- pencil, scissors, exacto knife, and paint and brushes, glitter, fabric – whatever you’d like for decoration.
Click the photos for larger images.
Cut out the templates for the teacup, handle and bottom  and trace them onto your cardboard. I had the best results with a Kashi frozen pizza box.  Cut out your pieces and  very lightly and  gently score the the teacup where the dotted lines are on the template with the BACK of your exacto knife.
Make a very  tiny snip  - really tiny -just a 16th of an inch or so where the sections meet. Next bring the bottom sections together one at a time and tape together on the outside (the printed side). Then turn it over and taper the bottom inside.  Do this for each section – always taping both sides…….
When the bottom sections are all taped  join the top together and tape – inside and out.  Next  push the seams out from the inside and tape on both sides – go all around the teacup – shaping the seams with your fingers and taping both sides.
Tape in the bottom.  It should be looking pretty teacupish now. If you would like a base you can make a little ring of cardboard and tape it in place or trace the bottom onto some thicker cardboard  and cut it out just a little larger and glue or tape it to the bottom.
Your ready for paper mache!  I usually start with the bottom and one layer is fine  but you can do as many as you like.
You don’t have to paper mache the handle – you can paint it or glitter it  or something. If you do paper mache it use very tiny pieces of paper and curl it into  a handle shape before it dries.  I  tried something new on the black teacup above – painting paper mache while it’s wet  - and I like the effect. I used black newspaper and then black watercolor over the wet paper.
When your teacup has dried glue your handle in place and decorate  as you please. I painted a little ship on a stormy sea on one and I  like putting a dusting of mica or glitter  on the inside  - it’s fancy.
The End!
I hope you make teacups!





























Thank you for the tea cup and for your lovely comment. Happy blog anniversary!
Happy Anniversary!
5 years! Wow, that’s fantastic.
Thank you for sharing the tricks of the trade
Happy Anniversay Ann! The teacups were so lovely that I had to try the pattern out at once. Here you can see how I they look so far…
http://jeanetteshandmadestuff.blogspot.com/2011/02/paperwork.html
Now I have to wait for them to try and then to get on with the really fun stuff – adding paint and other embellishments.
I will send you a pic when they are finished too.
/ Jeanette
Happy Anniversay Ann! The teacups were so lovely that I had to try the pattern out at once. Here you can see how I they look so far…
http://jeanetteshandmadestuff.blogspot.com/2011/02/paperwork.html
Now I have to wait for them to dry and then to get on with the really fun stuff – adding paint and other embellishments.
I will send you a pic when they are finished too.
/ Jeanette
Incredible inspiration:)
Thank you very much !!
I’ve made one today and post it on my blog…. If you want me to send you a pic, don’t hesitate
take care
géraldine
Thank you for all the wonderful inspirations over the years! I love the teacups and may have my students use the idea for Mother’s Day.
So pretty…the top one is my favorite…thanks for sharing…
this is the coolest! thanks so much for the template. i cant wait to make one, or two.. have a lovely week <3
Thank you so much Ann for this lovely pattern, what a treat. I’ve been admiring your tea cups on your older posts (think there were some lovely ones you made for a shop window…was it Johnsons?) I’d thought you had used the tops of large fizzy pop bottles, and am amzed they are in fact made form lovely pizza boxes. Am stunned at your genius for recycling and just all round cleverness. Thank you for being such a constant source of inspiration and delight! PS…love that sofa, it looks brilliant for curling up and book reading!
THANK you so much, very timely, this, as I am scouring for ideas for an upcoming ALice in Wonderland themed party and wanting to make GIANT teacups and you have inspired me. I was sent the link to your blog by a lovely gal called ALI on the twopeasinbucket site – she sne me the link fo rteh tiny tophats, and then I couldn’t help myself, had to take a look around – you can’t imagine how EXCITED I was when I saw these teacups – again many thanks from across the bigpond.
Wonderful tutorial! Your tea cups are beautiful.
Thanks for sharing, I will try this soon.
Ann..you never fail to inspire and your generous spirit is a blessing to your readers. Happy 5th anniversary!!!
Blessing, love and health to you dear friend!~~
Deborah
completely delicious!
i have morning tea with you most every day.
thanks for the inspiration.
These are incredibly adorable!!! I can not wait to try to make my own! Thank you for sharing this! Happy 5th Anniversary!
oy..i made one, but it’s not as cute as yours!! makes me love your work even more…thanks for the lesson…i will not give up..
*j*
How generous of you to share this fun project with us! I am going to make some soon and will be thinking of you and your very fun work.
Wonderful tutorial! Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful! Thanks for sharing.
Hello!
I can’t seem to download the template, every time I try it comes up blank, any chance you could email it?
LOve your stuff!
Hayley
Thank you so much! Will be perfect for my little girls princess tea party birthday party next month. Now to get started!
These are really cool! Congratulations on your blog and thank you for the pattern.
Fab teacup…….have made one, loved making it too ! Thanks for the inspiration.
they look absolutely fabulous
I’ve been seeing your lovely teacup idea on a number of blogs, and they’ve all turned out so charming. Thank you for sharing your pattern, and best wishes to you.
love these can’t wait to get some free time to give one a try. Thans for sharing. xo Laura
Thank you so much for posting this. I haven’t tried it yet, but my sister and I will be making dozens of these for my upcoming wedding! I’ll be sure to send along a photo.
This is such a neat project and I can’t wait to try it. Thanks for sharing the pattern and tutorial!
Oh my gosh, how cute! THANK YOU for posting this! My little girl is turning 4 in September and its a tea party theme, so this is just too perfect! My daughter and I will have a blast making a bunch of these over the summer to use at her party this fall! How adorable, thanks for sharing!!
Amazing. What a great decoration idea. Would love for you to link this to my Craftastic Monday party tomorrow:)
This is such a lovely gift to your readers, I have had a go and blogged about it here http://www.jamjarart.blogspot.com/
with a link back yo your blog, many thanks.
This is such a lovely gift to your readers, I have had a go and blogged about it here http://www.jamjarart.blogspot.com/
with a link back to your blog, many thanks.
These are beautiful! Thank you! I can’t wait to make them!
If I say that I love them – that would be an understatement! I am enchanted and cannot take my eyes off of them! Thank you for sharing!I plan to make some and link back!
Your work is of such great elegance and poetical refinement. I’ve tried to reproduce your wonderful teacup. It took me ours and lots of patience. It’s worth the effort! Thanks for your great tutorial!
It’s a grat idea. Thanks for printable temple:)
I can’t get the teacup pattern to download..therefore I can’t print any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. i am planning a tea party for our granddaughter who will be 9 this year, and would LOVE to use these for a take home favor.
Thank you so much Ann. I have always admired your art creations, especially the birds. It is a real treat to learn some of the techniques. Very generous of you!
AMAZING pattern, Ann! I loved your work for a while, I absolutely ADORE it now.
Hi Ann, great project and I have linked to your blog on my blog when I posted the one I made. Thanks for sharing !!
Sid xx
Happy 5th Anniversary! These are sooooo pretty! Thanks for sharing!
oo, Ann
merci pour toutes tes idées…
cette tasse à thé, nous allons essayer avec les enfants…
histoire à suivre sur le blog
These are way too adorable and beautiful! I have been looking for things to make out of my leftover cardboard from crackers and cereal–now I have something! I cannot wait to make these and decorate my home with them. Thank you for sharing this wonderful tutorial!
Oh I just found this tutorial via an image I repinned on PINTEREST and I love it! That is such a cute and well thought-out idea! Thank you very much!
Yours, Theresa from neu4bauer.blogspot.com
Thank you What a wonderful Idea for a tea party. I love the creativity.
Kathy Cooper
These are so adorable! I especially love the ship and the sea one.
Bom dia, adorei a xícara de chá. Obrigado por compartilhar o que vc sabe com a gente, so que o arquivo do molde não abre, vc poderia enviar para mim, por favor.
cruzeirocristina@hotmail.com
Obrigado,
Atenciosamente,
Cristina
these are gorgeous! thanks for sharing the diy
be still my beating heart. pinned for sure.
thank you.
Merci pour ce tuto ! j’ai adoré faire des tasses en le suivant ! c’est sur mon blog ici :
http://annabelscrap.canalblog.com/archives/2011/05/24/21219000.html#trackbacks
En fait, cela m’a tellement plu que j’ai décidé d’en faire faire à mes élèves de 7 et 8 ans pour la fête des mères, et ils y arrivent super bien !
Donc, vraiment, merci ! Bises.