Capturing the veiled lady in cotton...

Cotton batting veiled lady mushrooms.

       Even though the veiled lady mushroom is not common to Missouri, I thought it an unusual addition to my woodland Christmas ornament collection. It grows in Asian climates primarily; read more about it at Wikipedia.

Spray painting an onion sack.

Supply List:

• paper mache pulp
• white school glue
• newsprint
• onion bag
• white spray paint
• grey drier lint
• white cotton balls 
• newspapers

Step-by-Step Directions:

1.  Clip off the ends of an onion sack, stretch it out on top of newspapers or cardboard and spray paint it white to mimic the indusium "skirt" of the veiled lady mushroom.
2. Chop up a clean paper egg carton. Trim and keep the bell cap shapes for the tops of your mushrooms.
3. Insert a small wire up through the tops of the caps for hangers. Tape these firmly into place.
4. Crush the newsprint into stalks and glue these to the inside of the bell cap shapes. 
5. Add a small amount of water to paper mache pulp to spread on top of the caps and also the underside of where the stalks and caps meet. Let these dry completely before continuing the project.
6. Glue the onion sack along the outer edge of the cap. Layer more paper mache on top of the netting that you do not wish to be seen. Let the dry.
7. Unravel the white cotton balls. 
8. Alternate the white glue and cotton batting in fine layers over the stalks and underneath the bell caps. 
9. Layer the glue and dryer lint on top of the cap until you are pleased with the patterning.
10. Apply the white glue over the entire surface of the veiled lady, excluding the indusium, until you are satisfied with the mushroom.

From egg carton to recycled mushroom forms.

Slow motion of the veiled lady growing

 with strange alien music.