• Fake rocks can end up looking very real if built correctly.stone image by Wojciech Gajda from Fotolia.com
  
  Fake rocks are enjoyable craft projects built out of simple craft supplies and used in theater or film productions, in yards or other areas of your house. You can build these rocks in a number of different ways using a variety of materials, some of which work better than others.
  
  

Paper Mache

• Shape and form the rock with wire or mesh to create an initial structure which will ultimately become your fake rock. Use paper mache, long strips of newspaper or other types of paper dipped in plaster of Paris, and place them over the wire or mesh. Lay out these strips until a thick surface of the rock is formed and the wire mesh isn't seen or easily punctured by someone picking it up or touching it. Once the plaster of Paris has dried, spray paint it whatever color you want. These rocks are vulnerable to weather and best used inside.
  
  

Duct Tape

• Take a ball of duct tape, which is the thick heavy-duty gray or tan tape used in packaging, and begin to wrap piece after piece of duct tape around it. Duct tape is very malleable and is easily formed into many different shapes. It is also relatively smooth on the outside, so from a distance it looks very rock-like on its surface. When the tape rock is wrapped to the desired size, spray paint it to look a certain color or to match the type of rock you want it to look like, which may take a number of different coats to make it look natural and real but is a good way to create a fake rock for your home or garden. These rocks are vulnerable to weather over a long period of time.
  
  

Chunks of Styrofoam

• Cut large chunks of Styrofoam into the shape you want for your rock. They come in all shapes and sizes. Use a light-grit sandpaper, and sand your Styrofoam's corners into a finer version of the shape you want for your rock. Spray paint the Styrofoam with certain colors so that it looks like an actual rock. This paint job may take many coats and is often the hardest part of this method of building a fake rock. Look at pictures of rocks closely, and notice the subtle color variations in real rocks.