Paper Mache - I felt ambitious!

So over spring break Julia got OBSESSED with wanting a piniata.  I thought it could be fun to make one ourselves using paper mache.  Having not done this since middle school art class, I wasn't real sure what to do.  I found a recipe for paper mache paste in a book, so I collected the necessary supplies and we started. Now I wasn't overly impressed with the paste recipe, it was pretty watery and VERY drippy. I will post the directions at the bottom, but will keep looking for better paste ideas and post if I find something.

For the actual piniata, Julia wanted a dog though this could be modified easily to be a horse, cat, donkey, really any 4 legged animal.  This project takes multiple days and adding the paper mache in stages which seemed to be too much for a 4-year old's patience to take at time, she thought we'd make it and be done the same day.

Supplies:
Paste
Paper (newspaper, scrap paper, I used brown packing paper I get from shipments)
Drop cloth (very important since the paste gets EVERYWHERE!)
Thin Cardboard, paper towel or toilet paper tubes, heavy cardstock (think junk mail ads or cut up cereal boxes), small paper/plastic cup
Masking Tape
Paint and/or Markers to decorate

First you will need to build your form out of the balloons and cardboard.  For the 4 legged animal design, you will need 1 big balloon (body) and one smaller (head), 4 toilet paper tubes for legs and one for the neck (or cut paper towel tubes to size).  Use the Cardstock or paper cup to make a nose/muzzle and ears - this shape will depend on your animal.

The next step is covering the form.  Tear up your paper into strips, about an inch or two wide and 3-6 inches long.  Different size strips come in handy, long for the body, neck and head, smaller ones for the face, and legs.  Cover in stages, adding more detail like ears as you go.

Depending on what kind of paper you are using, you will need to do multiple layers.  You will know you are done when, after allowing it to dry, it is pretty hard.

If you are attempting to make this a piniata, once it is pretty firm you will need to cut a flap to add the candy.  The candy will go where the big balloon is (when you cut into it, you will also need to pop the balloon).  Once the candy is added, tape back up the flap and you can add one more small layer of paper mache to seal it up.

Then you will need to paint it.  If the kids aren't too into the paper mache part (like mine) they usually have fun with the decorating.  My daughter requested it look like our german shepherd so she painted "her" and I used markers to add a face.

Once the paint is dry add a string to the back (I just used yarn since it's pretty light.  And let her at it.

We did run into some issues of it not breaking real easily, so after she beat on it a while I just cut it open to get the candy out.  Then she was sad, wanted it to be "fixed" so I had to re-paper mache the dog.  She now has it in a place of honor in her room and spring break was 2 months ago.

I had some leftover paste after making the dog so we decided to make a mask.  Basically the same technique used above, but a smaller form.  I just used 1 balloon blown up to  about the size of a kid's head.  I covered it 3/4 of the way in paper mache the top 1/2 (like a hat) and the front so that she could slip it on her head and have it stay without having to tie it (though that's another option).

Once the paper is built up thick enough to hold it's shape, pop the balloon and figure out where the eye holes belong (this took a little guessing).  Cut out about 1 inch diameter holes and use small (about 1/2 to 1/4 inch wide) strips of paper to wrap around the edges so the paper doesn't fray.  Use cardstock or other objects to build up a face if you want.   She wanted to make it look like a clown and we had fun drawing and coming up with different face paint ideas on paper before we drew on it.

Use paint, markers, crayons, yarn, pip cleaners or anything else you want to decorate.

Paper Mache recipie I used (though not impressed and will keep looking for a new one)

In large pot, mix 1 cup of water and 1/4 cup flour until mixture is thin and runny
Stir mix into 5 cups gently boiling water
Boil gently and stir for 2-3 minutes
Cool completely
Pour into a shallow tray, dip paper strips and apply to form

Since this was a multi day project, I just put a sheet of aluminum foil over the top and it seemed to last about a week with no problems.  Though I wouldn't keep it much longer than that as it started to get a little smelly, though the mask and piniata are both fine.