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Hot Air Balloon Pinata



How to make a Paper-Mache Hot Air Balloon Pinata

Hot Air Balloon Pinata

Set Up

  1. Clear your work area. Spread out 3 or 4 layers of newspapers to protect your table.
  2. Gather all your materials: balloon, newspaper, scissors, flour, bowl, wire whisk, and water.
  3. Collect and cut newspaper into strips about 1 inch wide. Make them as long as the narrow width of the newspaper.
  4. Mix up your paste. Use 1 part flour to 1 part water and mix with a whisk.
  5. Inflate a 12” balloon.
Birthday in a Box
Pinata Filler

Birthday in a Box
Giggle Tubes
Birthday in a Box
Cotton Candy
Birthday in a BoxPolka Dot Pen

Tips

  • You can use any kind of paper if you really want, but newspaper works best. Old phone book pages are too thin and fall apart easily in the paste, regular paper and glossy newspaper ads don’t absorb water as easily and take a bit more work. I’d stick with newspaper.
  • White flour works better than whole wheat. Whole wheat globs up and you have to sand it down after it dries. No fun.

The Process to Make a Hot Air Balloon Pinata

Paper Mache with Newspaper

  1. Dip strips in paste, run through fingers to get rid of excess paste and layer on the pinata form. Make two layers of newspaper strips then allow it to dry. It takes 1-2 days to dry, depending on your local climate (humidity level) and how thick the newspaper (and paste) is. Leave an opening at the top for filling with candy.
  2. After the pinata is dry, trim the opening to make it smooth. If you forgot to leave an opening, cut an opening. Pop balloon and remove. Then, wrap string or ribbon around the pinata making a cross over the opening. Use one long string to make the cross, not two short strings. Trust me on this. Just keep wrapping the string around the pinata to make it work.
  3. Trim the top off a plastic cup and use masking tape to attach the bottom of the cup to the bottom of the balloon.
    Hot Air Balloon Pinata Bottom
  4. Put another two layers of newspaper strips over the pinata and string and allow it to dry. It’s okay if some spots are not as thick as other spots. Weak spots are where the pinata will break open.

Tips

  • Place the balloon in a bowl to keep it from rolling around while you work.
  • Two layers of newspaper are about right. The newspaper shrinks a little as it dries and if there are weak spots in the newspaper the balloon will break through them. If there are too many layers the guests will never be able to break it open.
  • Use string or ribbon or even bias tape for the pinata hangar. Avoid using yarn or elastic. If using a thin string like kite string you will want to double each string.
  • The second layer of newspaper strips will dampen the first layer. Since there is no longer a balloon inside it to help it hold its shape, turn the pinata frequently as it dries to keep it from developing a flat side or hang it up to dry.
  • If the pinata is still damp when the kids start hitting it, you’ll be able to beat it senseless but never break it open. So thoroughly dry your hot air balloon pinata.

Clean Up

  1. Lay the pinata on clean newspaper to dry.
  2. Throw away the old newspaper.
  3. Rinse hands, arms and any other messy appendages with warm water and soap.

Tips

  • If you had a lot of fun and have an excessive amount of paste on your clothes, let it dry and rub as much of the paste off as you can before washing.
  • Cover extra paste and put in fridge to save for the next layer. If it dries out, just add a bit of water and mix.

How to Decorate the Hot Air Balloon Pinata

  1. First, trim off any edges of dried newspaper that curled out.
  2. Paint the hot air balloon pinata white with tempera or acrylic paint to cover the newspaper print. After the pinata has dried use a black marker to draw a pattern on the balloon pinata.
  3. Make a thin paste of white glue and water—1 part glue and 1 part water. Cut tissue paper into 2 inch squares—or something close to that size. Use a sponge or foam brush to put some glue mixture on the pinata then place a tissue square over the glue (this is easier than dipping the tissue in 
  4. the glue and then placing it on the pinata). Put many tissue pieces on and let them overlap. Place a thin coating of glue mixture over the tissue pieces as they’re completed. Let one side dry before you turn it over to do the other side to prevent any mess ups.
  5. Make the basket for the hot air balloon pinata with a clean cottage cheese container, or some other round container. Cover it with paper and glue three or four long blue ribbons (about 2 ½ feet) to the basket. These will be the ribbons to hold the basket to the balloon.
  6. Cut several white ribbons about 1 or 1 ½ inches longer than the height of the basket. Cut several red and yellow ribbons 1 or ½ inches longer than the circumference of the basket.
  7. Use white glue or hot glue to attach several red and yellow ribbons horizontally to the basket and begin weaving.
    Hot Air Balloon Basket
  8. Fold the extended edges over the edge of the basket and glue down.
  9. When the basket is dry glue the long blue ribbons to the hot air balloon so the basket is hanging below. You may add some toy figurines to the basket if you don’t mind them getting hit out of the basket.

Tips

  • Mix up the glue and water paste inside a half empty bottle of white glue.
  • Use a dark color of tissue to cover the lines drawn on the pinata. Lay them carefully on the pinata. 
  • The wider the ribbon you use, the less you have to weave.
  • Hang the balloon up while you attach the basket. Use masking tape to hold the blue ribbon to the sides of the pinata. You can easily adjust the ribbon in this way to make sure the basket hangs level beneath the pinata. Then glue the ribbon to the pinata when it is set correctly.

Pull and Yank Adjustments

  1. About midway between the top and bottom of the hot air balloon pinata cut a circle that goes nearly all the way around the pinata. Securely attach a ribbon to the trap door that will pull it open. You may be able to poke a hole in the trap door and tie the ribbon to it or tape the ribbon with duct tape to the inside of the trap door. 
  2. Fill the pinata and seal the trap door with masking tape. Test it to be sure there’s enough tape to hold all the prizes in the pinata, but not so much tape that it won’t open.
  3. Attach several more ribbons to the inside of the pinata. Use small pieces of scotch or masking tape so the ribbons will easily pull away from the pinata. The ribbons will appear to be guide lines used to hold down a hot air balloon.
  4. Cover the cut part of the pinata with more tissue paper to disguise the trap door.

Tips

  • When first cutting the trap door place duct tape on the inside of the balloon where the pinata was not cut to reinforce its ability to be a hinge.
  • Use curling ribbon or craft ribbon that coordinate with the colors of the pinata.
  • The ribbon to open the trap door needs to be placed opposite the hinge so it can pull it open.

Now your Hot Air Balloon Pinata is ready for your party. 

Click here to learn how to play the pinata game.

 

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