Up and Away with Papier-Mâché
This was one of my favorite projects because it was all hands on deck – kids and grown ups – all in – messy fun.
To kick things off, I had a stack of packing paper (thin as newspaper), and we danced around tearing it into strips. Getting the paper tear started was quite challenging for the little ones, but once it got started they had a blast tearing the paper.
Next, I had the kids take turns pouring, and mixing the paper mache paste made from 1 cup flour, 1 cup of water, and a dash of salt, until it was to a thick pancake batter consistency.
We blew up balloons and covered them in paste and paper. The children dipped a strip of paper in the paste, smoothed off some of the excess and placed it on the balloon. This part got pretty messy, and the kids needed lots of help from their grown up.
We tried using bowls to hold the balloon to keep it from rolling around and some parents used this method, others just held the balloon with one hand and helped their child place and smoothe the paper with the other. You’ll find a technique that works for you. The best thing though, is to try to cover the balloon with 2 layers. We had a few missed spots but the balloons still turned out great!
I tied the balloons to a clothing rack staggering them to get all 10 to hang on it without bumping into each other. You likely don’t need an entire week for these to dry, but definitely give it a day or two to be sure they’re completely dry.
After the balloons dried it was time to paint and decorate a basket (also from the dollar store – these were little favor boxes). We left the balloon in tact while they painted, and dried. After the paint dried, we cut a hole in the bottom, removed the balloon, and taped string and baskets to the balloon.
They turned out so awesome! For an extra special touch, take a photo of the kiddo sitting in a chair, pretending to be in a hot air balloon ride, way up high in the sky.
