Since Spring is finally all over, Easter is not far to come! The idea is to organize an Easter / pre-summer bazaar on the first days of the holly week. I admit Easter is not my favorite theme for handmade creations but since sunny days and higher temperatures are more than welcome those days I ll do my best to organize an unforgettable event!(even without Dr.K's help who is going to be away for a long time for job reasons...) Anyway,I will post details later for the upcoming event.
So,while searching the web for some inspiration I realize that Easter is not only eggs and rabbits but also chocolates and candies and muffins and cookies! So, I started to love this season... :)
In this post I am sharing with you a tutorial that I found at my archives on how to create stuffed papier mache eggs! (Sorry I am not sharing with you the source. I t is really old and I can not trace it)
Really good idea for gifts or decoration.
- water balloons (they make the egg-iest shape)
- white tissue paper (one sheet will make about three eggs)
- colorful tissue paper (one sheet will make many eggs, so you don’t need much)
- a hole punch
- a paint brush you don’t care much about
- liquid laundry starch
- a sturdy shot glass to hold your egg while you’re working with it
- a way to hang the balloons to dry
- enough time to let these dry overnight, and a few hours to let them dry after filling and sealing them (you’ve been warned)
First cut white tissue paper for each egg you’ll be
making.These four sheets
will be the base of the egg.
To create the polka dots I made squares of paper with holes in them which
we’ll apply over the white base like scales.
Note: It will be helpful to have all your tissue paper cut and ready
in advance. It’s frustrating to need to wash and dry your hands each time you
need to cut more tissue.
Inflate your water balloons just a bit until they have an egg-like shape.
First we’ll apply the white tissue. Brush wet starch onto your balloon. Take the tall sheet and wrap it around the widest part of the balloon, lining up the top so that it will reach the knot in the balloon. Dip your brush in the starch and brush the tissue from the middle up to the top, letting the tissue crinkle and gather. Any spots that seem to stick up can be smoothed down with the brush and more starch. Now do the same brushing from the middle of the balloon down to the bottom. The bottom of this first layer will overlap itself, creating some strength there.
I went with shorter and shorter sizes so that we didn’t end up with too much overlap at the top and bottom ends
You can apply the color squares while the balloon is still wet, or you can let it hang to dry while you put the white layer on more eggs. You don’t need to allow them to dry the whole way before applying the color, but it won’t hurt anything if you do. Letting them dry until tacky, about 20 minutes, can make it easier to work with. I hung mine from the pot rack over my sink using clothespins and some string.
To apply the color start at the top with the knot and overlap the squares covering as much white as you can as you go along. Since the surface of the balloon is still we you can place a dry polka dot square where you’d like it, then smooth it down using the wet brush. You can also use the tip of your wet brush to pick up and place the tissue paper so you don’t have to constantly pick up and put down the brush
If you have some spots that the squares don’t reach simply cover it with one or two of the smaller triangles you cut.
The bottom of the balloon can be a bit tricky, get one last polka dot on there if you can.
Note: Don’t toss your cut bits of colored tissue paper just yet. We’ll be using it to seal the eggs after they are dry and have been filled.
I found that darker tissue paper make for a more consistent color on the final eggs. Lighter pastels showed the areas of overlap more. Not a big deal, but good to keep in mind when choosing which colors to use.
Hang up your balloons overnight, wait until they are completely dry before moving on.
To remove the balloon hold the knot and use a pin to make a small hole. Now wait until the balloon slowly deflates, it makes a most impressive noise while this is happening. (I didn’t have any trouble with the laundry starch sticking to the balloons) If you forget to hold onto the knot of the balloon and it falls inside it’s not big deal, you can pull it out later before you fill it with candy
Gather your candy (this is my favorite part).
To fill cut two places down from the hole in the top, making sure to avoid cutting over a polka dot as we’ll be covering the opening with more colored tissue to seal it later. The papier-mache is flexible and this slit will give us enough room to get those small foil wrapped chocolate eggs inside.
When you’re filled the egg make a loop of string, I attached “Pull Me”, and stuff half of it in the egg. Now get your starch and colored tissue paper back out. Using a bit more tissue put two or three more layers over the opening and let it dry.
Why the loop? Simply because it can be difficult open the finished egg without cutting a hole in it, it turns into an awkward crushing/ripping thing. Pulling on the loop rips enough of the egg to get it started.
Last note: These are based on a Halloween project I first saw in Martha Stewart Living magazine in October of 2001, thePapier-Mache Treat Balls can also be found on the Martha Stewart website
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