My son Carter is approaching the end of 4th grade <insert sad music> & his final project had me more excited then he was. The project requirements were to portray a famous Hoosier as a wax figure at a wax museum. He choose David Wolf, an Indianapolis native that became an astronaut. With that he had to have a costume and props. So of course my DIY imagination started running wild!
We had the outfit ironed out, but we still needed a helmet so we decided to make it out of paper mache. It was so simple and cost nothing, because I already had all the materials. So if you are looking for an inexpensive way to make a helmet here are step-by-step instructions.
Materials:
- Balloon (standard size)
- 1 cup of flour
- 2 cup of water
- Newspaper
- White copy paper
- Scissors
- Paint (desired colors)
- Paint brush
- Container to hold the balloon (I used a bowl)
- Bowl to make the paste
Step 1: Cut the newspaper & white copy paper into strips.
Step2: Make the paste by mixing the 1/2 cup of flour and 1 cup of water.
Step 3: Blow up the balloon to desired size.
Step 4: Dip the newspaper into the paste. Remove any excess paste and put it on the balloon. Do this until the entire balloon is covered with newspaper. Do not apply anymore than two coats of newspaper.
Step 5: Let it dry. I left it overnight but it should only take 4 hours to dry.
Step 6: Make another batch of paste by mixing the remaining 1/2 cup of flour and 1 cup of water.
Step 7: Repeat step 4 but this time use the white copy paper.
Step 8: Let the paper dry for a minimum of 4 hours.
As you can see there are some brown marks on the balloon. This is from the paste, but it can be easily covered up using paint.
Step 9: Pop the balloon and remove from the shell. You might need to trim the opening to make the helmet sit upright.
Step 10: Use paint to decorate the helmet, then you’re done!
What do you think? Super easy, huh?! The best part is, it cost zero dollars! Well, that’s it for this tutorial. I hope you liked it. Into next time. Xoxo
