At various children's parties, celebrations and weddings such entertainment as piñata is gaining more and more popularity. What it is? Where can I get it? How to do it yourself? A lot of questions ...
Pinata is a ball of papier-mâché, colored paper and bright ribbons, in limbo and filled with sweets. To release such attractive and alluring content, you need to smash it with a stick.
Appearance story
So pinata: what is it? For the first time, such entertainment appeared in Mexico, although, according to some information, the inhabitants of China owed their appearance. In this country, several centuries ago, the New Year's Eve took place with the obligatory presence of a large figure of a cow or a bull, filled inside with flowers and five kinds of seeds. People smashed it, burned the remains, and took the ashes to themselves. It was believed that in this case, the coming year will be pleasant in all respects. Mexico with such fun, which is an integral attribute of children's birthdays, met a couple of centuries later. European residents diversified their holidays with great pleasure.
Pinata: what is it
The traditional form of piñata, considered a Christmas symbol, is represented by a large seven-pointed star, showing the way to wanderers. In Spain, such a figure is made of a clay pot to which paper cones are attached from above. For Europe, a more simplified version is characteristic - from papier-mâché. How to make a pinata yourself?
Figures of various contents (houses, flowers, balls), cartoon characters or figures corresponding to the age of the birthday are gaining more and more popularity. In addition to sweets, piñata can be filled with all sorts of pleasant things: cute prizes, small balls, soft toys, stickers, toys, unexpected surprises. Pinata (photo can be seen in the article) is an excellent alternative to fireworks, giving in addition to visual pleasure a lot of positive and good mood.
DIY Guide
How to make piñata at home? In making such an original do-it-yourself fun, the scope for imagination is enormous; The easiest way to build it is in the form of a ball. First you need to craft a papier-mâché form for which you will need:
- ¼ cup of wheat flour;
- 2 teaspoons of starch;
- 1 cup of cool water;
- 0.5 liters of boiling water;
- old newspapers.
The first step is to cook the paste: combine flour with starch, dilute with cold water. Pour the resulting solution into boiling water, stir until smooth, cool.
From the newspaper cut strips (approximately 10 * 30 cm); grease each with a paste and stick to the base, which is most convenient to use an ordinary balloon (not too inflated) or a large gymnastic ball.
As ties, it is better to use not threads, but a tape, so that in the process of drying the ball can be blown. It is recommended to stick newspapers in at least 4 layers, waiting for the previous one to dry completely (about 1-2 hours). If the pinata is intended for small children, applying 3 layers is enough; if for an adult or something heavy lies inside, it is better to strengthen the ball with two or three additional layers. To loosen the pinata and facilitate its breaking, it is recommended to make several neat holes in it with a knife.
Papier-mâché mass can be prepared by another method - using 8 rolls of toilet paper, 1 liter of PVA glue, 3 liters of water as a material.
In a spacious container in water, you need to soak toilet paper, then squeeze it well. This activity can be facilitated with the help of gauze tissue, in which to place the soaked mass. The remaining "cake" to connect with glue and apply to the base, leaving uncovered the place where the ball is tied.
After the base has dried (it usually takes about 3 days), you can check the readiness of the pinata by tapping it. Confirm the dryness of the product characteristic sound. Then the tape needs to be untied, and the ball deflated. On the inside, the papier-mâché base should be dry and smooth.
We complicate the task
For those who have learned how to make simple forms of pinyata, mastering its manufacture in the form of various figures will not be difficult. For example, for a figure in the shape of an animal, double-sided tape is required to glue cardboard parts or several balloons of other sizes onto a balloon with a newspaper, onto which a newspaper mass is applied.
During the manufacturing process, you should decide on the place for which the pinata will be suspended, fix the hook with wide shoulders made of thin wire hanger. The shoulders can be fixed on the inside of the ball with masking tape, the hole can be masked with masking tape.
How to decorate a pinata
Of course, the resulting dirty-gray ball at first hardly resembles a conceived toy, and therefore requires further decoration and decoration. Most often, colored corrugated paper is used for decoration, which needs to be cut into strips 5-7 cm wide in the form of a fringe (across, not completely).
It is required to glue the pinata from the bottom with a fringe down, around; stripes should be applied so that one slightly goes behind the other. Leave it to dry for a day.
You can add a pinata with elements such as eyes, ears, tail (depending on what kind of pinata are thought up). You can also decorate the finished form with satin ribbons, shaggy feathers, pieces of foil, artificial flowers and serpentine.
For example, gluing a pinyata in layers with honey-colored paper and decorating with bees with Velcro, you can get a nice hive. Piglet, eyes and ears will eventually give a nice pig.
How to fill piñata
The final maneuver is filling the finished pinata with chewing gum, sweets, finely chopped colored paper. This can be done through the hole left. When choosing sweets, it is better to give preference to toffees and lollipops, since chocolate during the whipping of a toy can be substantially damaged. You should also make sure that there are no sharp objects inside that could injure others.
It is recommended to fill the pinata one-third or half, because in order for the toy to break, there should be an empty space inside. In addition, the pinata should be sufficiently mobile, swaying and dodgy, so that it would be interesting for children to beat it. It’s best to use a bat or a stick for this. For the convenience of breaking pinyata, it is recommended to do it not too bulky and large enough, on average from 50 centimeters to 1 meter.
Choose a location
Such a game requires a certain space so that other participants can have time to run away while the blindfolded player, trying to get into the pinata, hits in different directions. Therefore, it is recommended to identify a bright toy on the street, for example, on a branch of a spreading tree. If it is impossible to hold a holiday on the street, piñatu can be hung in the largest room of the room. The figure needs to be firmly fixed so that during the whipping process it does not come off together with the long-awaited surprises inside.
First strike right
Most often, children are arranged in height and the first blow is granted to the smallest. After all, the baby is unlikely to break a pinata the first time, so it is highly likely that all participants can play.
If the right of the first blows is granted to older children, then the piñata can be broken faster, which will provide disappointment and tears to the players who did not have time to hit it. It should be remembered when one person hits a piñatu, the rest should be at a safe distance.
So, we got the answer to the question: pinata - what is it? For the holiday, such fun is just a godsend. It unites guests, causes general fun. Pinata is a toy that is an original decoration and entertainment of any celebration, able to set a positive tone for the event and bring a lot of pleasure and joy to guests.