DLTK's Crafts for Kids
Paper Maché Lion Book Holder
This is a very cute little gift for siblings to make for each other or for a favorite grandparent.
Materials:
- shoebox
- scrap cardboard (the corrugated kind is best) If you only have
thin cardboard, then you can just layer it together.
- newspaper
- ONE OF: white glue, mod podge OR paper
mache paste (1 part flour to 4 parts water... boil about 3 minutes stirring
constantly, add 2 ice cubes and let cool)
- scissors,
- poster or tempra paint -- yellow and orange or
brown (or both)
- paintbrush
- black marker or paint
- OPTIONAL: exacto knife
- OPTIONAL: masking tape
- OPTIONAL: spray varnish
Instructions:
- Prepare your paper mache paste right away so it has time to cool (if
using the boil method). I like boiled paste as it's smoother and
takes a lot less flour (the REDUCE part of the three R's!).
Print out the template -- the templates are B&W (or you can choose to do this free hand).
- Cut out the template pieces and lay them on a piece of corrugated
cardboard.
- Trace the pieces onto the cardboard
- Cut them out with scissors or an exacto knife. I recommend an
adult help with this as the cardboard is difficult to cut.
Especially the mane (TIP: have the adult cut out a smooth circle
for the mane first and then let the child snip in little triangles to make the jagged edge. This is a lot easier than trying to cut
the jagged edge from the cardboard as you go.)
-
I included legs on the template,
but we didn't use them. Be aware
of your child's attention span when
deciding how much to do.
You could also skip the tail.
- Tear strips of newspaper about 1 " wide and as long as you want
- Dip in the paper mache paste, but then remove excess paste (I run it
through my fingers to do this).
- Cover the shoebox, inside and out, in no more than 4 layers of paper
mache (I always tell the kids no more than 2 as they always put on too
much *grin*). If you put on more than 4 it will likely mold
before it dries.
Cover each of the cut out pieces with paper mache (all the way
around). Again, no more than 4 layers.
- While it's still wet, arrange the head pieces together on the short side
of the shoebox.
- The mane goes on the bottom, then the circle head, then the circle
nose.
- The ears go right above the head on the mane.
- The paper mache should stick the pieces together so you won't need any
tape or glue.
- Put the tail on the back, folding it around the side (it will fold easily
at this point as it's a bit soggy, but you may want to use masking tape or
just add a few more pieces of mache/newspaper to hold it in place.
- Let dry COMPLETELY. It goes faster in a warm breezy place. If
it's a nice day, just stick it outside (just don't forget it if it starts to
rain). It takes a day or so to dry.
OPTIONAL: apply a second layer of mache. The more layers you
add, the sturdier it will be. We applied a second layer, but we only
did one layer, not 4 this time. That just made sure all the parts
stayed firmly in place.
- OPTIONAL: we always use scrap white computer paper or toilet
paper (don't laugh) for the final layer of all of our paper mache
projects.
- t takes less paint to cover.
- I find newspaper needs two coats of paint, whereas the white
paper only needs one.
- Toilet paper gives a rough texture which is nice for some
animals.
- We used computer paper for our lion.
Paint the whole thing yellow (we didn't paint the bottom).
- Use a small paintbrush or old toothbrush to stroke some brown and/or
orange paint onto the mane, inner ears and tip of the tail.
- Use a black marker or black paint to add facial features.
- Let dry.
- OPTIONAL: cover in a coat of clear varnish. This will
make it last longer (especially since poster paints aren't water
proof),
Printing Templates:
- Close the template window after printing to return to this screen.
- Set page margins to zero if you have trouble fitting the template on one page (FILE, PAGE SETUP or FILE, PRINTER SETUP in most browsers).
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