Home FREE Art : Out of This World Papier-Mache

What you need:

Newspaper

Lots of white glue and water

Balloon

Paints and an old world map

Are you serious?  Every year, Americans throw away enough office paper each year to build a 12 foot high wall from Seattle to New York.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 75 percent of the American waste stream is recyclable, but we only recycle about 30 percent of it.

  1. To make this worldly craft, start with a balloon – blow it up and tie it off.  Tear newspaper into strips approximately 1 inch wide and 4-6 inches long.

  2. Make up a batch of papier mache fixative (equal parts glue and water). Dip the strips into the mixture and pull each strip between your fingers to get rid of the excess glue.

  3. Layer, layer and layer strips, at least three, across the balloon. Go across horizontally, then vertically and then again, horizontally. You do not need to cover the knot of the balloon.

  4. Once your globe is dry, you can pop the balloon and remove it.

  5. Paint the globe blue. Fashion the continents, islands and other land masses with an old map and glue. Finish with a coat of water based sealer.

Example:

Example Image This World Papier-Mache.jpg