Power Grab Paper Mache?

We’re taking a little semi-break from Halloween. Or rather, Jen had asked me to make ANOTHER pinata. This time for a church activity.

Now, my mind sees little wee ones whacking at a big ole devil shaped pinata with sticks shaped of crosses…however, I’m well aware most may not share my sense of humor on the subject. So, I settled on a traditional star pinata.

And, as long as I was making this, I may as well try out my new idea for Paper Mache.

First, there are a couple popular paper mache recipes:

Ye olde flour and water: Mix flour and water together to the consistancy you want. Easy, cheap, effective. Not that strong.

Ye olde cooked flour and water: Mix flour and MORE water, bring to boil and simmer down to consistancy you want. Same as above, but ensures no lumps.

Glue and water: Can’t get more easy. Slightly stronger than the flour/water, but does not flatten down as well, and prone to cracking.

Power Grab and water: Strong and flexible, does not stay suspended in the water well, needs constant agitation, does not flatten well.

So, I set out to combine the strength of Power Grab and the better properties of the flour pastes. And so, came up with…

The UnOrthOdOx Power Grab Paper Mache

Need: 1 tube all purpose Power Grab
2 cups Flour
Water
Salt
pot you don’t mind possibly ruining.

Measure 6 cups of water into the pot and bring it to a boil.
While it’s heating up, in another bowl measure 5 cups water, 2 cups flour, some salt to prevent mold, and 1 tube power grab. I used a whisk I bought at the local good will store.

Now, add the contents into the boiling water, stirring constantly till it reaches the desired consistancy. Think pancake batter. (About 3-5 min) Let cool before using.

*Optional* If the smell bothers you, add in some cinnamon to the mixture to mask it somewhat.

This stuff, has been a joy to work with so far.

With only 3 layers, it was strong enough to remove from the molds, and hold it’s shape while applying more layers. And, with only 3 layers, it could withstand me squeezing on it with flattened hands. But, it did tear in a spot when Jen put that pressure more on her fingertips. Not a problem for the pinata at this point, and valuable information for future halloween uses.

Once I get a fair few more layers on, I’ll be curious just how many kids will have to wail away at this thing before it breaks.

Now, as for the warning on the pot. I bought a junker pot just for these kinds of things. Boiling newspapers, making wierd experiments, etc. And, while it was in poor shape to begin with, we managed to take off more of it’s teflon while cleaning the glue off.