Halloween Balloons

Published November 07, 2012

Halloween Fun

It’s creeping up on us again. Halloween is just around the corner and it’s time to put the kids to work on some Halloween crafts. This year why not make colourful, illuminated sconces for your spooky entrance? Or perhaps you are planning for a few ghosts and goblins to arrive ahead of time for a bit of a soiree? These cute, little Halloween balls make an impressive loot bag for the little ones. Fill them with candy and some other Halloween items for a pre-Hollow’s eve celebration.

Materials

Bag of small size balloons (available at the Dollar Stores)

All purpose flour

Warm water

Orange and yellow tissue paper

Newspaper, Black construction paper

Scissors and paintbrush

Adhesive Halloween stickers (available at Michaels and the Dollar Stores)

I saw this idea at a friend’s place last year and she suggested that it’s best to make these decorations at least 3-4 days ahead of time. The paper mache requires a day or two for drying and becoming firm enough to work with.

Begin by blowing up the balloons to approximately 4-5 inches in diameter. Set aside. Lay out newspaper as a working surface.

To make your glue, simply mix flour and warm water to form a thick paste. Place in a small saucepan and warm the paste. Stir to a nice consistency.

Remove from the burner and let cool slightly.

Cut your tissue paper into 1-inch strips. Set aside.

Using your paintbrush, apply a coat of paste to the balloon and immediately attach the yellow tissue paper until the balloon is completely covered. Next, apply a second coat of paste and attach the orange strips of tissue paper until the balloon is again, completely covered.

Set the balloon aside and let dry overnight or until the balloon is dry and the surface is quite hard. Repeat with the remaining balloons.

In the meantime cut out pumpkin face features from the black construction paper. Set aside.

Once the balloons are dry carefully pop the balloon inside with a pin or your scissors. Cut a small hole at the bottom of the ball and remove the deflated balloon. Next, glue on the pumpkin face features or apply the self-adhesive decorations.

Remove the shade from your wall sconce and carefully place the Halloween ball over the 40watt bulb. Be sure to only use a bulb that is no more than 40watts for safety purposes.

Illuminate the wall sconce for an eerie entrance.

Alternatively, you can make a small hole in the other Halloween balls and fill them with candy as a loot bag. Tape up the ball with orange coloured duct tape (available at Michaels) or regular black duct tape.

Be sure to always attend the wall sconces when illuminated. Once you are done, simply remove them from the light fixture and replace the lampshade.

Happy Halloween!