Cinco De Mayo Pinata Craft

Despite popular theory, Cinco de Mayo is neither a celebration of Mexican Independence, nor is it the Day of the Dead. It is, however, the celebration of Mexico winning a great victory over the French, when vastly outnumbered and out-armed. Now this does not mean we are celebrating the defeat of the French, it DOES mean we are celebrating the fighting spirit of the Mexican people. What better way to do this than with a homemade pinata filled with candy, money, and small toys?

The first step is to gather your supplies. You will need a large, round balloon, Red, Green, and White paint to signify the colors of the Mexican flag, and Hope, Unity, and Heroism. If you are truly patriotic, you may also want to get the colors necessary to paint an eagle onto your pinata. In addition you will need newspapers, both to cover your work area, and to make the paper mache. A few paint brushes, 1 cup of flower, 5 cups of boiling water (with your parents help), and a lot of candy, pocket change, and small toys to put into the pinata.

Blow up your balloon as large as possible, and have your parents help you tie it.

Boil the 5 cups of water and 1 cup of flour for a few minutes, stirring the whole time. Let the glue mixture cool, and put it into a large mixing bowl.

Slowly dip and cover each side of your first newspaper strip, remove any clumps from it, and layer it onto your balloon. Keep doing this until you have the balloon fully covered by one layer of newspaper. Smooth out any wrinkles, and add up to three or four layers. Now here comes the part that requires patience. Let the balloon dry COMPLETELY, and do it again. Repeat this as many times, eventually getting the balloon into the shape and thickness that you want. Make sure you dry it completely in between every few layers.

With your parent's permission, supervision, or assistance, cut the pinata in half when it is completely dry, add the candy, change, and toys to the pinata, and then put the other half back onto the mold. Paper mache the sides where you cut, and blend it into the rest of the pinata. Allow it to dry again, completely, and paint your pinata.

Now on the 5th of May, make sure you are careful while you each take turns trying to bust open your Cinco de Mayo Pinata!