Make a Valentine's Day Pinata or Gift Container for Your Party

You can make a great addition to the party with wrapped candies inside a heart-shaped pinata. This lovely heart doesn't have to be hit with a stick and destroyed; it can also be used to hold a gift for someone special with just a few modifications.

Begin with a heart shaped balloon. Blow it up and tie the end closed with thread. You can also knot it shut. Lay the balloon on a flat surface and use a magic maker to draw a three inch square about two inches from the V at the top. The center of the square going across should be the center V. You won't paper mache this area. This will be the opening for the candy.

There are various recipes for the paper mache but I like to use wallpaper paste. Use the package directions. Some other recipes use two cups of water to one cup of flour and others add a little bit of white craft glue to the mix. Use your favorite.

Dip strips of newspaper in the mixture and cover the balloon completely (except the 3 inch square). Cover it several times and alternate the layers with some horizontally and some vertically. I like to allow it to dry and then do another layer. Once the entire balloon is covered and dry, pop it and remove the balloon pieces.

When it is done you will need to create a holder to suspend the balloon. Wrap the edge of the pinata all the way around and tie at the top. Keep this tight. Then, just like a Christmas box wrap it from front to back with the ribbon intersecting the other ribbon, at the bottom and at the top where you are going to tie it off. Create a big 6 inch ribbon loop above that knot, to hang the pinata. Tape the ribbon in place with pieces of masking tape to keep it from slipping out of place.

Cut several sheets of tissue paper into three-inch strips. You can use any color of pink or red or try a mix. Make an inner heart of dark pink and the outside of light pink. You can also use red or white. I personally like the combination of light pink on the outside of the heart and dark pink in the center in a heart shape. When you cut the tissue strips you will find it easier to fold the paper in half first to save time. You then fold the three-inch strips in half so they are one and a half inches wide and glue the opposite cut sides together. You now have a long strip that has two glued sides on one edge and a folded side on the other. Clip the folded side every 1/4 inch to about 1/2 inch from the glued edge.

Begin to glue the strips of tissue onto the heart. Start at the center. Use rubber cement strips to glue. Overlap the cut fringe over the glued edge of the tissue before. Do the entire heart right up to the opening. Fill the heart with hard candy and completely cover the opening.

Create multi-looped bows for pink and white ribbon, put a few accent streamers of green with the group and glue gun it to the bottom of the heart. Glue gun three white ribbon roses that have leaves on the front center and you are done.

I don't know about the rest of you, but I really don't like to put in so much work only to have children break it into a million parts. I adapted this pinata for a gift holder for Valentines Day. If the recipient wants to use it as a pinata later, that's there business. The adaptation is relatively simple.

Wrap the ribbon over the hole as you would for the pinata. For the container you will clip the ribbon and push the loose ends inside, stapling it down tight. Create a cardboard cover for the hole and put one layer of paper mache when you paper the balloon. Tape it with lengths of masking tape to one side of the opening, prior to covering the balloon with tissue. Push a pronged brass fastener through the paper mache at the base of the hole and open it on the inside leaving the button of the fastener on the outside for a hook. Cover the heart and then also cover the flap. When the entire heart and flap have been covered, lift the flap and glue a piece of elastic in the shape of a loop so that it can just fit over the fastener head. With this adjustment you can slide in the gift (Wrapped loose chocolates and wrapped candy still are appreciated.) and let the recipient keep the wrap in tact.