Papier-mâché, to play and paint

Papier-mâché is a fantastic way to entertain children and grownups. We can do amazing art while we promote recycling and handcrafts.
Papier-mâché is an excellent idea to play with, because everything we need is there, around the house.

Let's see how to do it, this will entertain them for hours.

For the glue
We will need:

• 1/2 cup flour;
• 2 cups hot water, let the water boil, be careful its hot;
• 2 cups cold water;
• 3 tablespoons sugar;
• A large bowl;
• A pot.

How to:

1. Add in a bowl the cold water and flour
2. Mix well to form a homogeneous mass,
3. Add this mixture to the boiling water, don't let your child do this, he can burn himself.
4. Wait until its boiling again, remove it from heat and add the sugar,
5. Mix;
6. Put aside to cool, while cooling the mixture thickens.

If you prefer you can buy white glue and dilute it 1:1 (half/half) in cold water.

For the fun: 
We will need:

• The glue,
• Old Newspapers,
• Mold, you can use a balloon, a stone from the beach, a plastic cup...

How to:

1. Cut the paper into thin strips, the strips should be cut using hands, the thinner the paper the better it will look;
2. Cover paper strips with glue;
3. Prepare the mold, in this case fill the balloon;
4. While pulling the strip out of the glue, with your fingers remove the excess glue;
5. Cover your mold with these strips impregnated with glue, in this case the balloon;
6. Continue placing strips of paper to cover all the mold, do not cover the knot, overlap the strips and put them in different directions, to ensure greater stability to the final result;
7. Near the place where the knot is make an edge. Wrap all the strips together and roll them in;
8. Wait for 4-5h to dry, depends on the type of paper, you must check the paper from time to time;
9. You can apply a new layer if you wish;
10. The final set must wait to dry at least 24h.
11. Burst the balloon;
12. Remove the balloon through the hole of the mold.

Et voilá!
You have a papier maché balloon ready to be painted

If you cut the final result in half you can do 2 masks, for example, or if you cut it horizontally you can make a bowl... you can do several other things, just let your imagination flow.

Enjoy!