Dino Piñata

We celebrated my son's birthday a little while ago and threw him a Jurassic Park inspired party. As per tradition, I made his piñata which this year was a T-rex. I'll be posting highlights from the party in the next few days but right now here are the basics on how I created this cute but slightly scary T-rex piñata.

What You Need

• Paper Mache paste (I mix water and flour until it feels like runny porridge)

• Newspaper cut into strips
• Rope
• Paint

• Scissors and a box cutter
• White foam board
• Hot glue, white glue and tape

The Foundation

Inflate three ballons, 2 small and 1 large one. Secure 1 small and 1 large together as seen above using strips of paper and tape.

The Foundation Wrapped

Wrap the balloons in newspaper strips soaked in paper mache paste and set it aside to dry. I placed the form into bowls to dry overnight and flipped it the next day to continue drying.  

Head and Tail

Using scrunched up paper and tape, shape arms, legs and a tail. Tape them onto the foundation and wrap those pieces in newspaper strips soaked in paper mache paste. Take the 3rd ballon and wrap it in paper mache paste.

Head and Jaws

Take the 3rd ballon and cut it in half. Take 1 half and trim it so it will fit as the lower jaw. Once you got the right fit, hot glue and/or tape it into place. 

Take the 2nd half and trim it just a bit so it will fit on the head forming the rest of the upper face/jaw. Roll up newspaper and tape 2 lengths down the head from snout to neck to form the ridge above the eyes.

Once that is done, cover it all once again with newspaper strips soaked in paper mache paste and let it dry.

Finishing Touches

Instead of streamers I went with simple acrylic paint. Once all was dry, I punched a hole through his mouth to allow me to fill it with candy.

  I cut teeth shapes out of some white foam board scraps I had lying around the studio and hot glued them in place. 

Lastly, I tied a rope around his neck to be able to hang and yank around for the fun part of smashing him open.

That is it...it only took a few days to create it and the birthday boy absolutely loved it. If you have any questions on the process, please post them in the comments and I will answer them as best I can. If you try it, let me know how it goes.