Remembering when I was 8, looking at that colorful thing that hung from the ceiling and somehow, when kids hit it many times with a stick or baseball bat, candy came out of it! This thing, a piñata, is what I learned to make this week, while helping out at a Spanish summer camp.
Pretty soon, after reading this, you will also be able to make your very own piñata! But first, let’s start with a little history of the piñata:
A piñata is a papier-mâché container that is used to put candy in. Normally at parties, people are blind folded and try to break the piñata with a stick, or until all the candy comes out. This concept was originated in China. It was then brought over to Spain through trading. The name piñata comes from the Italian word, pignatta, meaning “fragile pot”. From there, during the Exploration Period, it was brought over to Mexico.
Today, piñatas are made into different shapes and sizes. During the summer camp, each child chose a sports ball to make. And here is how we did it:
This concept was originated in China. It was then brought over to Spain through trading. The name piñata comes from the Italian word, pignatta, meaning “fragile pot”. From there, during the Exploration Period, it was brought over to Mexico.
Today, piñatas are made into different shapes and sizes. During the summer camp, each child chose a sports ball to make. And here is how we did it:
1. Blow balloon. It has to be really big because that’s what the candy goes into.
2. Prepare glue. We used normal liquid school glue mixed with a little water.
3. Put newspaper. Using a paint brush, we put glue all over and stuck pieces of newspaper to it. This was repeated for 3 days, we had to put at least 6 layers of newspaper and to wait for it to be dry and harden.
4. Cut and glue streamer. We made little cuts to the sides of the streamer and glued the strips to the balloon.
5. Add any other decorations.
6. Pop balloon. By now, the newspaper and glue has hardened so when the balloon is popped, the piñata has kept its shape.
It was a lot of fun to make! Above is the piñata I made, a golf ball and a golf club. Let us know about a time you broke open a piñata or if you have ever made a piñata by leaving a comment below.
Bethany Looi is a 16 year old high school student who goes to a brick and mortar public school and also an online school. She is scheduled to graduate one year earlier than her peers with honors. Bethany enjoys playing golf, traveling and learning new languages. She is currently pursuing an advanced level Spanish with a private tutor. She is starting to work as a virtual assistant and currently has 2 clients. Bethany is blogging here at uncommongeneration.com one to two times a month. She has been to 12 countries and her favorite things to do in each country are shopping, eating and sightseeing.
