How to Make a Mosquito piñata

 Let's Stomp Out Malaria, Africa!  

Make a mosquito paper-maché piñata!

Have a picture for reference.

Materials: masking tape, newspaper, cardboard, picture of mosquito for reference,  scissors.  Optional: balloon for head.

Glue: flour, water, pot, heat source
          To make the glue:
1.  Measure out 1 part flour, five parts water
2.  Boil most of the water while you mix the flour into some cold water (this is so it doesn’t clump)
3.  Add the flour/water mix to the boiling water
4.  Boil about three minutes
5.  Let cool



1.  Cut out two almond-shaped pieces for the abdomen.

2.  Cut out two circles for the thorax
3.  Cut eight rectangles of cardboard, four being a certain length and the other four a bit shorter.  4.  These serve as the frame for the body.  Tape the short ends of the rectangles to the body pieces, lined up. 

4.  Tear up the newspaper into strips.  Hold it by the short end, and tear the long way down.  This way it tears pretty straight. 

5.  Once you have the frame, you can start paper-maché-ing.  Make sure the glue has cooled off enough! (It would be an embarrassing wound to explain to new friends, “Naw man, I got this making a paper-maché mosquito.  All for the war on Malaria.”  At least the last part makes you sound cool.)  Use just a bit of glue and run it down the strip of paper, so it’s just damp.  Make sure to get the edges.
Try to get the strips to go across the body.  Once those are dry, you can run some strips the other way, which will reinforce the structure.  It’s good to work in layers; do a piece, let it dry, return to it and add some more.  If you add too many wet strips at once, it’ll get too heavy and your poor mosquito will look droopy.

6.  While waiting for pieces to dry, you can make the legs.  Mosquitoes have six legs, which all attach to the thorax (unfortunately, in both mosquito models I made, I placed the back legs to the abdomen.  Don’t make this same mistake).  The legs have a whole bunch of joints, but keeping in mind that these may be used as piñatas and will be destroyed anyway, I’d say two joints are enough to give the impression of mosquito legs.  To make them, roll up a whole sheet of newspaper taught.  Tape the end.  Bend in half.  Make six of those, then three more--with those three, cut them in half and attach a half to each whole piece, and tape.  See picture.

7.  Still waiting for parts to dry?  Make the head.  To do this, you may either blow up a balloon and paper mache around it, or ball up a bunch of newspaper, cover it in one piece and fashion it into a ball-like shape. 

8.  Make some tea.  Watch some TV.  Do your nails.  Organize your book shelf.  Take a nap.

9.  Are your thorax and abdomen mostly dry?  Great.  Now connect them by propping the abdomen up on the thorax, and run pieces across the two.  It’ll look precarious at first, but don’t worry, once it dries it’ll be strong for sure.  Again, do a layer, let it dry, then reinforce.  

10.  Attach the head.  Prop the head piece next to the thorax and run strips between the two pieces.  Let it dry, reinforce. 

11.  Attach the legs--this might be tricky, because the rolled up paper can be a bit heavy.  Try propping bottles up next to the legs to hold them in place.  Run strips across the base of the legs, and make sure they bend the correct way.  Refer to your mosquito picture.  Let dry. 

 

12.  Paint!  Remember, mosquito piñata will be destroyed, so don’t get too connected to your artwork.  If you’d rather save your mosquito as a visual aide for a classroom, then go crazy, Van Gogh! (Chuckle, chuckle).  In Uganda, powder paint is available.  Buy a container of the available colors: red, yellow, blue, black and white, then add water.  It’s kind of like watercolor paint.   

13.  To add wings, cut out two almond-shapes out of “manillas,” as they call them (poster paper).  

14.  To hang--I haven’t done this yet, but I’d suggest to find a sturdy spot on the body and hole-punch some holes.  String it up and let it fly!