Make your own Lion Pinata

Having a pinata brightens up your party - not only does it add to the theme decoration, it is also a hit with children. We wanted a pinata for baby H's jungle party and decided to make one ourselves. It looks way harder than it really is but everyone can do it, even if you don't have crafty fingers.

What you need:

• Balloon
• Tapioca flour to make glue
• Newspaper or magazines
• Cardboard or used carton box
• Orange and brown crepe paper
• Double-sided tape
• Paint
• Ribbons

Instructions:
1. Making the lion head

• Dissolve little tapioca floor in water and stir the mixture over low heat to form a glue paste
• Inflate the balloon and prop it up using a container / bowl
• Tear newspaper or magazines into 1 - 1.5 inch strips
• Smear glue onto newspaper strips and paste them on the balloon. Cover the whole balloon except for a tiny opening at the bottom. Make sure you overlap the strips, and have enough layers to form a strong shell (2 layers at a time to allow ease of drying, 6-8 layers minimum)
• Once the paper mache lion head's complete, allow it to dry completely
• Use a piece of cardboard or old carton box to draw on a pair of ears for the lion (you can draw a circle and cut it in half). Cut them out and stick them on the lion head using double sided tape

2. Decorating the lion head

• Paint the lion head and ears orange
• Cut the orange crepe paper into squares, and stick them onto the lion head and ears, covering every part
• Next, cut the brown crepe paper into 1 inch wide strips. Fold each strips by looping them (like making a fan) and staple the ends together to hold the loops. Use double sided tape to stick them on the lion head to form its mane
• Finally, draw a set of eyes and mouth on the cardboard, cut them out and stick them onto the lion's face using double sided tape

3. Making the hanger and latch

• Prick a hole at the top of the lion head, string a piece of ribbon or yarn through the hole and knot it to form the hanger
• Using the cardboard, draw a circle (the same size as the opening at the bottom of your pinata), and four rectangles touching the side of the circle (top, bottom, left and right). This will form the latch for your pinata.
• Cut out the latch, paint it orange, and stick on the remaining orange crepe paper squares
• Make a hole in the middle of the latch, string the ribbons through the hole and make a knot to secure the ribbons
• To cover the pinata, fold the rectangles inwards and push the latch through the hole. You can use masking tape or cellophane tape to secure the latch if required

Fill your pinata with candies and little goodies and let the fun begin! We thought it would be rather nasty to have the kids bash up the lion, hence the pull string pinata. As most of the kids are rather young, we let them pull the pinata together. But you can always make it into a game. Some people make multiple holes on the latch for the ribbons. Most are loosely stringed except for 1-2, which are knotted. Each child gets a turn to pull a ribbon, the lucky child wins and shares the goodies with his friends :-)