How to Make Papier-mâché Candy Dishes

These decorative papier-mâché candy dishes are a fun and easy project to make with your kids. 

Papier-mâché is simply strips of paper soaked in a mixture of flour and water that gets hard when it dries. Newspaper works great.  

The curved shapes were made by applying several layers of soaked newspaper strips around a balloon.

What to do:

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• mix 1 part water with 1 part flour
  
• tear newspaper into strips (no points for neatness here)
  
• blow up a balloon
  
• wrap 4 layers of strips around the balloon and let it dry
  
• add another 4 layers
  
• burst the balloon so the inside can dry as well
  
• when dry, cut whatever shapes you want using a serrated knife
  
• add another 2 layers of strips wrapping around the rough cut edges
  
• stick three small wads of soaked newspaper on the bottom to make the feet (four might wobble)
  
• once dry, prime the dishes with white latex or craft paint
  
• add your own creative design with acrylic craft paints
  
• protect your masterpiece with 2 coats of water-based polyurethane