My brother asked me to make paper mache dinosaur eggs for my nephew’s third birthday. Of course, I was delighted because I love using my craft skills to help my family. However, I have not had to paper mache anything since fifth grade, so I did some research to find out how to make the mixture in the most cost-efficient way.
My brother’s partner told me she wanted to use the eggs as goodie bags to put party favors inside. I hadn’t seen this before, but it sounded like a super cute idea to me. So soon, I gathered up all of the materials I needed and got to work.
I made a lot of great things for his party, including a fantastic dino centerpiece, a banner, a silverware container, and decorated cardboard numbers. It was for my nephew, so I wanted to ensure his party had many cool dinosaur decorations!
This project wasn’t complicated, but it was a little time-consuming. First, I had to make 14 eggs for each little party guest. The only negative thing for me was that I hate getting my fingers wet and soggy, so I had to work through that. LOL.
If you are reading this article because you need to paper mache something or you have a dinosaur bash coming up, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
Materials To Make Paper Mache Dino Egg
- All-purpose flour (1 cup)
- Water (1 cup)
- Salt (1/2 TBSP)
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- 1 Balloon
- newspaper
- White acrylic craft paint
- Green, orange, or brown acrylic craft paint
- Scissors
- Crinkle paper (optional)
How to Make Paper Mache Dinosaur Egg
You’re going to start by pouring a cup of all-purpose flour into your mixing bowl.
Then, add a cup of room temperature water and mix it with a whisk.
Then add in half a tablespoon of salt. For some reason, I only had pink Himalayan Sea salt because I’m about that Trader Joe’s life, but obviously, regular salt will work as well.
Mix all the ingredients until the consistency is smooth and even.
Grab a 9-inch balloon and blow it up to whatever size you want your dinosaur eggs to be. The balloon is going to act as our mold for the eggs.
Covering the Balloon with Newspaper Strips
Cut up a newspaper into small strips. I made several different size strips, but the best size seems to be about 4 inches long and one inch wide. Dip each strip into the flour mixture and lightly pull it to remove the excess batter.
Repeat the same process with the next strip, but this time when placing it on the balloon, make sure that it slightly overlaps the first strip.
I have the balloon sitting on top of a plastic cup because it allows me to do the project hands-free and holds the balloon steady so I can finish covering it with the newspaper.
As you begin to put more pieces of newspaper on your balloon, the weight of the dough mixture will cause the balloon to want to topple, so you have to use your hand to hold it so that it doesn’t entirely fall over and get messed up.
When you’re overlapping the newspaper pieces, check to ensure that you don’t have any open spaces. If you do, cover them up with wet paper.
As a warning, your hands will get very messy during this project, and you will smell like pancake batter.
Keep going until you cover most of the balloon and no empty holes are showing.
I let the eggs sit on their cups overnight so that they could dry.
Painting the Dinosaur Eggs with White Acrylic Craft Paint
Grab your white acrylic crab paint and cover the dinosaur egg with paint. Then, allow the paint time to dry completely.
Now, grab another color of acrylic craft paint. Some suggestions are light green, dark green, tan, or orange. Then, use your paintbrush to make polka dots all over your dinosaur egg.
Try to spread your polka dots out evenly across your dinosaur egg, and if some of your spots seem a little transparent go back over them with a second coat of paint wherever you see fit.
Popping the Balloon with Scissors
When your dots are dry, grab a pair of scissors and pop your balloon.
Cutting a Zig Zag Pattern into the Dinosaur Egg
User your scissors to cut a zig-zag pattern at the egg’s opening. And remember, the zig-zag design doesn’t have to be perfect because a regular egg doesn’t crack perfectly either.
Multiple Uses for Paper Mache Eggs
The picture above is how the dinosaur egg should look after you finish cutting it. You can use these eggs as table decorations or centerpieces, or you can also fill them up with crinkle paper, put party favors inside and use them as goodie bags to give to your guests.
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And there you have it, folks! Making paper mache dinosaur eggs is the perfect project to get those creative juices flowing, especially if you’re looking for a fun birthday gift for a little one. I made these dinosaur eggs for my nephew’s 3rd birthday. He and his mom were beyond excited to receive them. The look of wonder and excitement on his face was priceless.
So, whether you’re making these eggs for a birthday party favor, a fun DIY project, or adding some unique decorations for your next party, I hope this tutorial has inspired you to try it. The process is simple, the materials are affordable, and the result is adorable.
Happy crafting, friends! I can’t wait to see what beautiful creations you all come up with. Thanks so much for hanging out with me! Until the next time, I hope that you continue to add a little more creativity to the world! Keep coming back because you never know what I’ll create next!
Hi! Thanks for posting this. I’ll definitely try this out with my kid.😊
I am so glad to hear that. I hope you two have fun doing this project!