What if you were making a piñata, but didn’t have the time or the tissue paper to give it a raised look? What if you had everything on the piñata put together except for the tissue paper? You could paste and smooth the tissue paper over the piñata, or you could let Styrofoam add dimension to your piñata.
Look in the arts & crafts section of stores to find Styrofoam.
Using a cheese grader, shave the Styrofoam into a bowl. The Styrofoam will make strips just like shredded cheese. Color the Styrofoam with food coloring or you can use watercolor paint, which might stain the bowl. Pour the food coloring in the bowl and mix the Styrofoam. Let it dry. The Styrofoam may stick together in clumps after it dries; just tap it apart with the back of a spoon. Sit the piñata on newspapers or on something to catch any drips. Smooth glue over the piñata where you want to place the Styrofoam and apply the Styrofoam before the glue dries. You may have to hold the Styrofoam on for a few seconds to a few minutes to set the Styrofoam in the glue. Make bowls of Styrofoam in different colors to make the piñata colorful. You can also apply the Styrofoam in small, medium or large clumps, which will make the piñata stand out that much more.
A faster and simpler way to do the Styrofoam is to omit mixing it with food coloring in the bowl. Use a cheese grader to shave the Styrofoam into a bowl; sit the piñata on newspapers and then smooth glue over the piñata and apply the Styrofoam. Let it dry. Using watercolor paint, paint the Styrofoam on the piñata. You can use paint other than watercolor. When finished, let it dry.
Styrofoam gives the piñata a different look, feel and take and may be messier when the piñata gets whacked; scattering the cheese graded Styrofoam all over the place. It may save time over applying individual pieces of tissue paper; often done by sticking a pencil head eraser into the center of the paper, pulling the paper up and pressing the paper down into a dab of glue applied on the piñata.
For an even different look, use both tissue paper and Styrofoam on the piñata. In combination, it can produce something magnificent; almost three dimensional. It’s also an inspiring art project for just about any age.