{"id":10137,"date":"2015-12-21T01:44:26","date_gmt":"2015-12-21T01:44:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smallhandsbigart.com\/?p=10137"},"modified":"2018-12-31T04:30:59","modified_gmt":"2018-12-31T04:30:59","slug":"reindeer-diy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smallhandsbigart.com\/fort-mill\/reindeer-diy\/","title":{"rendered":"Papier Mache Reindeer Busts Tutorial"},"content":{"rendered":"
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These papier mache reindeer busts are so fabulous, we wanted to share this easy step-by-step so you can make one at home! \u00a0\u00a0We have to warn you this is about a\u00a015 hot glue stick project, but worth every blister!<\/p>\n
To form the reindeer’s head, start by loosely wadding up the newspaper & wrapping it with two layers of foil, covering it completely so it looks like a giant baked potato. \u00a0This is how we start almost all of our sculptures ~ the aluminum foil makes a great sculpting medium! \u00a0Mold the\u00a0aluminum foil into the desired tapered shape\u00a0for the head. \u00a0We made ours about 10-12″ long.<\/p>\n
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Follow the directions to wrap the aluminum foil covered head with plaster wrap. \u00a0This sets up in about 5 minutes. Let dry for several hours or overnight depending on humidity levels.<\/p>\n
Lay the head on the foam cork board to get a gauge of how big to make the antlers. \u00a0Draw the shape for the antlers on the cork foam board with a pen, and carefully cut them out with a utility knife (adults only).<\/p>\n
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Paint the papier mache head with tempera paint. \u00a0You can get creative with different colors and designs, or sponge the paint on for a mottled effect. \u00a0Use the wooden tip of a paintbrush to add little freckles if desired, white around the eyes and forehead, etc.<\/p>\n
Sprinkle with glitter while still wet. \u00a0Set aside to dry. \u00a0The paint soaks into the plaster and dries fairly quickly – approximately 30 minutes.<\/p>\n
Glue on buttons & jewels for eyes. \u00a0We also used small scraps of the suede to make eyelashes.<\/p>\n
Draw the shape of the base on cardboard and cut out with the utility knife (adults only). \u00a0Paint with tempera paint, sprinkle with glitter.<\/p>\n
Glue two small pieces of wood at the top and bottom of the back of the cardboard base. \u00a0Attach the soda pop tab to the wood piece at the top so that it can hang flat on the wall with a nail. \u00a0You can concoct your own method to hang these – this is just a simple system we came up with because we liked the way it looked with a little space between the base and the wall.<\/p>\n
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Poke a hole in the papier mache head for the nose. \u00a0Squirt a generous amount of hot glue into the hole and insert the\u00a0top of the ornament.<\/p>\n
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Glue two small wood cubes to the back of the base of the antlers. \u00a0The purpose of the spacers is to just elevate them a bit off the base, so you can probably accomplish the same thing with plastic water bottle lids or something with a similar depth, as long as they are all the same size.<\/p>\n
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Lay out the antlers and the head on the base to determine\u00a0proper placement\u00a0for the antlers.<\/p>\n
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Glue the antlers onto the base with a generous amount of hot glue. \u00a0 It doesn’t need to look pretty – you won’t be able to see this when it’s all put together.<\/p>\n
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After the antlers are glued on, lay the top of the head on top of the antlers at an angle, so that the chin touches the cardboard. \u00a0Mark the spot where the chin touches and\u00a0squirt a generous amount of hot glue and lay the chin in the glue to secure it.<\/p>\n
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Next, squirt a generous amount of hot glue where the head touches the antlers. \u00a0This can be somewhat messy because\u00a0it will all be covered up with the ears in the next step.<\/p>\n
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Prep\u00a0the shape of the ears. \u00a0Squirt glue along the bottom and pinch to form a V.<\/p>\n
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Then fold it back over into an accordion shape and glue the 2nd fold in place. \u00a0Squeeze flat with your fingers until cool, being careful\u00a0not to squeeze all the bubbling hot glue out of the fold and into the tender part of the palm of your hand, because this will probably hurt for\u00a0two days and make it difficult to type or hold your hair dryer. \u00a0Flatten out the base, leaving a cute\u00a0little fold in the ear.<\/p>\n
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Squirt more hot glue where the antler is attached to the head, and then lay the ear in the puddle of hot glue. \u00a0Push in place with the tip of a screwdriver or pencil.<\/p>\n
When it’s all done, the side profile should look something like this.<\/p>\n
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Now the fun part! \u00a0Use push pins to decorate with holiday garland, dangle ornaments & jingle bells and bedazzle with sparkly ribbons & jewels!<\/p>\n
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If you made these at home, please be sure to share! We would love to see them! Thanks for reading Small Hands Big Art’s\u00a0Papier Mache Reindeer Busts Tutorial!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Step-by-Step Instructions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19434,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[118,244,246,247,250,253,421,422,423],"class_list":["post-10137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-elementary","tag-christmas-crafts","tag-holiday-craft","tag-holiday-decor","tag-holiday-decoration","tag-holiday-giftmaking","tag-holiday-workshop","tag-reindeer","tag-reindeer-wall-sculpture","tag-reindeer-workshop"],"yoast_head":"\n