Make a Party Pinata at Home
The All Time Favourite Party Game that my kids always request is a Party Pinata! They can go with any Theme, the guests love the Treats, and almost everyone enjoys being allowed to Hit something.
Anything I do myself always turns out more customised for my Birthday Boy or Girl, and I have made some Amazing Pinatas over the years.
But as life has gotten busier, I have also learned to adapt my DIY Pinatas so that I can make them Faster and with Less Effort. Making a DIY Pinata for your Kid’s Birthday Party needn’t be hard or time consuming. I have two types of pinatas to share with you below!
One is a Quick Tutorial below of how to make a Simple DIY Pinata at Home in a couple of Easy Steps. Its shape is a basic cardboard box.
The other is a more Advanced Tutorial for anyone who wants to create a Character-Shaped Party Pinata.
Below are some photos of the easier ones that I have made. The pinata wrapped in brown paper with a teepee was from Donte's Camping themed 9th Birthday Party. The Purple Supergirl box pinata was from Isla's Superheroes themed 5th Birthday Party. Not bad, for 10 minutes and a nappy box!
How to Make a Simple Pinata using a Cardboard Box
What You’ll Need
Cardboard Box
Packing Tape
Wrapped Lollies and Candies
Satin Ribbon
Wrapping Paper
Step 1
Pick any Cardboard Box of a size you like. Really, any box! You’ll be covering it, so don’t worry what it carried, as long as it’s Clean!
Make sure all Sides of your Cardboard Box are taped Securely with Packing Tape, except the Top. Usually I just have to add a little extra tape to the Bottom of the box I save for the Party Pinata.
Step 2
Fill the Cardboard Box with Wrapped Lollies, or any wrapped edible or non-edible Treats of your Choice!
Step 3
Seal the Top of the Box shut with some more packing tape.
Step 4
Cut Two Long Lots of Satin Ribbon. You should be able to Double the Ribbon, for Extra Strength, and still be able to wrap each lot all the way around the box.
Wrap one lot around the width and one around the length of the box so that all the ends meet in the Middle of the Box. You’ll have 4 ends of double ribbon, so 8 pieces of ribbon to tie into a Knot at the Top of the Box.
Step 5
Now you will need more Satin Ribbon Doubled Over in a Long Length to tie to the top knot for hanging. Depending on how low you would like your Pinata to hang will determine how long to cut this last piece of Satin Ribbon.
Step 6
Now the Base of your Pinata is Finished and you just need to make that Box look Pretty. There are so many ways this can be done but being Time & Budget Conscience, I wrapped mine in Matching Wrapping Paper and Stuck a Sticker on the side.
You can be as Creative as you want, but with the right Coloured Paper and an easy Decoration or two (like my sticker), your DIY Pinata can perfectly match your theme!
And now your Simple Party Pinata is Complete.
If done properly this Pinata can last ages before it busts which is so much more fun than the Store-Brought Pinatas which only last a couple of whacks. On the Day of our Party it took about 40 minutes and 20 kids of varying ages to crack it open and they had so much fun doing so!
Advanced: How to Make a Character-Shaped Pinata
This next Tutorial is the Minions DIY Pinata I made for my son Donte’s Minion themed Birthday Party. It was Pretty Awesome!
I wish I had taken more photos of how I made this Fun Party Pinata shaped and decorated like a Minion, but I will explain as best I can.
What You’ll Need
Cardboard Box
Sharp Knife (for Cardboard)
Packing Tape
Wrapped Lollies and Candies
Satin Ribbon
Wrapping Paper
Glue
Paint, Crepe Paper, and other Decorations
Step One
First I found a Rectangular Cardboard Box. I taped the bottom together, then cut the top half of the box using a Stanley Knife to round the edges and create the Minion’s head.
You could customise your cut for any Character Shape, but I recommend you shape the Top and keep the Bottom a basic Rectangular box!
Step Two
Once I had a nice shape I secured it with Satin Ribbon for Hanging. I poked a couple of holes along the top of the box and sewed the Satin ribbon through the holes for added strength.
Then I tied the ribbon together in the middle. At this point, either make sure you have plenty of ribbon left for hanging, or tie another piece of the right length to the top knot.
Step Three
I filled the box with Wrapped Lollies. Remember, almost any Treats work!
Step Four
The final step of my Minion Party Pinata was to decorate it like the Character.
First I wrapped it in Yellow Crepe Paper.
Then I made the Overalls with Blue Crepe Paper. I wrapped one large piece of Blue Crepe around the bottom half of the Box and secured with Super Glue. Then I Cut a Rectangle piece of Blue Crepe as the front of the overalls. I Cut two thinner strips of blue crepe as the suspenders.
Next, I cut a piece of Black Satin Ribbon and glued it around the top piece of the Minion to create the eyes. I Print & Cut the Minion Eye Template and glued it on the Black ribbon.
I Painted a Big Smile with Black Acrylic Paint, or a Black Pen would work, too.
Finally, I cut some Arms & Feet with Grey Cardboard and attached them to the pinata with Glue. And then it was done!
Variations: More DIY Party Pinatas
I have made some pretty fantastic pinatas over the years for our kids parties. Below are some of the other party pinatas that I have made using variations of the tutorials above.
Crepe Paper Minnie Mouse Ears Pinata
How Gorgeous is this DIY Minnie Mouse pinata that I made for Isla's Minnie themed 2nd Birthday? It was made using a similar technique to the Minions Pinata above, except that I cut the cardboard into the shape of Minnie Mouse's classic head and ears silhouette.
After decorating the pinata with pink crepe paper, I drew Isla's name onto black cardboard. Then I cut the letters from her name and hot glued them to the pinata. Next, I made a large bow to complete the Minnie Mouse Party Pinata.
Check out this easy tutorial on how to make a bow from crepe paper, here.
Easy-to-Make Ninja Turtles Party Pinata
This Awesome TMNT pinata was made using round pieces of cardboard, this time. It was the coolest party game at Donte's Ninja Turtle themed 5th Birthday Party!
To make this pinata, the Lime Green crepe paper was carefully applied with pva glue. Slowly bunching up the crepe paper as it was added to the box in a circular motion. Starting with the outside rings of the pinata first, and working your way toward the centre.
Then, it was time for the mask to be added. Donte chose Blue Crepe paper for his favourite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle character, Leonardo. We cut out his mouth and eyes from coloured card and applied them to the pinata with hot glue.
Check Out all of the Fun the Kids had below!
Simple Doc McStuffins Birthday Pinata
This Pinata was made with purple and metallic purple crepe paper, alternating each of the crepe layers as you make your way to the centre. To finish the look, we added a fun Doc McStuffins sticker to incorporate the theme.
This fun pinata was just one of the many amazing DIY decorations that we made for Isla's Doc McStuffins themed 5th Birthday Party.
Cute Peppa Pig Party Pinata
This DIY Peppa Pig Pinata was made for my cousin's daughter, Peyton on her Birthday. I added Red Crepe paper to make her dress, Drew her face on some light pink craft card from the Newsagency with Markers, and cut more pink and black card to make her arms, legs and little shoes.
Customise
As you can see, a Character DIY Pinata takes a little more time and Creativity than my Basic Rectangular one. But the end effect is really Neat and Fun for the Kids!
You can take my Tutorial for the Minions Pinata and Adapt it to create your own Character. With Coloured Crepe Paper, Glue, Ribbon, and Extra Pieces of Cardboard for Accents, you can Cut and Decorate a Cardboard Box to look like almost anything.
Then Hang your Amazing DIY Pinata from a Roof and let the kids line up and see if they can whack out all the Candy!
If you’re looking for other DIY Party Ideas, head over to my Blog, Parties by Katie J, for inspiration and tips.
Don’t forget to visit Katie J Design and Events and check out our fun collections of Personalised Decorations & Party Supplies to make any Occasion a Special One!
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