How to Make a Paper Mache Parrot

Paper mache has long been an easy, safe and fun method to create a variety of craft projects, from piñatas to decorative ornaments. Parrots, being the colorful and fun birds that they are, make for great projects using paper mache. You can make a paper mache parrot with some easy to obtain supplies, a little patience and a few simple tips.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Paper and pen or other drawing instrument
• Chicken wire and other wire
• Pliers and wire cutters
• Newspaper cut into strips
• Paper mache paste
• Tissue paper or paint
• Glue
• Eyeballs and other adornments

1. Sketch a rough outline of a parrot so you know what shape you are going for. You can use a photo as a guide, or simply think what shapes make up a parrot. His head is a circle with a triangular beak. His body is an oval with his wings flat against his back.

2. Bend chicken wire into the parrot shape you’ve just drawn. You can get chicken wire at feed stores or fencing places. Cut a piece to work with and bend it into a parrot shape. You can mold one piece for your entire creation or cut several pieces, mold them into the shapes, and attach with wire to the base.

3. Ready the paper mache supplies. Cut a bunch of newspapers into strips about 1-inch wide and several inches long. Create your paper mache paste by mixing two parts water with cup part flour or buying a pre-made paper mache paste sold at craft and hobby stores. Pour some paste into a wide and shallow container, like a paint roller bin, for easy access.

4. Paste the paper mache on the chicken wire. Drag each strip of newspaper through the paper mache paste so each side is fully saturated. Run your fingers along the strip to wipe off any excess paste so you won’t get globs of glue. Stick each strip of pasty newspaper onto the chicken wire mold you’ve created, overlapping the strips to insure full coverage. Let the parrot dry.

5. Paint or decorate. You can use colorful acrylic paint and paint directly onto the dried paper mache coat. You can also cut small squares of tissue paper, fold them around a pencil eraser, dab the middle of the tissue in glue and stick on the coat. The latter method will take much longer, but you will be wowed by the effect.

6. Add the finishing touches. Eyeballs can be fashioned out of plastic eggs painted white with a black pupil in the middle, or something smaller if your parrot is not that large. Glue any eyeballs and other adornments, like real feathers, fake feathers made from construction paper or jewels onto the parrot to finish off your winning project.

Tips & Warnings

• Paper mache dries best in a well-ventilated warm area. Do not leave your parrot out in a freezing garage or a cold porch and expect him to dry anytime soon.
• Parrots look best with bright colors.
• Your chicken wire parrot will be most stable if you have him sitting on his bottom, rather than try to balance him on skinny legs. If you want to add legs later by wrapping paper mache around a pair of pencils and sticking into the base so he’s sitting down with his legs sticking out, that’s OK, too.
• If you want to go all out with your parrot, fashion a swing he can be attached to, using an unbent wire hanger and a dowel.
• You can add long tail feathers or a crest on your parrot’s head with adornments afterwards or incorporate them into his chicken wire frame.
• Be careful with the sharp ends of the chicken wire as they can cut or stab you.