How to Make a Globe Using Paper Mache

A handmade paper mache globe requires only a few easily acquired supplies to create.

Whether you wish to teach a child about world geography or create a geography-inspired work of art for your home, a globe made from paper mache is an easy project for adults or children to successfully create. Though many paper mache resources still list a cooked paste made from flour and water, liquid starch gives just as effective a result with much less preparation and mess. The resulting globe is a sturdy, decorative and educational piece of artwork.

Things You'll Need

• Large, sphere-shaped balloon or beach ball
• 1-inch by 5-inch newspaper strips
• Liquid starch
• Small, rectangular container
• Small paper clip
• Masking tape
• Acrylic paint
• Paintbrushes
• White paper
• Scissors
• World map
• Thin, permanent marker

Instructions

1. Inflate the balloon or beach ball, and tie or fasten it securely. Pour 2 inches of liquid starch into a small, shallow, rectangular container. Place a stack of newspaper strips on your work surface.

2. Create a hanger for the globe using a partially opened paper clip. Unbend one loop of the clip so that it sticks up at a 90-degree angle. Secure the unbent loop to the balloon or ball with masking tape.

3. Dip newspaper strips one at a time into the liquid starch. Remove excess starch as you take it from the container by running the strip between two fingers. Place a single layer of the strips smoothly over the surface, covering the entire balloon or ball.

4. Let the layer completely dry, and then cover the surface in another layer of newspaper strips dipped in the starch. Repeat the layering and drying until you build up five or six layers of paper mache.

5. Paint the entire surface of the globe in a base coat of white acrylic paint to cover the print on the paper. Allow it to dry. Paint over the entire surface again with a light blue, "ocean" color, and allow it to dry.

6. Use an atlas or map to trace the shape of the continents on white paper, in an appropriately scaled size for your globe. Cut the shapes out, and then use them to trace the continents onto the globe.

7. Paint the continents, North Pole and South Pole on the globe. Add topographic details such as mountains and islands to the continents and oceans using a small brush.

8. Label the continents as well as any countries and capitals you want to identify with a thin, permanent marker or computer-generated labels. Paint a coat of decoupage medium or paint sealer over the surface of the globe to protect it, and allow it to dry completely. Hang the globe using monofilament looped through the paper clip.

Tips & Warnings

• Rest the balloon or ball form in a small bowl as you work to keep it from rolling around your work surface.

References

• Paper Crafts: Paper Mache

Resources

• Education Place: World Outline Maps