Large Pinata – expansion/breakage problem?

Answer from Piñata Boy

Expansion and breakage are very common when making large piñatas, but here are some things you can do to minimize the chances of this happening:

1. Apply many layers of papier mâché because the piñata will need structural strength to keep its spherical form and not tear under the weight of the candy inside.  Make certain that the top of the piñata is heavily reinforced, because the hanging hook has to support the weight of the entire filled piñata and you don’t want the hook to tear through the piñata.
2. Use a thick mix of flour and water for the papier mâché paste because if you use a thin mix you’ll need to put on more layers of newspaper, and you’re already going to have a lot of wait time with a large piñata due to drying time.  I normally use a little more than a 1:1 ratio of flour and water (more like 1¼ or 1½ cups of flour to one cup of water), but for a large piñata like this you’ll want a mixture that isn’t watery or runny and has the consistency more like heavy batter.  You can go as thick as you want to as long as the newspaper strips are absorbing the flour/water mix. (The flour/water mixture will gradually grow thicker as you use it, so if you start with a thick mixture you may need to mix in a little more water at some point.)
3. Don’t dry the wet papier mâché in the sun!  This is a good way to speed up the drying, but its also a major cause of expansion and breakage.  Sometimes the balloon expands and cracks the papier mâché, and sometimes the balloon bursts due to uneven expansion (uneven drying of the wet papier mâché affects the elasticity of the balloon, creating weak spots).  If you move a balloon from 72 degrees indoors to 90 degrees outdoors, the balloon will expand and the surface area will increase by almost 5%.  Placing it in direct sunlight increases the expansion even further.  If it’s really hot outside, a good compromise is to place the piñata in the shade with a fan blowing on it.
4. Don’t try to cover the entire sphere with each layer.  The weight of the wet newspaper, especially with the added weight of the thick papier mâché paste, can cause sagging and tearing.  You can try covering the whole thing at once to save time — you’re going to have to apply a lot of layers, and anything you can do that reduces drying time will be a big help — but if you’re seeing sagging or tearing, back off and only cover about half of the sphere at a time.
5. Definitely put a fan blowing on the wet papier mâché to help dry it faster.  Whether you’re drying it indoor or out, a good fan is your best friend through this stage of the process.

If you’re pressed for time, another thing you can consider is not making the piñata quite as large as you’re imagining.  Remember that the surface area increases as the square of the radius — a 24″ diameter sphere has a surface area of over 12 square feet, and a 30″ diameter sphere has a surface area of almost 20 square feet.  A 25% increase in diameter means a 65% increase in surface area. That’s a lot more papier mâché work and a lot more decorating. Even if you’re planning to paint the piñata, that increase in surface area requires a lot more time for building the piñata.

And you probably know this already, but if you set the balloon in a large mixing bowl while you’re working on it, that will stop the balloon from rolling around, and will save you a lot of headaches.

Good luck!