AIM DIY: Paper Maché Birdy Penny Bank

March 3, 2016October 17, 2023 | Alison - Adventures-in-Making

From 2014-2016 I chronicled my crafty endeavors on the site Adventures-in-Making. I’ve selected a few of those DIY’s, Recipes, and other posts to share on the site.

My friend Tara is a paper maché inspiration. A couple of years ago she made a couple of piggy banks that were so amazing I decided I needed to make a bank of my very own. A birdy bank.

I love that papier maché gives you the opportunity to make basically anything out of recycled materials. This is a great project for kids and adults alike- just be ready to take it in shifts over a couple of days so that the form has time to dry between each coat.

Basic Supplies and Tools

A table cloth or paper cover and an apron. This is a wonderfully messy project!
A balloon
Newspaper
Flour and water (to make paste)
A piece of chipboard (like scrap from a cracker box)
This template for the feet, beak, wings and tailfeathers (which you will cut from chipboard.)
Masking Tape
Glue – Hot glue works great, but other thick glues work in a pinch
Scissors and craft knife

Finishing Supplies

Sand paper or sanding block
Acrylic paint
‘ glue or similar
Brush

Step One: Starting the Paper Maché and Form

Blow up one balloon about 5.5″ in diameter, and crumple up a piece of paper to make a head about 2.5″ in diameter. Tape the “head” to the balloon*, roughly the opposite side from the tied end. (If you would prefer the inside of the birdy to be smooth, cover the balloon with a layer of paper maché before attaching the head.)

To make your simple paper maché paste, mix one part flour with one part water. (You can change this ratio if you prefer a more watery or thicker paste. Practice makes perfect.) Stir the paste with your finger until it is smooth.

Tear your newspaper into small strips and pieces and begin to coat your body form with a layer of newspaper. Dip each strip into the paste, and pull it through your fingers to remove excess paste and moisture.

Overlap the pieces of newspaper on your form, and cover all but the tied end. It may be helpful to set the balloon on a cup or bowl to lift it off of your surface.

When you have completely covered the form with one layer of newspaper, set it aside to dry. If you have a fan or space heater, set this little guy in front of that and it will dry faster. Make sure to let it dry almost completely before moving to the next layer of material, or you will have a soppy mess. At least wait a few hours.

Step Two: Adding more Detail

Since your bird looks nothing like a bird yet, it’s time to add some appendages. Download and print this template and cut each of the pieces from a piece of chipboard.

To build the birdy legs, cut into one side of the chipboard as shown, and roll the other end into a cylinder. Secure the roll with a couple of pieces of tape.

Then tape across the foot to attach it to the leg. The flap left at the end of the leg will be glued to the base of your balloon form.

Roll the beak to form a cone shape, and tape it in shape. Stuff a little piece of paper into the open end of the cone to make it easier to attach to your birdy head.

Glue works best to secure the wings, legs, beak, and tail feathers to your form. Hold them in place until the glue is holding firmly. When everything is in place, begin to add another layer of papier maché, covering all the new parts of your bird in addition to adding another layer to the main form you’ve already covered.

As you add paper, make sure to leave the end of the balloon visible; this is where you’ll be breaking the balloon and pulling it out. Paper maché is very forgiving and it’s easy to cover up this hole.

When you’ve covered the form with one or two layers of paper, let it dry again. You may find that you have to stop before you’ve completed covering the whole thing because life gets in the way of your messy fun, or your messy fun become a little too messy. No worries! Just make sure that your paper is as smooth as you can make it, and let the bird rest.

Step Three: Removing the Balloon and Making this Guy a Bank

Yes. It looks silly. That’s okay, the best things are silly. When your form is completely dry, you’re ready to remove your balloon. Gently grip the balloon’s knot, and pierce the balloon to let the air out. As it shrinks, it should pull away from your paper. If it sticks in a spot, gently pull it out of the hole.

No bank is complete without a place to put the money. Mark a line down the back of your bird, between the wings, about 1/4″ wide and 1.5″ long. Use a craft knife to carefully trim out the piece you’ve marked.

To finish the bottom of the bank, you have a couple of options. You can either add an access hole for money to be removed or go with the ol’ piñata method– keep the money inside until it’s time to smash! (Which is definitely satisfying.)

If you’d like to make your bank reusable, find a small lid or something else that would work as a plug. Trace around the shape and cut any extra paper. It you’re having trouble keeping the cover in, trace it onto a scrap of chipboard and make a ring the perfect size, then glue that on top of your form and cover it with paper. The chipboard with provide a little extra stability. (Yes, I know this all looks kinda amusing. Giggles are allowed.)

Step Four: The last of the Papier Maché

If your form is feeling pretty secure, it’s time to start adding the last layer of papier maché. The paint will not completely cover the paper (unless you want it to) so this is a great time to start having fun with your paper color and prints. Save gold and orange colored paper for the beak, cover the wings and head in dark colors, and use white newsprint for the breast. When you’re happy with the way it looks, let it all dry overnight!

Step Five: Sanding and Painting

If you’re anything like me, your form will need a little sanding. USe sand paper or a sanding block to smooth off any edges of paper, clumps of paste, or rough edges- making sure not to sand below your papier mache layers.

To make a transparent paint layer, mix equal parts glue and white acrylic paint with a little water. (Add more glue for more transparency, or more paint to cover the paper more opaquely.)

Gently apply a layer of paint and glue to the whole form and let it dry.

When it dries you will still be able to see a lot of your newspaper pattern. If you like, add another layer of white paint, or start to add more colors to bring out details. To keep some of the transparency, you can water down your colored paints and streak them across your form.

Let it all dry, and get ready to fill it with money!

Using this balloon method you can make pretty much any animal you want! I’d love to see!

AIM DIY: Paper Spiderwebs to Decorate Everything

October 16, 2015October 28, 2020 | Alison - Adventures-in-Making

From 2014-2016 I chronicled my crafty endeavors on the site Adventures-in-Making. I’ve selected a few of those DIY’s, Recipes, and other posts to share on the site.

Step by step this house is getting properly October spooky. I’m a big fan of decorating with the things I have around, and this collection of tarnished silver and moody ornaments needed one little touch, so I decided to make a spiderweb table runner out of scrap paper and a piece of ribbon.

SUPPLIES

A few sheets of paper, any color you fancy. I used card stock, which was a bit trickier to cut but more durable in the long run.
Small clips or tape
Your favorite craft knife
A hole punch
Ribbon
The spiderweb template

Once you have printed the spiderweb template, use tape or the clips to secure it to a sheet or two of paper, and cut the spiderweb shape out with a craft knife. You will also punch holes where each X is.

Cutting Tips

Start trimming the small center pieces out first and move to the large pieces. I actually cut all the inner pieces, then moved on the the next sheet of paper until I have enough pieces. Then I cut the outer shape out of several pieces at once using scissors.

When you’ve cut out and punched all your pieces, weave a piece of ribbon in and out of the holes to connect several spiderwebs.

I overlapped the corners of each spiderweb piece to make my table runner…

and hung them all on one ribbon for a creepy spiderweb banner.

The possibilities are, as they say, endless! I’m even thinking of creepy spiders to add to them.

The motionless, paper kind.

What’re you decorating with?

AIM RECIPE: Scrap Veggie Broth to Perfect Any Recipe

August 26, 2015October 28, 2020 | Alison - Adventures-in-Making

From 2014-2016 I chronicled my crafty endeavors on the site Adventures-in-Making. I’ve selected a few of those DIY’s, Recipes, and other posts to share on the site.

Maybe everyone knows to make their own veggie broth. I didn’t until a couple of years ago when I had a pile of veggie scraps and an aha moment. After a couple of quick searches, I decided to toss everything in the slow cooker and see what happened.

AMAZING happened. I ended up with a complex unique broth that I was eager to cook with.

Since then I’ve saved almost all my veggie and fruit scraps in a bag in the freezer, and when it gets full it gets turned into what I lovingly call “trash soup”.

RECIPE: Scrap Veggie Broth in a slowcooker

Author: Alison (Adventures-in-Making)

Cook time: 12 hours

Total time: 12 hours

This simple veggie broth will use up all your fruit and vegetable scraps, and make your next meal that much better.

Ingredients

1 Tsp. Salt (to Taste)
A Variety of Raw Vegetable Scraps*
You can use skins, scraps, and leftover: Zucchini, Greens, Spinach, Okra, Apples, Tomatoes, Asparagus, Artichoke, Peas, Green Beans, Onions, Cabbage, Broccoli, Leeks, Garlic, Peppers, Carrot, Mushroom Stems, Herbs…. almost anything.

Instructions

*Make sure to only use ingredients that you COULD eat fresh. Nothing dirty, slimy, moldy, etc. A little soft is fine. The key to the best broth is variety. Try not to use too much of anything with a strong flavor- but remember that this is a low pressure process. If it doesn’t turn out, no big deal!
Put all your scraps in a slow cooker and cover with water.
Sprinkle salt over the mixture and mix it slightly with a spoon.
Put crock pot on “low” and leave overnight– 10-20 hours– checking occasionally for taste and to stir gently.
Ladle broth over a strainer to separate out vegetable scraps and broth.
OPTIONAL: Simmer the broth on Med/High to condense the soup for freezing. Allow to cool completely before placing in a container or ziplock bag, and freeze until you’re ready. (Make sure to label your container with tasting notes and a date.)

IMG_0576_veggiebroth — For my broth today, I had a wide variety of veggies. From highest to lowest volume I used: zucchini, brussel sprout greens, tomatoes, onion, okra, mushroom stems, lemon rind, apple, bell pepper, and basil stems.

Make sure your scraps are clean and in relatively small pieces, then dump them into a medium crock pot,

and cover them with water.

Add about a teaspoon of salt (to taste) to the water.

Cover the crock pot, set it on “low” and let it do its thing through the evening and overnight. (It’s good to taste the broth, and stir occasionally to make sure everything is going well. If it starts to get bitter you can either stop the process, or give it some more time to possible cook itself out.)

After about 10-20 hours your concoction will look more like this:

and will smell up your whole home in a delicious way. Use a ladle to spoon out the broth over a strainer…

to separate out the broth and veggie chunks. Throw those depleted veggie scraps in the compost and look at what you’ve made!

Beautiful, complex, broth– a perfect way to start almost any recipe.

Optional: If you want to save the broth for another day, you might find it useful to condense and freeze it. To do this, put your broth in a small pot and simmer on medium-high under a fan.

Excess water will be released as steam, and after a while you’ll have a thicker, darker condensed broth. (This process can take some time, so I usually plan to do dishes, cleaning, or other kitchen activities while I wait.) Take the pan off the heat. As your broth is cooling, do a final tasting and label your container (or ziplock bag) with tasting notes and a date.

Then simply pour the cool broth into your container and freeze it for the perfect recipe. The more broths you make, the more you’ll notice differences in their flavor- making store bought broth seem ludicrous!

We love adding the broths to everything we cook. It will kick up anything from soup, to sauces, to quinoa, and make you smile. (Promise.)

What I’ve Learned

•I’ve said it before, but variety is really key here. I usually leave a small collection of scraps in my freezer bag for the next broth, rather than using too much of one flavor.
•You may be an onion and garlic maniac, but don’t make a broth out of just those. Other veggies are necessary to cut the bitterness of over-extracted onions. Trust me.
•Good advice from a friend- “If the broth doesn’t taste good, throw it away. Don’t let it ruin a meal.” If your broth turns out weird or bitter, it’s not the end of the world. Try again next time!
•Try out a parmesan rind sometime, but otherwise avoid oils.
•Mellow fruits (like apples) make for a carmelly broth that would be lovely in a lot of dishes. Bolder fruits (cherries, berries, citrus) are best used in very small quantities.
•Some vegetables are stronger than others- broccoli, brussel sprouts, and cabbage can take over a broth completely. I don’t mind, but maybe you do?
•Yum.

AIM RECIPE: Oven-Roasted Chickpeas, The Nut-Free Snack Sensation

July 15, 2015October 28, 2020 | Alison - Adventures-in-Making

From 2014-2016 I chronicled my crafty endeavors on the site Adventures-in-Making. I’ve selected a few of those DIY’s, Recipes, and other posts to share on the site.

I have never been a big fan of tree nuts (and I despise peanuts) so it wasn’t a big deal when I noticed that I was allergic to them; but it does make vegetarian life a little more complicated. Nuts seem to be the go-to protein rich snack, and I’ve spent years trying to find the perfect replacement.

One day Safety Husband brought home a pouch of oven-roasted garbanzo beans, and I had an aha moment.

Oven roasted beans! Crispy! Crunchy! Fulfilling! Portable! Amazing!

So I set out to make my own. I decided to start with dry beans to ensure maximum crunchiness, but there are also recipes online that use canned chickpeas/garbanzo beans. I found directions from America’s Test Kitchen, but have made several changes to better suit my taste (and experience. The hour suggested by ATK is way too long, in my experience.)

RECIPE: Oven-Roasted Chickpeas

Recipe Type: Snack

Cuisine: American

Author: Alison Lang

Cook time: 45 mins

Total time: 45 mins

These oven-roasted chickpeas are salty, crunchy, and keep for days in a sealed container. Perfect for road trips, camping trips, or any other time you need a protein rich snack. *Plan a day ahead- you will need to soak the dried beans overnight.

Ingredients

1 pound dried chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans)
Olive Oil
Salt
Dried spices to taste

Instructions

The day before cooking, place the dried beans in a bowl and cover with water. The beans will absorb a lot of the water, so make sure to cover by at least an inch of water.
After the beans have soaked for at least 12 hours, drain and rinse them well with clean water.
Spread the beans out on a towel, and dab them with another towel until they are quite dry.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place the beans back into a dry bowl, and slowly pour olive oil over them. You want to use the oil quite sparingly. Mix the beans with your hand ensuring each bean has a light coating of oil.
Lightly sprinkle with salt (to taste). You will be adding additional salt and spices at the end.
Lay the beans out in a single layer on a lined cookie sheet. Don’t pack them too tightly on the pan, you will need space to stir. Place on middle rack in pre warmed oven.
Every 5-10 minutes you will want to check the beans, and stir to redistribute. The beans near the outside of the pan will brown more quickly.
Watch for them to turn a rich medium brown (about 35 minutes), then remove them from the oven to cool. (You can also taste-test cooled beans from time to time to check if they are crunchy.) While they are still warm, sprinkle your favorite spice mix, and more salt to taste. (I kept these simple with just a little garlic powder.)
When the beans have cooled, place them in an air-tight container. They will keep for at least a few days before getting stale (less crispy.)

Step by Step Instructions

The day before cooking, place the dried beans in a bowl and cover with water. The beans will absorb a lot of the water, so make sure to cover by at least an inch of water.

After the beans have soaked for at least 12 hours, drain and rinse them well with clean water.

Spread the beans out on a towel and dab them with another towel until they are quite dry.Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place the beans back into a dry bowl, and slowly pour olive oil over them. You want to use the oil quite sparingly. Mix the beans with your hand ensuring each bean has a light coating of oil.

Lightly sprinkle with salt (to taste). You will be adding additional salt and spices at the end.

Lay the beans out in a single layer on a lined cookie sheet. Don’t pack them too tightly on the pan, you will need space to stir. Place on middle rack in pre warmed oven.

Every 5-10 minutes you will want to check the beans, and stir to redistribute. The beans near the outside of the pan will brown more quickly.

Watch for them to turn a rich medium brown (about 35 minutes), then remove them from the oven to cool. (You can also taste-test cooled beans from time to time to check if they are crunchy.)

While they are still warm, sprinkle your favorite spice mix, and more salt to taste. (I kept these simple with just a little garlic powder.)
When the beans have cooled, place them in an air-tight container. They will keep for at least a few days before getting stale (less crispy.)

Or, you know, just eat them before someone else does.

AIM RECIPE: Vegan Zucchini and Berry Crumble + Giveaway Winner!

September 30, 2014October 28, 2020 | Alison - Adventures-in-Making

From 2014-2016 I chronicled my crafty endeavors on the site Adventures-in-Making. I’ve selected a few of those DIY’s, Recipes, and other posts to share on the site.

You probably won’t believe me when I say that a zucchini can taste just like an apple. It’s true!

We’ve had another bumper crop of squash this year, and we’ve had to get clever with recipes. When this happened last year I had the mad idea of cooking a zucchini like an apple, and sure enough, I’m not the first one to do so. I added it to my “Revenge Blackberry Crumble” recipe and I haven’t gone back. (I’ve included some handy tricks at the bottom of the recipe.)

Vegan Zucchini & Berry Crumble

Recipe Type: Dessert

Author: Alison Lang – adventures-in-making.com

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 50 mins

Total time: 1 hour 20 mins

This delicious crumble is a quick, easy and sweet way to use those extra zucchini and berries. Plus it’s vegan!

Ingredients

4 cups of zucchini, deseeded, skinned & sliced into small pieces (Instructions included)
1/2 cup of lemon juice
4 cups of blackberries (or berry of choice)
1 cup of granulated raw cane sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons of orange zest
1/3 cup orange juice
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cup granola
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
pinch of salt
3/4 cup cold margerine, cut onto small pieces

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350º.
Peel zucchini, cut open long-wise and scoop out seeds. Slice zucchini in small, apple slice sized pieces.
Place zucchini slices in a large mixing bowl and cover with lemon juice.
Add the berries, granulated sugar, cornstarch, zest, and juice to the zucchini mixture, and mix well with a large spoon.
Pour into a lightly greased 13×9 inch baking dish.
In another mixing bowl, combine next 6 ingredients with hands until crumbly.
Place granola mixture on top of fruit, making a thin layer across the whole pan.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the mixture begins to bubble up around the crust.
Allow to cool slightly before serving. Great with any version of ice cream.

Prep Tips

The slight bitterness of a zucchini seems to come from the seeds and peel. You can use a vegetable peeler or sharp knife to take care of the outside, and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds in the center. Then you have a blank slate to cook with.

I am a sucker for orange zest. I found that I often had every ingredient I needed EXCEPT an orange for zesting. Now I zest any orange that comes through the door, fold the zest lightly in foil or plastic wrap and freeze until I have a recipe that needs it.

Similarly, you can freeze blackberries when you have too many. Lay them out on a cookie sheet in the freezer. When they are completely frozen (after a day or so) dump them into a ziplock or container and freeze until you’re ready to use them.

It’s often just as easy to make something vegan, and why not when you will be sharing it with others? You can substitute butter if you’d prefer.

Hope you enjoy this as much as we do!

THE GIVEAWAY WINNER!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the September giveaway. We loved hearing about your recent adventures

Now without further ado, the winner is…. ALAINE!! Congrats Alaine!

So, There.

So There Letterpress and Stationery Studio in Issaquah

recipe

AIM DIY: Paper Maché Birdy Penny Bank

Basic Supplies and Tools

Finishing Supplies

Step One: Starting the Paper Maché and Form

Step Two: Adding more Detail

Step Three: Removing the Balloon and Making this Guy a Bank

Step Four: The last of the Papier Maché

Step Five: Sanding and Painting

AIM DIY: Paper Spiderwebs to Decorate Everything

SUPPLIES

Cutting Tips

AIM RECIPE: Scrap Veggie Broth to Perfect Any Recipe

What I’ve Learned

AIM RECIPE: Oven-Roasted Chickpeas, The Nut-Free Snack Sensation

Step by Step Instructions

AIM RECIPE: Vegan Zucchini and Berry Crumble + Giveaway Winner!

Prep Tips

THE GIVEAWAY WINNER!