DIY and Freebies: DIY Gold Heart Piñata

DIY Gold Heart Piñata

It’s finally here! You caught a little glimpse of this giant shiny heart piñata in my first post for The Sweetest Occasion, and now I’m here to share the full tutorial! I am seriously obsessed with this thing. Like, I want to hang it permanently in my home, and I’m well on my way to convincing Jeff that that is perfectly acceptable. Now, in an effort of full disclosure, this piñata is not the easiest thing to create. Mylar is much tougher to work with than typical crepe paper. But let me tell you, if you can amp up that patience meter for the sake of shiney awesomeness, it is well worth it!

DIY Gold Heart Pinata — I mean seriously!? I don’t know if life gets any better than a giant heart shaped piñata. That also happens to be gold.

Large Cardboard Box (If you don’t want to buy one, go to your local independent mail shop, they often have some laying around that they’ll give you!)

Scissors

Hot glue Gun

Gold Mylar (You will need enough for approximately 85 30″ x 1.5″ strips for a piñata this size, see below, and I recommend ordering the roll for easier cutting!)

X-Acto Knife

Long Ruler or Yard Stick

Tape (Just plain old tape, not double stick and do not use glue. I learned this the hard way.)

Awl

Ribbon, sequin trim or something stronger to hang it with like a straightened wire hanger

You’ll need to cut your cardboard into two large hearts and two or three 7″ wide strips, depending on the size of your box. My piñata was 30″ at it’s widest point and about 24″ at it’s tallest. In order to allow your strips to shape around the heart, you’ll need to bend them. Do this by simply holding the strips with both hands and bending the cardboard slightly all the way down the strip.

Break out the hot glue gun and glue your strips to one of the hearts in small sections (so the hot glue doesn’t dry). Start at the top of your heart. Each time a strip ends, just glue or tape another one to it and continue along the edge of the heart.

You will want to leave about a 6″ flap, not glued, on one side of your heart so you can fill the piñata! Working quickly, run a line of hot glue around the entire top of your now-glued strips (not including the flap) and quickly place the other heart on top.

How To Make a DIY Pinata — Your final heart base should look like this!

Now for the most tedious part. You’re going to cut about 85 1.5″ strips from your gold mylar. I found it easiest to do this by rolling out the mylar on a large cutting mat or piece of scrap cardboard and marking off several strips at a time (at the top and bottom) then using a long ruler and x-acto knife to cut each strip.

One by one, fold each strip in half three times and carefully fringe it with your scissors. This is not the easiest job in the world as mylar is slippery but you’ll get the hang of it after a strip or two! Promise!

Starting at the bottom of your heart, tape strips of the mylar, cutting each to the appropriate length. You don’t need to run pieces of tape the entire length of each strip, just use several smaller pieces across each one. Keep taping strips until you reach the top of the heart. As you can see below, it is ok (encouraged!) to extend the strips slightly off the heart so that all the cardboard is covered in the end. Repeat this with the other side.

Now cover the sides using the same technique. Starting at the bottom point of the heart and working your way up to the top, then beginning again on the other side of the bottom point and working your way up. Once the entire thing is covered in fringe, poke a hole in the center at the top of the piñata are run a loop of string (or your hanging device of choice) through it. You can reach inside through your flap and tie a knot in the end to secure.

Fill up your piñata and get to partying! Or really, if it’s just too pretty to smash, hang it up and stare it at. Not that I’ve been doing that or anything…

Valentines Day DIY Gold Mylar Heart Pinata — All Above Photos by Studio DIY

BONUS! I created this super huge piñata for something extra special, a fun Valentine’s Day shoot with Mary Costa Photography and Garlic, My Soul! Here’s a sneak peek of the piñata in action and you’ll get to see the whole shebang on Valentine’s Day!