The mirror ball, casting a lot of reflections, creates an atmosphere of celebration and fun. It is used both for holding a disco and for decorating an apartment decorated in a suitable style for a party. You can make such an elegant ball quickly and easily from scrap materials.
Materials for making a mirror ball
You can make a disco ball with your own hands in the size you need. To do this, pick up a dense rubber balloon so that it has a round shape when inflated. Balls made of thin and soft rubber may not withstand the papier-mâché process and burst.
You can use a large plastic Christmas ball or a foam blank as the base for the mirror ball.
To create a reflective surface, you need a thin mirror and glass cutter or mirrored plastic. It is convenient to use the remnants of materials remaining after the repair. If not available, please use old CDs. They are easier to work with, but they will be worse reflecting light.
Making a disco ball
Inflate the balloon to the correct size. Tear the newspapers with your hands into small pieces and put them in one bowl, in the second bowl, tear plain white paper. You can use the option with b / w and color newspaper. This is done so that when pasting, you can better see the alternation of layers, and the ball has a round, not oval shape.
Cover the table with plastic wrap. Spread the ball with petroleum jelly or other greasy cream. Lay out its surface with paper strips with a slight overlap, smearing them with PVA glue. Apply a second layer of paper of a different color. Thus, make 5 or 6 layers and let the ball dry.
Instead of PVA glue, you can use wallpaper glue or cook starch or flour paste.
If you plan to paste over the ball with cut mirror pieces, then make 10 more paper layers. The base will become stronger, otherwise the heavy mirror may damage it. For mirrored plastic or CD pieces, three more layers are enough. When the papier-mâché is completely dry, pierce the balloon and remove it.
To cut a mirror into pieces, place it on a table and cut it with a glass cutter, first into strips, and then into small squares. Cut the CDs with scissors.
To prevent discs from cracking, heat the blades of scissors over a candle fire or over a hotplate.
Pierce the papier-mâché ball through with a large needle and thick line, pulling the needle out, and again pierce the ball from the side of the pole. Tie both ends of the line on top. This will be the mirror ball mount. Close the hole left on top in the papier-mâché through which you pulled out the balloon and inserted the needle.
Use a glue gun or other clear glue to make a mirror-like surface on the ball. Place the prepared material, cut into pieces, in even rows on the ball, tightly to each other. Start spreading on top. When the product is dry, you can hang it from the ceiling and, directing a bright light on it, unwind it with your hands.
