Faux Fruit
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Brighten up your kitchen with a bowl full of fruits and vegetables -- the papier-m�ch� kind you can make using the real stuff.
What you'll need
- Assorted fruits and vegetables
- Nonstick cooking spray
- White paper towels
- White glue solution (mix 1 cup nontoxic glue with 3 cups water)
- Waxed paper
- Serrated knife
- Masking tape
- Acrylic paints and brushes
- Spray-on glossy varnish
You can also decorate your produce with colored tissue paper. Simply wrap on glue-moistened strips in place of the final layer of paper towels.
How to make it
Cover a work area with newspaper. Wash and dry the fruits and vegetables, then spray with nonstick cooking spray.
Cut long strips of paper towel (about 1 to 2 inches wide). Dip a paper towel strip into the glue solution, pull between your index and middle fingers, then wrap it around the fruit. Cover with several layers. (Apply a layer of dry strips, if the layers become too wet.) Let dry on waxed paper for two days.
Use a serrated knife to slice each piece in half lengthwise. Remove the insides, including the skins or rinds. Prepare more glue solution and reassemble each piece by taping the halves together, then wrapping it in layers of glue-moistened strips to conceal the seam. Let dry for one day.
To make stems and leaves, cut shapes from paper towels that have been soaked in glue solution and dried. Glue in place, then paint the fruit with two coats. In a ventilated area, spray on glossy varnish.
