Faux Leather Spheres

Get the look of leather with these faux spheres Kathleen George show us how to make.

Materials:

• STYROFOAM Brand Products:
  • Balls, 4" and 5"
• Construction paper, brown or tan
• Shoe polish, brown, black and/or neutral
• Soft, clean rag or shoe brush
• Chopstick or wooden dowel
• Paintbrush, 1", firm bristle
• Small mixing bowl
• Drinking glass or jar
• White craft glue
• Thick, white craft glue

Steps:

1. Insert chopstick or wooden dowel in foam ball; this will serve as your handle.
    
2. Tear construction paper into 1" - 1-1/2" rectangles.
    
3. Place thick white craft glue in bowl; thin with small amount of water.
    
4. Place torn paper in bowl, coating both sides.
    
5. Using paintbrush, cover ball with thin white craft glue.
    
6. Slide through fingers a piece of glue-covered construction paper, removing excess glue. Place on ball, smoothing out wrinkles and bubbles. Continue, overlapping edges of paper rectangles, until ball is completely covered.
    
7. Remove dowel; cover hole with construction paper.
    
8. Place ball on rim of glass or jar to dry; turn occasionally. When almost dry, roll ball firmly against a smooth surface to smooth any rough spots.
    
9. To create the look of leather, apply generous amount of brown, black or neutral shoe wax with soft, clean rag or shoe brush. Let wax set; buff to a shine with soft rag or shoe brush.
    
10. Vary the color of construction paper and shoe polish to achieve different leather looks.

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