Pinatas by Castillo/from Quest Magazine

May 18, 2005

QUEST Volume 12, Number 3, MAY/JUNE 2005

Piñatas de Castillo

Who:

J. Castillo Jr., 42

Where:

Tucson, Ariz.

DX:

Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, 20 years

What:

A former building maintenance worker, Castillo enjoys creating

festive and fun piñatas for decoration or use at children's birthday

parties. Fills requests from friends and family members and sells

them for $25 to $100, depending on complexity. Has made hundreds of

piñatas, including Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, SpongeBob, Barney, Bart

Simpson and a bobble-head Spiderman. Currently working on a

traditional Mexican piñata for his niece a's 15th birthday.

How:

Uses balloons to build the character's body and cardboard for the

arms and legs. Cuts newspaper strips with a paper cutter. Covers the

model with the help of a flour-water mixture that acts as glue. Loss

of strength in hands makes it difficult to grip pieces. Can only

apply two to three layers a day, because work has to be completely

dry before continuing the papier-mâché. Uses curled tissue paper or

colored felt to decorate. Takes two and a half weeks to two and a

half months. Goes into detail far beyond what's available in stores.

says:

" My father used to make them for us when we were kids. One time, he

had blown up a balloon and put paper on it and what he did was cut it

in half. He kept one half and gave me the other half, just to see

what I would do. I ended up making a flower basket out of it. From

then on, just for fun, like a hobby, I just started making more. It's

mostly for family members, birthday parties and for friends.

" Working with piñatas helps me keep my hands strong, even though my

thumb's losing strength and I tend to drop things. I work two hours

at a time and rest. I use a paper cutter so I don't have to struggle

with scissors. "

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