I found this adorable DIY on Pinterest last night...



They're saying all you have to do is glue buttons over an inflated balloon in the shape you want your bowl, then pop the balloon and BAM! It's done.

Now I'm sure it does work...if you can get the buttons to stay on. What kind of glue would be best? I'm guessing NOT hot glue for obvious reasons. Tacky glue? Good old Elmer's? Maybe even ModgePodge?

I wanted advice from you guys before I attempt this because I'm the type who gets totally mad and throws it away if it doesn't come out exactly right the first time.

I am usually good at gluing, but I see no way of getting all sorts of little pieces of balloon stuck to the buttons. Or having the whole thing just crash apart. It would probably be easier to just glue them onto a glass bowl. If you figure it out thought, I would love to know, haha!

Agreed ^ wouldn't there be tons of balloon stuck to the buttons? Picking it off = nightmare waiting to happen.

It looks amazing though! Hope you find out a way to do it.

This looks difficult. Where there's only a single layer of buttons there's not much of them touching each other and I'm betting that even super-glue would not be enough to keep them from breaking apart. Now, the part that has TWO layers of buttons might be do-able because there's more surfaces to hang together. What amazes me is that you can't see any extra glue messing up the buttons. Especially on the single layer, if you had enough glue to keep them together you'd think there would be some extra oozing out from the joined parts.

The general idea of using a balloon for a mold then popping it is a valid one. I've read that people do this to make papier mache heads.

Now, the part that has TWO layers of buttons might be do-able because there's more surfaces to hang together. What amazes me is that you can't see any extra glue messing up the buttons.

I agree! I'm sure this is a very time-consuming craft in order to get the buttons glued exactly right next to each other. I want to try it but I don't want to be disappointed.

There isn't a part with two layers of buttons. It is the closest side of the bowl, the part that looks like the bottom layer is the far side of the bowl. It's deceptive.

I would use super glue, and I would smear a thin layer of vaseline on the balloon first. If you can figure out how to keep the balloon steady, this shouldn't be too hard. Maybe a water balloon would be easier to work with. The only problem would be making sure you don't apply too much glue. You'd only need a TEENY TINY droplet right where the buttons touched each other.

Yeah there isn't 2 layers of buttons anywhere, I drew a black line so you can see where the closest side of the bowl is, and you can see the buttons on the back side of the bowl in the spaces, no double layers.

I was thinking it would be probably the easiest to "sew" or "weave" them together, but it would be quite time consuming to get the right shape. I did however find a picture of that here

This picture shows one as well but it is hard to see that they are sewn together, so maybe you could get an effect that is similar by using thread that matches the buttons or hmm maybe fishing line?

Panic, this sounds dumb...but does the Vaseline make the balloon easier to peel off after it's all dry? I'm sure that's what it's for but I just wanted to double check.

And yes...teeny tiny drops of glue. This sounds extremely time consuming (not a project I would normally choose!) but I'm so interested in it now I HAVE to do it! Can't wait to show you guys how (and if) it comes out right.

I think vaseline would help the buttons stay in place while the glue dries AND it would help prevent the glue from sticking to the balloon. But I'm just guessing.

I use E6000 glue for everything. It sets up fast and is somewhat flexible and dries clear....but I can't figure out how to keep that balloon from sticking. Maybe the vaseline idea but then it seems like the buttons would slide off. I am intrigued!

This says he used a "hemispheric mold" which leads me to believe it was not a balloon. bonkersaboutbuttons1.blogspot.com . . .
Can't imagine this bowl would be at all functional, the minute you put something in it the glue would probably crack.

^ that actually makes a bit of sense, a hemispheric mold is like a pastry mold. I agree you would have to use really strong glue so it wouldn't break as soon as you put something in it. Maybe this is a bowl that is just for looks and you don't put anything in it though. In that case you would probably have to keep it out of reach of guests too.

Super glue would totally work without falling apart. I glued together a pvc cable organizer with super glue, and it worked like a charm. Something like this, but horizontal and with a lot more tubes stacked 5 tiers high. It's surprisingly sturdy.

Strength of the glue wouldn't be the issue. There is not much surface area connecting the glued parts together, so they could break apart very easily.

I disagree. The surface area between individual buttons is small, but taken across a whole row (which is what counts), it's pretty large. In addition, the curved surface would be much more robust than a flat sheet of buttons.