Happy Independence Day! I love this holiday. That isn’t really saying much since I love all holidays. Family, friends, food, togetherness, it all makes me so happy. There’s also something about holidays with kids that makes them even more fun! For anyone who doesn’t know me or my family, my kids love crafts. The messier the better. They love paint, glue, glitter, all of it, and any holiday is the perfect excuse for themed crafts! If you have young children and you care about your furniture, I suggest putting down a drop cloth of some kind before doing any of these, or just do them all outdoors.
Mini Patriotic Windsock
This past Spring my son came home from daycare one day with a “windsock” he had made during craft time. My daughter was in love with it, so that evening we got the supplies together (just from around our house, I have an addiction to craft supplies) for her to make one also.
These are a themed version of that craft, and the kids enjoyed making them just as much this time!
◦ Cardboard (toilet paper) tube
◦ Hole punch
◦ Paint
◦ Paint brushed
◦ Tulle or ribbons
Optional:
◦ Pipe cleaner
◦ Stickers
◦ Glitter
◦ Glue
1. Punch holes in the cardboard tube. I did 2 holes on one end and 8 holes on the other end.
2. Paint the tube blue and let it dry. You could also switch it up and paint red and white stripes on the tube, and use blue ribbons and tulle for streamers.
3. Add stickers and/or glitter to the tube (as you can see in the picture above, my daughter did steps two and 3 simultaneously). Be sure to let it all dry.
4. Attach the pipe cleaner to the end of the tube that has only two holes. If you don’t have pipe cleaner, you can use string, ribbon, tulle, or yarn, anything you have around your house.
5. Attach tulle and/or ribbon to the holes at the bottom. My kids needed a lot of help with this step.
6. Enjoy!!
Firework painting with forks
◦ Paper
◦ Paint
◦ Forks, metal or plastic both work.
Optional:
◦ Glitter.
I originally saw this craft here. It’s so unbelievably easy, and the kids really enjoyed it! I suggest using a different fork for each paint color.
There’s no reason for me to break this down in steps. Just dip the back of the fork in any color paint and paint with it. My son only made one “firework” (and then he knocked it in the floor and stepped in the wet paint, so I didn’t get a picture of it), but my daughter got really creative with hers.
Mini American Flag magnet
◦ Popsicle sticks (we used minis)
◦ Paint
◦ Paint brushes
◦ Glue
◦ Adhesive magnets
Optional:
◦ Star Stickers
This is the only time consuming step. Lay two
popsicle sticks a couple of inches apart (the
actual distance apart they need to be depends
on whether you are using mini-, regular-, or
jumbo popsicle sticks). Then glue 5 sticks to
them horizontally.
After that just paint them to resemble the
American flag.
When you’re finished and the paint is dry, just
add the magnetic strips to the back! So easy!
There are so many other great patriotic crafts that we didn’t even get to because we ran out of time (and paint).
The next one on our list to do was American Flag Hands, just look how cute!
My daughter would have loved this craft! My son would have hated it. He strongly feels that paint belongs anywhere (yes, anywhere!) other than his hands.
Here are the last two that we’re definitely going to try when we have time.
