DIY 4th of July Projects for The Kids

A Day of DIY 4th Projects for the Kids

4th of July Banner

Adapt the rosettes for this banner to any size.

STEP 1 From blue crepe paper, cut a strip 8 inches wide and 20 inches long.

STEP 2 From a clean newspaper, cut a narrower strip of paper. Lay it down in the center of the blue strip, gluing in place. Repeat, cutting an even narrower strip of red crepe paper, then gluing in place.

STEP 3 Fan-fold across the narrow width of the strip. Fold in half lengthwise.

STEP 4 Open out on either side of the center fold you just made to create a circle; glue. Print "Happy Fourth"; cut out around the letters in a circle with pinking shears. Glue onto rosettes.

STEP 5 Cut 8-inch pipe cleaners in half. Use one to form a loop; slip through another to form another loop, and so on. When chain is complete, glue a pipe cleaner loop to the back of each rosette, first passing it through a chain loop, then gluing in place.

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Festive 4th Pinwheels

For safer-than-sparklers favors, try these festive Fourth of July pinwheels. To save time, make them purely decorative — or, if you'd like yours to spin, see our directions for that as well.

Supplies

• Scrapbook paper (preferably with double-sided pattern)
• Wooden dowels
• Hot glue gun and hot glue
• Double-sided tape
• Scissors
• Star stickers
• Spray adhesive (if necessary)

Instructions

1. To create dual-sided pinwheels, gather double-sided scrapbooking papers in patriotic hues, or if you can't find pages in palette, create your own. Find pages in contrasting patterns, and use the spray adhesive to adhere them together.
2. Cut paper into square shapes — we made 8-inch and 6-inch squares to create pinwheels of varying sizes.
3. Fold squares in half diagonally to create a triangle. Crease.
4. Open the triangle and fold diagonally the opposite way. Crease.
5. Open up the triangle and flatten out the square.
6. Cut along each diagonal fold three-quarters of the way to the center.
7. Pull the tip of every other corner toward the center. Use double-sided tape or white craft glue to adhere the first tip to the center, then each folded-in tip on top of each other. When you finish, you'll have the pinwheel shape.
8. If you want your pinwheel to spin, skip to step 10. If not, simply hot glue the pinwheel to your wooden dowel. Skip cutting down wooden dowels from the hardware or craft store and use inexpensive flag dowels (removing the flags, of course).
9. Finish your pinwheel with a decorative star sticker in the center.
10. If you want your pinwheel to spin, you'll need to push a pin through the center (a straight pin works), then a bead beneath the pinwheel. You'll drive the pin into your dowel with a hammer. If needed, fold over (or cut and then fold over) any part of the pin that sticks through to the back to prevent injuries.

Hip, Hip, Hooray for the Red, White & Blue Banner

Supplies:

• Paper
  
• Fabric (at least 3 different varieties)
  
• Pinking Shears
• Ribbon
• Fabric glue or sewing machine
• Ribbon (1/4" thick and thinner works really well)
  

Step 1: Make a triangular template out of paper and then use that triangle as a template to trace all of your flags. Trace at least three flags on each fabric.

Step 2: Cut out all of the flags using pinking shears and arrange them on the floor in the pattern you want them to be in.

Step 3: Glue or sew the flags to the ribbon and hang.