With holiday season long behind us, the DIYers have reluctantly put away their hot glue guns and markers. Well here’s a reason to dust off your art supplies and get to crafting. St. Patrick’s Day is quickly approaching and let’s be honest, your dorm is looking a little bare. Here are some quick, easy, and cute new ideas to spruce up the place. You won’t need luck to do these crafts because they’re that simple!
1. Rainbow Chain
What you’ll need:
-Colored construction paper
-Staples/stapler
-Scissors
-Glue
-Tape
How to: Start by cutting red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple strips of paper about one inch wide. Roll each strip into circles, linking one through the next, and staple them together. Cut out a black pot, a handle, and yellow circles for the gold. Glue the yellow circles together, and then glue them all to the top of the pot. Tape one side of the handle to the back of the pot and loop it through the purple circle, then tape it on the other side of the pot. Hang this adorable decoration on your doorknob and pass on a little bit of luck!
(Source: http://www.sassydealz.com/2014/02/rainbow-chain-craft-st-patricks-day.html )
2. Shamrock
What you’ll need:
-Green construction paper
-Scissors
-Staples/stapler
-Yarn
How to: Cut four strips of green construction paper about one inch wide. Make three of the four strips into the shape of a heart; staple the ends of each strip together. Then, fold the fourth strip into the shape of a triangle with two sides being equal and much longer than the third; staple the ends together. Staple two hearts together on the side, close the point. Staple a third heart on the other side of one of those, then staple the stem to the bunch of hearts. Punch a hole at the top of the top heart. Finally, string a piece of yarn through and hang to bring good luck to your room.
(Source: http://handsonaswegrow.com/preschool-craft-shamrocks-for-st-patricks-day/ )
3. Leprechaun Hats
What you’ll need:
-Green and brown M&Ms
-Green and gold construction paper
-Clear plastic cup
-Glue
How to: Fill the clear plastic cup with green M&Ms first, and then add brown M&Ms on tops. Cut a gold buckle out of construction paper; glue this to the top of the clear cup. Cut a donut shape out of green construction paper, and then glue this to the rim of the cup with the hole in the center of the cup. Display upside-down and allow your guests to eat M&Ms out of the cup.
(Source: http://www.allfreekidscrafts.com/St-Patricks-Day-Kids-Crafts/Lucky-Chocolate-Hats/ct/1 )
4. Leprechaun Paper Plate
What you’ll need:
-White paper plate
-Green, black, and gold construction paper
-Black and orange markers
-Glue
How to: Start by turning a white paper plate upside-down and coloring the outside of the plate orange. Then, take scissors and cut slits all around the orange part. This is going to be your Leprechaun’s beard. Make a hat out of green, black, and yellow construction paper and glue it to the top of the paper plate. Add eyes, a nose, and a smile with a black marker. Place your little friend on your dorm room door so he can greet all your guests!
(Source: http://www.craftymorning.com/paper-plate-leprechaun-craft-kids/ )
5. Gimme S’more Luck
What you’ll need:
-Jumbo marshmallows
-Keebler Fudge Stripe Cookies
-Dark chocolate candy melts
-Green candy melts
-Green sprinkles
-Toothpicks
-Parchment paper
How to: Melt dark chocolate candy in the microwave, for about 30 seconds then stir. Repeat this step until the chocolate is completely melted. Dip Fudge Stripe Cookies into chocolate, coating them completely. Set on parchment paper, topside down, until candy coating is completely set. Using a toothpick, dip a marshmallow into chocolate and coat almost entirely. Set on parchment paper, until candy coating is completely set. Remove toothpick. Melt the green candy just as you did the chocolate. Flip the marshmallow upside down and insert new toothpick in top. Dip into green candy, just barely, to create a small band of green around the bottom. Place the marshmallow in center of chocolate covered cookie. Carefully remove toothpick. Touch up the toothpick hole with a small dab of melted chocolate, if desired. On parchment paper, drip three small dots of green candy in the shape of a triangle. Each dot should be about the size of a chocolate chip. Using a toothpick, swirl the three dots together to form a shamrock shape. Swirl the bottom two dots together first, then the top dot. Pull toothpick straight down to form the stem. Let the shamrocks harden. To finish the hat, attach a hardened shamrock with a small dab of melted green to the center of the hat. Enjoy these tasty treats with your friends! (Keep refrigerated if need be).
(Source: http://thecakeblog.com/2012/03/leprechaun-hat-smores.html )
Where to buy: For art supplies visit the Barnes and Noble Bookstore on campus or the Plaza Artist Materials & Picture Framing store on Chestnut Street. For groceries visit any supermarket or food store such as Northside, 7/11, or CVS.