Craft Ideas for a Sleepover Party
- It's a good idea to have crafts ready for slumber parties, since the kids may not sleep very much.durmiendo tranquila image by enens from <a href='http://www.fotolia.com'>Fotolia.com</a>
Sleepover parties can be exciting for kids. However, parents sometimes feel challenged to entertain children for such an extended period of time. Planning crafts makes the evening easy to manage, and it gives partygoers something to take home. The crafts you choose for your child's sleepover can be simple, inexpensive and fun to create. This makes the party more enjoyable for everyone. - You can make simple bracelets that can serve as fashion statements for boys or girls--or they can be "friendship" bracelets that kids trade as a sign of cameraderie. Use a pair of scissors to cut a stretchy t-shirt (or other clothing made of stretchy material) into strips that are about 10 inches long and two to three inches wide. Purchase a variety of colored beads. Make sure you have darker, larger beads as well if boys will be present, since boys may prefer these types to smaller, pastel-colored beads. Give each child a strip of fabric that you cut. Instruct the children to tie a knot in one end of the strip, about one half inch from the end. Then have the kids string five to seven beads onto the fabric. Finish the bracelets by tying another knot on the other end. Tie the two ends together to secure the bracelets to the kids' wrists.
- This craft is especially appropriate if you're having a pirate-themed party. Ask each child to bring an empty shoe box to the slumber party. Have extra boxes on hand in case someone forgets. You also will need paint, paint brushes, scissors, glue, gold foil paper and plastic gems and coins. Paint the boxes and lids solid black and allow them to dry completely. Cut two strips of gold foil paper (an inch or two wide) that will reach around the width of the lid. Glue each strip about two inches from either end of the lid. Cut two more gold strips that will wrap around the box. Align these strips with the gold strips on the lid and glue them down. Provide skull and bones cut-outs for the children to glue on the center of the lid. Also provide plastic gems and fake coins to put inside the chests once they're finished.
- Use this craft with boys or girls. Ask each person to bring a plain white t-shirt. Have some extra shirts handy. Provide the kids with rubber bands and show them how to attach the rubber bands by pulling a small amount of cloth together, twisting it and securing it with a rubber band. Allow the children to apply multiple rubber bands to their shirts. Purchase fabric dye and follow directions. With some dyes, you can hang the shirts on a line outdoor and spritz them with dye. With other dyes, you must immerse the shirts in a container of water that has been mixed with the dye. Make sure the children have rubber gloves when they're near the dye. You also might want to cut holes in the bottom and sides of a garbage bag and have the kids slip them on as smocks to protect their clothing. Once the shirts have been dyed, allow them to dry. Remove the rubber bands to see the designs underneath.
Remind parents to wash these shirts separately for the first few washes in case the dye runs.
