4th of July Party Shaker

Red, white, and yoo-hoo! Celebrate America's Independence Day with these festive noisemakers.

Approximate Time: 15 minutes

Supplies:

• bare toilet tissue, aluminum foil, or Saran Wrap roll(s)
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• clear tape
• white paper (the kind on a roll works best)
• red paint, crayons, etc.
• blue paint, markers, etc.
• dry beans, rice, jingle bells, acorns, etc.
• scissors
• sharpened pencil
• clear contact paper (optional)
• ruler for measuring (optional)
• glue (optional)

Instructions:

1. Gather materials and clear a washable work space area. I suggest a vinyl table cloth as the crafting surface.
2. To find out how much paper you'll need, simply wrap the white paper around the tube(s) and include an additional 3 inches to the length, this will be to cover the ends with. Mark the white paper needed with a pencil. Cut out paper areas needed. You may now want to add light weights, like pennies, to the corners of the white paper if it's tending to roll up or under.

 
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3. Using blue and red paint, color pastels, markers, crayons, colored pencils or the like, patriotically color on enough paper to cover your paper tubes. Then, if using paint or markers, wait for your design to dry before doing the next steps.
4. Optional: After dried, carefully laminate, aka cover, the colored-on paper with clear contact paper.

 
5. Place decorated paper face-down horizontally. Then lay the tube horizontally onto the white side in the middle of the paper, with equal lengths of end pieces of the white paper sticking out past the tube ends. With the pencil, make a light vertical line on both edges of the white paper, where the tube ends (on the white side).
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6. Now, if you'd like, glue the red, white, and blue paper, facing out, to the paper tube(s), "excluding" the end flaps. Or, if you'd rather, just tape one long edge of the front, pretty side of the paper straight on the tube. (Excluding the end flaps too), wrap the paper around the tube and then stick a long piece of clear tape on the other length of the paper to secure.
7. On one end of the tube, fold the paper flap down one way, then again in the opposite direction. Cut any excess off.
8. Tape first end with enough clear tape in an "x" shape over the end of the tube.
9. With the covered end of the tube facing down, insert dry beans, rice, acorns, jingle bells, and/or such small jingly items into the open end of the tube. A small handful of inserts is usually enough, but the amount is your choice.
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10. Repeat steps 6 and 7 for the open end.
11. Rattle your 4th of July party shaker, especially during (or instead of) fireworks and Independence Day parades!

By Erin R. from Seffner, FL