Kid St. Patrick's Day
Craft Ideas

Irish Neck Tie - This St. Patrick's Day tie is quick to make and a lot of fun to wear! In fact, you probably won't get it off your kids even after St. Patty's because they are so fun and silly.

Paper Bag Leprechaun - A quick and easy paper bag puppet designed for St. Patrick's Day. All you have to do is print out the included templates, cut out the pieces and glue them onto the bag.

My Little Pot o'Gold - This project developed out of the tradition in some families of setting a Leprechaun Trap... where you decorate the bottom of a shoebox and set it up on a stick to trap a Leprechaun on St. Patrick's Day. If you catch one, he's supposed to leave you some "gold." We decided to make these little pots for him to put the "gold" into.

Touch of Irish Socks - You won't believe how easy these are to make -- and they aren't even permanent! That's right, when St. Patrick's Day is over, these socks easily turn back into plain old socks. The best think about this project is that it costs next to nothing, compared to what it costs to buy fancy decorated socks at the store.

Torn Paper Shamrock - This is a super simple paper project for younger children that actually looks like something when they are done. You can adapt the idea to make a greeting card or decoration.

Rainbow Streamers - Bring in some rainbows and maybe even some good luck with these streamers. Have a parade, or put on some Irish music and dance. The kids will know what to do with them!

Irish Door Hanger - Door hangers aren't just for older children... little kids love them too! Here's one easy enough for younger children that also gives you a chance to talk about rainbows -- another little kid favorite!

Pot of Gold - Cut a paper plate in half and then cut a half circle from the middle to make a large "C". With markers, color the "C" to look like a rainbow. Paint a dixie cup black. Let dry. Put one end of your rainbow into the dixie cup and glue in place. Make a ball of newspaper and fit it inside the cup. Squirt glue on the top of the newspaper and then sprinkle gold glitter or gold sequins on top to make the "gold" at the end of the rainbow.

Stuffed Shamrocks - Fold a section of a large paper bag in half and cut 2 identical shamrocks out. Staple them together all the way around, leaving a hole. Stuff newspaper inside the hole to puff up the shamrock. Staple the hole shut. Paint green and sprinkle with green glitter while still wet. Let dry. Use a hole punch to make a hole in the top and tie a piece of yarn at the top to hang.

Funny Shamrock People - Cut a very large shamrock out of green construction paper. Cut out 4 strips of green paper that are about 1 inch wide and 11-12 inches long. Cut out two hands and two feet, or use this template (which was originally done for a similar project). Take each of your strips of paper and fold them like an accordian so that when they are folded they are about an inch square. These are the shamrock people's arms and legs. Glue them into the right spot on the shamrock, which is the head and body of the people. Now glue the hands and feet onto the ends of the "funny" arms and legs. Draw a face onto your shamrock person.

Lucky Charm - This is a good craft for those who like working with polymer clay. If you don't like polymer clay, you could make the same craft out of paper clay and it would look just as good! This one's definitely for older kids.

Leprechaun Marionette - Print out the leprechaun parts, color, cut out and put together. The arms and legs are put together with brads and then there directions for turning it into a marionette with string. When we made these, we just glued the leprechaun to a large craft stick (tongue depresser) instead of making it into a marionette. There is both a color and a black and white printable available.

Green on Green - A fun project to do with kids that are a little bit older (my four year old loved this). Use a green crayone to draw a picture or design on green construction paper. Make sure the crayon is pretty heavy. Brush white tempura paint over the picture to reveal the "magic" picture.

Shamrock Pin - This makes a nice pin to make and wear or give to a special someone, but it's only appropriate for older kids.

Simple Potato Prints - Cut a potato in half and dip the flat side into green paint. Stamp onto construction paper. You could take this a step further and turn the prints into people, heads, animals, etc. after the prints dry. You can also sprinkle glitter on the wet paint. Kids just enjoy stamping even if it doesn't look like anything in particular.

Shamrock Wands - Cut 3 identical hearts out of green construction paper (about 2-3 inches across). Glue the tips together so that they look like a shamrock. Use glitter glue to make designs on the shamrock if desired. Glue on a craft stick and some streamers to make a wand.

Textured Shamrocks - Cut a shamrock out of green construction paper, or you can use a template like this one. Glue on pieces of macaroni. You can also glue on other things like rice, beans, glitter, packing peanuts, tissue paper, color the macaroni, etc.

Blarney Stone - Fine a good sized rock about the size of your child's fist, wash it, and paint it green. While it's still wet, sprinkle with green or gold glitter.

St. Patrick's Day Picture FramePrint out this template. Use a gluestick to glue it down on thin cardboard (cereal boxes work well). After glue dries, color with markers and cut out. (Adults can use an exacto knife to make a clean cut on the center hole.

Toilet Paper Tube Leprechaun - I think this template is a little bit scary, but if it works for you, it's an easy craft... Just print out the leprechaun parts and glue them onto a toilet paper tube. The printable template is available in color and black and white.

Shamrock Hatband - Make a simple hatband from green construction paper. Cut out some shamrocks and glue them around the band... that's it! You can use this template for a large shamrock to glue onto the headband, or simply draw your own on construction paper. Super easy and the kids love hats!

Perler Shamrock Keychain - These little perler beads are a great way to keep kids busy for a good long time. This little shamrock keychain is just one little idea... turn them loose with the beads and the St. Patrick's theme and they can create all kinds of "Irish" crafts! This one was created by my 7 year old daughter.

Wee Leprechaun - This is a very cute craft using a toilet paper tube, craft foam and pipe cleaners... Even though it's made from a toilet paper tube, it looks sophisticated enough that older children will love it.

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