What to make Daddy for Father’s Day? It’s always been a more difficult question than what to make for Mommy for me! Last year Tristan made a paper bead bookmark for his Daddy. I used to love making paper beads as a child, but I’d forgotten all about it until my sister sent me a bookmark she purchased at a fundraiser. When I saw it I thought it would be the perfect gift for Phil to use while he was reading Bear Grylls during lunch time at work.
What will you need to make a paper bead bookmark?
- Patterned paper (or for more fun, you can colour your own; A4 or letter size works well, but you can go a little shorter, too)
- scissors
- ruler and pencil
- white/pva glue
- a paintbrush
- skewers, sticks, or narrow straws
- elasticated cord
- varnish (optional)
How do you make a paper bead bookmark?
Draw strips along the reverse side of your chosen paper. You can make rectangles the length of your paper, or try triangles, or other shapes for the fun of discovering what shape the end product will be.
Cut out these strips.
Take the wide end of a strip of paper and wrap the start of it around a bamboo skewer, or whatever you have handy that will do the trick.
Once it is around once, add a small touch of glue to the paper to keep the centre of your bead from unravelling when it is completed. continue to roll your paper tightly around your skewer until you reach the end of your paper. Add another dab of glue to hold the end of the paper in place.
Continue the same process to make as many beads as you need/want.
I used a clump of our homemade playdough to stick the skewers in to hold them in place for the next step, and until the beads were dried.
To hold the paper in place and to give them more durability, you can use a solution of white glue and water, or a clear varnish, to ‘paint’ over the paper beads after they have been rolled. Leave them to dry, and add a second coat. Once this has cured, carefully remove the paper beads from the skewers. This may be a little tricky if the glue or varnish has stuck them to the skewer, but you can do it!
Have your little one thread these beads onto some elasticated string Tristan used some pony beads as well. Measure this against the average sized book your recipient will be using, and tie the ends together into a knot.
We didn’t have Daddy’s book handy, so we used another one about the same size.
This gift turned out so well that Tristan later went on to make several more for family Christmas gifts.
I used this craft as part of Maggie Woodley’s Red Ted Art Google + Hangout where some great women shared their ideas for Father’s Day crafts that weren’t the usual photos and frames. You can watch the entire episode onyou tube here.
If you’d like to see each craft tutorial, these are the links that will take you directly to each blog:
- Melted crayon rock paperweights by Red Ted Art. I’ve seen how-to’s on this before, but seeing it ‘live’ was really cool!
- An extension of the rock paperweights is to make plant markers for those fathers who love gardening.
- If you’ve been wondering what to do with all those stubby pencil crayons you have around the house, Kids’ Chaos has the perfect keyring for you to make.
- Zing Zing tree has a fabulous foldable fabric bowl for those traveling fathers to keep their personal items in during down-time away.
- Domestic Goddesque shares a few ideas:
- Coloring a handkerchief with fabric markers for the dad’s who use hankies.
- She’s made a superhero apron, which would be great for barbecues!
- Kelly has also made a portable hug, which was a big hit with my Mom when she received on in the mail a couple of years ago.
- Me and My Shadow shared a just because I love you book that is easy to transport to wherever Dad is working, and can be personalized in endless ways.
There are also a couple of ideas-in-progress on the video that you may like!
What will you be making for Father’s Day this year?
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