Popcorn is one of those foods that have the ability to pull people from all corners of a house when they catch a whiff of it popping. The tantalizing smell is undeniable and spreads throughout a room quickly, and the fact that you can make it salty or sweet makes it one of those treats that almost everyone can enjoy. Giant bags of popcorn and afternoon movies were childhood staples during my summers growing up, as I imagine they were for many people. In addition to being a tasty treat it also doubles as a handy craft material too. So the next time you have a rainy day with kids stuck in the house with nothing to do, pop up some popcorn for snacking and then some for crafting and get to work!
Holiday Themed Popcorn Crafts
You can use popcorn to make crafts for just about every holiday in the book, but here are some of the more popular holiday-themed crafts that contain popcorn:
Halloween Witches Hand
These are a fun way to bring treats to your child’s classroom in celebration of Halloween. All you need are clear plastic gloves, ribbon, popcorn, candy corn, glue, and maybe some plastic spider rings for effect. Start by gluing the candy corn onto each of the fingertips for Halloween-inspired fingernails. Once you’ve popped your popcorn and let it cool stuff it into the plastic gloves until you have a full hand of popcorn. To make it fit into the fingers easily you may need to break up a couple of pieces. Then tie off the glove with some ribbon and add a spider ring onto one of the fingers and you’ll have a fun witch’s hand.
Popcorn Garlands
I’m pretty sure that just about everyone has made popcorn garlands at some point growing up, and if you didn’t this is the perfect time to start a new Christmas tradition! Popcorn garlands are incredibly easy to make – once you’ve popped your popcorn and let it cool down you simply need to thread a sewing needle and begin sticking the needle through the popcorn. Make sure that you aim for the middle of the kernel and then work the popcorn down to the end of the string. Continue adding popcorn until you have a full garland and then decorate your tree.
Popcorn Ball Ornaments
Popcorn ornaments can be made two different ways, but to do the most kid-friendly version that doesn’t require hot caramel and melted chocolate (I know, that sounds WAY better!) you need a Styrofoam ball, ribbon, glue, popcorn and any other embellishments you may want to add in, such as jewels or berries. It’s an easy, easy craft. Start by gluing a loop of ribbon onto the ball to make a homemade ornament hook. Then hot glue popcorn to the Styrofoam ball. You will need to hold down on each piece for a few seconds. Add on your extras once the popcorn is in place and you are ready to add them to the tree. Paired with the popcorn garland you could have a popcorn-themed Christmas tree!
Fun Popcorn Treats
If you’re looking to spice up a regular popcorn treat with some flair, here are two perfect recipes to do just that:
Colorful Popcorn – What kid doesn’t love to make their foods colorful? Green eggs and ham anyone? Popcorn is another one of those treats that you can add color to for added style. You’ll need popcorn that you pop yourself though, not the store-bought bagged kind. Heat up some oil in a pan and drop in a few drops of food coloring. When the oil is hot, add in the popcorn kernels and cover, cooking over medium heat. You’ll need to shake the pan while it’s cooking to make sure the popcorn doesn’t burn. Once it’s popped you’ll have pastel-colored popcorn! Do a couple different batches in different colors to give your kids a variety of colored popcorn to eat.
Popcorn Cakes – Made in a similar way to Rice Krispie Treats, these popcorn cakes will also need butter, marshmallows, and maybe even your kid’s favorite candy. Melt ½ cup of butter over medium heat in a large pot with 1 ½ bags of mini marshmallows. Once they’ve completely melted, add them into a large bowl containing two bags of popped popcorn and whatever candy you may want to add in. Stir it all up so that the popcorn is evenly coated, then let your kid’s form them into popcorn balls. Stick them in the refrigerator for 5 minutes to cool, and then enjoy!
Easy Crafts with Popped Popcorn
If you are in the mood to make popcorn crafts but don’t want to make them holiday-themed or there’s no holiday in sight, you’re in luck – here are two different crafts that aren’t geared towards the holidays:
Cherry Blossom Tree
All you need for this is brown construction paper, colored construction paper, glue, scissors and popcorn. You can either draw a tree on brown paper or use your child’s hand as a template and make a tree outline from his or her hand. Have them cut out the tree and paste it on colored construction paper, then glue popped popcorn onto the branches to imitate the look of cherry blossom trees in full bloom.
Popcorn Jewelry
These are made pretty much exactly the same as the Popcorn Garlands, just in varying lengths depending on the type of jewelry you want to make. You can make long or short strands of necklaces or bracelets by threading popcorn onto string. Let your little ones wear them around, and if they get hungry they have a ready-made snack just waiting! For some additional fun, you could even use colored popcorn.
Easy Crafts with Un-popped Popcorn
Making crafts with popcorns doesn’t necessarily mean popping the popcorn, here are some fun crafts to do with the popcorn kernels:
Bean bags – This is a great way to use up old fabric, and all you need is a little sewing know-how or some patience to learn. You’ll need to cut two 5” squares of fabric out (or however big you want the bean bags to be) and then sew them together with a ¼” seam. Leave enough room (about ½”) by one of the corners so that you will be able to turn it and fill it still. Once you’ve sewed most of it up, flip it right side out and fill it will popcorn kernels and then sew it completely closed. Then pass them off to your kids so they have homemade bean bags to toss around.
Tambourines – I know that keeping kids quiet is almost always the goal, but sometimes it’s fun to let them be loud and these popcorn kernel tambourines will do just that! You’ll need Styrofoam or paper plates, glue, popcorn kernels, and markers. Fill one of the plates with popcorn kernels, and then glue the other one on top. Let your kids decorate the outside with markers and then let them make some noise!
Mosaic Art – For this you will either need spray paint or multicolored popcorn kernels, depending on what you prefer. You’ll also need a pencil, paper plates, and glue. Start by separating out the popcorn kernels by color or separating them out and spray painting different groups different colors. Draw the picture you want to make on the paper plate. Then add glue to the section you want to start at and glue down the kernels using the different colors. Continue in sections until you’ve finished your picture.
Popcorn is one of those treats that are just so darn intriguing – what actually makes those little kernels pop after all? (Apparently it’s a combination of moisture and starch inside the kernel and a hard exterior shell, in case you were actually wondering.) These are just a few of the ways that you can use popcorn to make different fun crafts and treats with your kids. All of them are easy to do and let’s be honest – what kid doesn’t love getting to play with their food?!
