If you’ve got a December packed with parties and plans, it’s time to start making those party favors now.
Have you ever opened a holiday cracker? They’ve been staples across Europe since the mid-1800s. Traditionally, there’s a small firecracker mechanism inside so that when you pull either end, you hear a “POP” before finding your surprise. Crackers tend to be filled with small toys, a tissue paper crown and even a funny joke to tell. Today, stores sell crackers for everything from Christmas to Hanukkah to New Year’s Eve.
Here’s how to make this nifty craft yourself – plus some bonus decorating ideas!
Materials
-
- Paper towel or toilet paper tubes
- Colorful tissue paper
- Colorful cardstock
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Ribbon
- Tape
- Candy (or other treats of your choice)
Instructions
Start by collecting empty tubes. If you have paper towel tubes, cut those in half, so they’re about the same size as a toilet paper tube. For each tube, cut it in half and set aside.
Next, take one of the tubes and trace the bottom onto a piece of cardstock. Do this for each tube end you have. Cut out the circles, snipping them a bit larger than what you traced.
Take one of your cardstock circles and tape it to one of your tube ends. Tape however you like – we found that an “X” shape across the bottom helped with reinforcement. Repeat for the other side. Each twister should now have two tube ends paired with cardstock circle bottoms.
Now it’s time for the fun part – filling up the twisters! We used Hershey’s Kisses, as they tend to fill up the twisters well. You want a treat that will pack the tubes somewhat solidly so they’re easier to twist come party time. Add some homemade confetti, too.
Next, open up a piece of tissue paper. Cut a piece of tissue about 8 inches wide, or about two folded segments.
With the two tube ends filled, hold them together and place on the tissue.
Wrap the tubes in the tissue and secure with a piece of tape. Cut off the excess tissue so that when the ends of the paper are gathered, they look like a piece of candy. Tie each end with a ribbon.
To finish your twister, it’s time to decorate. Based on the holiday you’re celebrating, or giving to others to celebrate with, choose a rainbow of colorful tissue paper to use as the base of your twister. For this twister, we were inspired by gingerbread, so we used a golden brown tissue paper with an adhesive gingerbread man die-cut.
Stickers are perfect for decorating twisters. Martha Stewart has some of the best holiday stickers out there, like these gingerbread-esque snowflake stickers.10. To open, hold the twister in the center and give it a good twist. Happy holidays!
