Anyone feeling lucky to be making it through what’s feeling like the longest winter ever? Yesterday, Sous Chef and I spent part of our afternoon working on some decorations for our next big holiday. We made St. Patrick’s Day shamrock suncatchers to decorate our kitchen and dining room windows.
This activity is sure to put a smile on your face no matter what little amount of sunlight makes it through your windows. It has been snowy in Maryland recently and I am looking forward to sunnier days when lots of sun actually shines through the windows in my kitchen where I spend most of my time.
The snow is starting to melt outside and It’s a sure sign of spring warmth on the horizon.
I originally made these suncatchers last year for a holiday themed event at the Montgomery Village Foundation. As with many things pandemic related, it was cancelled in an abundance of caution when we were first figuring out how to safely assemble. This was even before I sewed together my first double ply cloth mask and before “Social Distancing” was even in our vocabulary. Seems like forever ago!
I am still holding off on any in person classes here in MoCo, but I pulled out my bag of green St. Patrick’s Day decorations and supplies and thought it would be nice to revisit and share the idea here with you.
These suncatchers come together fairly quickly and have skills for all age ranges. I’ll leave a few notes on each step for what the littlest ones can help with.
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Here’s what you’ll need from your craft supplies:
- cardstock
- tissue paper
- clear contact paper
- ribbon
- hole punch
- scissors
- printable shamrock pdf
Below are the types of supplies I prefer to use for this type of activity.
Green Cardstock
Single Hole Punch
Contact Paper
Tissue Paper
Curling Ribbon
Step-by-Step Tutorial:
Starting the project:
- Download Printable Suncatcher PDF Template from DOWNLOAD button above and print on 8.5×11 cardstock.
I printed 2 versions of this: one on light green cardstock and one on white cardstock for a more “personalized” flair.
For young creators: let them choose which color they would like for the outside of their shamrock.
2. Color if desired. Cut out outline of shamrock.
My little artist decided to match her suncatcher outline to the rainbow on our colorful St. Patrick’s Day themed bandana we got last year at the Target Dollar Spot. (That Dollar Spot gets me every time!)
For young creators: allow them to cut around the outside with child-safe scissors.
3. Cut inside of shamrock, using a hole punch as needed to create a starting point.
This hole punch trick is really helpful when cutting out small interior shapes.
For young creators: allow them to cut around the inside with child-safe scissors.
4. Cut 8” width of clear contact paper, fold paper in half bringing short ends together and then cut along that crease. You should now have 2 pieces approx. 8×10″
5. Carefully peel paper backing from one piece of contact paper and place shamrock cut out “right” side down on the sticky side being sure to press firmly.
*Right side down is important in this step in case tissue paper is placed along the inside perimeter of the cutout. They won’t show on the finished side.
6. Prepare tissue paper by cutting into small small pieces. Place pieces of tissue paper in open center of the shamrock as desired.
I prepared the tissue paper ahead of time since I had this leftover from last year’s craft. I chose to cut in little squares but strips or even precut circles would work great!
For young creators: Let them choose the colors and where to place in the center. This is an opportunity to review colors and patterns if they show interest.
7. Carefully peel off the paper backing from the remaining contact paper and place over shamrock with sticky sides touching. Be sure to cover all of the shamrock with at least a ¼” of border and without creases.
This step is probably the trickiest step of all and may be frustrating for you and your young artist.
You can see in the picture that I had some creasing on the rainbow version. My little creator tried to do this herself and ended up with the contact paper stuck together before it lined up properly. It is hard to correct once that happens.
Finishing the Project:
8. Cut around border of the shamrock leaving a bit of an edge of the contact paper so that it stays sealed.
For young creators: allow them to cut around the outside again with child-safe scissors.
9. Punch a hole in the top of the shamrock.
For young creators: allow them to use hole punch. They may require some help depending on their grip strength.
10. Cut 12” of ribbon, feed through the hole and tie in a knot. Hang in a window and admire your creation as the sun shines through!
