Party Craft Ideas: Pirate Telescope Craft

Looking for fun ideas for your upcoming Pirate themed party? Want to keep all your party guests busy and having fun until your very own Pirate entertainer arrives to inspire adventure on the high seas with pirate lessons, pirate face painting, balloon sword fighting, and pirate games? One Time Through has a great idea to do just that: DIY telescopes! They're super easy to make, and your little buccaneers will have hours of fun with them after the party, too. :) 

What you'll need:

• Paper cups (1 per telescope)
• Blue food coloring
• Small see-through cylindrical container a little bigger than the opening in a paper towel roll, and about 1/2" - 1" deep (1 per telescope)
• Acrylic paints or Paint Marker pens
• Glue gun
• Tape (electrical tape works great!)
• Things to decorate the outside of the telescope (they used black and gold paint, glitter foam sheets, thread, and plastic beads)

Here's the full step-by-step tutorial. Have fun, and happy crafting!

Party Ideas - Cardboard Pirate Ship Photo Booth

Want to make a big splash at your upcoming Pirate themed party? Create a unique backdrop for all those fantastic Pirate photos, using nothing but a few large boxes, some tape, paint, string, and a little time. Every Pirate needs a good ship, right? Make just the bow for your photo booth, or make the whole thing, and after the party it becomes a playhouse for your little Swashbuckler! Just think of all the grand adventures he'll have on the high seas in his very own custom built Pirate ship!

Here's what you'll need: 

• Two pieces of cardboard (as big as possible – you can see how big theirs are relative to the scissors and plate). (Use more to build a full ship)
• Stanley knife (much better than scissors for this craft)
• Acrylic paints in blue, white, gold (or yellow) and brown
• Duct tape
• String

Have one of our wonderful Pirates come and teach pirate lesson (how to properly say "arrrr!"), do face painting (scars and eye patches and tattoos!), twist balloon swords for each of your guests, and play Pirate games (Walk the Plank, Cannonball toss, etc), then pose for pictures with your guests. :)

Erin as a Pirate. Photo courtesy of Alixandra Art & Photography.
Book your very own Pirate here.

Here are a couple examples of fantastic cardboard ships to get your imagination going:

 

Here's the full tutorial from Party Delights.

While you're at it, why not print out these great photo booth props from Today's Parent?