Arts and Crafts people - help please with "making things" idea for a party

[stealthsquiggle]

OK, so I set an unfortunate precedent last year, but now DS says we have to do a "making things thing" at his party. He will be 5, party theme is "Space", ~25 children - ideas please, please, please...

constraints are - it has to be indoors (village hall) and it has to be something which other people's children in party clothes can safely do.

I have been vaguely thinking about it for weeks and have got nowhere and now I am running out of time.

dd went to a fabby workshop where they made planets (not suitable for under-3s). you can (apparently ) buy polystyrene hemispheres (or dp reckons they cut balls in half) then sandwich them around a cd, joining them through the hole w/a cocktail stick (hence no under-3s). you can glue paper onto cd and draw rings on and stick various exciting/sparkly things onto the balls.

these make a fabulous - if mildly hazardous - cot decorations for baby siblings. dd2 was absolutely fascinated by hers but we had to confiscate it as bits kept dropping on her when she bounced the cot

and lol at unfortunate precident, i fear i've done similar [d'oh!]

How about making rockets out of loo roll tubes - sounds v.Blue Peter!

balls if you have local craft shop bet they'd stock and no p&p

If you have a laminator, you could get some black craft paper, chalks, glitter glue (with party dress supervisory watchfulness!), and some glow in the dark plastic stars, and let them decorate a space scene, then laminate, and lo, their party place mat!

you could also make planets by colouring in paper plates and hanging them from string.

alien sock puppets? you could ask each party guest to bring their own sock, only need to provide things like glue, goggly eyes, feathers, pipe cleaners, wool etc

Ooh lots of good ideas. Am liking the CD-based planets, although it would take a quick poll around for giveaway CDs as I think DH cleared all ours out.

Califright - talk to me about lemonade bottle rockets. DS's godmother reckons she could collect required bottles (water bottles) in time by getting the catering staff to save them from conference rooms at work...

Design an alien (either draw or model using boxes or Playdoh/plasticine) ?

ideas here

make some hats, get black card and lots of stick on stars/glitter/ufo shapes. cut them into crown shapes.

califright is your neighbour's goose dressed up for halloween?

Ah, now here is the problem, Califright...

Water powered rockets
Village hall with (new) wooden floor
England in November

I can't, can I?!

gawd at the oilskins!

go on replace it, you know you want to

Thanks for all the ideas. Through (I think) one of the links you gave me, DS and I came up with this and this

Wish me luck

we did nkaing t shirts at dd's party at weekend. 20 white t-shirts £1 each in primark.
some fabric pens - you could have silver and gold etc for space theme.
some fabric spray.
some glittery sparkly stick on things.
easy.

Green aliens look good fun ...

Just to add an idea that went down well at dd's school last year :

Space shuttles

One large polystyrene cup sprayed with silver paint or plastic cup covered in foil (in advance) per child, each with a tiny pin-hole in base of cup. You might even find silver disposable cups somewhere ....

Give each child a suitably sized photocopied circle (posh version = outline of space helmet within circle) and get each child to draw their face in it. (Or ask each child to bring a photograph of themselves to cut out.) This forms the window on the side of the space shuttle with child peering out of it.

Stick on side of cup a little way up from base. (Bottom of cup = top of space shuttle).

Can draw a frame around window in black pen for emphasis.

Ask each child to stick flame-shaped lengths of orange, red and yellow crepe paper to inside of cup rim.

Each child then threads a length of silver string through pin-hole of cup secured with a knot so that he or she can hang up personal space shuttle once home.

Quite alot of prep for 25 but not too sticky or messy.

Oh and remember to name each shuttle with sticky label to avoid confusion at end of party!

Hope your ds has a great party ....!

Guess this would work with loo rolls too ....

Tons of good ideas there Squiggle. I do a few childrens craft party here and there, in between cakes and minding! Top tip for the party clothes/mucky thing. Buy a couple of Poundshop shower curtains, fold them in half long ways and cut out a basic tabbard shape. Instant aprons, one size fits all!

Rockets sound good. Plan B if I can't find the stuff for aliens, I think.

Good tip on the aprons, Mo - I think for this time I am planning to do painting in advance, substitute glue dots for glue and hope for the best... mostly boys anyway, so limited potential for ruining "best dresses"