St. Patrick's Day Craft Projects, Tips And More

About St. Patrick's Day

If you have any Irish heritage or just want to be Irish for a day, St. Patrick's Day is a fun holiday celebrated in many parts of the world. Celebrated on March 17th, St. Patrick's Day is the time to wear green, sport clovers and drink a beloved Irish beverage such as Guinness, Beamish, or Bushmills. Perhaps you could also remember Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland who is largely responsible for bringing Christianity to pre-Christian Ireland. St. Patrick used the three-leaf clover to explain the Holy Trinity, hence its association with the holiday.

Surprisingly, St. Patrick's Day was celebrated as a public holiday in the States before in Ireland, where it was previously celebrated only as a religious holiday. The Charitable Irish Society of Boston organized the first St. Patrick's Day parade in 1737 and New York's parade began in 1762. Though St. Patrick's Day become a public and bank holiday in the Republic of Ireland in 1903, the Irish government began a campaign only in the mid 1990s for a more secular celebration of Ireland and its culture on St. Patrick's Day, complete with four-day festival.

For crafters, we can celebrate St. Patrick's Day with fun crafts celebrating the Irish.

Our Favorite St. Patrick's Day Craft Project: St. Patrick's Day Wreath

Hang a festive green ribbon and clover wreath on your door to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Have a little creative fun and be "Irish for a day," even without Irish heritage.

Materials:
*Wreath Base
*Green Mesh Ribbon
*Twine
*Embellishments- Green, white and yellow felt, Green and White silk flowers, Clover Confetti, Shamrock or Regular Green Fabric Yo Yos
*Glue gun
*Scissors

Steps:

1.Wrap a 6 inch piece of twine around your wreath base or insert into the wreath base if wire or vine before decorating. Knot the ends together.

2.Wrap the ribbon around the base, doubling over by half as you go to completely cover the wreath base.

3.When you are satisfied with the way it looks, cut off the ribbon and glue down with a dot of hot glue. Press down gently.

4.Now you can decorate. Here are some ideas:

*Cut out shamrock shapes from pieces of green felt and glue to the wreath with a small dot of glue in the center. For an even better look, create a border around the shape in a different color of felt such as white or yellow.
*Hot glue large, green metallic clover confetti evenly around your wreath. Create small groups of three with different colors of green confetti.
*If using a Styrofoam base, you can stick small white rosettes or other silk flowers into the base through the ribbon. Or use pins.
*Secure shamrock yo-yos to the base with hot glue or pins. If you use pins, you can reuse the yo-yos for other projects.
*Use painted wood letters to spell out the Irish version of cheers, Slainte!


More St. Patrick's Day Crafts at FaveCrafts.com
Yo-Yo Fabric Shamrock
Lucky Clover Shoes
Four Leaf Clover Charm
Lucky Charm Earrings

St. Patrick's Day Craft Tips

Remember the leprechaun's pot of gold for a little fun this St. Patrick's Day. Hide a pot of gold in the house for kids to find. Cover the bottom of a box with black felt, the top with metal circles, and fill with candy or small toys.

For a bit of Irish authenticity, incorporate "Slainte," the Irish form of cheers, or for something a bit more difficult "Beannachtai na Feile Padraig," to say Happy St. Patrick's Day (or literally St. Patrick's Day blessing), into your craft projects. Write "Kiss me I'm Irish" as "Tabhair pog dom, taim Eireannach." Irish is a tricky but beautiful language and there is a definite revival going on in Ireland to keep people speaking the language.

Some of the best recipes for chocolate cake incorporate a can of Guinness Stout and St. Patrick's Day is the perfect time to try these out. Enjoy one while crafting with friends.