How to Make Party Favors for a Pirate Themed Party

With the popularity of the recent Pirates of the Caribbean movies, lots of kids, especially little boys, want pirate themed birthday parties. You can find pirate themed party favors in stores, but they are usually expensive and made very cheaply. You may also be worried about the lead content of toys sold in stores. No one wants their child putting toys into their mouth that might be dangerous. Instead, here are some pirate themed party favors that you can easily make at home.

Pirate Bandanas

Arrr, matey! Every pirate has to have an official pirate bandanna to tie around his head. Instead of buying bandannas pre-made, purchase a large sheet of cloth and cut it into squares about 20"x20". Use a sewing machine to sew a seam around the edges. Many cloth stores sell great fabric for making pirate bandannas.

Pirate Eye Patch

To make a pirate eye patch, cut the patch from a piece of black craft foam. Poke a small hole in each side of the patch and attach a piece of thing black elastic string for tying around the head.

Pirate Flag

To make a pirate flag, purchase some skull and crossbones stickers from your local craft store. These are easiest to find during Halloween, but many stores will sell them year-round. Cut rectangles from black craft paper and stick a skull and crossbones sticker in the center. Glue one end of the rectangle around a pencil and you have a nifty pirate flag that can be waved or used to finish homework.

Pirate Treasure

Where would a pirate be without his pirate treasure? You can make chests or bags of bootie to give away at your child's party. If you decide to make chests of treasure, use small wooden boxes from the craft store. These are usually one or two dollars apiece. Some even come in the shape of pirate treasure boxes. To give them an old feel, stain them with some wood stain or Mix brown acrylic paint with a lot of water to make a homemade wood stain.

If you want to make bags of bootie, use cloth drawstring bags. These are easily made with a sewing machine in only a few minutes. Inside, include multicolored flat glass marbles, plastic rhinestones, some plastic or chocolate gold coins, real money, and other treasures. Check pet stores to see if they carry those neat plastic gemstones for aquariums. Stretchy string bracelets made from faux pearls and plastic "diamonds" also make great treasure.

Finger Puppets

Finger puppets are easy to make from craft felt and a little glue. Little pirates are fun to make. Don't just stop there, though. Pirates are also famous for their pets such as parrots and monkeys. Kids love little finger puppet animals.

Pirate Buttons

If you are crafty and have a button maker, you can make pirate buttons. Print them from your computer, cut pictures from magazines, use stickers, or just draw them yourself.

Pirate Door Knob Hanger

Using craft foam, you can make cute pirate door hangers for party favors. Pictures of skulls and crossbones or ships make good decoration themes. Don't forget to print something on the door hangers such as "Pirate's lair, beware!"

Treasure Maps

Treasure maps are fun toys for kids. All you need is some parchment paper, a black pen, and a piece of black or red ribbon. Cut the parchment paper in half. Each half makes one treasure map. Draw a treasure map onto the parchment. To make it look even more realistic, you can use a candle to carefully burn the edges. Break off the brittle pieces of paper around the burned parts. You can also make discolored spots on the paper by holding it over a smokeless flame. If your candle flame is smoking, trim the wick so that it is very short. Roll the map up and tie it with a piece of black ribbon.