The last time I went to a street party, I had such bad sunburn my dad had to take me home less than an hour after it started. I spent the rest of the day sitting alone on the sofa, wearing just my underpants and a liberal coating of calamine lotion. Thanks to a fresh bottle of factor 50 and the showery forecast, it's pretty unlikely today will see a repeat performance, so when Zoe at The Making Spot asked if I wanted to join in with their virtual street party, I jumped at the chance.
I love outdoor celebrations, be they smart garden parties, picnics in the park or impromptu Saturday night barbecues. The fact they're only possible for a few months each year here in the UK makes them all the more special, and I really wanted to share a project which would work both today if you're heading off to a royal wedding party, and throughout the rest of the summer. Even if you don't have anything special planned, it would work as a quick, easy and inexpensive way to turn an outdoor lunch into something a little fancier.
To make your own windmill straws, you'll need scraps of paper, ideally with pattern and/or colour on both sides, a glue stick, needle and thread, a small button for each one, and (of course) straws.
:: Begin by cutting out a 7cm square of paper and folding it in half diagonally. Press along the fold to create a neat crease, then smooth the paper out and fold across the opposite diagonal. Crease this fold in the same way, then flatten the paper again.
:: Carefully cut along the creased lines, starting at each of the four corners, and stopping around 1cm from the centre of the square.
:: Using your needle, make a small hole at each corner and two in the centre, as shown below.
:: Next, thread the needle and push it down through one of the holes in a small button. Continue down through each of the corner holes in turn and then one of the centre holes.
:: Add a small amount of glue to one side of the straw (this is just to hold the windmill in place as you finish it off). Press the back of the folded paper shape down onto the glue, and take the thread around the back of the straw.
:: Push the needle back up through the second centre hole, back through the four corner holes and out through the second hole in the button.
:: Pull the thread ends tight and knot together in front of the button to secure. Snip away any excess to finish off.
NB. If you're using a four-hole button, stitch through just two of the holes, ideally a pair of diagonals.
The (almost slightly) patriotic red, white and blue windmill above is made with fabric, rather than paper. You can just as easily work this project with material if you're more likely to have fabric than paper scraps on hand. Either stiffen a single square with starch or iron two pieces together with a layer of fusible webbing in between, then finish as per the paper instructions above.
The finished windmills, whether paper or fabric, should be tough enough to last at least the duration of your party, and are then simple enough to snip off or throw away with disposable straws.
If you're here via The Making Spot blog hop today, then I need to be super-cryptic and hand over the letter 'L' as part of your quest, before sending you off to visit the very lovely Shimelle (she's a treasure, and I happen to know she hosts the best parties, too). If you're a regular visitor, or occasional caller with no idea what I'm talking about, then you should probably go back to the beginning. Check out Zoe's post at The Making Spot, which will link you to everyone taking part in the virtual street party (we're celebrating a wedding . . . have you heard?), and also explain how you can enter a fantastic competition.
As a little extra, you can also enter here to win a prize of your choice from my Etsy shop, Hello Clementine. Just leave a message in the comments below, letting me know what you'd like and I'll pick a winner at random. The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, 3rd May.
Good luck, and whether it's your first visit or your hundred-and-first, thanks so much for stopping by this morning.
x
