Mardi Gras Craft Ideas to Rock Your Next Party!
Looking to throw a special Mardi Gras themed party? Let’s face it, New Orleans is the original party time city, so you’re sure to have a host of ideas that will fit the occasion. If you’ve never taken part in this big deal annual festivity but wanted to, well now you can have the next best thing!
As for me, I have always wanted to attend Mardi Gras. but the closest I came to was Bastille Day (July 14) which was fun too…I got some cool parade souvenirs from that Bastille Day parade including – yup – the classic bead strands
So you don’t actually have to attend to incorporate the fun and festive themes into your upcoming party celebration.
Why Mardi Gras is the Perfect Occasion For Creative Ideas?
New Orleans is a city with such great ambiance to it that you can’t find everywhere so that’s why I love to use the decor, the elements of color and bling and why it makes the ideal party theme!
My college put on a Spirit Week in which every day was a unique theme for sports, the cafeteria menu, etc. One day we had Mardi Gras Day and that was fun, getting to try some interpretations of the local cuisine and being served jambalaya, red beans and rice, and some other specialties.
Centerpieces were created, using confetti, glitter and the classic bead strands, adding to the atmosphere. Your first crafting idea can be that of centerpieces. Whether you’re having a party or other special occasion you’re definitely going to want something that can dress up tables since you’re going to have a good number of them.
Then I got into my decorator groove and wanted to give my apartment a theme makeover. I chose Mardi Gras as it was my favorite! I made all kinds of projects to hang, and display. Several things come to mind: Beads, Masks, and my all-time favorite, the fleur-de-lis! ⚜
Mardi Gras Vase Centerpieces
Vases filled with beads representing the occasion in the famous green/purple/gold color scheme are easy to assemble and can be done in a pinch…whether you need something that can be made in various quantities on tables, the perfect centerpiece idea is that of vases filled with a variety of items: beads, confetti, glass marbles, or plastic coins.
I have gotten some of those big acrylic “gems” for my fish tanks and they are great for making displays. Try to combine some big gems like this with smaller sizes for a real “wow” effect.
Get yourself some clear vases in varying sizes and shapes to add interest and go to town filling them!
Craft Your Own Vases Too
Have you got a few empty wine bottles around? Wine bottles are perfect for this craft. If you need an easy way to get the labels off check out my tutorial here. Use spray paint and beautify them in green, gold and purple and turn them into floral arrangement holders.
If not flowers, another good technique is to get some masks on sticks and insert them into the vases (which you may want to fill up first with sand or another fine particle material so the bouquet will have a secure way of being set up.)
Foil Mardi Gras Party Confetti
Novelty Amscan Plastic Gold Coins Value PackWGV Clear Cylinder Glass Vase, 4 by 12-InchGreen Flat Glass Gems for Vase Fillers
Wreaths
Don’t forget to put something on your door if you are having a house party! Wreaths are not just for Christmas anymore….they can fit any holiday as long as you follow the color and object scheme. You can make wreaths easily if you have a good foundation for one of your garlands.
You can easily upcycle old Christmas ornaments for this purpose – nowadays they come in so many colors that it won’t be hard to locate the obligatory green, gold and purple balls.
A bunch of these in a circle pattern can be really striking!
Photo Attribution: Image by BFS Man
Garlands
Let’s face it you can’t celebrate Mardi Gras without beads…that would be like a birthday party without cake! I got to where I used to love making beaded garlands, I found it soothing kind of like knitting or needlework. I made some pretty color garlands to hang up in the living room (I had no banister in my apartment so I made do by hanging long garlands from the windows, kind of wrapping them around curtains. ) Really added some pizzazz !
Mardi Gras Theme Paper Flowers Bouquet, Set of 6 Long Stem Roses, 3Mardi Gras Cascade Centerpiece Party Accessory (1 count) (1/Pkg)Mardi Gras Purple Sequin Feather Masquerade Mask on a Stick, 21Gold Prince Princess Crown Charms Embellishment Party Favor DIY Projects
Beads are easy to obtain in large bulk (and not expensive either) try to combine color variations to add interest as well as different shapes; some beads are round, oval, triangular, etc. I use fishing line to string them and a large needle so they will thread easily. Consider giving them away as party favors as well!
Wall Hangings
The most fun thing I made to create my apartment theme decor was this fleur-de-lis wall hanging I made using Sculpey clay and a few choice tools. having always been fond of the French symbol of antiquity. You can find my tutorial here 🙂
This one seemed like a no-brainer! I added a crackle finish kind of varnish to it so it would have a real vintage look to it. It still hangs in my home…even when I’m not celebrating Mardi Gras.
Carnival Masks
Masks make great wall hangings but you can pretty much use them anywhere you need to. I made a few masks out of Sculpey to use as decor too…Masks are an easy shape to come up with and then you’d cut out eyeholes but other than that the most fun will be painting them and bringing on the bling with glitter, beads, faux gems, and feathers. I hung these up anywhere I had a narrow space for small hanging pieces.
Clay work not your thing? That’s OK….You can make fun carnival masks in other ways too – one way is with templates you can download and print, such as this one below that was shared with me by a fellow marketer….I think this would look great, get enough of these and you’ve got a party!
Mini Street Lamp Centerpieces
Here’s something original you’re gonna want to dig into….make cute little miniature street lamp decor using solar light sets
They have a stake thingy in them which you can insert into a decorative planter or pot. What a great way to take a preexisting pretty plant and adorn it for the occasion?
How to make the street signs? For this a flat piece of wood will do fine, you can paint on the street names yourself. that’s pretty much what I did…I did not use templates; I used some flat board and painted on them and these markers to write the names. What do you think?
Don’t forget to start with the sine qua non of New Orleans nightlife – Bourbon Street! You could create name templates on the computer and later print off.
Other well-known street names to include (I did a little research to find these :):
Canal Street, Claiborne Avenue, Oak Street, St. Charles Avenue, Royal Street, Esplanade Avenue, Carondelet Street
I can’t take all the credit for this one…check this post out for the full scoop on these cute street signs.
If you’re not much of a gardener I think you could fill up some pots with sand and insert your solar lights and add some decor following the suggestions early in this post (if the lights get charged enough they will look great as table centerpieces, and the ones with plants, could be used to line a walkway.)
GIGALUMI Solar Pathway Lights Outdoor, 6 Pcs
Fun Express Mardi Gras Street Signs – 6 PiecesCorinthian Order Inspired Look Plastic Planter 10X8
Hope these ideas get your party off to a flying start! (Don’t forget the lights….Mardi Gras is a time to party and you need party lights too….This post will give you some good ideas!)
And music…the birthplace of jazz may mean some great jazz tunes. Or, last of all, great cuisine. Best wishes for your next theme party, special event or shindig!
Are there any other Mardi Gras theme decoration ideas you can think of? Let’s hear from you as well 🙂
Leave a Reply