Noisy Week: Paper Plate Bead Drums & Kid's Co-op

We have been having a very noisy week here at Two Big Two Little. :) So far we have made Popsicle Stick Xylophones, Egg Shakers, Jingle Bell Bracelets, and Balloon Tin Can Drums. Today we are making paper plate bead drums :)

I found the idea for these at Better Homes & Gardens. These bead drums are not quite as easy to make as the other noisy crafts that we have made so far. I found that I ended up making Sammie's for her and Maddie needed a bit of help too. Sammie decorated her plates and threaded the buttons onto the strings :) Maddie had trouble holding her plates together and getting the previous holes to line up as she was punching a new hole.

I will explain how we made the bead drums and then I have some tips that might make them easier to make.

To make the bead drums, you will need:
-2 paper plates. We used large, but I think small would work as well
- 6-8 large buttons or beads
- 6-8 6" pieces of yarn or waxed thread or twine
- a stick that is longer than your plate
-glue gun or staples
-hole punch

Decorate your plates on the bottom side of the plates.  While holding the plates together, with decorated side out, punch holes evenly around the edge of plates. If your pictures/decorations have a top and bottom, punch your holes along the sides of the pictures/decorations, leaving a space at bottom for the stick. Thread a piece of string through the matching holes on each plate. Then tie a knot against the plate, thread a button or bead onto string and tie it at the end away from the plate. I think our buttons are about 3" away from the plates. Once your buttons are tied on, put the stick in between the plates. Your stick should go to the top of the plates and stick out the bottom for the handle. Glue stick in place at top and bottom. Use the glue gun to glue the plates together.

Hold your bead drum by the handle and turn your hand, making the bead drum turn from side to side. The buttons should swing out and in, hitting the plates making a drumming sound :)

Here are some ways to make this craft a little bit easier, that I thought of after we had finished our bead drums. :)

After you decorate your plates, hot glue the stick to the top and bottom of one of the plates. Then staple the plates together. This will make it easier to punch the holes and have them line up better. Place your holes evenly along each side of the plates. Buttons along the top will not really make the drum sound, so you don't need holes at the top or too close to your stick.

Hopefully this tips above will make it a bit easier for you to make these bead drums, as they are quite fun to play with :)

This is a fun instrument to play with, although we found it a bit tricky to make. Sammie loves to fan hers up and down and get the buttons to drum that way :)

If you have any other tips one how this craft might be made easier, please share with me :) I would love to hear them

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