DIY Cactus Place Card Holders

I'm forever in search on fun activities to keep the kids amused and entertained during spring break, so craft projects often come to my rescue!

Now that my kids are a little older, finger painting just doesn't cut it as a craft anymore, 😋 but luckily, they love polymer clay for creating fun and useful objects like key-rings, jewelry, photo-holders, etc.

These DIY cactus place-card holders are our latest craft project, and they're perfect for celebrating Cinco de Mayo, which is nearly upon us! 

These DIY Cactus Place Card Holders can also double-duty as photo or note holders to decorate a child's bedroom or desk space!

My daughter's into anything cactus at the moment (much like myself..), and these DIY Cactus Place Card Holders are super easy to make too!

I love these fun place card holders to jazz up a cactus themed dinner party table, buffet or desserts table, but they also would make fun photo-holders for your child's bedroom or a cute handmade gift to teacher's, friends and grandparents!

Not to mention they'd make great a summer camp project too!

Materials:

* white polymer clay (you could use green clay and skip the painting, but white clay is less expensive than colored ones)

* gloss acrylic paint in your choice of colors - we used greens, pinks, and white for the spikes

* medium + extra thin paint brushes

* polymer clay varnish (optional)

* craft knife 

Directions:

1) Start by shaping a block of polymer clay into the cactus center part about 2 inches tall and 1 inch thick. Make the cactus 'arms' a little thinner and position on the cactus center part with polymer clay varnish/glue. Press firmly for a few seconds. Let it dry for about 5 minutes. The using a pointy tool or toothpick, make lines and grooves along the surface of the cactus to make it more realistic.

TIP: The varnish helps keep the arms in place during baking process, but you could also press firmly and join the 'arms' to the center part smoothing them together with your fingers, so no need to use varnish. 

2) Adult supervision required: Cut a slit on top of the cacti. This is where the place cards or photos will be held. Make sure the slits are wide enough and deep enough to fit thick cardstock and photos.

3) Adult supervision required: Place the cacti upright onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 130 degrees Celsius or 260 F for about 30 minutes. Let it cool thoroughly before painting.

4) After your cacti are painted, use a thin paintbrush to add the cacti 'spikes'. Let it try and they're ready to use!

TIP: If using mat paint, you may want to use a coat of acrylic paint clear varnish on top to protect the paint and make it more durable.

Hope you enjoyed this crafty tutorial and feel inspired to have  ago! If you do, share your photos with us on social tagging #BirdsParty so we can see and share! 😍