Kool-Aid Enclosed Dice Cup With View Port

So we are going to turn this Kool-Aid container into an enclosed dice up with a view port. Its quick, easy and cheap! And you can easily change the dice loaded inside just from unscrewing the top, changing dice and closing it back up.

Step 1: Here Are the Materials Needed, Plus Optional Bits

Items needed:

1. Empty Kool-Aid container

2. Hobby razor blade or scissors

3. Dollar store foam core scrap

4. Pen or Pencil (or at least part of one)

5. Empty plastic bottle (such as a soda bottle)

6. Dice!!!

Optional items:

Felt scrap (lined with magnet not required)

Tape - Electrical or Duct tape

Glue - Nearly any type will do, just not something that will melt plastic or foam core badly

Pliers to pry parts from the lid

Sandpaper

Ruler or Straight Edge

Step 2: Preparing the Lid

First off unscrew the lid. Then using either the hobby knife or strong scissors and remove the part of the lid that is recessed. Here in the pictures you can see how I did it with a hobby knife. I cut slices out from the edge towards the center and then gently folding the slice down and scoring it along the edge to help detach it from the outside edge.

After is removed you will have your view port into to the dice cup finished.

Optionally you could use the pliers to help pry the sliced from the rest of the cup. You can also sand down the inside edge if its rough.

Step 3: Making the Window for Your View Port:

Ok, now take the empty plastic bottle, in this case 2-liter soda bottle. Remove the label and rinse the bottle. Dry of the outside so you can handle it. Now cut along the top and bottom of the bottle so you are left with a cylinder of flat plastic with out the decorative edging as that makes it tough to see the dice inside. (You can save the left over scraps for other fun projects.)

We want to cut a strip from the cylinder that a bit wider as the opening in our lid top. Then cut that strip into a circle Again we want it to be a bit wider than the opening.

Now you have you window for the view port. You can make them from different colored bottles to change things up too.

To assemble the view port simply place your window piece down on the top of the bottom half of the Kool-Aid container then close the lid snugly over the top and that's it for the view port. Easy.

Step 4: Creating a Flat Surface for Your Dice to Roll on Inside

So the bottom of your Kool-Aid container is not flat, which doesn't not help when you're trying to read your dice rolls. That is what the foam core is for. We are going to build a platform to roll our dice on inside our dice cup.

First off use a straight edge or ruler to mark off a long strip .5" wide, but it is not necessary to be exact, so long as it close you should be fine. The strip should be at least a foot long, which we will cut down to fit later. You will need to adjust the size of this strip to fit the diameter of your container, should you be using something similar to a Kool-Aid container.

Now take that strip you have cut from the foam core and gently bend it so that you can easily form a circle end to end with it. I like to use the lid to test fit how long it will need to be to fit well, and trim where needed.

Then take that piece and place it in the bottom of the Kool-Aid Container. I use my scissors to push it down into place as my hands are too big to fit inside that container.

With that finished, we can make the flat platform that that strip will be supporting.

Use the cup to outline a circle on the foam core and cut out the circle. Now take that circle piece and gently make it form a sort of taco shape. This will help you put it inside the small opening of the container.

This part can be a bit tricky. You need to take the taco of foam core and place it inside the container so the bend if facing up. Then with a pair of scissors or other long item push the center down on the taco. This will flatten it out and the side will pressure fit with the edges of the container. Once its relatively flat I take the scissors and press it down along the edges as well to ensure its nice and tight.

And that is basically it. You can use it just as it is now. Simply load dice, place the window down and screw the lid back on.

Step 5: Optional Felt Bottom

If you would like you can add a felt bottom to the dice cup, which I personally like to do as it gives it a more finished look.

You follow the same steps as when you added the foam core platform, but the direction the taco shape goes in matter less as felt tends to lay flat easily either way.

Step 6: Finished Dice Cup

So here is the finished dice cup. It works nicely for couch play dice games such as Liars Dice or role playing games. Or anything else you can think of. :)

And then of course you can decorate it how ever you would like. Painting the outside, using patterned duct tape, drawing a set of teeth on the window edge, giving it a Sarlacc Pit sort of feel. Anything goes! I've even toyed with the idea of putting LEDs inside to light it up.

I'm sure you all will come up with amazing custom cups if you decide to build one. I hope this has helped someone and have fun crafting!