Introduction: Paper Crowns With Colored Jewels

About: During the COVID-19 crisis, all of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship's religious services moved into an online-only format. I generally organize Sunday school activities for the children of the Fellowship …

In today's story, Merlin gave King Arthur a crown because he was worthy to be king under his own merits. We all have merits to celebrate, and things we've earned through hard work, so let's crown ourselves in recognition!

You could also use construction paper, but because brown paper bags are made of such nice, big pieces of paper, crowns are easiest to make that way! (Especially if you have a giant head like I do.)

Supplies

-brown paper bag

-markers (permanent markers work best)

-tinfoil

-scissors

-yarn or other string

-pencil

-glue

-tape

Step 1: Cut Open Your Paper Bag.

You'll want to turn your 3D paper bag into a big, flat piece of paper. You can do this most easily by cutting down the back seam of the bag and then cutting around the bottom to remove the bottom of the bag.

Step 2: Measure Around Your Head With a Piece of String.

I had yarn, so I used that! Cut out the piece of yarn. Now you know how long your crown needs to be!

Step 3: Use the Yarn to Measure the Size of the Crown.

Lay your yarn along the bottom edge of the paper. Make a mark about two to three inches from the end of the yarn. (You'll need some extra paper to overlap the edges when you make the crown into a circle.)

Step 4: Draw a Crown Shape.

Draw some wavy lines between the edge of the paper and the mark you made. You could also make it spiky. Or square! Or flat! Your crown can be whatever shape you want.

Step 5: Cut Out Your Crown.

Follow the lines with your scissors. Set it aside for now. It's time to make your colored jewels!

Step 6: Crumple Your Foil.

This would be a great opportunity to use some leftover foil if you have some lying around, but if not, tear off a piece, gently crumple it up, and carefully flatten it out again. This will make your jewels sparkle!

Step 7: Use Markers to Draw Jewel Shapes and Cut Them Out.

I had permanent markers, and those work best. If you're using washable markers, make sure to let the foil sit for about ten minutes before you cut out the jewels to ensure that the ink has dried to the foil.

Step 8: Glue the Jewels to Your Crown.

A glue stick is easiest, but you could also use tape loops or white glue. If you use white glue, be sure to let it dry before the next step!

Step 9: Tape Your Crown Together.

If you find that you've accidentally made your crown too small (which I did; see earlier comment about my giant head), cut out a square of scrap paper and tape it to each end of the crown to extend it. I found that I needed to add another piece of tape on the outside of the crown to stabilize it, so I just glued some extra colored jewels to the tape to make it look fancy! You could also color it if you like.

Step 10: Wear Your Crown!

Maybe you can find a blanket to be your royal robes like Velvet did in the story. Maybe you can even convince your parents to call you "Your Majesty" for the day.

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