April Fools Joke: Melting Popsicle Paperweight

In this instructable I am going to teach you how to make a melting popsicle paperweight.

This is a great prank to pull on people because even on april 1st they won't see this one coming.
The setup is quite easy. While your colleague is away just put this melting popsicle paperweight on his papers and wait for him to get back. As soon as he sees the melting popsicle he will be running back to his desk . Various effects may happen then. Freaking out and getting the popsicle off and then noticing it's fake or complaining for a good 10 minutes about not leaving coffee and snacks on other people's desks. (that last one was pretty fun, we really had to convince him it was fake so he would shut up :p)

And after you pulled the prank it makes a pretty neat gadget for personal use. I use it all the time as a paperweight in my room. And this way you can fool visitors as they come into your room and notice there is a popsicle melting on your papers!

Disclaimer: This is a pretty innocent joke but always be carefull with whom you pull this prank. Don't forget that people who are under a lot of stress can make the final snap into total rage after a prank like this. I'm not responsible for anything that happends with you, other people or the popsicle.

Note: this 'ible is explained at child level without including the "get your parents to help" stuff. I teach children ages 6-12 so it's not easy to explain something without doing it at their level :)

About spelling mistakes and wrong sentences: I'm truly sorry for this but alot of words that I use in this 'ible are not in my daily vocabulary. Also English isn't my first language so keep that in considiration. If you spot any mistakes please comment and I will change them  :)

Step 1: What You Will Need

Material
- Some scrapwood (this piece has the thickness you want your popsicle to have) (picture 1)
- Some thinner scrapwood (this has the thickness you want your melted popsiclepool to have) (picture 2)
- woodglue
- paint
- a popsicle stick

Tools
- a woodsaw
- a  small figure saw (picture 3)
- A sander (you can do it with sandpaper but it'll take alot more time, your choice)

Step 2: Chosing the Shape of Your Popsicle

So choose which shape you want your popsicle to have.

I chose the shape of a Le Grand popsicle. they're very delicious and have a pretty basic and easy shape.

So outline the shape of your popsicle on the wood using a pencil or pen. I traced the shape using an actual popsicle so I didn't need to measure anything to make it look realistic.

Step 3: Sawing the Popsicle

Okay now take your saw and saw the straight lines of your popsicle as shown in the pictures.
Then take your figure saw and saw the popsicle out.

You should now have a popsicle shaped piece of wood.

On to sanding.

Step 4: Sanding

Okay now you will be sanding the wood to make it nice and smooth.

You can do this with a piece of sanding paper but I would advice not to since it is alot of work (unless ofcourse you have sawed out the perfect shape, then you won't need to sand much)

But I decided to use a sander. There isn't much I can explain here just keep sanding t'ill you are happy with the shape. A tip here is to draw your shape onto the wood and then sand T'ill the pencil is gone (remembering to stop when the pencil is gone ofcourse ;) )Then sand the front, sides, bottom and back of the popsicle to ensure it's nice and smooth.

TIp: if you secure your piece of wood it will be much easier to sand. Remember that securing your wood could cause damage to the wood (I have that a little but in the end it isn't all that bad since you'll be painting it later)

Step 5: Making the Hole for the Popsicle Stick

Okay so now the popsicle is completely sanded, we continue to making it an actual popsicle by inserting the popsicle stick!

So i didn't really know how to do this so I improvised. If you ever had technology or woodworking class or any other class on working with tools the first rule you should have learned is: never use tools for something they are not intended to do!

But seeing as I couldn't come up with any better I  decided to do it anyway. Note however that I used an old flat screwdriver that I had laying around and that nobody would use anymore. Don't do this with your good tools or with borrowed tools allright?

So just secure your wood and hammer the screwdriver into the bottom of the wood very gently. Hammer it in for around 2 cm while regulary removing the screwdriver and removing excessive woodchips. (to avoid the wood cracking in two)


Then cut your popsicle to the length you desire and test it out. Do not secure it  with woodglue at this moment! It's better to wait untill you have painted it otherwise you will need to be carefull to not paint it along with the rest.

Step 6: Making the Melted Popsicle Part

Okay so take your second piece of scrapwood and place your popsicle on it.

Now draw the shape you want to create on the scrapwood. (picture 2) I just drawed at random but remember that melted ice doesn't spread cornershaped or anything like that ;)

Then use your figure saw to saw it out. Tip: it's easier if you just do this piece by piece and cutting away excessive wood with your regular saw. This way you don't need to bend in weird angles to cut it. Also regulary place your wood in a better position. This will allow you to saw more easily

After that just sand it.

Now place your popsicle back on the shape and decide where you want the popsicle to be. Then trace around your popsicle and saw out the shape of the popsicle. Precision is important here because everything you cut out to much you'll have to fill up later...

Step 7: Glueing Both Pieces Together

Not much to do in this step. Just take your woodglue and glue both pieces together.

If you have sawed away to much in the previous step either try filling those gaps with glue or try some paper. Just fold the paper until it fits between the space then put some glue over it.

Also I did something stupid here but it was 23.00 pm or so and I was exhausted. But I wouldn't use a wooden box lid to put your freshly glued piece on.

As you may have guessed the next morning it was stuck to the box lid as well and then began the task to get the lid loose without destroying the two pieces in the process... Luckily it worked :)

Step 8: Paint and Glue!

Now it's time to paint it.

i used some spraypaint but you can use any paint you want as long as it looks like the color an icecream would have and is useable on wood there isn't a problem.

When your paint is dry glue the popsicle stick on it and you're done!

Step 9: Creative Possibilities and Last Thoughts

So that's how I chose to do it but there is alot you can change to your own preferences.

You can use other materials like cardboard (if you want to pull this prank once or twice).

You can make other icecream variants. You can add things to it like double popsicle sticks. Some glitter to resemble the melting better (I chose not to do it because the glitter I had would look fake). you can add some nuts to it so you can make a creamsicle with nuts.

Some last thoughts.

If you decide to pull off this prank I can't stress enough that you should be carefull with whom you do it. Some people have a sense of humor and some don't so keep that in mind :)

Also this was one of the hardest ibles I have ever written. The words I used in this ible are some I don't use every day so it's perfectly possible that there are some mistakes in it. Please leave a comment if you spot a mistake and I will change it. Also English is my fourth language so keep that in mind when you read this.

If something should be unclear or if you have some questions or remarks please feel free to comment. If you should decide to make this please upload a photo of your work I would be happy to see it :)

This is also my entry for the April fools project: prank contest. So please vote for me when the voting starts.

And don't forget to rate ;)