Xmas Cracker Template

A few people asked for the template and instructions for making their own Xmas Crackers.  You can download a copy of the PDF template here

To make the crackers, you need the following supplies:

• Cracker Template 
• A4 patterned paper
• cardboard tube from loo roll
• ribbon
• double sided sticky tape
• ready made decoration (or stamp and colour your own) and sticky foam pad
• cracker snap (pr you can just get everyone to shout BANG!!!)
• Pencil and scissors

 Instructions

• Place the paper face down, find the centre of both long sides of your A4 paper, and mark with pencil
• Place the template on the wrong side of the paper, with the 2 notches marked 'Centre' lined up with your pencil marks
• Fold left and right sides of the paper under in line with the outer edges of the template (outer edges of the 'teeth')
• trace around the teeth onto the fold at both left and right
• remove the template
• Keep the paper folded, and cut out the marked triangles (don't cut around the outer edges, these should sit roughly on the fold of the paper)
• open out the paper face down, and apply double sided sticky tape to the wrong side of the paper, along both long straight edges, avoiding the areas with the cut out triangles
• place the cardboard tube in the centre of one long straight edge, attaching it with the sticky tape, and roll towards the other edge, securing it with sticky tape
• push one end of the paper in towards the tube, and tie with a ribbon bow
• fill with your choice of gift, a snap, hat and/or jokes (lots of cracker jokes available to download - just Google 'Xmas cracker jokes!)
• push in the other end, and secure with another ribbon bow
• fix your chosen decoration to the cracker

Hope you enjoy making these, I find that once I have all the materials to hand (having already made the decoration panels) I can run up 6 crackers in an hour!

Merry Christmas xx