Hula dancers
Aloha! It's time to party Hawaiian style. Plenty of fun crafts can help turn an ordinary celebration into a luau. No matter what part of the world you live in, and no matter the season, kids can get their hukilau (festive gathering) on with just a few household items, a trip to the neighborhood craft store and a little imagination.
Decorate the Table
A party isn't a party without a centerpiece for the table. All it takes is a coconut still in its husk, a can of light blue spray paint, soft leaded pencil, non-toxic acrylic paint in a variety of colors, and some small paint brushes. Spray-paint the coconut blue to create a sky and ocean background. Once the paint is dry, have the kids sketch an island scene on both sides of the coconut. Draw palm trees on a sandy white beach, then add some hula dancers, surfers, a beach bum, a rainbow, maybe a couple of dolphins in the water. Now fill in the sketch with colorful paint. When dry, the coconut centerpiece is ready for its place in the middle of the table.
Have kids create place mats create themselves. Polynesian cloth is called tapa, and it's traditionally made from pounded mulberry bark. You can make your own out of a few brown paper grocery bags decorated with crayons. Cut the bag into rectangles slightly larger than a sheet of paper. It may take a few bags depending on the number of party guests. Crumple the paper up tight, smooth it out, and crumple it again. Do this several times until the paper is soft and supple as cloth. The tapa is now ready to color with crayons. Polynesian designs are geometric shapes with lines and swirls, but you can create whatever shape makes you think of Hawaii.
Homemade Lei Party Favor
Present guests with festive flower leis made from brightly colored cupcake liners. You'll need some straws cut into 1-inch lengths to space between each paper blossom, a large embroidery needle and string. After threading the needle with the string, pierce the center of a cupcake liner, then pull the thread through a section of straw before adding another "flower." Continue until the necklace reaches the desired length. Tie the ends together to create a lei of flowers that will never wilt.
Hawaiian Coconut Pudding
No luau feast is complete without Haupia, the traditional luau desert. This tasty coconut pudding is easy to make. You'll need two 12-oz cans of coconut milk, 1/8 teaspoon salt, ½ cup sugar, and 1/3 cup cornstarch. Combine the dry ingredients, then add ½ cup of the coconut milk and mix into a paste. Heat the rest of the milk in a saucepan over medium heat and slowly add the paste until blended. Turn the heat down to low and cook for 20 minutes. Pour the hot pudding into an 8-inch square pan, let cool, then refrigerate until gelled. Cut the pudding in 1 ½-inch squares just before serving. Haupia tastes best when you use your fingers to eat it.
Tags: coconut milk, made from, with crayons