Download and print our cracker template on a A4 format, thick paper sheet. Decorate the other side with any pattern and color you like. Here we used golden acrylic paint. If you have kids, we bet they will love to help!
how to make a cracker out of paper
Now hold it from the bottom, blow into the two heart shaped big holes, take it to the top and smash it down as hard as you can, just make sure it doesn't go out of your hands, do not crack it near your ear; it has a very loud pop.
Crackers are a much-loved British tradition that people in many parts of the world enjoy as an essential component of any good Christmas celebration. We'll look at creating this fun project by hand and with the help of a Cricut machine, using a Cricut A4 cracker template.
If you're not familiar with Christmas crackers, they're basically a paper-based bon-bon that two people pull apart, making a bang and revealing small gifts, jokes, and paper crowns. Crackers are a lot of fun to make, and you can personalise them with handmade gifts for your recipients. In this step-by-step tutorial, you'll learn how to create your own Christmas crackers from scratch.
Here's a list of the supplies you'll need to create your own Christmas crackers. Keep in mind that you have more than one option when it comes to using your paper cracker template. You could cut and prepare it by hand, or you could use a Cricut machine to easily create these cuts for you.
First, prepare your wrapping paper. In this demonstration, we'll work with pieces of paper that are 9 inches tall by 12 inches wide, for use with a Cricut machine and the attached cracker template SVG. This is a little bigger than we'll need, just to leave room for error.
Some giftwrap can be quite thin, which may be more difficult to work with when cutting with your Cricut machine. You may want to work with a thicker giftwrap. If you work with thinner paper, you will need to use some custom settings, and you may want to use a weeding tool.
Next, let's turn to Cricut Design Space, the free software that comes with your Cricut machine. Note, we'll use the Cricut Explore Air 2 for this demonstration, but other models, like the Cricut Maker, are an excellent fit for this project. Just make sure your machine can handle the dimensions required for this project.
Select the cracker template SVG, and Cricut Design Space will add it to your list of recently uploaded images. All we need to do is select our cracker template SVG file and select Insert Images.
Now, our Cricut cracker template is loaded up into Cricut Design Space. You can also resize it here if you'd like to. When the template is selected, note that you can check out the dimensions at the top.
Next, position your wrapping paper on your Cricut cutting mat. I'll be using a LightGrip mat for this project. Make sure the paper is lined up with the units on the mat, as this will correspond to our alignment in Cricut Design Space.
I recommend placing the pattern side of your gift wrap facing down on the mat, especially if you are working with thinner paper. This way, if you experience any curling when you lift your project from the mat, it will curl in the direction you would roll the cracker anyway, rather than against it.
However, now we have to tell the Cricut machine what kind of material we're cutting on. If you're using a Cricut Explore Air 2, make sure to set your dial to Custom. If you're using a Cricut Maker, this process is all digital, so you can choose your material via the software.
Set your Custom Material to Wrapping Paper. This is a very important step. If we chose "Paper", for example, it would likely cut too intensely and rip thin wrapping paper. That said, if you opt to go with thicker paper, make sure to choose a more appropriate setting.
Tip: Since wrapping paper can be quite thin, make sure to take your time. I used a weeding tool to remove all the smaller pieces within the Cricut cracker template, so I didn't accidentally rip anything. This is not a time to be heavy-handed or to yank the paper off the mat haphazardly.
And here's my Cricut cracker template cut and removed from my cutting mat. No need to spend time cutting out each little slice of paper between each piece here, because the Cricut did it all for me. Simple!
However, again, remember not to be heavy-handed. A weeding tool is highly recommended for easy removal of smaller pieces of paper. I recommend removing all the excess paper first, and then slowly removing your final product from the mat.
First, you need to cut your wrapping paper into sheets of 18 cm x 28 cm (7 in x 11 in). These dimensions are the size of the crackers if you print the pattern on an A4 sheet. Place the cutting mat on your working surface, and place the wrapping paper on top, with the printed side facing downwards.
Click on the template image to get the right size file, which can also be printed in black and white to avoid wasting ink. The white areas in the template represent the parts that need to be cut out. Print out the template as many times as you need in A4 paper size. You could also print it on the back of your wrapping paper.
Place the wrapping paper back on the cutting mat, with your printed template placed on top. Make sure the border of the wrapping paper aligns perfectly with the outer borders of the template. When you're happy with the positioning, use sticky tape to keep the paper secure. The best way is to place the tape diagonally on all the corners, making sure the paper is completely flat.
Secure the cracker in place by inserting the tabs in place. Leave it closed while you prepare the rest of your goodies, so that it settles in the shape. Repeat the same procedure to make as many crackers as you have guests at the dinner table. Nicely done!
Separate each tissue paper strip. Add a festive decorative touch to your crowns with a gold marker. You can make circles, dots, lines, or just add some gold accents along the top of the crowns. I used metallic gold acrylic paint and a paintbrush. It works well for washy-gold accents, but a pen is more suitable for precision designs.
When the designs are ready and dry, trim the strips of tissue paper. They need to be about 60 cm (23.6 in) long. If you plan to make some crowns for kids, just make them a bit smaller. Then make the two ends overlap, and join them together with sticky tape to form a circle.
The crackers in this tutorial are slightly smaller than your average cracker as the template needed to be printed on A4 paper. This means that you will need to slightly trim the snaps to fit the length of each cracker.
When the snaps are firmly glued in place, it's time to fill your crackers with all the goodies. Place one folded crown and one joke inside the main body of each cracker. Then you can add some small gifts, like wrapped sweets or chocolate coins. But if you'd like to include some handmade treats, why not check out some of our craft tutorials:
Are you going to make your own Christmas crackers this year? Do you prefer using a Cricut for craft projects like this, or do you cut your works by hand? What will you put inside your Christmas crackers? Looking forward to hearing all your comments, and happy Christmas to you all!
How to play with the cracker: Grab the very edge of the cracker, lift it up, and make a quick swish. You will hear a loud pop. The cracker will most likely lose its shape but you can fold it and use it again. The thicker the paper you use, the louder the pop will be.
How to play with the cracker: Put some confetti inside the cracker (you can cut it using old magazines). Now, aim the cracker up, pull the end of the balloon and let it go. You will hear a loud pop and the confetti will fly out of the cracker. Reload the cracker and use it again.
You can use Christmas crackers as place cards or give them as a stocking stuffer. Use fun cartoon paper for kids or classy wrapping paper or kraft paper for adults. Then tie on a gift tag and customize the contents of each cracker with treats that specific person will enjoy!
Outside of the UK you can generally only buy Christmas cracker snaps online. Both Amazon and Etsy have cracker snaps available for purchase, as well as more Christmas cracker specific websites like Olde English Crackers.
With a group of people around the table, everyone will cross arms and use both hands to pull on a cracker. Usually each person will keep the contents of their own cracker, but sometimes whoever has the largest side of the cracker (they will split unevenly) will keep the gifts.
Christmas crackers originated in Victorian England and were invented by a baker named Tom Smith. On a trip to Paris he saw sugared almonds being wrapped like bon bons in colourful paper and decided to copy the practice for his own sweets.
Cut out a 30 x 20cm rectangle of wrapping paper. Flip the paper over so the reverse side is on show with one of the longer ends closest to you. Place a toilet roll, vertically, midway down one end. Mark the paper at either end of the toilet roll, then set the toilet roll aside and fold the paper in at the marks. Snip into the folds using scissors. Unfold the paper and stick the toilet roll in its original position with glue. Fold in the ends to just beneath snipped parts, if you want to hide the reverse of the wrapping paper. Put a cracker snapper strip through the toilet roll and trim, if you need to. Attach each end to the paper using sticky tape.
The finished cracker will be approximately 10 inches in length and have a fillable space measuring 2 inches in diameter by 4 inches in length. Most of the materials and equipment needed to make your own crackers can be purchased at craft and stationary stores. The more difficult to find materials including tissue paper hats, cracker snaps, cardboard tubes, and rollers (see the photograph below) are available for purchase on our DIY Cracker Supplies page. We encourage you to contact us with any questions you might have about making your own Christmas Crackers when following our instructions and using our materials. 2ff7e9595c
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