DIY: Harry Potter Wands

I was feeling particularly lazy this year and decided that we would just do bought costumes for book week. So I asked the kids want they wanted to be and set about the expensive but a lot less time consuming task of ordering their costumes from ebay or raiding the dress up box.

I had a two week delivery timeframe so everything should have been here in time but NOPE! The wands didn't arrive for C and M's costumes and since we live in the middle of nowhere I couldn't just duck down to the shops and pick up something so I first raided the cutlery drawer and decided that the chopsticks were too small so my next move was my knitting needles. Luckily I somehow ended up with two sets of 10 mm wooden needles!

Then I had to hunt down my hot glue gun. That was no mean feat since my craft supplies are stored in many places around the house. But never fear I found it and managed to turn the needles into something resembling magic wands as well as not burning myself in the process. WINNING!

Anyhow, I thought I'd share here just how I did it.

WHAT I USED:

10 mm bamboo knitting needle- but you could use dowel, a tree branch, anything wooden really. The knitting needle is just a perfect size and shape especially because of their bulky ends.
Hot Glue Gun
Acrylic Paint
Clear Varnish- I haven't sealed these wands yet because I was on a strict timeline, but sealing them with some clear varnish will ensure that the paint lasts and doesn't chip away or rub off.

WHAT I DID:

All I did was spread hot glue around the base of the needles until I was happy with it.

There was no pattern in mind at all. Again, I was on a strict deadline!

Then I pulled out the kids cheapie acrylics and painted one brown and the other silver.

And ta dah! They were done. 

Both kids were happy with the results and that's really all a mother can ask for! 

Do you do handmade or store bought costumes for book week?