Summer Craftin'

So we've already established that I'm late to recognize Independence Day here on the ol' blog, but I had to make mention of this craftivity, as it occupied more of my time and patience than it should have.  When the idea first came across my blog reader, I thought it seemed like a craft that even I - someone with limited crafting experience - could handle. 

I "handled" the activity, but I can't brag that I did so all that well.  I always think that crafts are going to easier to pull off than they actually are - many online crafters make their projects look so simple.  What probably took the crafter from whom the activity originated 10 minutes to complete took me at least 2 hours, if not more.  Why did it take me so long and why did it try my patience so?  Well, first I had to find and purchase the papers and vases used for the project, which took longer to track down than one would have thought.  Once the materials had been gathered and I had sat down to tackle the task, I found that the measurements had to be tweaked a bit for certain thicker papers.  While assembling the fireworks, I found the skewers to be quite dangerous - I nearly poked myself in the eye a couple times.  Then there was the matter of the tape - I became tangled up in pieces of the sticky stuff once or twice. 

Being the Burch that I am, however, I stubbornly stuck with the project to see it to completion - three times, in fact.  I assembled three "bouquets" of fireworks - one for myself, and two others to give away as gifts.  Once I had finished the craft, I thought that it made for a fine patriotic display (as seen below). It's no matter to me how long the recipients display their bouquets, but because the craft was such a chore for me, I will be proudly displaying my vase of fireworks until Halloween. 

If you'd like to check this craft out for yourself (for Independence Day 2012), you can find the directions as well as pictures of much more professionally completed fireworks here.  But don't be fooled - it's not as easy as it looks.  Watch out for those skewers.