"Shooting Stars" 4th of July Craft

I can't believe I'm posting twice in two days!  That might be a record for me!  This post, or craft,  has been on my mind for a while, but I didn't make it happen until yesterday.  It's inspired by a toy that I had as a child, and it's a great one for the fourth of July so I wanted to share it with you as soon as I got the post ready!

When I was a little girl we went to a hot air balloon festival.  I remember the balloons getting ready to take off so very early in the morning.  I remember hot chocolate.  And I remember this lovely toy that my parents bought me at a craft booth there.  It was simple really.  Just a bean bag attached to a string with lots and lots of ribbons as a tail.  My sister and I would swing it around and around and then let go, making the bean bag fly through the air.  It was so simple, yet so soooo much fun.  We played with it for hours on end, pretending it was everything from rocket ships to fairy magic.

I've wanted to make one for the kids for a while.   Do you want to make one too?  It's so simple, I promise!

All you will need is two pieces of felt cut into the shape of stars, some ribbon for a "star tail"  and a rope or string (I used a shoe lace) for launching your star!

 Place the string and the ribbon between the two layers of felt and sew around the star, leaving one "arm" of the star open so that you can stuff it more easily.

 Stuff with rice, beans, or beads:  I had lots of little fingers that wanted to help with this step!

 Go ahead and finish up sewing the last side of the star.

 All finished!

I always get a bit nervous with toys that have strings, so make sure that you're always supervising your child with this toy.  I made sure my kids never swung it around their bodies (or especially necks).  Swinging it with your arm out is definitely the best way to go! 

Have a happy and safe Independence Day everyone!