• Handmade birthday party crafts make for added fun.lighting birthday candles image by TMorgan from Fotolia.com
  
  Birthday parties are always special, but now you can help make them memorable with a handmade craft project. Getting children involved, hands-on, during the party keeps them occupied and focused while having fun. Everyone likes making something for themselves and handmade crafts give your guests an added surprise that they will long remember after other party favors are gone.
  
  

Decorate the Plate

• Decorating the rim of their own plate can be a fun birthday party activity for guests of all ages.
  
  Get ready for the fun by setting up a table prior to the party where guests can work on creating their functional masterpieces. Along with wide rimmed disposable plates, scatter a variety of stickers, markers, crayons, glitter glue, fast drying paints and anything else that captures your imagination down the center of the table for your artists to use to create their artwork.
  
  When the artwork is done, prop them up "gallery style" for everyone to admire. You can even make a contest with a prize going to the artist that is voted best of show. Everyone is a winner since they use their newly-made handmade works of birthday art to enjoy a piece of the birthday cake. Don't want to spoil their art? Have extra plates for food.
  
  

Birthday T-Shirts

• Birthday shirts make a great craft for children and adults. To prepare, get organized prior to your guests arrival by slipping a piece of heavy-weight cardboard between each shirt's layers and placing them on a table covered with a wide variety of art supplies. These supplies will be used for decorating. While at the craft store, stock up on fabric markers, squeeze bottle fabric paints, inexpensive rhinestones, metal studs and whatever else catches your eye. Let your guests' imaginations run wild or suggest a theme for everyone to follow. You can also play some whimsical birthday music while they work on their craft.
  
  Your guests will have fun decorating their own T-shirt at your party and will think of the special day every time they wear it.
  
  

Modeling Clay Jewelry

• Before your guests arrive, prepare fast-baking modeling clay by kneading it well and placing it into plastic bags on a table set up for party craft fun. Cover the table with a brightly-colored plastic tablecloth and make a centerpiece of craft supplies. Lay out rolling pins, or unopened soup cans, for rolling out the clay. Also supply plastic knives or mini cookie cutters for cutting shapes, rubber stamps and other items for pressing textures into the clay, heat resistant jewelry findings and gemstones and other craft store treasures you find.
  
  At the start of the party invite your guests to make a pendant along with you to remember the day, encouraging fun and spontaneity. Since the pendants only take minutes to bake in the oven, you can slip an inexpensive cord on each pendant for your guests to wear home when the party festivities end.