Yankee Doodle Do or Die: A Vast Independence Day Roundup
We’re not sure what we’re going to do to celebrate the Fourth of July. (Yes, I know it’s tomorrow, but deciding ahead of time won’t save us from the after-fireworks traffic anyway so why not keep our options open?) Whatever we do, though, it won’t involve any kind of hosting or preparation. So what I’ve done here, all this searching, sorting and sifting of the best-of-the-best Independence Day crafts, outfits, decorations and recipes…this was for you, mainly. Although I probably should decide what I’m going to wear. After I decide where I’m going. Ohhhhh, yeah—that’s why we usually make our plans in advance.
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To Make for the 4th
- Martha’s pinwheel clothespins are cute, and you can make them by following this excellent printable pattern and tutorial by Lia Griffith. Just have to stick ’em on clothespins.
- Little bandanna cushions from Good Housekeeping are great for hard patio seating and easy to DIY
- A patchwork bandanna tablecloth matches the cushions nicely, and is also a simple DIY, via Me and My Insanity
- Move your books around in honor of our forefathers
- Ruffle streamers by Dana Made It
- Paint some baseballs, put them in a basket…they look nice
- Rag flag quilt pattern on Lizzie and Company, $7.50
- Paint some baseball bats, hang them on the wall…they look nice too
- Tin can windsocks from Random Thoughts of a Supermom
- Patriotic tin can stilts from Spoonful
- Free printable National Anthem art by HMH Designs
- It’d be fun and easy to paint and distress a giant flag like this on a piece of scrap wood or metal, then prop it up to use as a photo backdrop at a summer BBQ
- This photo was featured on Whiteport. Notice how they’ve framed a huge flag in such a way that only the stars and the rivets show? Great idea!
- Made from craft supplies and recycled materials (i.e. garbage), these adorable rockets are filled with confetti and pop when you pull on the ribbons! I tracked down the tutorial on Alphamom!
- Learn how to make a proper five-point paper star from Digu
- Tin can luminaria by Crafts for All Seasons
- Put some blue food coloring in the water for your centerpieces…it looks nice
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Independence Day Eats
- Punch from Big Bear’s Wife
- Fresh fruit flag from Fit on Raw (maximum impact, minimum effort!)
- Fudge stars from Hungry Happenings (also comes in a coconut variety)
- Sno-cone cupcakes by Bakerella
- Festive chocolate-dipped strawberries (photo via AllRecipes)
- Sugar cookies by someone named Fenton via ToriSpelling.com (!) though they’re simple enough to use the photo as a guide to make your own
- Strawberry pies from Pies Recipe
- Patriotic ruffle cake, source tragically uncertain, but with a little clever dying and scrunching, anyone’s fondant can look like this
- Cake pops, $28.50 on Chocolate.com but the inspiration is free
- Peppermint patties via Kitchen Fun with My Three Sons
- Hidden flag cake, via the now-defunct Homestead Survival blog, but here’s a similar recipe from Snacking in the Kitchen
- Coconut ice cube stars from last year’s Super-Soldier Serum on Knuckle Salad :)
- Beautiful raspberry candy bars from Cherry Tea Cakes
- Panna cotta shooters from Sprinkle Bakes
- Printable cupcake flags and more from The Sweetest Occasion (free!)
- Red, White and Blue cocktails from Punchbowl
- Patriotic gelatin salad (really? didn’t think there was a nicer name than that?) from Taste of Home
- Tootsie roll pop flag bouquet (so many nouns!) from Wedding Bee
- Cupcake cones by Love from the Oven
- A very nice cherry pie (recipe unknown)
- Patriotic sandwich cookies (some with Pop Rocks!) by Tikkido
- Push pops by Craftaholics Anonymous
- Printable cupcake wrappers from Kikicomin
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4th of July Style
- This incredibly perfect Independence Day manicure is from Nailside
- Charming DIY star fedora from Henry Happened
- Heartbreak Kids sews the sweetest ruffle dress and gives step-by-step photos and instructions
- Cute DIY airbrush tank from O’Neill Girls (don’t ask me how long I stared at this URL wondering what kind of name “One Ill Girls” was for a blog before I finally referred to the header)
- DIY star shorts from Dipped Cone Chronicles
- Trashy, sure, but a DIY tank top like this one will make you the life of the party!
- Navy nautical dress, once $42 from Kiki La’Rue, but appears to be sadly out of production. Anybody out there feel like DIYing one?
- You don’t have to be a drag queen or a majorette to wear Jangsara’s Avengers-inspired looks…I don’t think
- Patriotic/ridiculous glasses, $2.60 on Amazon…so if you add them on to a $23.41 Super Saver-eligible offer, you’re practically making money
- Adorable red and white stripe dress from Uniqinu, £82.07
- Comfy woven stripe dress, perfect for a BBQ or a beach day, $34.99 from Sincerely Sweet Boutique
- The back is so darling that I wish this were a swimsuit (instead of a kinda crotch-spotlighting jumper, $168 on Etsy)
- Classic vintage pinup swimsuit, with recreations available for about $40 on ebay
- Shoe clips galore via Brenda’s Wedding Blog
- A $2,101.70 pair of shoes by Philipp Plein, and it might be tacky to say so, but they’re a great roadmap to a pretty snazzy DIY
- Cute shoes to wear with a red dress, no? I can’t find a source, so if anybody knows what they are, please comment!
- Hanshaw Stud boots by Free People
- This dress is sadly no longer available from Sugar Hill Boutique, but it’s so cute.
- I love this star dress, supposedly spotted on Lookbook.nu, though it’s tough to find anything on an infinite-scroll site…it should be called Huntfruitlesslybook
- Leggings, apparently under $5 via AliExpress
- And finally, a few things for the guys, like this snazzy jacket, $350 from Loudmouth
- …and this delightful flask, $17 on Etsy
- …and this beer cozy, more for a can to wear than a man to wear, $7.99 from Super Hero Stuff
- …and these Vans, about $55 on ebay
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Fun fact: You can probably buy everything else on this list several times over for the cost of one pair of those Philipp Plein shoes. But if you’re Dolly Parton, I bet you don’t care.
