Party Activity: Decorating Paper "Teacups"

     Here is a fun party activity and a great way to make sure no one gets their drinks mixed up.

Materials:
*Paper cups
*Scissors
*Glue
*Cardstock
*Tape
*Crayons

Directions:
*Cut off the top and bottom of one paper cup and split it along the seam.  You should end up with a band that looks something like this (ignore the handles for now; they will come into play later):

Note: if you're using Hannaford paper cups, you might be able to skip this step and use my above template, but since there is no standardized shape for paper cups, it will not work for all brands.
*Trace it onto cardstock.  You can either trace it onto as many sheets as you want or you can trace it onto one and photocopy the rest.  Cut out the shapes.
*Create handles.  You can either print and cut out my handle design (see above) or create your own.
*Fold over the flaps on the handles.  Glue together the remaining portion of the handles, not including the flaps.
*Once the handles are dry, glue them to the paper cups to make them look more like teacups.  The handles are not necessarily durable enough to be used to drink and are there for aesthetics, so make sure the partygoers are aware of this.
*When the day of the party arrives, give each partygoer one of the strips of paper and some crayons or markers to decorate.  Once they are finished with their design, tape the paper to one of the teacups.