Christma s crackers are a fun and festive novelty that can put the "pop" into a party. Christmas crackers, or poppers, are small tubes wrapped in festive paper and filled with candy, toys and other novelties. A traditional British Christmas novelty, Christmas crackers can also serve as festive party favors for Boxing Day and New Year's celebrations.
Christmas crackers are a perfect Christmas party favor. They can be wrapped in paper that fits any color scheme or theme, and they can be filled with goodies that custom fit your party and your guests.
Making Christmas crackers is a fun party activity, especially for children and teens. They're easy to make and fun to fill.
You don't have to wait for winter holidays to make and give Christmas crackers. Make your own Christmas crackers wrapped in birthday paper for birthday party favors, in pastels for Easter and spring parties, and in red, white and blue for crackers that look like fireworks for Fourth of July.
Christmas Cracker Traditions
Christmas crackers have been a traditional part of the British Christmas celebration since the 1800s. Guests at Christmas dinner would find a Christmas cracker at their place settings and would pop them open by crossing arms, holding onto their neighbors' cracker end, and pulling all at once. The crackers would pop, the gifts would sprinkle out, and everyone would scramble to pick up their goodies.
Traditional Christmas crackers contain a paper hat of some sort, some type of small toy, and a joke, usually a pun or play-on-words punchline. (Example, "Why would you invite a mushroom to a Christmas party? He's a fun guy to be with." Get it? Fun guy? Fungi? Groan!)
How to Make Your Own Christmas Crackers
Making your own homemade Christmas crackers can be as simple as rolling paper into a tube shape and filling it with toys, or as elaborate as you wish.
To make a Christmas cracker that makes a popping sound when pulled open, you'll need snaps, also called "charges." Snaps can be found at some party specialty stores or ordered online from Olde English Crackers or other online resources.
Other supplies you'll need are:
- Cardboard tubing found in toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls and wrapping paper rolls
- Decorative wrapping paper
- Scissors
- Glue
- Curling ribbon
- Candy, toys and other fillers for the inside
Place three sections of cardboard tubing - one about 7 inches long in the center and two on either end, each about 2-3 inches long - in the center of a sheet of wrapping paper.
Run a snap through the center of all three tube sections.
Roll the tubes up in the paper and glue or tape closed.
With a piece of curling ribbon, tie the gap between the center tube and one end tube. Into the other open end, fill the cracker with candy, toys and novelties. Tie with ribbon the gap between the center tube and that open end. Be sure the snap is still sticking out slightly from each end.
You can trim the paper ends with pinking shears, if you like. Curl the ribbon.
Several Web sites have good instructions for making your own Christmas crackers. Among the best of them is this Old English Crackers site, which shows detailed photographs of each step of the instructions.
This geocities Christmas Traditions page includes step-by-step instructions and illustrations.
Ideas for Christmas Cracker Fillers
Traditional Christmas crackers contain a little toy of some sort, a joke and a paper hat, usually something silly. Use your imagination and pack your Christmas crackers with fun and funny things. Here are some ideas for your homemade Christmas Crackers:
- Miniature liquor bottles
- Keyrings
- Fortunes
- Instant lottery tickets
- Mini card decks
- Jewelry
- Ornaments (unbreakable)
- Confetti
Write your own jokes - the more corny the better! For ideas for perfect Christmas cracker jokes see this list at Why Christmas.
