Make simple rattle - 3 ideas to make yourself

• Classic: Rattle made of cardboard
• Creative: crown cork rattle
• Artfully: Rattle made of paper mache

Rattles are great rhythm instruments: our three different instructions bring variety into every creative band. Both children and experienced musicians will enjoy crafting these instruments. The first two clever orchestras are imitated in no time, while the fine-sounding papier-mâché artwork requires a little more patience.

Classic: Rattle made of cardboard

Some of them have made this easy to make rattle already in school lessons. However, our model gets a firmer ground and may therefore even small children in the hands!

Difficulty: no problem for children (with supervision)
Time required: between 10 and 30 minutes depending on your skills
Material costs: less than 5 euros, as almost everything is already available in the household

You need this:

• An empty kitchen or toilet roll
• A piece of solid cardboard about 15 x 15 cm
• Any rattle material: like rice, paper clips, etc.
• Superglue or hot glue gun
• craft glue
• Scissors or better: cutter
• pencil
• Colorful paper or wrapping paper
• Alternative: acrylic paint in Africa tones
• Optional: insulating tape or washi tape

1. First, trim the lids of your rattle. To do this, place the kitchen or toilet roll on the piece of cardboard as a template and trace the lower edge with the pencil. Draw two equal circles on your cardboard in this way.

2. Cut out! The cutter is even easier.

3. Now apply a thin layer of glue to one edge of the cardboard roll and then place one of the circles on top of it. Let it dry well!

4. Now you add your rattle material (rice or lentils), which then provides the great sound. About one third of the total roll height is sufficient.

5. Once filled, of course, the other side of the roll must be closed well - just like in step 3.

Tip: For even more stability, tape the edges and lid with tape or washi tape. Just attach around. Attention: You should avoid normal adhesive tape better - that would not look nice later!

6. And it's time to decorate. For the paper-backed version, paint the outside of the roll with craft glue and then cleanly place your wrapping paper on it.

7. For unitary lids, cut circles out of the wrapping paper again - as in the beginning out of the cardboard. These stick to the lid sides.

Tip: If you do not want to decorate the edges again with Washi Tape, you should work very carefully.

8. Alternatively, paint the still undecorated cardboard roll and the lid sides completely with brown acrylic or craft paint. Then you apply African-inspired patterns in bright yellow or bright red. Looks like a real world travel souvenir.

9. Let everything dry again and then playfully mock it up!

Creative: crown cork rattle

With the following instructions you will bring variety to your instrument collection. Strictly speaking, this rattle is a tambourine, looks unusual and produces an intense sound.

Difficulty: Also feasible for beginners with little effort. Children, however, require an adult!
Time required: with a little practice in a quarter of an hour done
Material costs : almost free for beer drinkers

You need this:

• About 10 crown corks
• 20 cm wire
• A pretty little stick about 15 cm long (from nature, Asian chopsticks or a nice brush also look good!)
• 6 robust craft beads (with hole for threading)
• A Vorstecher or small hand drill, alternatively: hammer and screwdriver

1. First of all, pierce a center hole in all crown corks. With a little power, this is possible without any problems. Otherwise, a small hand drill could serve well. Or, use a sharp screwdriver to prick the center of the lid and gently beat the top of the screwdriver several times with the hammer.

2. Now always pull locks on the wire: the (possibly labeled) top sides should point to each other. This is followed by a pearl. Then again a "looking" lid pair. And the next pearl, until everything is on the line.

3. Now fasten the wire to your stick by wrapping the ends of the wire about two to three times each time and pressing firmly. Make sure that everything fits snugly, so that there is no danger of injury to any protruding ends of the wire. Finished!

Artfully: Rattle made of paper mache

You can create a particularly decorative rattle out of paper mache.

Difficulty: Requires some patience, but it's worth it!
Time required : about 1-2 hours of pure working time, in between schedule two nights of drying time
Material costs: under 5 euros

You need this:

• wallpaper paste
• water
• Bowl for mixing
• Second shell as a holder
• Newsprint or white paper (eg kitchen roll)
• colored crepe paper
• Rice, lentils or similar as sound material
• brush
• medium-sized stick (as stem)
• small balloon (that's how big the finished rattle!)
• Acrylic or craft colors
• Thick knit
• Super glue or glue gun

1. First stir your wallpaper paste in the bowl. The exact mixing ratio varies depending on the product, pay attention to the instructions for use on the package.

2. Now inflate the balloon, knot it and place it on your second holder shell.

3. Then brush the entire balloon with craft glue with the brush.

4. Step by step, place small pieces of newspaper or kitchen paper. Apply by hand or brush and repeat until the entire balloon is covered. Then add at least five layers of paper in the same procedure.

Tip: You can avoid the area around the knot fastener - simply keep it at a distance of about one centimeter from all directions.

5. Hang the balloon on the closure and let it dry thoroughly - preferably overnight.

6. The next day let the air escape from the balloon and pull out the remaining rubber sheath from the hollow body. Instead, fill in your sound material.

7. You also apply the handle in the typical paper mache technique. Insert the stick into the opening and cover it with glue and scraps of paper until it is stable - at least five layers again.

8. For a nicer look, add another layer of paper over both the ball and the stem: this time, use your colored crepe paper.

9. The finished construct may now dry out for another night before decorating!

10. Paint your rattle at will with the acrylic paint.

11. Cover the stalk with glue and wind the rope around in dense rows. This provides stability and above all brings an exotic look, as imported directly from a Mexican Fiesta.

Tips for quick readers:

Rattle made of cardboard roll:

• Fill with sound material, glue pages together
• Cute decorate with wrapping paper or paint

Tambourine with crown cork and wire:

• Perforate the beer mat and pull on wire
• Wrap wire by stick

Paper mache rattle for advanced:

• Sphere finished with glue, scraps of paper, air balloon
• Let it dry, fill, attach stem
• Apply painting and stick to knit