For holiday celebrations and kids’ parties, I’m all about customizing inexpensive dollar store items to make it look like I purchased boutique party supplies! Rather than thinking of these as just “rainbow party cups”, I like to think of them as “chenille rainbow party cups”! Doesn’t that sound nice and fancy?

Rainbow cups are useful (necessary?) for St. Patrick’s Day, rainbow and unicorn parties, or just for fun on a rainy day. You can fill them up with Lucky Charms, green milk for breakfast, or any other festive drink or treat. Leprechauns love to eat and drink out of rainbow cups, so you may even use them as bait! Sometimes they leave behind some Lucky Charms or chocolate coins. (wink, wink!)

• Pipe cleaners (in a rainbow of colors!)
• Scissors
• Paper party cups
• Tacky glue
• White pom poms (0.75 in)

Step 1
Cut your pipe cleaners down to various sizes. They can be approximate – It’s okay if they don’t line up perfectly…the pom pom clouds will cover the ends.
Pink – 5 2/8” Orange – 4 7/8” Yellow – 4 3/8” Light blue – 3 ½” Blue – 2 5/8” Purple – 2”

Step 2
Bend the purple pipe cleaner into a small arch. Next, bend the blue arch to fit right over the purple arch. The light blue should fit over the blue, and so on. Basically, bend your arches into a rainbow, and make sure they all fit together nicely.

Step 3
Squeeze a line of glue onto the back of the small purple arch, and place it near the middle of the paper cup.

Step 4
Lay the cup on its side with the purple arch facing up, and squeeze a line of glue right around the outside edge of the arch. Place the blue arch on the line of glue, and then place a line of glue around the blue arch. Continue gluing the arches onto the cup in this fashion. As the arches get bigger, you will need to bend them inward a bit, to fit around the curves of the cup. It almost helps to imagine folding them in half, without creasing the middle.

Step 5
Once you have glued the last arch down, glue three white pom poms on the bottom of each side of the rainbow. Allow to dry.

Happy crafting, and Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!