The Blarney Stone is a classic icon in St. Patrick’s Day and Irish culture and lore. Making your own version of the Blarney Stone is an easy St. Patrick’s Day craft for all ages. This craft activity is great for classrooms, church activities or as a holiday activity for you to make at home.
The Blarney Stone is a rock of “bluestone” set in the walls at Blarney Castle in Blarney, Ireland. Legends surrounding the Irish Blarney Stone claim that it contains the power to bless whomever kisses it with the gift of smooth talk, flattery or gab (a.k.a., Blarney).
Irish folklore has many ideas about where the Blarney Stone came from, including that is was part of the Stone of Scone given to Robert the Bruce after the Battle of Bannockburn, the rock Jacob (the Biblical character) used as a pillow and was then brought to Ireland by a Biblical prophet Jeremiah, and that is was the rock Moses hit in the Bible story when the Hebrews fled Egypt. Moses struck the rock to produce water in a Biblical miracle.
Regardless of the origins, the Blarney Stone now rests on the parapets of Blarney Castle and kissing it requires a climb and a little acrobatic work. Make your own Blarney Stone to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day holiday and have fun with your children.
You Will Need:
Small, medium or large rock
Paint in shades of green
Glitter in gold and/or silver
Newspapers or garbage bags
Paintbrushes or paint sponges
Glue
Water
Paper cup
What To Do:
1. If your chosen stone is dirty, brush off all excess dirty. You may need to wash the stone and let it dry completely to make the paint stick.
2. Lay out the newspapers to create a work space for your St. Patrick’s Day craft. You can also cut apart plastic garbage bags and tape them to the table or desk top.
3. Lay your blarney stone on the work space and use the paint brushes to cover it with a generous coat of green paint. Kelly green is the traditional color used for shamrocks and St. Patrick’s Day. But you can use lighter or darker shades of green for your St. Patrick’s Day blarney stone. Or you can use one shade of green as the base coat and sponge another shade on top. This will speckle the top coat of green.
4. Mix two parts white glue with one part warm water in a paper cup. Only use a cup you want to dispose of afterwards. Brush a layer of glue over the Blarney stone.
5. Before the glue dries, shake gold glitter all over it. You may have to add more glitter around the sides after the top of the St. Patrick’s Day Blarney stone dries.
More Ideas
-Use small chunks of gravel (about two inches long) to make individual Blarney Stones as favors for a school St. Patrick’s Day party or a holiday pub crawl with friends.
-Paint a huge rock as a Blarney Stone for your front porch or sidewalk to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. You can add a sign next to it reading “Blarney Stone – Kiss Me I’m Irish.”
Sources:
Wikipedia – Blarney Stone
