Macaroni is a very versatile craft item. You can use different types of macaroni for different projects. A common, yet still fun project is making jewelry from elbow macaroni. Elbow noodles are very simple to string together so they are the perfect type for making bracelets, necklaces, and anklets.
Wagon wheel and bowtie pasta are also cool for making projects. You can paint uncooked macaroni with Tempera or other quick dry craft paints and glue them to construction paper, poster board, felt, and paper plates. When making a mask, wagon wheels make good eyes, and elbow macaroni makes great eyebrows and scraggly teeth. You can use bow tie noodles to make hair bows or just use them as bow ties.
You can also make mosaics from macaroni or other pasta. Paint noodles, allow them to dry, and then crush them. Glue the pieces to a background to make a cool mosaic design. When you break the pieces, the inside of elbow noodles will still be the natural color, so you don’t really need to paint any of your noodles yellow, unless you want a particular shade.
Here’s another cool idea. Glue macaroni to a paper plate to form a little pile. Paint it with a little bit of orange paint here and there to make it look like it’s covered with cheese. You now have pretend macaroni and cheese, or play food made from real food, to use in your toy kitchen or to feed stuffed animals and dolls.
To keep your plate from looking bare, add some vegetables. Just make little balls from dough, paint them green, and glue them on the plate forming a small pile. Shape small squares from clay and paint them orange. Add a few to the pile. Now you have peas and carrots to feed your playmates along with the macaroni and cheese!
