Whether you know "Fat Tuesday" from its medieval origins rooted in folklore or from its modern take celebrated in New Orleans; Mardi Gras is full of fantastical history and customs! It has many parades, marches, customary foods, costumes, and music associated with it. Its green, yellow, and purple colors can be seen all over Louisiana and elsewhere during the festivities. The celebration's length is not set and can last anywhere between 2-8 weeks.
With so much rich history, excitement, entertainment, and family traditions, it's no wonder parents and kids all over the globe love celebrating this colorful holiday! We have 30 crafts, treats, and game ideas to get you and your kiddos into the Mardi Gras spirit this year and every year!
1. Kings Cake
This is a popular Mardi Gras tradition that many families and friends use to celebrate, enjoy delicious colorful cake, and hope to find the tiny baby toy. You and your little ones can bake a kid-sized king cake using cake mix, colorful icing, and whatever edible treats you wish to hide on the inside to prevent choking.
Learn more: Little Cooks Reading Books
2. Making Masks
There are so many creative designs for a Mardi Gras plate mask using the traditional colors. These include plenty of purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power. You can cut from paper or purchase a blank mask for your kids to decorate with feathers, sequins, gold trinkets, and more!
Learn more: Happy Hooligans
3. DIY Mardi Gras Shakers
This is a fun craft to make with your kids and bring to the next Mardi Gras party or parade. Using empty plastic water bottles, paints, glitter, and dried beans/rice you can decorate and fill your bottle to shake along with the other party guests.
Learn more: Activity Village
4. Gold Coin Scavenger Hunt
Time for a fun party game your kids will go crazy for! You can use plastic or candy gold coins. Hide them around the house or the party space and give a little bag to each kid as they come in. They can look for coins and whoever has the most at the end of the party wins a prize!
Learn more: My Teen Guide
5. Mardi Gras Music
Whether you're walking in a parade or enjoying a holiday party with friends, music is a must during Mardi Gras! Some popular kid-friendly music everyone can boogie down to is brass music, swing bands, rhythm, and blues. Find a themed playlist and get moving!
Learn more: Celebration Sounds
6. Forbidden Word Bead Game
Here is a super fun activity for kids that will have your party guests giggling all day long. When each person arrives, give a few strings of beads and tell them the forbidden word(s) they cannot say. If another person hears them say this word, they can take one of their strings. Whoever has the most strings at the end of the party wins!
Learn more: Teen Guide
7. DIY Fun Beads
Here is a hands-on party craft your kids will love putting together using colored duct tape and string. Show them how to cut and fold the tape then wrap it around the string to make their own costume jewelry.
Learn more: All Free Kids Crafts
8. Guess How Many
This is a classic party game everyone loves. You can use gold coins, beads, or little toy babies in a clear jar. When each kid comes in, give them a slip of paper to write down their guess for how many pieces are inside the jar.
Learn more: Time for a Game
9. Sugar Cookie Masks
This is a classic party game everyone loves. You can use gold coins, beads, or little toy babies in a clear jar. When each kid comes in, give them a slip of paper to write down their guess for how many pieces are inside the jar.
Learn more: Brit
10. Pom Pom Monster Craft
This craft is great holiday fun for the entire family! Pick up some colorful pom poms, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, and felt from the art supply store. Use hot-glue to put together your little Mardi Gras monsters for cute decorations or party favors!
Learn more: S&S Blog
11. Mardi Gras Sensory Bin
To make this party sensory bin you can use colorful rice, purple strings, mini masks, feathers, beads, and whatever other festive trinkets you can find.
Learn more: My Baba
12. Mardi Gras Bird Mask
We found another easy-to-make mask your kids will love wearing to their friends' parties. You can use a bird mask template or cut out the shapes you desire from paper plates. Use paint, feathers, glitter, beads, string, and glue to bring your bird mask idea to life!
Learn more: Happy Brown House
13. Mardi Gras Trivia!
Mardi Gras has such a rich history with tons of fun facts, customs, foods, and more to learn about. Find a trivia list online or create your own list of questions to ask your party guests.
Learn more: Parade
14. DIY Paper Plate Tambourine
Time to bring some life to your party space with these festive musical shakers. You can buy colored paper plates or have your kids paint them, then staple some bead strings around the edges so they rattle when you shake your plate!
Learn more: Activities for Kids
15. Mardi Gras Crowns
Here is a crafty party idea to help your kids feel like Mardi Gras kings and queens! You can always buy costume crowns, but making them together is a bonding experience. A paper crown is very easy to make, staple it at the right size and decorate it with stickers, paint, feathers, and whatever else you like!
Learn more: Artsy Craftsy Mom
16. DIY Marching Drum
This is one of my favorite craft projects that makes every Mardi Gras celebration feel like a parade! You can recycle an old coffee tin for the drum, decorate it, poke some holes and thread some string through so your kids can join the drumline!
Learn more: Activity Village
17. Colorful DIY Pinwheels
Make some shimmery pinwheels to take out to the next big Mardi Gras event in your area! You can purchase some shiny colorful foil streamers at a craft store and teach your kiddos how to cut and fold them into a pinwheel.
Learn more: Mardigras Outlet
18. Mardi Gras Smoothie!
Now we know that Mardi Gras falls around February-March most years, and New Orleans can get very hot and humid! A holiday-themed smoothie is a cold and healthy treat you can make for your kids to feel refreshed after all that marching and dancing! To make it the Mardi Gras colors you can blend spinach for the green, bananas for the gold, and blue or blackberries for the purple!
Learn more: Pint-sized Baker
19. Wool Necklace Craft
This hands-on craft isn't so messy and you can easily prepare it for your next Mardi Gras kids party. Get some wool string at the craft store, have your kids take pieces and roll it in their hands until it's a ball, then dip it in soapy water so it keeps its shape, then thread it onto string to make your necklaces!
Learn more: Growing Up Blackxican
20. Delicious Muddy Buddies
This sweet, salty, and powdery snack is so popular and can be adapted for any occasion, including Mardi Gras! Follow the standard recipe, then separate your pieces into three sections and color them using candy melts.
Learn more: Three Olives Branch
21. Mardi Gras Piñata Game
Kids love piñatas! What's not to love? Kids get to hit something colorful and explosive, and when they break it open they get candy and toys! You can fill your piñata with beads, candy, tiny babies, and other Mardi Gras-themed goodies.
Learn more: My Teen Guide
22. Mardi Gras Bead Toss Game
For this game, give each player 5 strings of beads to try and throw inside a bucket. Each player gets a turn and each player that makes the least amount in the hat each round is eliminated until there is a winner!
Learn more: Our Partimes
23. Musical Freeze Dance
This is always a fun party game to play no matter the guests' age! Play some Mardi Gras music, and get everyone up and moving. When the music stops, everyone must freeze! If you are caught moving, you're out!
Learn more: Kids Play and Create
24. Mardi Gras Bingo
Everyone loves bingo! It's a sit-down game when everyone needs a break from the heat and dancing. Print out some Mardi Gras-themed bingo sheets online and pass them out. Give the winners fun little toys, candies, or trinkets to celebrate the holiday.
Learn more: Mapple Planners
25. Magic Potions Fun!
New Orleans has a rich history in witchcraft that can make a fun party element for your kids to get excited about. Look for things around your house you can label and give to your kids to mix together a potion! Maybe salt is dried dragon tears, and your salad dressing is melted frog feet, get creative!
Learn more: My Teen Guide
26. Hand Print Masks
These masks are adorable and super simple to make once you've got glitter paper and feathers. Help your kiddos trace their hands on the paper then cut out the outline and glue the palms together. Cut eye holes, glue some feathers on, and tape or glue to a stick/straw for wearing.
Learn more: Artsy Craftsy Mom
27. Mardi Gras Mini Floats
It's time for a little holiday competition to see which team can decorate their cardboard box into the most creative and festive mini Mardi Gras float! Get the crafts table ready with tons of supplies the teams can use on their floats like feathers, glitter, paint, buttons, and more!
Learn more: Cindy deRosier
28. DIY Fluffy Slime
More sensory play to come with this three-colored fluffy slime made from glue, baking soda, and shaving cream. Separate your slime into three bowls and mix in yellow, green, and purple food coloring for Mardi Gras fluff.
Learn more: Premeditated Leftovers
29. Glitter Jars
You can prepare these calming jars ahead of time or let your kids help put the beads, glitters, and toys they prefer into their own jars. The liquid is a mix of water and corn syrup, but there are other recipes you can try with other ingredients.
Learn more: Mom Dot
30. Fireworks Action Game
Do your little ones have a lot of energy at your party? Time for a movement game using Mardi Gras colored scarves and some imagination. Give each child a scarf and tell them its name and holiday meaning. Green for faith, gold for power, and purple for justice. If you call their scarf's color name they must jump and dance and say its meaning!
Learn more: My Little Villagers
30 Fun Paper Plate Activities and Crafts for Kids