Easy, Eye-Poppin Fourth of July Decorations

Updated June 26, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

By Courtney Key

Ever since I was a little girl, my family has driven from upstate New York all the way to Cape Cod to enjoy the Fourth of July. To this day, everyone stays at my Nana's home that's only a quarter of a mile from the beach! My most vivid memories include making Fourth of July decorations with my cousins. I can still see myself sitting on my Nana's screened-in porch sipping lemonade and painting seashells.

Here are my favorite easy Fourth of July decorations.

1. Festive Florals

My Poppy had the most beautiful gardens, and my favorite was his rose garden. He would let me pick my very own rose from his garden and he'd place it next to my bed in a sweet little vase. So in his honor, our family continues the tradition and we've enjoyed creating festive arrangements.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Supplies:

• Any inexpensive vase (Think: dollar store finds)
• Red, white and blue paint (the brand Testor works great on glass)
• Festive star or flag stickers (optional)
• Pruning shears
• Fresh garden flowers - try to create a red, white and blue pallette

Instructions:

1. Paint your vase(s) in festive colors. Here's some swoonworthy inspiration via Pinterest.
    
2. Once the vase is dry, add your star or flag stickers. While you wait, play festive games!
    
3. Take a walk and cut your flowers of choice. In New England we use blue hydrangea (they welcome you as you enter my grandparents house), and red and white roses.
    
4. Arrange your flowers and enjoy!

2. Red, White and Blue Candy Bar Buffet

We had a candy bar at our wedding and our guests raved about it for months! So we recreate it every year to celebrate the Fourth. Here is a picture from our wedding candy bar:

Photo Credit: Courtney Key

Supplies:

• Twizzlers
• Red and Blue Skittles
• Red and Blue M&Ms
• White Yogurt Covered Pretzels
• 6 Mason jars or bowls
• Cellophane bags or ziploc bags
• Construction paper and markers

Instructions:

1. Separate your skittles and m&m's
    
2. Add each candy into a bowl or mason jar
    
3. Create labels for each candy
    
4. Give each guest a bag to fill and enjoy!

3. Patriotic Marshmallows

I wholeheartedly stole this idea from The Decorated Cookie because it's just so festive and easy. These are fun to eat during fireworks!

Photo Credit: The Decorated Cookie

Ingredients:

• 1-2 bags of marshmallows
• Red, white and blue glitter
• Festive straws

Instructions:

1. Briefly dip each marshmallow in water
    
2. Roll the marshmallows in glitter
    
3. Place the marshmallows on a festive straw

4. Marble Fireworks

Yes, you read that right. I found this idea because my son is OBSESSED with marbles. This was an instant win for my family! A big thank you to Melissa at Kid-Friendly Things to Do.

Supplies

• An old shoebox
• Red, white and blue paint
• A marble
• Black or light-colored Paper (light blue, white, yellow, etc.) (Experiment to see what colors work for you.)

Instructions:

1. Place your paper into your shoebox
    
2. Add a quarter sized amount of each color paint to your paper
    
3. Place your marble into the shoebox and tilt it around to create "fireworks"
    
4. Once the art is dry, you can use it as placemats as part of your Fourth of July decorations. Easy table decorations for the win!

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Happy Fourth of July to your family from mine!

Editor's note: This article was slightly modified from its original version on FamilyEducation.com.