Tess is visiting today with a d.i.y. wedding favor she made for her own wedding last year. It’s super simple to assemble but full of personality, and especially perfect for Tess and Dan who have a love of all things old and unique…take it away Tess!

Thaumatropes are optical toys, early precursors to later toys like phenakistoscopes and zoetropes, and of course, moving pictures. Being a lover of arcane trinkets, I wanted something old-timey and completely unique for wedding favors. I already had some thaumatropes around the house, and had been a fan of them for years, so using them in the wedding seemed natural. Here’s the how-to.

Supplies:

• Pulpboard coasters from ForYourParty.com, printed with our names and the date of the wedding on one side. On their web site you see a lot of pre-made designs, but the folks at ForYourParty.com will work with you to accommodate your custom look. Ours turned out perfectly. Cost: $74.00 for 200 coasters
• Custom bird stamp from Babyjewels. I sent the shop owner an image of a bird, which she adapted into a lovely little rubber stamp. Cost: $16.00.
• Birdcage stamp from MJDesigns. Cost: about $6.00.
• Blue and black stamp pads from MJDesigns. Cost: about $6.00.
• Ball of twine. Cost: $2.00.

Total cost: $104.00 for 200 wedding favors.

Assembling the thaumatropes can be done in the space of an afternoon, and while a period piece is flickering on your TV screen.

Assembly:

• Stamp the little bird in the middle of each coaster, on the side with the printed names.
• Stamp the birdcage upside down on the back of each coaster.
• Using an embroidery needle, poke two holes in each coaster, next to the edge on either side of the bird.
• Cut enough 8″ pieces of twine so that there are two for each thaumatrope.
• Thread a piece of twine through each of the holes you made, knotting them securely.

Play:

• Hold the thaumatrope with its two strings between your thumb and index fingers, about 2″ away from the coaster part.
• Roll the strings between your fingers, and watch the disc twirl. When it’s twirling slowly, the pictures appear separate. But as the twirling speeds up, it looks like the bird has returned to his home.

1. Kim @ Frost Me! says:

   May 17, 2010 at 12:01 pm

   very sweet! I love them!

   Kim @ http://frostmeblog.blogspot.com
   party inspiration