Oatmeal Container Drum

I know what you’re thinking… “I remember making one of those when I was a kid!” Well, guess what? Your mom, and maybe even your grandmother remember making one too, in one form or another. This classic and nostalgic craft will be popular with your kids too!

Children love to make music and create sounds. Pots, pans and a wooden spoon may be a free way to lend entertainment to your child, but the sounds are loud and can be stressful on you! Instead, I’ll show you how to make this fun drum from an oatmeal container using felt as the sound buffer. The sound is fun for kids without giving mom a headache.

You will need the following supplies to make this project:

1 empty cylindrical oatmeal container with plastic lid
1 sheet each yellow, orange and blue felt
1 16-inch skinny dowel, cut in half
2 wine corks (can be purchased from a craft store if you wish)
Orange twine or yarn
Scissors
White craft glue
Rubber bands

If it’s easily removable, take the label off of the oatmeal container. Cover the container with yellow felt using white craft glue.

Cover the top of the plastic lid with white craft glue and spread some glue around the sides of the lid. Press it onto the orange felt so that the lid sticks to it. Cut the orange felt around the outside of the lid, leaving about 1-inch of a border.

Press the excess felt onto the edges of the lid and secure it with rubber bands to hold it in place. Set aside to dry.

To add the diagonal line decorations to the side of the drum, draw a slanted line from the top of the container down to the bottom. Press the twine in to the glue. Continue around the container, drawing diagonal lines up and down and pressing the twine in place.

To make the drumsticks, you can insert the cut end of the dowel into the hole from the corkscrew. If your corks are from the craft store, use a skewer to poke a hole about halfway into the cork. Dot a bit of glue in the hole before inserting the dowel.

Cover the corks in blue felt, securing the felt with white craft glue.

To finish up, remove the rubber bands from the lid and cut a thin strip of blue felt and glue it in place around the rim of the lid. Cut another strip of blue felt and glue it around the bottom of the drum. Carefully put the lid in place on top of the container. Allow everything to dry before playing with your drum.

TIP: This drum makes a great container for small toys, crayons, or even for taking your favorite snacks with you! Simply open the lid, drop sealed bags filled with Kix cereal, some raisins and other small edibles inside.

Amanda Formaro is a well-known craft expert and has been writing and crafting on the Internet for over fifteen years. Find out more on her blog, Crafts by Amanda, where she shares tutorials with step-by-step photos for adults and kids alike.