Cardboard Tube Candy Cane Decoration

I almost never throw away cardboard tubes. I have a drawer in my craft room filled with them because you can make so many things with a cardboard tube as the base! When you paint a cardboard tube and let it dry for about thirty minutes or so, it’s pliable and can be shaped if you manipulate it right. I’ll show you how you and your kids can make this fun coiled candy cane with two tubes and red and white paint.

For this candy cane craft you will need:

2 cardboard toilet paper tubes (or one paper towel tube, cut in half)
Red and white craft paint
String or yarn

Paint one of the cardboard tubes, inside and out with red paint. Paint the other, inside and out, with white paint. Allow the tubes to dry for about 30-40 minutes. They will be dry to the touch, but will still feel pliable and damp.

Starting at the bottom cut the tube into one long strip, about 1/2″-wide. Repeat this process for the second tube.

Wrap the first tube around your finger or a pen to create a tight coil. Repeat for the second tube.

Slide the white coil onto an icing spatula or a ruler, and carefully stretch it out. Starting at one end, wrap the red coil around the white coil, working your way to the other end.

Slide the coils off of the icing spatula and bend the top into a curve to look like a candy cane. Allow to sit overnight, then gently hang from the crook of the candy cane with string or yarn.

This makes a fun decoration to hang in a window or from the ceiling! If you enjoyed this project, you’ll probably like these cardboard tube building logs from Allison Waken, which also uses paint to harden the tubes and give them playing power.

Project created by Amanda Formaro for Kix Cereal. Amanda 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.