I found a quick (sort of) way to add some super hero fun to a party: customizable masks.

Searching for something special, I was inspired by the felt fabric squares. They seemed pretty reasonably-priced, though a bit thin on their own. I could have managed this with some sort of backing material or interfusing, but the quickest and most versatile idea seemed to be to make each mask from two layers of different color felt. This way, each person would have two color choices in each mask.

I quickly remembered symmetry can be a bitch, so I designed half and then folded and traced.

Since I am all about having options, I set about designing three different styles of mask.

The rest was tracing, cutting and the nigh-inevitable midnight hot glue-gunning (after eventually abandoning my crazy idea of sewing the edges of each and every piece).

I rounded things out with an assortment of foamy sticker stars to further customize them and the kids pretty much dove right in. I never considered myself as having much game with running kiddie crafts, but this pleasantly took on a life of its own.