DIY Ball Drop Punch Bowl

Wow, first let me start this post by telling you the honest truth…these pictures, in no way, do this punch bowl justice. I took probably a gazillion pictures from a hundred different angles and came to the sad realization that there is no way that I would be able to capture each and every sparkly piece of glitter and the way that the light reflects from it. It is just so darn sparkly, shiny and festive that it makes my little heart happy. I’m pretty sure that I’ve filled you in on my obsession with glitter here, but I’ll reiterate: I LOVE glitter! If you happened to see my post about New Year’s Eve with kids, you might remember that I am hosting a mixed party of kids and adults for a little shindig on the 31st. This punch bowl was a dry run for that get together, and if my children’s reactions are any indication of the group’s feelings, we are in for an awesome night! Not only is this punch bowl absolutely beautiful and a total showstopper, it was pretty easy to put together and relatively inexpensive. Here is what you’ll need to make your own:

Punch Bowl: $6.97 at Walmart

Charger: $1.99 at Michaels

Foam Ball: I used a 6 inch ball that I got for $3 at Michaels

Glass candleholder or small wine / champagne glass: mine was $2.99 at Michaels

Wood dowel: $0.97 at Walmart

Glitter: on hand

Spray adhesive: on hand

Craft Paint: on hand

JB Weld is shown in the picture, but I chose to use hot glue instead. I would suggest you use JB Weld (which is non – toxic) if you plan to reuse this punch bowl or plan to move it around while filled.

I will be the first to admit that this is a project that will go quicker and easier with two sets of hands, Thankfully my hubs was willing to help me with my assembling. Start by checking out the space that you plan on utilizing to display the punch bowl. Measure how high you would like your ball to be and cut your dowel according to your space and height requirements. Mine was 24 inches total, but about 2 inches are inside the ball. You will then want to paint both your foam ball and your dowel. I knew that I wanted my ball to be silver and my dowel to be black, so I painted each their respective base color. You could technically skip this step, but then you will be using much more glitter and it becomes more of a hassle. I know that it is a bit more time consuming up front, but it will save you a headache in the long run. Once the paint has dried, you’ll cover the ball (and dowel, separately) by using your spray adhesive and pouring glitter on top. Work your way around all sides and tap when you are done to release any loose glitter. Make sure that you do this in a well ventilated area that you don’t mind being covered in glitter. 🙂 I added a 2014 cutout to my ball with some dimensional adhesives, but that is a completely optional step.

Now, back to the bowl itself. You’ll want to use your choice of JB Weld or hot glue to attach your punch bowl to the charger. I chose to do this to help make the base wider, and therefore steadier. Remember, you will be building a tall structure that you do not want to tip over. Once that dries, you’ll want to glue the bottom of your glass or candle holder to the bottom of your punch bowl. It is important to note that you want your glass to be close to or taller than the top of your bowl. This is what your dowel will sit in and you do not want this to fill with punch.

Let’s move on to getting your ball onto the dowel. I used a small drill bit and hand turned it into my ball to make sure that I would not cause any damage while inserting the dowel. I wanted it to be a tight enough fit that I would not need to glue it, as my glue of choice (hot glue all the way!) eats away at styrofoam. With my sparkly ball on my glittery dowel, I headed back to my workspace to secure it all to my punch bowl. Here is the part where it becomes especially helpful to have another set of hands. You’ll need to basically drown your dowel in glue inside of the glass or candle holder to make it secure. I started by adding about 1/2 inch of glue to the bottom of my glass and then inserted my dowel. Check to make sure that it is level while it is drying. Next you’ll just continue adding glue all around the sides until you feel that the dowel is secure. My hubby held onto the dowel as I glued to make sure that it stayed level. Here is what mine looked like when it was all glued:

I added some “shred” that I had leftover from my New Year’s Eve cupcakes to the top of my glass to cover the glue a bit, and also around the base of the charger.

Here comes the fun part, it’s time to fill it! I used my family’s favorite punch recipe and added dry ice for some extra drama. Can I just say that I think dry ice is super cool? My kids and I took turns raving about how neat we thought it was! Seriously, when people see this, they will think that you are the greatest hostess ever! This bowl will bring so much life to a get together and will likely be what people continue to talk about long after the party is over.