Blog EXTRA: Straw Paper Caterpillars

By Corinne H. Smith


     When I was a child, my mother showed me how to make straw paper caterpillars.  The first part of this exciting discovery was that it happened during our inaugural visit to a department store lunch counter together.  The second was the fun in learning how the item was crafted and put into action.

     I believe this event first took place at a lunch counter at one of the department stores in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in the 1960s.  At the time, the three local stores were Watt & Shand, Hager, and Garvin’s.  In my memory, the unveiling took place at Garvin’s.  I’m not sure that the other two had lunch counters.

     Anyway, once she showed me the trick, we did it again any time we went out to lunch or dinner, either with just the two of us or in the company of my father.  Without fanfare, one or both of us would manipulate and activate our straw papers.  Sometimes we had a contest to see whose paper caterpillar moved best.  I haven’t met many people who have heard of or seen this phenomenon.  So even though it’s a simple feat, I offer illustrated instructions here.  I apologize for the brightness of the camera flash on the straw paper.  But you should get the idea.

1. Order a drink that the wait staff will deliver with a paper-encased straw.  Or, get your own at your favorite fast food outlet.

2. Tear open the straw paper at just one end.  Do not remove it from the straw yet.

3. Grasp the straw in your dominant hand and hold it vertically against the table top.

4. Tap the straw on the table.  Keep your hand on the paper covering, and lightly push the paper down the length of the straw, toward the table, with each tap.

5. With any success, you’ll end up with the paper looking very much like a tiny accordion.  Or a caterpillar, if you will.

6. Now, here’s the fun part.  “Do you want to see the caterpillar crawl?” my mother asked.  Naturally I did.  So she took her straw and placed it into the drink – just far enough to allow about an eighth of an inch of beverage into it.  She put her finger over the open end of the straw to keep the liquid inside.  Then she held the straw over the caterpillar and eased her finger up.  The beverage dampened the paper and caused it to expand, looking as though it was indeed a crawling caterpillar.

7. Helpful hint #1:  Straw papers aren’t made as loose as they used to be.  Creating a caterpillar may be impossible with some of them.  They’ll tear before you have a finished product.  If you meet with disaster at first, keep looking for an eatery with more suitable straw papers.

8. Helpful hint #2:  Don’t lift too much beverage into your straw; otherwise, you’ll end up with a soggy mess in the middle of the table.  And when you let it drip over the paper, aim first for the tightest folds of the caterpillar.  Go for the drama.  Don’t be afraid to put more liquid on the other folded portions.  The caterpillar will then move in various directions.

Good luck!  Have fun!