One of the #1 things that people often say to me is, “I would love to make creative projects with my kids, but I’m just not crafty. I don’t even know where to start!” My reply is always, “Trust me, you do NOT need to consider yourself ‘crafty’ to start getting creative with your children!” There are hundreds upon hundreds of craft projects that you can make with your children that require NO special skills or tools and that take less than half an hour of your time. In fact, most of these 50+ quick and easy kids craft project ideas that I’ve rounded up here actually take less than FIFTEEN minutes to make!
WHY CRAFT WITH YOUR KIDS?
A recent study by Dr. Richard Rende revealed that creative interaction between parents and young children engaging in activities like arts and crafts not only provides immediate and lasting cognitive benefits but also creates a unique bonding experience, which creates lifelong memories. Taking time to be creative with your children is a topic that I am incredibly passionate about. I know firsthand the benefits that children reap when they are exposed to arts and crafts activities, and in an age where arts are in a decline in the school systems, it is even more important than ever for parents to take the initiative to introduce art activities to their children.
Other key findings of Dr. Rende’s study showed that:
• Arts and crafts engage multiple brain areas simultaneously and
improve bilateral coordination between the left and right sides of
the brain, leading to immediate and future cognitive development.
• Activities like arts and crafts accelerate the development of muscles
in the hands and fingers, improving fine motor skills that are
essential for school success in the earliest formal years.
• Face-to-face interaction in the early years is critical for optimal
social development.
• Arts and crafts promote rich social interactions that help develop
language skills and social cognitive abilities like understanding
emotions.
• Creative activities are a great way to bond with children and create
lasting memories.
Nearly 90% of the parents surveyed for the study said that they would like to spend more time creating arts and crafts with their children, but they didn’t know where to start or how to carve out the time needed.
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Looking for a fun way to celebrate this holiday season? Whether you’re crafting homemade decorations for Thanksgiving dinner or just want to get into the spirit of autumn, making a turkey from ordinary paper bags is a quick, simple and creative activity that is sure to please children and adults alike. This project only requires a few simple materials and will add a bit of thrifty Fall flair wherever it’s displayed.
Part 1 Making the Turkey.
1. Gather your materials. For this project, you’ll need only need a handful of basic items—3 brown paper bags (1 large paper grocery bag and 2 smaller standard paper bags), 1 sheet of white 8 ½” x 11” typing paper, a few sheets of newspaper, a pair of scissors and a hot glue gun or some craft glue. Any additional materials will be up to you, depending on how elaborate you want the presentation of your finished turkey to be.
Your turkey will be made of just three easy pieces: one big bag for the body, and the two smaller bags to serve as the “drumsticks.”
Making a paper bag turkey only takes a few minutes from start to finish, leaving you with plenty of time in your day to finish playing, decorating or tackling other crafting projects.
2. Form the body of the turkey. Take the large paper bag and fill it ¾ full with crumpled newspaper. This will help fill out the body, giving it a plump appearance and preventing it from collapsing once it's ready to be displayed. After the bag has been stuffed, fold the corners down diagonally and glue them in place. Tuck the folded tab down one more time and glue it to the underside of the turkey.
Shape the body of the turkey by hand until it’s smooth and round. Be sure to work out any square edges of creases from the original bag.
Be careful not to tear the bag while sealing or shaping it.
3. Shape the drumsticks. Grab the two smaller paper bags—you’ll be using these to craft the “drumsticks” of the turkey. Make one hand into a fist and stick it into each bag, molding the opening of the bag around your wrist. This will give the bag its recognizable drumstick shape. Remove your hand from the bag and fill the rounded end with newspaper. Twist the opening of each bag shut and secure it with a dab of glue.
Like the body of the turkey, the drumsticks will need to be filled in order to hold their shape.
4. Cut the booties for the drumsticks. Your drumsticks aren’t complete until they’re dressed with a pair of frilly white booties, like a traditional Thanksgiving turkey. Cut your sheet of typing paper in half lengthwise, then fold each piece in half, again lengthwise. Use your scissors to make a series of cuts in the open edge of the paper to create a neat fringe.
Try to make your cuts about ¼ inch apart.
Your cuts only need to be about half the width of the paper.
5. Put it all together. Wrap a paper bootie around the end of each drumstick and secure them with glue. Then, place the drumsticks on either side of the sealed end of the turkey and glue them down. That’s it! The result is a quirky, lifelike baked bird that you might just mistake for the real thing.
Attach the drumsticks to the tapered sides of the body where you folded down the edges of the big bag. This will give the turkey a more realistic look.
The different parts of the turkey will have a little weight to them once they’ve been filled. Use enough glue to make sure that everything holds.
Part 2 Finding Creative Ways to Present Your Turkey.
1. Put it on a platter. Arrange your paper bag turkey on a serving platter over a bed of parsley or tissue paper garnish. Surround the turkey with fallen leaves for a splash of vibrant color. With the right details, you’ll have a mouthwatering craft turkey worthy of a fantasy feast to show off to your friends and family.
If you don't have a real serving platter lying around, make your own out of cardboard, construction paper, and colored markers.
Make sure to let everyone, especially small children, know that your paper turkey is not for eating.
2. Add colorful designs. Before you fill the paper bags, decorate the outsides for a more artistic, funky finish. Use crayons, markers, washable paint, stickers or glitter and customize your turkey with polka dots, swirls or dazzling patterns using your favorite colors. Grab a friend, sibling, parent or child to decorate your turkey with, then compare and display them together when you’re done.
If you’re using paint or a felt-tip marker that might saturate the paper bags, allow them to dry before stuffing or shaping them.
When making paper turkeys with your kids or students, have them write down one thing they’re thankful for somewhere on the big bag.
3. Fill it with “stuffing.” For an unexpected tasty twist, ditch the newspaper and fill your turkey with popcorn, candy or other easy-to-eat finger foods instead. You can then have someone “carve” the turkey by cutting a flap in the top and have something to snack on until the main course is served. This imaginative serving style is sure to be a hit at holiday parties!
Popcorn makes a simple stuffing because it’s light and takes up a lot of space, but you could use just about any snack food, like chips, pretzels or chocolates, to fill your turkey.
Try filling the drumsticks separately with caramel corn to make “dark meat.”[6]
4. Put your paper bag turkey on display. In addition to being a fun and easy project to do with your friends or loved ones, your paper turkey will make a unique arrangement for the coffee table, arts and crafts desk or kitchen counter. It will look especially good surrounded by other festive Fall decorations. Best of all, you can store the playful papercraft away or simply make a new one the next time the holiday season rolls around.
A paper bag turkey will fit nicely with other homemade holiday decorations, such as hand turkey cutouts, popsicle stick snowflakes, and construction paper pumpkins.
Tips.
This will make a great activity for parents and teachers to do alongside their children or students.
If the paper bags you’re using have any logos, writings or markings on them, carefully turn them inside out before you begin crafting.
Line the inside of your turkey with wax or parchment paper to prevent splotchy grease stains if you plan on filling it with buttered popcorn.
Make sure you have enough of whatever food item you choose to fill the large bag.
Hot glue is preferable to other adhesives because it dries quickly and creates a strong, lasting hold.
Warnings.
Take caution when working with the hot glue and scissors. Kids should ask an adult for help with the cutting and gluing portions of the project.
Staples should be avoided, as there's no way to use them to secure the different parts of the turkey without mashing them.
Things You'll Need.
3 brown paper bags (1 large and 2 small), 1 sheet white typing paper, A few sheets of crumpled newspaper.
Scissors, Hot glue or craft glue, Popcorn or other small snack foods (optional), Various decorating supplies (optional).
Looking for a fun way to celebrate this holiday season? Whether you’re crafting homemade decorations for Thanksgiving dinner or just want to get into the spirit of autumn, making a turkey from ordinary paper bags is a quick, simple and creative activity that is sure to please children and adults alike. This project only requires a few simple materials and will add a bit of thrifty Fall flair wherever it’s displayed.
Part 1 Making the Turkey.
1. Gather your materials. For this project, you’ll need only need a handful of basic items—3 brown paper bags (1 large paper grocery bag and 2 smaller standard paper bags), 1 sheet of white 8 ½” x 11” typing paper, a few sheets of newspaper, a pair of scissors and a hot glue gun or some craft glue. Any additional materials will be up to you, depending on how elaborate you want the presentation of your finished turkey to be.
Your turkey will be made of just three easy pieces: one big bag for the body, and the two smaller bags to serve as the “drumsticks.”
Making a paper bag turkey only takes a few minutes from start to finish, leaving you with plenty of time in your day to finish playing, decorating or tackling other crafting projects.
2. Form the body of the turkey. Take the large paper bag and fill it ¾ full with crumpled newspaper. This will help fill out the body, giving it a plump appearance and preventing it from collapsing once it's ready to be displayed. After the bag has been stuffed, fold the corners down diagonally and glue them in place. Tuck the folded tab down one more time and glue it to the underside of the turkey.
Shape the body of the turkey by hand until it’s smooth and round. Be sure to work out any square edges of creases from the original bag.
Be careful not to tear the bag while sealing or shaping it.
3. Shape the drumsticks. Grab the two smaller paper bags—you’ll be using these to craft the “drumsticks” of the turkey. Make one hand into a fist and stick it into each bag, molding the opening of the bag around your wrist. This will give the bag its recognizable drumstick shape. Remove your hand from the bag and fill the rounded end with newspaper. Twist the opening of each bag shut and secure it with a dab of glue.
Like the body of the turkey, the drumsticks will need to be filled in order to hold their shape.
4. Cut the booties for the drumsticks. Your drumsticks aren’t complete until they’re dressed with a pair of frilly white booties, like a traditional Thanksgiving turkey. Cut your sheet of typing paper in half lengthwise, then fold each piece in half, again lengthwise. Use your scissors to make a series of cuts in the open edge of the paper to create a neat fringe.
Try to make your cuts about ¼ inch apart.
Your cuts only need to be about half the width of the paper.
5. Put it all together. Wrap a paper bootie around the end of each drumstick and secure them with glue. Then, place the drumsticks on either side of the sealed end of the turkey and glue them down. That’s it! The result is a quirky, lifelike baked bird that you might just mistake for the real thing.
Attach the drumsticks to the tapered sides of the body where you folded down the edges of the big bag. This will give the turkey a more realistic look.
The different parts of the turkey will have a little weight to them once they’ve been filled. Use enough glue to make sure that everything holds.
Part 2 Finding Creative Ways to Present Your Turkey.
1. Put it on a platter. Arrange your paper bag turkey on a serving platter over a bed of parsley or tissue paper garnish. Surround the turkey with fallen leaves for a splash of vibrant color. With the right details, you’ll have a mouthwatering craft turkey worthy of a fantasy feast to show off to your friends and family.
If you don't have a real serving platter lying around, make your own out of cardboard, construction paper, and colored markers.
Make sure to let everyone, especially small children, know that your paper turkey is not for eating.
2. Add colorful designs. Before you fill the paper bags, decorate the outsides for a more artistic, funky finish. Use crayons, markers, washable paint, stickers or glitter and customize your turkey with polka dots, swirls or dazzling patterns using your favorite colors. Grab a friend, sibling, parent or child to decorate your turkey with, then compare and display them together when you’re done.
If you’re using paint or a felt-tip marker that might saturate the paper bags, allow them to dry before stuffing or shaping them.
When making paper turkeys with your kids or students, have them write down one thing they’re thankful for somewhere on the big bag.
3. Fill it with “stuffing.” For an unexpected tasty twist, ditch the newspaper and fill your turkey with popcorn, candy or other easy-to-eat finger foods instead. You can then have someone “carve” the turkey by cutting a flap in the top and have something to snack on until the main course is served. This imaginative serving style is sure to be a hit at holiday parties!
Popcorn makes a simple stuffing because it’s light and takes up a lot of space, but you could use just about any snack food, like chips, pretzels or chocolates, to fill your turkey.
Try filling the drumsticks separately with caramel corn to make “dark meat.”[6]
4. Put your paper bag turkey on display. In addition to being a fun and easy project to do with your friends or loved ones, your paper turkey will make a unique arrangement for the coffee table, arts and crafts desk or kitchen counter. It will look especially good surrounded by other festive Fall decorations. Best of all, you can store the playful papercraft away or simply make a new one the next time the holiday season rolls around.
A paper bag turkey will fit nicely with other homemade holiday decorations, such as hand turkey cutouts, popsicle stick snowflakes, and construction paper pumpkins.
Tips.
This will make a great activity for parents and teachers to do alongside their children or students.
If the paper bags you’re using have any logos, writings or markings on them, carefully turn them inside out before you begin crafting.
Line the inside of your turkey with wax or parchment paper to prevent splotchy grease stains if you plan on filling it with buttered popcorn.
Make sure you have enough of whatever food item you choose to fill the large bag.
Hot glue is preferable to other adhesives because it dries quickly and creates a strong, lasting hold.
Warnings.
Take caution when working with the hot glue and scissors. Kids should ask an adult for help with the cutting and gluing portions of the project.
Staples should be avoided, as there's no way to use them to secure the different parts of the turkey without mashing them.
Arts and crafts are always a lot of fun, but have you ever tried making felt animals? It’s a challenge but also pretty rewarding. You can make large or small animals depending on how much time you’re willing to commit to the process. Felt animals are great for gifts or just to keep around the house. The best thing is, they’re pretty easy to make!
Method 1 Preparing to Build Your Felt Animal.
1. Buy some felt and stuffing. Obviously if you want to build a felt animal you’re going to need some felt. Poly-fill stuffing is most common, but you can also buy cotton or even bead if you would prefer to work with that material.Stuffing is important to give your animal some structure. You can buy both these materials at an arts and crafts store.
2. Download your pattern piece. There are many pattern pieces that you can find out on the Internet. Pattern pieces are traced onto the felt and then cut out so that you have all the component pieces of your felt animal.
You can also try creating your own pattern piece. If you want to make a simple animal like a snake your can use four very elongated football shaped pieces. Make sure all your football shaped pattern pieces are the same size. Measure the width of each piece at its midline to figure out how wide your snake is going to be. Take that number and multiply it by four to get the circumference of your snake. Use this information accordingly as you make the body. You'll want the length of the snake to be four times larger than the circumference of the snake. Make sure you have enough felt! That's the idea behind making pattern pieces. You can add eyes and a tongue with extra fabric.
Remember to leave 1/4 of an inch extra room in the pattern piece for sewing purposes.
3. Gather your scissors, stitching, and sewing supplies. If you don’t already have these supplies you can buy them at an arts and crafts store too. You can use a sewing machine if you have one available, but felt is easy to work with. You can just use a needle and thread.
Method 2 Assembling Your Felt Animal.
1. Cut out the pattern pieces from the felt. You’ll want to enlarge your pattern piece to the size you want your animal to be. Make sure that you allow for a 3-millimeter seam allowance. That means you need that much extra space for the animal to fit together once you stitch it.
For example, if you were sewing a mini dog together you would have eight pattern pieces in all. Two body pieces, two head pieces, one belly piece, one back piece, one crown piece, and one tail piece.
A snake would only have the long four football shaped pieces.
2. Start stitching the corresponding pieces together. For example, if you were making the mini dog you would start by sewing the body and head pieces together. In the pattern piece layout there will be letters that correspond with where each part connects. For this little dog, you’ll be sewing the two head pieces on top of the two body pieces.
3. Sew the two body pieces together. Now you’ll connect the two pieces. You won’t be sewing all the way around obviously. Only sew the top half of the body together as the letters indicate. For example, if you were making this little felt dog you would start to see the outline of your animal.
If you made your own pattern pieces for the snake you'll just want to connect each of them to form a cylinder.
4. Add your connecting and additional pieces. For example, if you were making the little felt dog you would need to add the crown piece to the top of his head. Once the body pieces are together you can start to figure out how to fill in the gaps. The little felt dog also requires a brown speckle on his back to fill in the hole on is back.
5. Connect your belly piece. The belly piece is generally one of the last pieces to add. Using the little dog as an example, you would turn the body pieces upside down and add the belly piece to the bottom around the edge.
6. Don’t forget to leave an opening. You absolutely need this opening so that you can stuff your animal. If you forget to leave the opening you’ll have to undo your stitching or start all the way from the beginning. The little dog example has a hole already built in for stuff, but you might need to leave your own hole.
Method 3 Finishing Up.
1. Turn your animal inside out. The little dog pattern piece leaves a hole in the stomach for you to turn your animal inside out, but you might need to leave your own hole if you are making a different felt animal.
2. Stuff your animal. Using the whole you left stuff your animal thoroughly with polyester fiberfill. Make sure the animal is well stuffed but not over stuffed. You want the animal to feel firm without looking like it is going to explode. Use your judgment.
3. Add your embroidery. You can add whatever pieces you want. The little dog calls for small beads for eyes and some black string for the mouth and nose. You can add designs all over the felt if you desire though.
The snake embroidery would consist of little sewing on black circles of fabric or string for eyes, and a little piece of red felt for the tongue. Draw a tongue that appeals to you. Most snakes have forked tongues.
4. Stitch up your final body pieces. This would be the time to add ears, tails, or whatever else your animal might have connected to their body. The little dog will have a tail stitched to the back of his body and two ears connected on top. Remember to turn your body pieces inside out after you sew them to hide the stitching.
Follow the letters on your design piece. If you aren’t sure what pieces are added where, look at which letters correspond to what pieces. For example if you are adding ears to the top of a dog there will be the same letter on the ears as on the top of the body piece. Anywhere with matching letters is supposed to be connected with stitching.
Cat ears are cute accessories that can be easily made. You can wear them with a costume, or as a fun accessory with an outfit. All of the materials needed to make the cat ears can be found at most arts and crafts stores. To make furry cat ears, create the ear bases, put the ears together, and complete the cat ears with the help of an elastic band and hot glue.
Part 1 Creating the Cat Ear Base.
1. Draw the cat ears on paper. This will be the template for the wire. Basically, you just need to draw two wide triangles. You might like to try drawing a few different sizes to see which size looks best on your head. You can cut out the template, or leave the cat ears drawn on the paper. Keep this design as your template for the remaining steps.
Keep in mind that the template will be slightly smaller than the finished ears because of the fur. A template of about three inches is a good size to use.
It doesn’t matter what you use to draw the ears, but pencil is good to use if you will be redrawing the ears multiple times.
2. Create the cat ears with jewelry wire. Following the paper template, bend the wire into the shape of the cat ears. Jewelry wire should be fairly easy to bend, but you can use a pair of long nose pliers to help form the shape. Do this for both ears and you should end up with two triangle shaped ears.
If you don't have wire, you can use paperclips. Just straighten them out and use them as wire. Don't worry if they don't make a perfect triangle. It won't matter when you put them in the fur. Use glue to bind the sides until you put them in.
Use a jewelry wire that is thicker so that it won’t fall out of shape when fur is added to them. 16 or 18 gauge is a good choice because it is thick, but can be bent without too much effort by using pliers.
3. Cut out the fake fur. Following the paper templates again, cut out four triangle shapes in fur. You can use any type of fur that appeals to you, like black, leopard print, or lion-like fur. Fur can be purchased at an arts and crafts store. These should be about a half an inch larger than the template, though, as the fur needs to hold the wire triangles inside once stitched up.
Remember that you can always make it smaller if it's too big, but you can't make it bigger if it's too small.
Part 2 Putting Together the Ears.
1. Sew the fur together. Place two fur pieces together. The fur sides should be facing each other. Sew each side, but leave the bottom edge unsewn. That is the part you are going to insert the wire through to shape the ears. The finished product should be inside out. Repeat this step until you have two ears.
There should be very little seam allowance—only about an ¼ of a inch.
Use a color of thread that best matches the color of fur.
2. Flip the ears so that you can see the fur. The ears should be inside out with the fur parts facing each other once you have finished sewing. Now, turn the ears so that the fur is on the outside. The ear shape should be really obvious now. Inspect the ears to make sure that there aren’t any holes or mistakes.
Turn the ears inside out and sew up any holes that you find.
Use a pair of sewing scissors to cut the thread where any mistakes have been made. Remove the thread from that part and sew it back up with new thread.
3. Place the wire triangle pieces inside each ear. Insert the wire you shaped into triangles earlier into the furry ears. The wire should be able to fit snugly inside of the fur without too much or too little room. Adjust the wire if necessary.
4. Sew up the bottom of the ears. Once you have inserted the wires into the furry ears, sew up the bottom portion that is still open. There shouldn’t be any opening on the ears when you have finished sewing. It doesn't matter if this sewing line is messy, as nobody is going to see it.
Part 3 Completing the Furry Cat Ears.
1. Create the band for the ears. Measure the elastic band or ribbon around your head. The ribbon should cross over the top of your head rather than your forehead. You can find a band or ribbon at most arts and crafts stores. Sew or hot glue the ends together to form a circular headband that fits your head. If you’re using a ribbon, you can also choose to tie the ribbon in the back so that it is adjustable.
If sewing, include a seam allowance in your measurements before cutting the ribbon. Tie the ribbon when testing it on your head to see how much ribbon will be needed in total.
You can also choose to use a headband instead of an elastic band or ribbon.
2. Mark the placement for the ears. First, hold the band and ears together to see where the ears look most natural. Then, check in the mirror to see where the ears look best. Making marks on the headband while it is on your head, use a pen or marker to make marks where the ears will be covering.
It may be easier to have someone help you make the marks while the band is on your head.
3. Attach the ears to the headband. Use hot glue to attach the cat ears onto the headband in the positions that you marked. Use just enough so that the ears stay up, but don’t use so much that the glue gets on other places on the headband or ribbon. Allow at least ten minutes for the glue to dry.
Have someone help you with the hot glue if you aren’t comfortable with using it on your own.
4. Check the finished product. Once the glue has dried, try on the ears. The band should fit your head without sliding. The ears should be standing straight up. Make any adjustments as needed.
Question : What if I don't have any wire, or my parents won't let me use any?
Answer : Depending on the size of your cat ears and the thickness of the fur, you might not even need any wire to make them stand up; the wire is there for support. If the ears still flop over after you have made them, try filling them with some cardboard or craft foam instead.
Question : Is there any alternative to the fur if I don't have a lot of money and can't buy felt or fur and don't have a cat?
Answer : If you own any old stuffed animals that you don't care for anymore, you can use the fluff from those.
Question : Can I use white fur?
Answer : Absolutely.
Question : What do I do if I don't know how to sew?
Answer : You can always ask a friend or family member. If you're feeling ambitious, you can learn how to sew yourself.
Question : Can I use real cat hair?
Answer : Yes, if you want, but it may be best to pick the cat's fur off of the cat brush, not the cat itself.
Question : How can I make fake fur?
Answer : You can make the fur by tearing felt to make fluffy strips. Then, get the same color felt, and glue or sew the fluffy stripes onto it and then cut out the triangle shape for the ears.
Question : How can I make wolf ears the same way?
Answer : Make the shape a bit taller and more pointy. Look at pictures of wolves for reference on how their ears are shaped and then just change the shape.
Question : Could I put pink felt in the center for the finished ear?
Answer : Yes. Just sew or glue it on with a color similar to the color of the felt.
Question : Where can I get fake fur?
Answer : A craft store or someplace that sells fabric. Or you could remove some from a stuffed animal.
Question : Can I make non-fluffy ears?
Answer : Yes, but you may need to expand on your ideas, especially if you are looking to cosplay with them. You could use polymer clay.
Tips.
Fake or fun fur makes a mess when cut. Have something ready to sweep or vacuum it up.
Warnings.
Use care when handling hot glue, as it can easily burn.
Things You'll Need.
Paper for template.
Scissors.
Thin wire for the ears.
Fake fur (20 cm sq. or 7.9 inches.).
Elastic ribbon (5-6 cm or about 1 or 2 inches wide) Make sure you have enough to fit around your head and extra ribbon left for tying.
