Butterfly Crafts for Kids

Recycled Kids Crafts: Bottle Butterfly

Footprint Butterflies

Approximate Time:

Supplies:

• paint
• paint brush
• paper

Instructions:

1. Set up work area with newspaper to cut down on the mess that could happen with this project.
2. Paint the bottom of one foot of the child. For really young children, this works well when they are sitting in the high chair.
3. Press the foot of the child onto the paper on the opposite side to make the first footprint. For example, if you are painting the right foot first, place it on the left side of the paper.
4. Clean the foot already used and paint the bottom of the other foot of the child.
5. Press their foot onto the paper to create the footprint that makes up the other half of the butterfly.
6. Allow to dry.
7. Add a body and antennas if you wish.

By Jayme from Harrisonburg, VA

Bag Butterfly

Approximate Time: 15 - 20 minutes

Supplies:

• holiday garland or shredded tissue paper
• plastic sandwich bag
• cellophane tape
• pipe cleaner
• aluminum foil
• glue
• string

Instructions:

Place some holiday garland or shredded tissue paper into a plastic sandwich bag. Fold the top of the bag over and seal it with cellophane tape.

Gather the bag at the center, and wrap the center with a pipe cleaner to form the butterfly body. Twist the ends of the pipe cleaner together to form the antennae.

Roll the ends of the antennae into small coils. Crumple small pieces of aluminum foil into two small balls and glue the balls to the pipe cleaner coils to finish the antennae.

Attach a piece of string to the butterfly body so you can hang it from the ceiling or from a curtain rod.

By Marie from West Dundee, IL

Silhouette Butterfly

The Amy Butler template can be found at:

• http://www.amybutlerdesign.com

By Anne from Rochelle,IL

Fan-Fold Butterflies

Approximate Time:

Supplies:

• Paper
• Paint
• Paint brushes
• Scissors
• Black pipe cleaners
• Glue

Instructions:

Cut out squares of paper, such as 5x5 inches, 9x 9 inches, or whatever size you want. If you use larger paper. you may get several out of one sheet. If you use small paper, you may need to paint more than one piece of paper.

You will need two squares for each butterfly. It looks nice if the bottom square is smaller than the top square.

Fan-fold each square starting at the corner and working diagonally. Once the whole square is fan-folded, fold the strip of paper in half.

Line up the two folded strips of paper for each butterfly so that it makes an "X" and attach together with a black pipe cleaner. Shape the pipe cleaner to look like antenna.

Spead out the fan-folded wings and cut to desired shape (optional). Glue the edges where the two squares meet together. I used clothespins to hold these together until they dried.

Enjoy your beautiful butterflies! I attached a string to ours and hung them from the ceiling.

By Jayme from Harrisonburg, VA

Magnetic Butterflies

Approximate Time:

Supplies:

• Craft foam or cardstock paper
• Wooden craft spoons
• Paint
• Glue
• Scissors
• Black pipe cleaners
• Jewels, hole punched paper, glitter, etc.
• Googly eyes
• Magnet Strips

Instructions:

1. Cut butterfly shapes from the craft foam or cardstock paper.

2. Paint wooden craft spoons and allow to dry.

3. Glue wooden craft spoon to the center of the butterfly.

4. Glue on googly eyes and black pipe cleaner antenna.

5. Adorn butterfly wings with whatever you have around. We used craft jewels, but other ideas are hole punched paper, glitter, or whatever creative item you can find!

6. Cut strips of magnet from a roll and attach to the back of the wooden craft spoon.

7. Stick to your refrigerator and enjoy!

By Jayme from Harrisonburg, VA

Stained Glass Butterfly

Approximate Time: about 45 minutes, plus drying time

Supplies:

• wax paper
• paper doily
• colored tissue paper, cut into 1 1/2 - 2 inch squares
• small bowl
• white glue
• water
• paint brush
• black pipe cleaner

Instructions:

1. Place the doily on a sheet of wax paper.

2. Pour some white glue into a small bowl. Add some water and stir to combine.

3. Brush the watered-down glue over the surface of the doily, a section at a time, and place tissue paper squares onto the glue until the entire doily is covered.

4. Very carefully, peel the doily from the wax paper, turn it so the tissue paper side is down, and place it on a clean piece of wax paper.

5. While the glue is still wet, gather the doily together in the center. Allow the glue to dry, periodically moving the doily butterfly shape to make sure it doesn't stick to the wax paper.

6. When it dries, shape the black pipe cleaner over the center you gathered to make the butterfly body.

By Marie from West Dundee, IL

Pom-Pom and Paper Butterfly

Approximate Time: 15-25 minutes

Supplies:

• 3 Large, Green Pom-Poms
• 20-28 Small, Assorted Pom-Poms
• 2 Small Googly Eyes
• 1 White Chenille Stem
• 2 Small Beads
• 1 Piece Regular Sized Construction Paper
• Scissors
• Glue
• Colored Pencils/Markers/Crayons (optional)

Instructions:

Fold the chenille stem in half. Slip a bead halfway up each end of the stem. Fold the stem over the bead and twist. Repeat with other bead and stem. Glue antenna on butterfly head and let dry.

Fold a piece of paper evenly in half. Cut out a neat, wing shape. Unfold the paper to reveal your two wings.

Glue small pom-poms onto the wings as decorations. Use crayons, markers, pencils or paints for additional decoration if you want. Let everything dry.

Glue butterfly body to the middle of the wings and let dry.

By Aysha from Boise, Idaho

Soaring Butterfly

Supplies:

• 2 wooden craft spoons
• 1 wooden popsicle stick
• 2 paper coffee filters
• multiple color dyes
• dropper/ baster
• googly eyes
• glue
• paint
• paint brush
• black pipe cleaner
• tape

Instructions:

1. Paint the wooden craft spoons and allow to dry.

2. Cut one coffee filter smaller than the other.

3. Bunch the coffee filters in the middle to resemble wings and tape to the back of one of the wooden craft spoons. Place the larger coffee filter on the top and the smaller filter on the bottom.

4. Attach the other craft spoon with glue to complete the back side. Allow the glue to dry.

5. Using some type of dropper, such as a medicine dropper or a food baster, pick up some dye colored water and drop over the coffee filter to create a multi-colored creation. Work over newspaper or in a cardboard box (something to contain the mess).

6. Allow to dry.

7. Glue on googly eyes, black antenna, and a popsicle stick at the bottom. Allow glue to dry.

8. Use the popsicle stick as a handle to fly the butterfly through the air, or use it as a plant stake to add fun to an inside potted plant.

By Jayme from Harrisonburg, VA