How to Make a Piggy Bank for Kids

Making a piggy bank with your child not only encourages them to save, it can get them enthusiastic about it.

Not only that, but this activity can be either an outdoor or rainy day project - and it's green, besides, since you're using mostly recycled materials. The few things you need cost very little, making this a fun, frugal activity for parents and kids.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• An Empty Coffee Can (with lid)
• Scissors or Utility Knife
• Craft Paint (pink –or whatever other color you’d like your pig to be – and white, for primer. You may also want to get black.)
• Foam brushes: you may want at least two; one for the white, and one for the second color, since the first one may not dry out as quickly as the paint does.
• Glue: regular school glue works fine, but “Tacky Glue” from the craft store is even better.
• Foam or felt in white, black and in the color you’ve chosen for your pig.
• For eyes, you can substitute painted bottle caps.
• If you aren’t good at freehand circles, you can use a compass, or trace the bottom of a coffee cup.
• A black permanent marker (like Sharpies.®)
• Old newspapers to place UNDER your project to catch paint drips and make clean-up easier.
• OPTIONAL: Thick-sized gel or metallic markers to decorate lid with child’s name.
• OPTIONAL (and for grownups ONLY): Polyurethane sealer, available at any crafts store, to seal the paint and keep it from peeling and wearing off.

1. 
    
   You can custom-decorate the lid, too. photo © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   The lid is easy: simply cut a coin-sized slot in the top, and set it aside.

2. 
    
   The primer coat does NOT have to be neat. photo © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   Paint the entire outside of the can white first. Priming the can makes whatever color you decide on much brighter, and allows you to use fewer coats of paint. Let the white dry completely first. Acrylic craft paint dries quickly – in ten or fifteen minutes – especially if it’s nice outside and you do this project in the fresh air.

3. 
    
   Notice the first coat doesn't cover as well, even with primer. photo © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   Do a second – and probably a third– coat of color. Stop whenever YOU’RE satisfied with the brightness and the coverage.

4. If you’ve decided to seal the paint, do it now, then put the can aside until it’s COMPLETELY dry. (Work on the decorations while the sealer dries. Now is a good time to decorate the lid, and prepare the items you’ll glue onto the can.)

5. Be SURE to place the can in a well-ventilated area both while you apply the sealer, and while it dries.

6. 
    
   No need to be a perfect artist. photo © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   Trace a circle on the craft foam of felt about two inches in diameter, or use the bottom of a coffee cup for piggy’s nose.

7. 
    
   illustration © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   With the black marker, draw two straight, parallel lines, about three-quarters of an inch, centered in the middle of the nose.

8. 
    
   illustration © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   If using bottle caps, paint eyes on the INSIDE of the bottle caps, so the FLAT end can be glued onto the can. (The ridged end won’t stick to the can very well.) For “cute” eyes, draw BIG black pupils inside the whites of the eyes. Include a smaller white circle called a “catch light.”
   
   The “catch lights” should be on the same side of each eye, or piggy will look cross-eyed or wall-eyed.
   
   If using foam or felt, cut the circles to match the diagram, and glue them on top of each other.

9. 
    
   illustration © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

   For a “female” pig, simply add eyelashes. (see picture.) Another trick for a female pig, if you’re using bottle caps for eyes: use your black permanent marker and color in the ridges around the bottle cap, giving her full, lush, lashes.

10. For ears, fold your felt or foam at the corner, and cut on the diagonal, leaving you two triangles. Fold a quarter or half inch at the bottom of the triangle, so the ears stand up straight. Glue them to the side of the can, near the top, above the eyes.

11. 
     
    illustration © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

    To give your pig a smile, you can simply draw one on with your black permanent marker.

12. 
     
    photo © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

    For a curly tail, cut one out of the felt or foam scraps. No need to be perfect; just a wiggly shape will do.

13. 
     
    photo © Elizabeth Williams Bushey

    Here's the tail, glued onto the can. See how good it looks, once it's glued on?

Tips & Warnings

• When you glue the items onto the can, cover the items from edge to edge with the glue, so they don’t peel off over time.
• Don’t glob too much glue on. Believe it or not, a thinner layer of glue sticks better than a thick layer.
• Leave the bank alone for the glue to dry thoroughly overnight. This will ensure your items don’t fall off later.
• Some better glue brands include “Tacky Glue,” and “Gorilla Glue,” both available at your local craft stores.
• Leaving regular school glue out in a paper bowl or plate to thicken in the air makes it stickier.
• If you’re reluctant to use a sharp utility knife around your child, to cut a hole in the lid, bend the lid in half and make two parallel cuts – but keep in mind they need to be only HALF as long as a coin. THEN: unbend the lid, and cut the perpendicular sides to create the coin slot.
• The polyurethane sealer material has been known to be mildly toxic, so DO NOT LET your children apply this material, use a mask yourself while applying it, and discard the brush when done. Be sure to use it in a well-ventilated area, and be sure to let it dry in a well-ventilated area as well.

Resources

• Inkless Tales Grownups Blog
• Bit of Momsense
• Erin Parenting
• Hands On Learning
• Toddler Craft

[franeah]

on 10/23/2009 this is so cute! 5* and a rec