How to Make Felt Puppets for Kids
Making felt puppets is a fun activity that parents and children can do together. With just a few simple materials, you can make a variety of puppets and have enough to put on your own puppet show.
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Things You'll Need
- 2 pieces of felt, either 8x10 or 11x13
- Sheet of paper
- Sharpie or laundry marking pen
- Scissors
- Straight pins
- Googly eyes, yarn, buttons, pom poms, felt scraps and other material scraps
- Fabric glue
Instructions
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1
Choose two pieces of felt for your puppet's body. The felt can be the same color or different colors, depending on what you wish to create.
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2
Choose a pattern for your puppet. The typical pattern is very simple, just a head and two arms. From that starting point, you can add things to make your puppet unique. For instance, if you want to make an elephant puppet, you could add ears and a trunk to the standard pattern. Make sure that it is the right size to fit your hand and cut out the pattern on the paper.
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3
Place the felt pieces one on top of the other, and pin the puppet pattern to the felt to hold it in place. Trace the puppet pattern with a pen or a sharpie, and remove the paper pattern. Using more pins, secure the pieces of felt together, making sure that the pins go all the way through the material.
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4
Cut the pattern along the lines that you have drawn, making sure to cut the material all the way through. Remove the pins. You should now have two identical pieces of felt for your puppet's front and back.
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5
Arrange the items that you will use to design your puppet: yarn, plastic or button eyes, pom poms or other pieces of felt. Experiment with them, placing them on the puppet to see how they will look. Once you've achieved the effect you desire, you can use the fabric glue to secure the items. You can do this for the front of your puppet and also for the back.
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6
Use fabric glue to fasten your puppets together, tracing a thin, even line along the edge of the felt and taking care not to use too much or too little, and press the front and back pieces together. Place on an even surface, and allow at least eight hours for drying.
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Tips & Warnings
While regular glue can work just as well, I recommend fabric glue, because it holds up better. Fabric glue comes in both washable and nonwashable forms.
When a child is doing this, it is best to have an adult pin the material together.
