How to Make Paper Peeps for Easter

Paper Peeps are so sweet and cute and simple to make. They are a great craft project for any age. They can be used as decorations, greeting cards or you can put them on your Easter Table with your guests name, so they can find their seat and have a souvenir to take home with them. Here are the steps to making your very own Paper Peep.

Things You'll Need

• Card Stock
• Felt Pens
• Scissors
• Ruler
• Feathers
• Compass or Glasses

Instructions

1. 

   You will need card stock or thick construction paper. The Peep needs to be able to stand up on its own and if you use regular construction paper or even printer paper, it will not be strong enough. You can choose any color. Bright yellow, white, or Easter eggs colors. I made two; one with a bright yellow paper and the other with white paper that had silver sparkles in it.

2. 

   If you don't have a compass, you will need two items that you can trace a circle on. The body will be about 4 inches and the head around 2 inches. They do not have to be exact measurements. A little bigger or a little smaller will not make that much difference and will in fact give each Peep a different personality, if you vary the body and head sizes. I used a plastic tumbler and a grape jelly jar as a template.

3. 

   Fold your paper exactly in half. You may want to position your templates so you can judge the room you will need. Take your glass and position it so that part of the head is going off the paper. (See pic). Make sure you will have room to trace the body. You will not be cutting the top of the head, nor the top of the tail as this will be the "hinge" that keeps the front and back together. You can start with the body first if you like, just make sure that you will be able to create the circle for the head so that it goes off the paper just a little.

4. 

   Use the glass or jar as the template for your body and trace the circle. With your ruler, make a tail. it will have to be long enough so that the top is off the paper. This is your other "hinge". It should be around 1 3/4 inches on the longest side and about 1 inch on the other side. Using your ruler for a straight edge, add the bottom "feet". The bottom line will be around 2 1/2 inches. Using your ruler, add a beak. Make it any size, petite or a "honker". Last, add the wing, by making a "C".

5. 

   Color in the beak with an orange felt pen and a black dot of for the eye and outline the wing. You can erase the pencil lines around the neck, tail and feet if you like.

6. 

   Cut the Peep out, remembering not to cut off the top of the head or the top of the tail. Add feathers, glitter, or draw on hearts or paste on letters for the finishing touch on your Peep.

7. 

   You can put a greeting inside the Peep and give it as an Easter card, or add someone's name in the feet area and use it as a name tag for seating at Easter dinner or make a cluster of them and set them on a plate and surround them with jelly beans for a cute table decoration.