Aren’t these yarn owls great? An adorable craft that preschoolers and kids can get stuck into. Its a great adventure going out looking for sticks for their owl to perch on as well.
Crafting with little ones is so very important. It boosts their confidence and self esteem having created something from average materials. It is also great for developing their fine motor skills, and problem solving abilities. Let them have a go at cutting the ears and beak. Just make sure the scissors they use are appropriate for them, and that you are supervising them.
We allowed maybe 30 minutes for this craft. You’ll probably need longer if you’re going out hunting for sticks as well. This one isn’t too messy either, so won’t stress those of you that hate messy crafts. And your kids will get a little owl buddy to be proud of and display in their rooms.
You will need:
- yarn. Any yarn you like. whatever you have lying around. You wont need much.
- scissors
- a pair of googly eyes (or scraps of felt if you’d prefer)
- a small piece of sturdy card (such as greyboard, or a recycled cardboard box), approximately 8cm by 10cm. This can vary depending on how big you’d like your owl to be.
- glue. I used normal pva school glue. You can use fabric glue if you’d prefer. Make sure your glue is safe for children.
- a small stick or twig, long enough for your owl to comfortable perch on.
- half a pipe cleaner
- scraps of felt. A few centimetres square should be enough. But you’ll need more if you are making a bigger owl.
Let’s Make it
The first job is to make a couple of holes in the base of the cardboard. You can use a hole pouch or carefully use a pair of scissors. Position the holes at the base of the cardboard. These will be where we attach the owls feet.
Cut your half a pipe cleaner in half again. Make sure you supervise young children here. You may need to cut their pipe cleaners for them.
Thread one pipe cleaner through each of the holes in your cardboard. Line the stick up where you want it, and secure the pipe cleaner around the stick with a twist or two (as pictured below). Trim the feet as necessary, but be careful not to make them too short or the owl will fall off his perch!
Cut triangles from your scrap felt. You will need two for the ears, and another for the beak a bit later on. They don’t have to be the same colour of course. Be creative. What will your owl look like?
Now it is time to start wrapping. Secure the end in either a slit in the side of the cardboard, or you could use sticky tape for smaller crafters. So long as the end is secure it doesn’t really matter. Start at the feet, covering them slightly with the yarn.
Work your way up to the ears, again covering them slightly. I found it easier to work back down a little before finishing off the yarn, To finish off, cut the yarn leaving a long tail. Tie the end to another piece of adjacent yarn at the back of your owl, as pictured below.
Tying a couple of knots will keep it secure. Trim the end leaving a tail of couple of centimetres.
Turn your owl over and glue on the beak and a couple of eyes. You can use googly eyes here, or cut scraps of felt if you’d prefer. Buttons would also make good eyes.
Mix it up
Have a go at these variations:
- Use colour changing yarn, or change your yarn part way through wrapping to make a stripy owl. What would an owl made of fluffy yarn look like?
- Use different materials for the eyes. Googly eyes work well, but felt and buttons could also work.
- Vary the size of the card, or the stick. No two owls are the same.
- Could you make a few that perch on the same stick?
Show me pictures of your finished owls in the comments.
Have fun, and Happy Crafting!