Kid's Yarn Octopus
In need of kid's craft ideas? This yarn octopus is a great way to get the entire family involved in crafting. Make a cute octopus out of yarn and ribbons with this fun and easy project.
Materials:
- 1 5oz skein of bulky yarn (the bulkier the better)
- 1 3" styrofoam ball
- face pieces
- scissors
- 2-3 yards of ribbon
Instructions:
- Completely unwind the yarn into a 2-3 ft loop - I used a back of a chair.
- Cinch off one end of the loop.
- Cut the other end where the loops are - try to cut them as even as possible.
- Place the ball under the cinched end and spread the yarn ove the ball as evenly as you can.
- Cinch under the ball to make the neck - by now you should have a bunch of single strands of yarn hanging from the neck.
- Divide the strands into 8 sections for the legs.
- Braid each section and cinch the ends with ribbon.
- You should have 8 braids hanging from the neck.
- Now you can put on the face pieces.
- Enjoy the fruits of your fun labor.
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len10pin
May 02, 2017
I adore the Yarn Octopus! I saw it when I was looking through the projects in 38 Ways to Use Up Yarn. The instructions are so easy to understand and after reading other people' posts, I think I will make different sizes. Love it!
startori 8609641
Jun 20, 2014
When I did this as a child, we squished a newspaper into a small ball (depending on which size octopus we wanted), coated it with glue and covered it with the yarn. Then we followed #4 directions. Never gave it a face though.
woodwords 4639513
May 22, 2012
Oh, this takes me back - my gran used to make 'em just like that. That was in the 60's.
ndharmnone 3353439
Mar 12, 2012
When I was 14(centuries ago),I made a bunch of these to give to the kids on our church bus. I have been planning on making some big ones for my granddaughters.
LadyMichigan
Mar 12, 2012
We use to make these as kids, they are easy and a great fun craft for children, and it also loooks pretty good with left over yarn a multicolored occie is fun. you can do sewn eyes from contrasting yarn for the little ones or use craft eyes that either sew or glue on
monag421 8317500
Feb 17, 2012
WOW! That does bring back memories. I made one of these about 40 some odd years ago. I had forgotten all about it! Thanks for sharing. Now I need to make one for my granddaughter.
ToquasCrafts
Nov 22, 2011
Ha!! I remember having these on our beds when we were younger! Like someone else commented above, ours had the "google-eyes". Thanx for sharing and bringing back memories!
100countrygirl
Nov 20, 2011
My girls and I made these when they where little girls. They used to put them on there bed like in the picture after they made their beds. This brings back memories! :D Diane
coloradojoavs 2302 633
Jul 25, 2011
How cool, I had this when I was a kid. Wonder what happened to it. Got 7 kids to make a lasting memory for. Thanks for sharing.
Elean
Jul 21, 2011
This project brings back so many memories. I used to make these for gifts. I used three skeins of rug yarn fo rthem. I even made a red "Santa' octopus complete with white beard.
point2elephant 379 5789
Jul 21, 2011
Popular when I was growing up. Great activity for nursing home residents and assistant living residents, and the girl scouts and a neighborhood group of kids.
Crafter 15626
Jul 07, 2011
My great-aunt made me one of these in the 1950's ! Hers had "google-eyes". The sunglasses are better.
seals174162 775432 5
Mar 04, 2011
As mentioned by other crafters, this was a great, and fun project. Being one of eight children, we had loads of fun making different accessories for each of our creations.
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