Capering Critter Hand Puppet

Two delightful, brightly colored hand puppets provide hours of creative entertainment.

Start with our materials list and instructions as your guide, but let the kids mix and match with these fun and colorful characters and create their own imaginary critters.

Materials:

• STYROFOAM Brand Products:
  • 1- 3-7/8" egg
  • 1- 1 1/2" ball for large eyes (green puppet)
  • 1- 1" ball for small eyes (red puppet)
• Foamies (we used red, purple, green, blue, white, black)
• Colored paper
• Additional embellishments: buttons, rick rack, sequins, ribbons, glitter, etc.
• Serrated knife
• Acrylic craft paint (we used red and green)
• 1" firm brush
• Wooden skewer
• Glass or can (to hold skewer upright while puppet dries)
• 12" Chenille stem (one stem per puppet)
• Thick, white craft glue

Steps:

1. Cut the foam eggs and balls in half using the serrated knife. (Hint: For smoother cuts, wax the knife blade with an old candle.)
    
2. The half balls will be the eyes; experiment with the placement of the eyes, as you can get very different looks according to the placement. Glue the half balls to the wide end of the egg.
    
3. Insert a wooden skewer into the puppet; this will serve as your handle while you paint the puppet. Paint the puppet. Place the skewer into the glass or can while paint dries.
    
4. Cut the chenille stem into two, 6" pieces. Measuring in 1 1/2" from each end, bend ends to make a "U" shape. Spread a small amount of glue on each end and push the ends into the bottom of the egg, placing the handles approximately 1 1/2" apart. You will put your hand through these chenille handles when you work the puppet.
    
5. Following the photo, decorate your puppet to make it a "real" character. Or, have fun creating your own wild and wooly personality.

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