Creating crafts with children is an excellent way to foster creativity and spend quality time together. Making a puppet toy is an entertaining project you can attempt, and today we’ll demonstrate how to make a humorous ostrich puppet.
With materials you most likely already own, this easy and entertaining project can be completed at home. It’s an opportunity to let kids use their imaginations and get hands-on. They also receive a toy they can proudly claim to have contributed to!
Now let’s get started on making this adorable ostrich puppet that’s great for storytelling and playtime.
| Step | Description |
| 1 | Gather materials: colored socks, buttons, yarn, fabric glue, and stuffing. |
| 2 | Fill the sock with stuffing to form the ostrich’s body. |
| 3 | Use yarn to create long legs and attach them to the bottom of the sock. |
| 4 | Glue buttons on the front for eyes. |
| 5 | Cut small fabric pieces for wings and glue them to the sides. |
| 6 | Enjoy your funny puppet ostrich toy! |
What we will need
- Plastic boxes from Kinder Surprise – 4 pieces
- Rope or cord 35 cm long: 25 cm for the legs and 10 cm for making the neck
- Decorative feathers
- Eyes – 2 pieces
- Sticks for manipulating the toy – 2 pieces 11 cm long
- Weights for the paws, so that the Ostrich can stand confidently on its feet. We took two nuts. You can additionally take two more nuts to weigh down the head and body, then you can control it will be easier with a toy.
- Double-sided tape, thin
- A small sheet of red paper
- Plasticine – a small piece for the beak
- Fishing line
- Scissors with sharp ends, so that you can cut off the necessary parts and make holes. For small holes under the fishing line, you can take a thick needle.
Making an Ostrich
From the paws to the head, we will assemble the toy from the bottom up. Take two Kinder Surprise boxes and cut off the lids. These are going to be the paws’ blanks.
We will then proceed to create the head blank. Make a hole a little closer to the edge of the fourth "egg."
We now connect every component. Take a 25 cm long piece of lace, insert one end into the paw blank, and secure the weight-nut from below. For now, we don’t touch the second paw.
The second free end of the lace should then be pulled through the body blank. Subsequently, insert the second plastic paw into the hole in the lace and fasten the second end of the lace with the weight. Put the legs in length order.
We thus obtain this "construction".
Put the head in place. Take a ten-centimeter length of lace, open the head and body blank lids, insert the ends of the lace into the holes, and knot them inside. Shut the covers.
Constructing a manipulator. Take two sticks and do this. Make sure not to split the wood as you carefully drill holes at both ends of each. We were able to create them using cutting-edge shears.
Fix the sticks into a cross shape with fishing line. This step can be made simpler by first taping them together with double-sided tape, and then using fishing line to fix them crosswise.
As seen in the picture, drill holes in the blanks for the toy’s head and body to attach the fishing line. If the scissors have a thin blade, you can use them to make a hole; if not, use a thick needle.
To prevent the fishing line from popping out of the hole, tie a knot at one end multiple times. Pull the fishing line through the opening on the inside of the box body after opening it. Similarly, work with the head blank. For the time being, leave the upper ends of the fishing line free.
Next, fasten a single thread onto every paw by passing the fishing line through the plastic portion and fastening it within. One thread measures 42 centimeters from the paw to the top, plus an additional 1.5 centimeters for knots.
Align the four threads so that they are all the same height by pulling their free ends up.
Using the manipulator, secure the threads so that, when stretched, they are all parallel to one another. This means that the manipulator’s left stick corresponds to the left paw, its right stick to the right, its front stick to the movement of the head, and its back stick to the movement of the body.
Take a piece of red paper and twist it into a tiny cone to make a beak. Use double-sided tape to adhere.
Fix the beak next. To accomplish this, insert a tiny piece of plasticine into the cone-beak until it completely fills the opening and is ready to be fastened to the head.
Apply glue to the head and the cone.
After that, use double-sided tape to secure the eyes, crest, and tail.
You can insert a few nuts into the head and body of the toy to make it easier to control. The fishing line will then be better stretched under their weight, making the toy more "obedient".
Making a humorous puppet toy, such as the ostrich, is an easy project that kids will love. In addition to providing a fun family activity, it fosters creativity and improves fine motor skills.
When the puppet is finished, children can make up stories and perform their own plays with their new ostrich friend. It’s a fantastic method to continue having fun long after the crafting is finished while developing storytelling and communication skills.
Additionally, this do-it-yourself project offers a chance to connect and create lifelong memories. The puppet can quickly turn into a beloved addition to your child’s collection and act as a reminder of the time you two spent together.
Kids and adults alike can be inspired to be creative by this simple and enjoyable DIY project of making a funny puppet toy called "Ostrich." You can make a fun ostrich puppet that will amuse the whole family for ages with just a few basic supplies and some creativity. This exercise promotes imaginative play and storytelling while aiding in the development of fine motor skills.
