I absolutely love nature and I'm so excited when I get the chance to incorporate it into my crafts. Now my oldest daughter is 5 years old and she loves nature as well. It's so cute because when we go for little walks around the neighborhood she looks for things that we can use and I just love her imagination. To her every little twig, rock or pine cone has countless possibilities and can be used to help make a craft.
These masks turned out so cute and they are super simple to put together. As long as you have some cardboard to use for the base you can really customize the designs and create some unique masks your kids are sure to love. Plus depending on where you live and what is available in your area
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Materials:
Cardboard (approx 4in x in)
Hot glue gun
Scissors
Popsicle sticks or stick from outside
Paints and brushes
Any miscellaneous nature items like leaves, sticks, stones, seeds, etc.
Directions:
1) Start by figuring out what masks you want to make and cut out the templates if you are using any. Cut the cardboard out into the mask shapes. If you are using a thinner cardboard you may want to double or even triple layer it to make the mask more sturdy.
2) Start off by painting the base whatever color you choose. This will add a nice background as you layer the embellishments on top. If you cardboard is a nice clean color though you could skip this step and go for a more natural tone.
Check out these craft paints below by Crayola that are great for kids. They're non-toxic and wash off easily.
3) Using a hot glue gun, attach a popsicle stick (link below), a thick craft straw or even a sturdy stick from your backyard to the back of the mask on one side. You can also use a string and glue it to the back so the mask can be worn. We opted for the sticks to hold since we had decent sized ones available.
4) Now have fun decorating them! Use materials from outside to create fur, feathers and details. Try looking for items like leaves, small sticks, pine cones, seeds, small rocks and even tree bark.
If you tried this craft, what animals or masks did you make? What nature elements did you incorporate into your craft? Leave a comment below and don't forget to subscribe to the monthly newsletter for more great craft ideas!