These cute little Thanksgiving characters are made from a paper towel roll and lots of imagination. They look hard but they are actually easy to make. Putting together a harvest family is one of many fun kid's crafts!
You will need
1 paper towel roll cardboard tube
2 small feathers
2 pink miniature pom poms
1 brown miniature pom poms
13-15 yellow miniature pom poms
3 red small pom poms
acrylic paint: brown, flesh, light brown, white, black and pink
black fine tip marker
felt: tan, brown, gray, white, black, orange, peach, and green
scissors
hot glue gun
white craft glue
paintbrush patterns
First, cut the paper towel roll into three sections, one for each character.
Pilgrim Man
Paint the top 1/3 of the cardboard tube with flesh colored paint. Use brown paint to add on hair around the back and sides of face. Leave enough room to add facial features later. Let dry before continuing.
Roll up tube in a piece of brown felt. Trim felt to the height of the roll and be sure you have enough to wrap all the way around it as well, overlapping slightly.
Cut the felt strip about 2/3 of the way up for the pilgrim's clothes, leaving the remainder for his hat. Glue the larger brown piece of felt around the tube for his clothes and the smaller section around the top for his hat. Glue seams in the back.
Cut out hat brim from brown felt and hat band from black felt using the patterns. Cut out the buckles from black and white felt according to the pattern. Glue the hand brim around the bottom of the hat and the black band above the brim. Glue the buckle (white first, then black) onto the front of the hat on the band.
Cut out the pilgrim's collar from the white felt using the pattern. Glue around the neckline on top of the brown felt.
Cut out pumpkin and stem from orange and green felt, glue to the front of the pilgrim's body. Cut out 2 hands from peach felt and glue to the front, overlapping the sides of the pumpkin.
Use the handle end of a paint brush dipped in white paint to dot on eyes. Do not add black until white is dry. Use a scruffy paint brush or a roughed up cotton swab to add cheeks using pink paint. Be sure to dab off excess pink paint before applying cheeks (dry application). Glue a miniature pink pom pom on for the nose and use fine tip black marker to add the mouth and eyebrows. Dot on blacks of the eyes.
Pilgrim Woman
Paint the top 1/3 of the cardboard tube with flesh colored paint. Use light brown paint to add on hair around the back and sides of face. Leave enough room to add facial features later. Let dry before continuing.
Roll up tube in a piece of gray felt. Trim felt to 2/3 the height of the roll and be sure you have enough to wrap all the way around it as well, overlapping slightly.
Glue the gray felt around the tube for her clothes, seam should be in the back.
Cut out the pilgrim woman's collar from the white felt using the pattern. Glue around the neckline on top of the gray felt.
Cut a piece of white felt wide enough to cover the top of the tube and hang down about 1" in the back. The shape will resemble a semi-circle, adjust and trim as needed to make her bonnet.
Cut out basket from tan felt and 2 hands from peach felt using pattern. Glue basket to the front of the pilgrim woman and glue hands on, overlapping the sides of the basket. Glue 3 small red pom poms to the top of basket for apples.
Use the handle end of a paint brush dipped in white paint to dot on eyes. Do not add black until white is dry. Use a scruffy paint brush or a roughed up cotton swab to add cheeks using pink paint. Be sure to dab off excess pink paint before applying cheeks (dry application). Glue a miniature pink pom pom on for the nose and use fine tip black marker to add the mouth, eyebrows and eyelashes. Dot on blacks of the eyes.
Indian
Paint the top 1/3 of the cardboard tube with brown paint.
Roll up tube in a piece of tan felt. Trim felt to 2/3 the height of the roll and be sure you have enough to wrap all the way around it as well, overlapping slightly. From the remainder of the felt, cut out a thin strip of tan to use as the headband, set aside for a later step.
Glue the tan felt around the tube for his clothes, seam should be in the back.
Cut a piece of black felt wide enough to cover the top of the tube and long enough to reach the bottom of both sides of the tube. Use hot glue to attach the hair to the top of the tube. Dot a bit of glue at the tops of the sides as well, but not all the way down, just to hold it in place. Cut the hair on both sides into three pieces and braid together. Hot glue the braided ends and glue to the side of the tube.
Glue two feathers to the side of the head, then wrap headband around the head, seam in the back and glue in place.
Cut out the corn husk and leaf from green felt and 2 hands from brown felt using the pattern. Glue the large green husk to the front of the Indian. Glue on two rows of miniature yellow pom poms for the corn kernels, then glue the green leaf at the bottom of the kernels, overlapping them slightly. Glue the hands on, overlapping the corn.
Use the handle end of a paint brush dipped in white paint to dot on eyes. Do not add black until white is dry. Use a scruffy paint brush or a roughed up cotton swab to add cheeks using pink paint. Be sure to dab off excess pink paint before applying cheeks (dry application). Glue a miniature brown pom pom on for the nose and use fine tip black marker to add the mouth and eyebrows. Dot on blacks of the eyes.
About the Author:
Amanda Formaro is the entrepreneurial mother of four children. She is also the owner of FamilyCorner.com Magazine. Subscribe to her free newsletter by clicking "sign up" below
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