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Aren’t little hands the cutest?! If you are looking for a cute, farm-related handprint keepsake for yourself or your friends and family, check out these Handprint Farm Animals. These are super easy to make with whatever you have around the house (paint, paper, foam, felt, etc.) and can even send them through the mail so your kids can share the love near and far.

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Paint, paper, foam or felt (in different colors – use whatever you have around the house!)
• Writing Utensil (pen, pencil, crayon, etc.) or paintbrush
• Markers (black, brown, pink and red)
• Scissors
• Glue

Instructions for a Paper/Foam/Felt Pig or Cow

• Use a writing utensil to trace a handprint for the body, oval for the head, two ears and a tail on pink paper/foam/felt (or white for a cow). Cut them out with your scissors.
• To add hooves, use a black market to color the bottom of each finger. Then, use a scissors to cut small triangles out.
• On the head, use black and pink markers to add eyes and a snout. On the ears, use a pink marker to darken the inner ear.
• It’s time to glue!  Glue your ears to the back of your head and tail to the back of your handprint. Wait a few minutes to dry.
• Glue your head to your handprint over the thumb.
• Add some mud spots for a pig or black spots for a cow if desired.

Instructions for a Paper/Foam/Felt Chicken

• Use a writing utensil to trace a handprint for the body on white or yellow paper. Then, draw two feet and beak on orange paper, and a comb and wattle on red paper. Cut them out with your scissors.
• On the thumb, use a black marker to add an eye.
• It’s time to glue! Glue the feet under the palm and the beak, comb and wattle to the thumb to finish the face.

Instructions for a Painted Pig or Cow

• Use a paintbrush to paint the four fingers and palm with pink paint (or white for a cow).
• Press the hand firmly on your paper. If necessary, fill in empty spots with your paintbrush.
• Using the paintbrush, add an oval for a face (where the thumb of the handprint would be), ears and a tail. Let dry for a few minutes.
• Using a paintbrush and paint or a marker, add eyes and a snout. Let dry for a few minutes.
• Using your paintbrush and paint or a marker, add some mud spots for a pig or black spots for a cow if desired.
• Add scenery or a message on the rest of your paper as desired.

Instructions for a Painted Chicken

1. Use a paintbrush to paint all five fingers and palm with white or yellow paint.
2. Press the hand firmly on your paper. If necessary, fill in empty spots with your paintbrush. Let dry for a few minutes.
3. Using a paintbrush and paint or a marker, add a beak, comb, eye, and wattle to the thumb to make a face. Let dry for a few minutes.
4. Using a paintbrush and paint or a marker, add feet under the palm. Let dry for a few minutes.
5. Add scenery or a message on the rest of your paper as desired.

Are you looking for a way to add a little spring to your fridge and hold up artwork or important notes? Check out these Clothespin Flower Magnets. These are easy to make with just a few items – many of which you might be able to find around the house.

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Clothespin or chip clip (must be flat)
• Paper, foam or felt (green for stem/leaves and any color for the flowers – use whatever you have around the house!)
• Magnets
• Pen
• Scissors
• Glue

Instructions

1. Using your clothespin as a stencil, trace the clothespin shape on your green foam (or paper or felt) using a pen to make a stem. Cut it out with your scissors.
2. Trace or draw a leaf on your green foam (or paper or felt) using a pen. Cut it out with your scissors.
3. Trace or draw your flower parts on your foam (or paper or felt) using a pen. Cut them out with your scissors.
4. It’s time to glue! Glue your stem on your clothespin. Wait a few minutes to dry.
5. Repeat step four to attach your leaf and flower parts, allowing glue to dry a few minutes between each step. Note: Glue your flower to the part of your clothespin that you pinch to open!
6. Glue the magnet on the back.
7. Allow everything to dry for 24 hours before using.

Spring means garden planning for many people across the state – gardeners are eagerly making plans, buying and starting to grow seeds, and dreaming of warm, summer days. If you are looking for a fun way to show what you are growing this year, check out these fun garden markers!

Materials

• Rocks
• Paint (variety of colors)
• Paintbrushes
• Permanent markers (optional)
• Paint pallet (or disposable plate)
• Clear sealant (optional)
• Paint protection (smock or old t-shirt to wear and tablecloth or something to work on)
• Cleaning Supplies (water, soap and paper towels)

Instructions

1. Let’s get ready to paint! Throw on a smock or old t-shirt to wear in case you spill some paint and cover your work surface with a tablecloth or something you can get paint on.
2. Gather your rocks and clean them with soap and water. You’ll want one rock to mark each thing you are planting. Allow rocks to dry.
3. Pour out some paint onto a paint pallet or plate to use for a base coat. I suggest using something that is bright and easy to see on the grass or soil.
4. Using your paint brushes, paint a base coat on your rocks. Allow time to dry.
5. Once dry, use a small paint brush and paint or a permanent marker to decorate your painted rocks. You can paint a picture of what you are planting, write the name, or both! Allow time to dry.
6. If you want to keep these rocks beautiful for years to come, you can use a clear sealant to seal and protect your work. If not, you might have to make some touch-ups in the future!
7. Allow everything to dry for 24 hours before using, and have fun planting!

It’s a lot of fun to go outside to explore and discover new things on a warm, sunny day – but sometimes, out weather doesn’t cooperate. If you are looking for a fun way to find and discover things on the farm while you are stuck inside, you can create a Farm Discovery Game! Use the supplies you have around the house to make this as fun and challenging as you wish and enjoy watching the kids (and adults) in your life discover the treasures you have hidden.

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Clear plastic bottle or container (I’m using a clear ornament, but anything works as long as you have a lid!)
• Funnel (optional)
• Filler material (I used perler beads, but you could also use rice, corn kernels, dried beans, etc.)
• Eight to 10 small items to discover (I’m using things like slime charms and beads, but anything around the size of a nickel or smaller works)
• Glue
• Ribbon (optional)
• Paper (optional)
• Writing utensil (optional)

Instructions

1. Open your plastic container. Using the funnel (optional), dump your filler material into the container. It should be about 2/3 full.
2. Insert your items to discover in your bottle. If you want to have a key for the items you’ve included that people can search for, use your writing utensil and paper to make a list of what you include.
3. Once you have your filler material and items to discover in your plastic container, use your glue to glue your lid on your bottle. This will help you avoid spills from people trying to open your container! Follow the dry time instructions.
4. If you created a list of items in step two, use your ribbon to tie the list to your container.
5. Enjoy your time discovering hidden treasurers in your Farm Discovery Bottle!

I don’t know about you, but I love watching windsocks blow in the breeze. There’s just something about the streamers and bright colors that shout spring to me! Today, we are going to be making a floral windsock to hang outside to blow in the breeze, or inside to add some color and floral fun. These are easy to make with just a few items, so use what you have at home and follow these directions!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Construction paper or cardstock (I used light blue for the background and green for the stems and leaves, and you can use any colors for the flowers)
• Pen or pencil
• Scissors
• Glue
• Streamers (optional)
• Stapler
• Hole punch (optional)
• String/ribbon (optional)

Instructions

1. Using your pen or pencil, draw or trace your flower pieces:
   1. Using green paper, cut three stems (mine measured 1 inch by 6 inches) and six leaves.
   2. Using any color paper, cut three flowers.
2. On a full sheet of background paper (I used light blue), glue your stems, flowers and leaves down. Make sure to leave around an inch of blank space on both the left and right side.
3. Flip your sheet over and glue your streamers on the bottom of the backside. I cut my streamers so they were 15 inches long, but you can make them longer or shorter if you like. If you don’t have streamers, you can use paper, ribbon or string instead.
4. After everything is dry, curl your paper (flowers on the outside and streamers on the inside) into a cylinder (circle) shape with the left and right edges overlapping about an inch. Use your stapler to add two staples to the top and bottom to hold the shape.
5. Using your hole punch, punch two holes on opposite sides of the top of your cylinder (circle). Cut a piece of ribbon or string (mine was 12 inches long) and make a knot at both holes to add a hanger. If you don’t’ have a hole punch or ribbon/string, you can use a strip of paper instead.
6. Find a place to hang your masterpiece – you’re done!

If your kiddos are looking to burn off some creative energy, this activity is for you! You can use just a few simple materials to let kids create fun farm ��ֱ���� characters to tell hours and hours of stories and adventures with. Check out the materials needed and instructions below, and make sure to watch the video if you want to see step-by-step instructions!

Materials

• Felt (colors depend on what ��ֱ����s you are making)
  • Pig: light pink and dark pink
  • Chick: yellow and orange
  • Cow: white, black and pink
• Felt tip pen or marker
• Ruler
• Scissors
• Glue
• Wiggle eyes (optional)

Instructions

1. Decide what ��ֱ����(s) you want to make and gather the supplies above.
2. Grab your felt (light pink for a pig, yellow for a chick, or white for a cow) and place your index/pointer finger at the edge of the felt. Using your pen or marker, trace your finger.
3. After you are done tracing, take your ruler and mark a ½ inch around the outside of your finger outline.
4. Use your scissors to cut out this shape.
5. Using your marker, trace the shape in step four out of the same color felt. This will be the front and back of your finger puppet body.
6. Grab your glue and put a line of it around the outside edge of one side of the body. Do not glue the bottom/flat edge (you will need this open for your finger later). Place the other half of the body on top and let dry.
7. While your body is drying, you can add in facial features. Glue your wiggle eyes on, or just use a black pen or marker to draw them on.
   1. Pig: Using the light pink felt, cut out two triangle ears and glue them on the back of the body. Using the dark pink felt, cut out a round nose and glue it under the eyes. You can use a black marker to add two nostrils on the nose.
   2. Chick: Using your yellow felt, cut out two wings and glue them on the back of the body. Lastly, take your orange felt and cut out a triangle to glue on under the nose for a beak.
   3. Cow: Using the pink felt, cut out a round nose and glue it under the eyes. You can use a black marker to add two nostrils to the nose. Next, take your black felt and cut out two ears to clue to the back of the body. Lastly, use your black felt to add a few cow spots and glue on the front of the body.
8. After everything has had the chance to dry according to your glue’s directions, you are ready to have lots of fun with your puppets!

Do you have a little one at home that is learning colors and numbers? This game is a fun farming spin on a color and number sorting game. There are two ways to play this game: either sort all the pig tails to their matching color or put the same number of tails on the pig to match the number.

Materials

• Pipe cleaners (two per color of at least four different colors)
• Kitchen shears or scissors
• Snack size baggie
• Paper (one background page plus a paper in colors to match your pipe cleaners)
• A pig shape to trace (optional)
• Marker
• Glue

Instructions

1. Using your marker or a finger (something round), twist your pipe cleaner into a coil shape.
2. Once you have a coil, use your wire cutter to cut the coil in to half. These will be your pig tails! Put all tail pieces in a snack size baggie for storage.
3. Using your marker and pig shape, trace a pig in each color paper to match your pipe cleaners.
4. Glue your pigs on your background paper.
5. Use your marker to number your pigs one to four.
6. Get ready to play! You can play this game in two ways:
   1. Color matching: match all the tails in the bag to the correct color pig.
   2. Number matching: place one tail on the pig with the number “1” on it, two tails on the pig with the number “2”, etc.

So many of us enjoy going to the Farmers Market and getting fresh, delicious produce and other items straight from the producer. In this week’s Make-It Monday, we are making a colorful stamped tote for your next trip to the market or out shopping!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Table covering
• Fruit (I’m using leftover fruit from a recipe I made and fruit that has a bruise on part of it)
• Knife (with adult supervision)
• Cutting board
• Paint palette (you can also use a disposable plate)
• Paint brushes
• Fabric paint
• Fabric marker (optional)
• Canvas tote

Instructions

1. Cover your workspace with a tablecloth, newspaper or something that you don’t mind if you get a bit of paint on it.
2. With adult help or supervision, cut your fruit in half with the knife and cutting board.
3. Get your paint palette or plate ready by adding in the fabric paint colors you would like to use.
4. Using your paintbrush, paint your fruit on the cut surface. At this point, you may want to play around with how much paint you put on your fruit stamp on a separate surface.
5. Place your fruit stamp (paint side down) where you would like to stamp.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 until you have your desired pattern completed.
7. Let dry according to paint directions.
8. When the paint is dry, you have the option of using a fabric marker to add details like stems, seeds, etc.

Pollinators are so important to our lives – not only do they pollinate the flowers many of us plant in the summer to make our landscapes beautiful, but they also pollinate many of the crops our farmers grow around the world and right here in South ��ֱ����. By making these seed bombs, you can give our pollinators (like bees and butterflies) plenty of options to find pollen while beautifying your garden or neighborhood!

Materials

• Construction paper (this is a great way to get rid of scraps left over from other projects)
• Scissors
• Bowl
• Water
• Blender or food processor
• Paper towels
• Muffin pan or silicone molds (optional)
• Seeds (I used a flower mix that has seeds native to South ��ֱ���� in it)

Instructions

1. Using your scissors, cut construction paper scraps into one-inch squares (approximately – it they are a little bigger, smaller, or not exact squares, it’s all good!) and place them in a bowl. If you are using multiple colors, keep them separated.
2. Once you have cut your squares, fill the bowl with water so all the paper is submerged. Leave it sit for 20 minutes – two hours.
3. After your paper is done soaking, dump all the paper and water in to the blender/food processor.
4. Blend or process your paper until it reaches a pulp-like consistency.
5. Place a paper towel over your drain and pour the contents of your blender/food processor over the towel.
6. Wring out all the water through the paper towel.
7. It’s time to form your seed bombs! Choose a method below:
   1. If you are using a muffin pan or silicone mold, fill the mold about a ¼ inch or halfway and press down firmly. Add a sprinkle or two of seeds, then follow it up with another ¼ inch of paper. Press firmly again.
   2. If you don’t have a muffin pan or silicone mold, you can press the paper pulp into a circle, put a sprinkle or two of seeds in the middle, and form the pulp into a ball shape.
8. Once you have your seed bombs formed, you have a few options:
   1. You can plant them right now, add some water and watch them grow!
   2. You can dry them out for 24-48 hours, store in an air-tight container, and plant and water them at a later date.

I love the look of a sun catcher in the window – it can add beautiful colors to our world even on a cloudy, dreary day. A lot of us grew up with the painted suncatchers, but those are sometimes hard to do with little kiddos or lots of kiddos, so I’m glad I can share this mess-free alternative to adding some color in your day!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Scissors
• Writing utensil (optional)
• Construction paper
• Clear con-tact paper
• Tissue paper (multiple colors)
• Tape
• Hole punch
• Suction cup, ribbon, etc. (something to hang your finished project in the window)

Instructions

1. Using your scissors, writing utensil (optional) and construction paper, create and cut out an outline for your suncatcher design. If you aren’t a great artist, you can use things like cookie cutters, home décor, a clip art image off the internet, etc. for a starting point!
2. Use the scissors to cut out the center of your design.
3. Cut up tissue paper into one-inch squares.
4. Using your design as a guide, cut out two pieces of con-tact paper that are about two inches bigger than your design.
5. Pull off the backing to one piece of con-tact paper and lay it sticky side up on your workspace. Secure the corners with tape so it stays in place.
6. Place your construction paper design in the center of the con-tact paper.
7. Fill in the center of your design with tissue paper squares until it is full.
8. Peel off the backing to your second sheet of con-tact paper and place it sticky side down over your design. This will seal your artwork in and keep other things out!
9. Use your scissors to trim the excess contact paper off around the outside of your design.
10. Use a hole punch to add a hole where you would like to hang your design.
11. Using a suction cup, ribbon, etc., make a hanger for your suncatcher to hang in your window.
12. Hang your artwork up for everyone to enjoy!

Tip: If you don’t have clear con-tact paper at home, you can also use things like laminating sheets (place your construction paper outline and tissue paper squares inside a laminating sleeve and run it through a laminator) or clear packing tape (lay down multiple pieces of tape with a slight overlap to create a sticky surface like the con-tact paper) to create these suncatchers!

t’s time for another windsock activity, because if there is something we have plenty of in South ��ֱ���� – it’s wind! In an earlier episode of Make-It Monday, we made a floral windsock, so today we are mixing it up a bit and doing a farm ��ֱ���� version. The great thing about this is that it is customizable to your favorite farm ��ֱ����s, so you can make a big barnyard of windsocks! Like last time, these are easy to make with just a few items, so use what you have at home and follow these directions.

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Construction paper or cardstock (a few options are listed below)
  • Pig: light pink and dark pink
  • Chick: yellow and orange
  • Cow: white, black and pink
• Black marker
• Scissors
• Glue
• Streamers (optional)
• Stapler
• Hole punch (optional)
• String/ribbon (optional)

Instructions

1. Using your marker and scissors, draw and cut out your features for your ��ֱ����.
   1. Pig: make ears and tail out of light pink paper and a nose out of the dark pink paper. On your nose, make two nostrils with a black marker.
   2. Chick: make wings out of yellow paper and a beak and comb out of orange paper.
   3. Cow: make ears, spots and a tail out of your black paper and a nose out of your pink paper.
2. On a full sheet of background paper (light pink for the pig, yellow for the chick, and white for the cow), glue the parts you cut out in Step #1, centering facial features in the middle of the page, making sure to leave around an inch of blank space on both the left and right side.
3. Add eyes using your black marker.
4. Cut streamers (optional) for legs. I cut my streamers 12 inches long, but you can make them longer or shorter if you like. You will need four streamers for any ��ֱ���� that has four legs and two streamers for any ��ֱ����s that need two legs. If you don’t have streamers, you can use paper, ribbon or string instead.
5. Flip your sheet over and glue your streamers on the bottom of the backside, spacing them out accordingly.
6. After everything is dry, curl your paper (face on the outside and streamers on the inside) into a cylinder (circle) shape with the left and right edges overlapping about an inch. Use your stapler to add two staples to the top and bottom to hold the shape.
7. Using your hole punch, punch two holes on opposite sides of the top of your cylinder (circle). Cut a piece of ribbon or string (mine was 9 inches long) and make a knot at both holes to add a hanger. If you don’t’ have a hole punch or ribbon/string, you can use a strip of paper instead.
8. Add your tail you cut during step one to the back side of your ��ֱ����.
9. Find a place to hang your masterpiece – you’re done!

I don’t know about you, but we’ve been seeing a lot of bees around here lately – which is a good thing! Bees are pollinators, which means they help pollinate flowers and crops by traveling from plant to plant. This is very important, because without pollination, plants can’t produce what they need to, like fruits and vegetables. Last week, we read a book for Thinking Thursday about pollinators called “Give Bees a Chance” by Bethany Barton, and that inspired me to teach you how to make a craft to show just how much we love bees!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Yellow, black and white construction paper or cardstock
• Scissors
• Glue
• Black marker

Instructions

1. Cut the following out of your paper using your scissors:
   1. White: cut one heart out (this will be the background of your project and will serve as bee wings when finished).
   2. Yellow: cut one heart out that is the same size as your white heart. When finished, cut off the top so it looks like an ice cream cone (this part will be your bee body).
   3. Black: cut ½ inch wide strips (these will be your bee stripes, so cut enough for your bee body). In addition, cut two ¼ inch wide strips and two small hearts (these will be your antenna).
2. Glue a small black heart to the end of an antenna. Repeat with the other heart and antenna, then glue your finished antenna on the back of your yellow bee body.
3. Glue your yellow bee body on your white heart so the bottoms of the heart line up. You can now see that the top of the white heart looks like bee wings!
4. Glue your ½ inch black strips on your bee body to make stripes. Use your scissors to trim ends off.
5. Use a black marker to add facial features like two eyes and a mouth.

This week for Make-It Monday, we are creating fun and colorful handprint flowers. While some might use this to decorate at home, another good use for this project is sending it in the mail to a friend or family member you can’t visit right now. While this project is sure to add a splash of color to your life, it’s also a great keepsake to remember little hands with!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Construction paper or cardstock (green, brown, yellow, one to five different colors for flowers and a background color)
• Writing utensil
• Scissors
• Glue
• Markers

Instructions

1. Using your writing utensil, trace a handprint on the green paper. Cut this out using your scissors.
2. Out of the brown paper, cut out a flowerpot.
3. Using your writing utensil, draw out flower shapes on the paper colors you want to use for flowers.  Cut them out using your scissors. You will need five flowers total.
4. Cut out five circles out of your yellow paper. They should be small enough to be the centers of your flowers.
5. It’s time to glue! Glue your items together in this order:
   1. Glue flowerpot to the base of the handprint.
   2. Glue flowerpot and handprint to your background paper.
   3. Glue a yellow circle to the center of each flower.
   4. Glue your five flowers to the end of each finger.
6. Grab your marker – be sure to mark whose handprint this is and how old they are!
7. If you would like, you can also use your marker to add a message or greeting like “Miss You Bunches” or “Love You, Grandma”. The possibilities are endless!

I love blooming flowers in the spring and summer, but unfortunately, they don’t like my allergies. If you or someone you know is like me, these painted hyacinths are a great way to add the color of flowers without all the pollen! This is also an inexpensive way to send flowers to brighten someone’s day. The great part about this project is that there are very minimal and inexpensive materials, making this a great project all around!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Construction paper or cardstock (green and a background color)
• Scissors
• Glue
• Paint for hyacinth flowers (purple, pink, white, blue, etc.)
• Paint palate (or something else to put your paint on)
• Pop or water bottle lid (or anything else round you can use to stamp with)

Instructions

1. Using your scissors and green paper, cut three skinny strips of paper to use as your flower stems. In addition, cut out six leaves from your green paper.
2. Place your background paper in a landscape position on your workspace. Use your glue to glue your three stems to the paper (make sure to space them out so you have plenty of room for your flowers).
3. Pour some paint on your paint palate.
4. Dip the flat part of your lid into the paint, then stamp it next to the green stem on your paper. Repeat this process until you are satisfied with the fullness of your flowers.
5. Let the project dry before gluing a leaf on both sides of each flower.

Are you looking for a way to add a little fun to your fridge and hold up artwork or important notes?  Check out these Clothespin Farm Animal Magnets. These are easy to make with just a few items – many of which you might be able to find around the house.

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Clothespin or chip clip (must be flat)
• Pen
• Paper, foam or felt
  • Pig: pink
  • Cow: white and black
• Scissors
• Glue
• Wiggle ryes (optional)
• Small pink two-hole buttons (optional)
• Magnets

Instructions

1. Using your clothespin as a stencil, trace the clothespin shape on your foam (or paper or felt) using a pen. For this step, I used pink for the pig and white for the cow.
2. Cut your traced rectangles out with your scissors.
3. Glue your rectangles on your clothespin. Follow glue directions to let things dry.
4. It’s time to add faces and decorations!
   1. Glue your wiggle eyes (optional) to the end of the clothespin you pinch together.  If you don’t have wiggle eyes, you can also cut eyes out of foam (or paper or felt) and glue them on.
   2. Glue your pink button (optional) under your eyes to act as a nose.  If you don’t have buttons, you can also cut a nose out using your foam (or paper or felt).
   3. If you are making a cow, now is the time to add black spots!  Cut them out of black foam (or paper or felt) and glue them on.
5. Follow glue directions to allow all items from step four to dry.
6. Glue the magnet on the back.
7. Allow everything to dry for 24 hours before using.

I’ve seen a lot of butterflies and other pollinators around lately – have you? Pollinators (like butterflies, bees, birds, and others) are so important to agriculture. If we didn’t have pollinators, we wouldn’t be able to have a lot of the foods we love and enjoy every day! Today, we are paying respect to a colorful pollinator – the butterfly – with this fun and simple suncatcher activity.

Find a helpful how-to video below:

• 
  Scissors
• Writing utensil (optional)
• Construction paper
• Clear Con-Tact paper
• Tissue paper (multiple colors)
• Tape
• Hole punch
• Suction cup, ribbon, etc. (something to hang your finished project in the window)

Instructions

1. Using your scissors, writing utensil (optional) and construction paper, create and cut out an outline in the shape of a butterfly for your suncatcher design. If you aren’t a great artist, you can use things like cookie cutters, home décor, a clip art image off the internet, etc. for a starting point!  Use the scissors to cut out the center of your design.
2. Using your scissors and construction paper, cut out a butterfly body (a long, skinny oval shape) and two antennae.
3. Cut up tissue paper into one-inch squares.
4. Using your design as a guide, cut out two pieces of Con-Tact paper that are about two inches bigger than your butterfly.
5. Pull off the backing to one piece of Con-Tact paper and lay it sticky side up on your workspace. Secure the corners with tape so it stays in place.
6. Place your butterfly outline in the center of the Con-Tact paper. After your butterfly is secure, add in the body and antennae.
7. Fill in the center of your design with tissue paper squares until it is full.
8. Peel off the backing to your second sheet of Con-Tact paper and place it sticky side down over your design. This will seal your artwork in and keep other things out!
9. Use your scissors to trim the excess Con-Tact paper off around the outside of your design.
10. Use a hole punch to add a hole where you would like to hang your design.
11. Using a suction cup, ribbon, etc., make a hanger for your suncatcher to hang in your window.
12. Hang your artwork up for everyone to enjoy!

Tip: If you don’t have clear Con-Tact paper at home, you can also use things like laminating sheets (place your construction paper outline and tissue paper squares inside a laminating sleeve and run it through a laminator) or clear packing tape (lay down multiple pieces of tape with a slight overlap to create a sticky surface like the Con-Tact paper) to create these suncatchers!

It’s back to school season! While some of us are headed back to school in person and some will continue with virtual lessons like we saw this spring, it’s still fun to get new school supplies for the upcoming year. Growing up, many of my teachers had a box of tissues on the list of things each kid brought to school so they could be prepared for the unavoidable sniffles the students were bound to get during the school year. If you want to add a bit of fun farm life to your classroom or home, join me in making a few of these farm ��ֱ���� tissue box covers!

Find a helpful how-to video below:

Materials

• Black marker
• Tissue box (I used a square box for my example)
• Construction paper (I’m using light and dark pink for my pig)
• Scissors
• Tape or glue
• Wiggle eyes (optional)
• Pink pipe cleaner (optional)

Instructions

1. Using your tissue box as a guide, trace all four sides plus the top on to light pink construction paper. Cut all the squares/rectangles out using your scissors. Choose one side to be the front and the opposite side to be the back.
2. Cut out two light pink triangles for your pig ears. For the small square tissue box I used, I cut my triangles to be about two inches long on each side.
3. Repeat step two with the darker pink paper while making your triangles just a bit smaller. Glue or tape these dark pink triangles to the center of your larger light pink triangles.
4. Glue or tape your ears to the backside of your front tissue box square. Glue or tape all four sides plus the top (all cut out in step one to your tissue box.
5. Cut an oval out of your dark pink paper to use as a nose. Using your black marker, draw two nostrils and glue or tape the nose to the front of your tissue box.
6. Apply two wiggle eyes above your nose (if you don’t have wiggle eyes, you can draw them with your marker).
7. Take your pipe cleaner and wrap it around your marker to make a coil. Glue or tape the coil to the back of your tissue box to make a tail (if you don’t have a pipe cleaner, you can cut out a tail with your pink paper).