Thursday, July 16, 2009

Sock Puppets

Is it Hot or Raining outside?
From crafting to playing, sock puppets provided my kids with hours of fun!

The other day I got the usual "Mom we're board...lets do a project!"
I sigh, as I think about all the things I need to get done around the house.

What can the kids make without much help from me??
How about puppets!
This thought started out as paper bag puppets, in my mind.
As I grabbed a stack, Bella said "No Mama, SOCKS"

I can never can find matching socks when we need them...that works perfect for this craft!

My other issue with socks, is that none of ours "look" clean.
Kids in and out of the house all day, more often than not the kids are shoeless and socks (if they are wearing them LOL) get worn outside.
What's the deal with that??

I remembered a sock puppet a teacher had that had a "hard mouth".
Problem Solved...More on that later

While the kids looked for socks, I got out glue (regular & hot glue), markers, fabric scraps, felt, cotton balls, ribbon and google eyes.

With the kids hard at work on traditional sock puppets, I worked on my new version.



How to get rid of the dirty bottom on the sock ;) and make a better puppet

Using a cereal box I cut out an oval approx. 2.5 by 4 inches
(this worked well on an adult sock)
Depending on the size of your sock you may need to adjust the size.

Fold the oval in half, use scissors or a ruler to press down the crease.

Push the cardboard to the tip of the sock.
Put your hand in, with fingers on top and thumb on the bottom of the cardboard, test out the mouth to make sure it is where you want it.
Now, cut a smaller oval in the sock, where you want the mouth.

Ick, look at that dirty sock!

Glue the cardboard to the inside of the sock.
I used hot glue so it would dry faster but any glue will work.

To make it look more like a mouth.
cut out another oval from fabric or paper and glue it on top.
Check it out, looks awesome, right?

Here are a few of the puppets the kids and I made
Sheep (using cotton balls for the woolly fur)

A Cute cat with the "hard mouth", yarn tail and ricrac collar

Puppy dogs with floppy ears
(those are our dogs Onyx and Yota...really they look just like them!)

Another cat and Bella's version of our dog Onyx

Bella enjoyed chasing us around the house having her puppet bit us, LOL

Happy Crafting!
~Patricia

7 comments:

Shawn said...

These are too cute! Great idea! I'll have to try them with my kids.

Megan/Brassy Apple said...

looks great! May have to try that one today if the boys get restless!

Anonymous said...

as usual you have the best crafts for kids! We have to get on this project this weekend! thanks

BethScharwath said...

Patricia!!!!
WONDERFUL!!!!!
Can't wait to make those with Kathryn.

PiaTillys Boutique said...

Love them, those are super cute! I'm with everyone else- I will definately be making those with my girls! Thanks so much for sharing! :)

Kelly

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One Boy One Girl Boutique said...

Ladies, Thanks for all the support. Please share photos if you make some puppets of your own :)

Welcome 1st time commenter Patricia! As the owner of 2 large dogs I am off to read your site. Thanks Again!