I’m always on the hunt for turkey Thanksgiving crafts that feel fresh and new. And strangely, it’s kinda hard to find really good ones. First off, they are always brown, yellow, orange, and red and they are usually made from construction paper glued to a pinecone or a hand cut-out. Now I have no issue with those colors, or those materials for that matter, but I feel that the turkey craft deserves a little more attention, don’t you?

Being that Thanksgiving is in the crisp season of fall, I always feel that a turkey craft should feel warm and cozy, so this cutie is made primarily of felt and yarn. Wanna make one? Here’s how!

What you’ll need:

• 4″ tall plastic cup
• Scissors
• Yarn (a multi-colored yarn and yellow)
• 2″ styrofoam ball
• Magenta, gold, white, red, and black felt
• 2 white buttons
• Tacky glue
• Pipe cleaners

Make It:

1. Cut about 16 vertical slits in your cup (make sure it’s an even number and that they are relatively evenly spaced). Cut all the way to the bottom of the cup.
2. Weave the multi-colored yarn in and out of the cup slats starting at the bottom of the cup. Once you’ve made it all the way around, continue weaving, going under where you went over the last time. Keep weaving until you’ve made it to the top of the cup. Cut the yarn from the skein and tack it to the inside of the cup with a dab of glue.
3. Head: Wrap your Styrofoam ball in the yellow yarn until it’s completely covered. Glue the yarn ball to the bottom of the cup (open-side down).
4. Scarf: Cut a 12 by 1-inch piece of magenta felt and fringe each end about 1 inch. Wrap and tie the scarf around the turkey’s neck. (This will hide the bottom of the plastic cup.)
5. Beak: Fold a piece of gold felt and cut a 1″ skinny triangle on the fold. Glue the crease to the middle of the turkey’s head.
6. Feet: Cut 2 pieces of felt, about 3/4 x 1-inch and cut 2 slits in each piece to make the turkey’s tallons. Glue those pieces to the bottom of the cup.
7. Waddle: Cut 2 1-inch teardrop shapes from the red felt and glue them under the beak.
8. Eyes: Cut 2 small circles of black felt, glue them into the center of the white buttons, and glue above the beak.
9. Feathers: Cut about 6 feathers from the magenta, gold, and white felt. Glue a pipe cleaner down the middle of each. Glue the feathers to the back of the cup with the pipe cleaners facing towards the back.

Here are a few details:

Check out a few other adorable turkey crafts on my FamilyFun blog, Everyday Fun!

November 19, 2013| Everyday Crafts, Holidays, Thanksgiving, Yarn & Fabric