Pipe Cleaner Caterpillar: Easy, Colorful And Super Cute
We stumbled upon this fun and pretty quick kids craft while watching football last weekend. My daughter has SO many pipe cleaners, so we decided to see what creatures we could create with them. These caterpillars were quite cute and versatile given that the color combinations and length options were endless. Googly eyes were just the icing on the cake! I would like to add a few magnets to the back of one and put him on the fridge, but as she is playing with all of them…that will have to wait! If you have some pipe cleaners lying around, I hope you’ll give it a try. They will definitely put a smile on your face (and your kids too)!
MORE PIPE CLEANER PROJECTS:
Pipe Cleaner Caterpillar
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
- Pipe Cleaners (1 for each section of the caterpillar)
- Wire Cutters (or strong scissors that can cut a pipe cleaner. The basket shears I use in the garden also work great for this.)
- Googly Eyes
- Craft Glue
The Body Sections
1. Take the end of the pipe cleaner (about 1/4″) and bend it back on itself. This is the beginning of your circle. Holding it between your thumb and index finger, continue to wrap the pipe cleaner until you have a 1″ circle.
2. Take the end of the pipe cleaner and thread it through the last loop in the circle where you want it to end. Gently pull it tight.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 until all of your pipe cleaners have been used (and you’ve created some cute lollipops).
Assembly
4. Now for assembling your caterpillar (which will be done from tail to head). Take the 2 circles that you want at the end of the caterpillar. Thread the end of the last one (purple) through the outside loop on the second to last circle (pink). Slide them together and with both circles nice and flat, twist the ends together once.
5. Repeat step 4 with the next circle, only this time, twist the 3 ends together. Continue to add circles , twisting the last 3 ends each time, until all of the circles have been used and your caterpillar body is complete.
6. Now for the finishing touches. Turn the caterpillar over, so you can see the ends that were left hanging. Clip them close to the body and push what’s left inwards, so no one gets poked.
7. Turn the caterpillar back over and bend the last circle a bit to create the head.
8. Turning back over, take the end of the head and thread it underneath the other 2 ends. Pull tight to secure and clip extra.
Finishing Touches
9. Clip the last 2 ends, so they match in length as these are the caterpillar’s antennas.
10. Glue on the googly eyes (and a pipe cleaner mouth with one of the cut scraps if you choose).
It seems like a lot of steps, but once you get the hang of it, you can create them pretty quickly.
I hope these fuzzy caterpillars put a smile on you and your kids faces! Speaking of faces, let me know if you like the caterpillars better with or without a smile. I’m undecided and would love to hear what you think!
